Leviticus 21

1 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Speak to Aaron’s sons, the priests, and tell them that a priest is not to defile himself for a dead person among his people,

And the Lord said to Moses, Say to the priests, the sons of Aaron, Let no man make himself unclean for the dead among his people;

2 except for his immediate family—his mother, father, son, daughter, or brother,

But only for his near relations, for his mother or his father, his son or his daughter, and his brother;

3 or his unmarried sister who is near to him, since she has no husband.

And for his sister, a virgin, for she is his near relation and has had no husband, he may make himself unclean.

4 He is not to defile himself for those related to him by marriage, and so profane himself.

But let him, being a chief among his people, not make himself unclean in such a way as to put shame on himself.

5 Priests must not make bald spots on their heads, shave off the edges of their beards, or make cuts in their bodies.

They are not to have their hair cut off for the dead, or the hair on their chins cut short, or make cuts in their flesh.

6 They must be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God. Because they present to the LORD the offerings made by fire, the food of their God, they must be holy.

Let them be holy to their God and not make the name of their God common; for the fire offerings of the Lord and the bread of their God are offered by them, and they are to be holy.

7 A priest must not marry a woman defiled by prostitution or divorced by her husband, for the priest is holy to his God.

They may not take as wife a loose or common woman, or one who has been put away by her husband: for the priest is holy to his God.

8 You are to regard him as holy, since he presents the food of your God. He shall be holy to you, because I the LORD am holy—I who set you apart.

And he is to be holy in your eyes, for by him the bread of your God is offered; he is to be holy in your eyes, for I the Lord, who make you holy, am holy.

9 If a priest’s daughter defiles herself by prostituting herself, she profanes her father; she must be burned in the fire.

And if the daughter of a priest makes herself common and by her loose behaviour puts shame on her father, let her be burned with fire.

10 The priest who is highest among his brothers, who has had the anointing oil poured on his head and has been ordained to wear the priestly garments, must not let his hair hang loose or tear his garments.

And he who is the chief priest among his brothers, on whose head the holy oil has been put, who is marked out to put on the holy robes, may not let his hair go loose or have his clothing out of order as a sign of sorrow.

11 He must not go near any dead body; he must not defile himself, even for his father or mother.

He may not go near any dead body or make himself unclean for his father or his mother;

12 He must not leave or desecrate the sanctuary of his God, for the consecration of the anointing oil of his God is on him. I am the LORD.

He may not go out of the holy place or make the holy place of his God common; for the crown of the holy oil of his God is on him: I am the Lord.

13 The woman he marries must be a virgin.

And let him take as his wife one who has not had relations with a man.

14 He is not to marry a widow, a divorced woman, or one defiled by prostitution. He is to marry a virgin from his own people,

A widow, or one whose husband has put her away, or a common woman of loose behaviour, may not be the wife of a priest; but let him take a virgin from among his people.

15 so that he does not defile his offspring among his people, for I am the LORD who sanctifies him.”

And he may not make his seed unclean among his people, for I the Lord have made him holy.

16 Then the LORD said to Moses,

And the Lord said to Moses,

17 “Say to Aaron, ‘For the generations to come, none of your descendants who has a physical defect may approach to offer the food of his God.

Say to Aaron, If a man of your family, in any generation, is damaged in body, let him not come near to make the offering of the bread of his God.

18 No man who has any defect may approach—no man who is blind, lame, disfigured, or deformed;

For any man whose body is damaged may not come near: one who is blind, or has not the use of his legs, or one who has a broken nose or any unnatural growth,

19 no man who has a broken foot or hand,

Or a man with broken feet or hands,

20 or who is a hunchback or dwarf, or who has an eye defect, a festering rash, scabs, or a crushed testicle.

Or one whose back is bent, or one who is unnaturally small, or one who has a damaged eye, or whose skin is diseased, or whose sex parts are damaged;

21 No descendant of Aaron the priest who has a defect shall approach to present the offerings made by fire to the LORD. Since he has a defect, he is not to come near to offer the food of his God.

No man of the offspring of Aaron whose body is damaged in any way may come near to give the fire offerings of the Lord: he is damaged, he may not come near to make the offerings.

22 He may eat the most holy food of his God as well as the holy food,

He may take of the bread of God, the holy and the most holy;

23 but because he has a defect, he must not go near the veil or approach the altar, so as not to desecrate My sanctuaries. For I am the LORD who sanctifies them.’”

But he may not go inside the veil or come near the altar, because he is damaged; and he may not make my holy places common; for I the Lord have made them holy.

24 Moses told this to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites.

These are the words which Moses said to Aaron and to his sons and to all the children of Israel.