Leviticus 21

1 The Lord also said to Moses: Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and you shall say to them: Do not allow a priest to be contaminated by the death of his citizens,

And YHWH says to Moses, “Speak to the priests, sons of Aaron, and you have said to them: No one defiles himself for a [dead] person among his people,

2 except only by his blood-relatives and near-relatives, that is, by a father or mother, or by a son or daughter, or also a brother,

except for his relation who [is] near to him: for his mother, and for his father, and for his son, and for his daughter, and for his brother,

3 or a virgin sister, who is not married to a husband.

and for his sister, the virgin, who is near to him, who has not been to a man; he is defiled for her.

4 But not even by the leader of his people shall he be contaminated.

A master [priest] does not defile himself among his people—to defile himself;

5 Neither shall they shave their head or their beard, and they shall not make incisions in their flesh.

they do not make baldness on their head, and they do not shave the corner of their beard, and they do not make a cutting in their flesh;

6 They shall be holy to their God, and they shall not pollute his name. For they offer the incense of the Lord and the bread of their God, and because of this they shall be holy.

they are holy to their God, and they do not defile the Name of their God, for the fire-offerings of YHWH, bread of their God, they are bringing near, and have been holy.

7 They shall not take as a wife a promiscuous woman, or a prostitute, or her who has been repudiated by her husband. For they are consecrated to their God,

They do not take a woman of harlotry, or defiled, and they do not take a woman cast out from her husband, for he [is] holy to his God;

8 and they offer the bread of the presence. Therefore, let them be holy, for I also am holy: the Lord, who sanctifies them.

and you have sanctified him, for he is bringing the bread of your God near. He is holy to you, for I, YHWH, sanctifying you, [am] holy.

9 If the daughter of a priest will have been taken into prostitution, and will have violated the name of her father, she shall be consumed by fire.

And when a daughter of any priest defiles herself by going whoring—she is defiling her father; she is burned with fire.

10 The high priest, that is, the priest who is the greatest among his brothers, upon whose head the oil of anointing has been poured, and whose hands have been consecrated for the priesthood, and who has been vested with the holy vestments: he shall not expose his head; he shall not rend his vestments.

And the high priest of his brothers, on whose head the anointing oil is poured, and who has consecrated his hand to put on the garments, does not uncover his head, nor tear his garments,

11 And he shall not enter to any dead body whatsoever; likewise, not even by his father or mother shall he be contaminated.

nor does he come beside any dead person; he does not defile himself for his father and for his mother;

12 Neither shall he exit from the holy places, lest he pollute the Sanctuary of the Lord. For the oil of the holy anointing of his God is upon him. I am the Lord.

nor does he go out from the sanctuary, nor does he defile the sanctuary of his God, for the separation of the anointing oil of his God [is] on him; I [am] YHWH.

13 He shall take a virgin as his wife.

And he takes a wife in her virginity;

14 But a widow, or one who has been repudiated or defiled, or also a mistress, he shall not accept, but only a maiden from among his own people.

a widow, or cast out, or defiled, [or] a harlot—these he does not take, but he takes a virgin of his own people [for] a wife,

15 He shall not mingle the stock of his family with the common people of his nation. For I am the Lord, who sanctifies him.

and he does not defile his seed among his people; for I [am] YHWH, sanctifying him.”

16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

And YHWH speaks to Moses, saying,

17 Say to Aaron: A man from your offspring, throughout their families, who has a blemish, shall not offer the bread to his God.

“Speak to Aaron, saying, No man of your seed throughout their generations in whom there is blemish draws near to bring the bread of his God near,

18 Neither shall he approach to minister to him: if he is blind, if he is lame, if he is small, or large, or has a crooked nose,

for no man in whom [is] a blemish draws near: a man blind, or lame, or disfigured, or deformed,

19 if his foot or hand is broken,

or a man in whom there is a breach in the foot, or a breach in the hand,

20 if he has a bulging back or bleary eyes, or if he has a white spot in his eye, or a chronic scab, or a skin disease on his body, or a hernia.

or hunchbacked, or a dwarf, or [with] a defect in his eye, or [with] an itch, or [with] a scab, or [with] a broken testicle.

21 Anyone from the offspring of Aaron, the priest, who has a blemish, shall not approach to offer sacrifices to the Lord, nor the bread to his God.

No man in whom is blemish (of the seed of Aaron the priest) comes near to bring the fire-offerings of YHWH near; blemish [is] in him; he does not come near to bring the bread of his God near.

22 Nevertheless, he shall eat from the loaves which are offered in the Sanctuary.

Bread of his God—from the most holy things and from the holy things—he eats;

23 But even so, he may not enter within the veil, nor approach to the altar. For he has a blemish, and he must not contaminate my Sanctuary. I am the Lord, who sanctifies them.

only, he does not come toward the veil, and he does not draw near to the altar; for blemish [is] in him; and he does not defile My sanctuaries; for I [am] YHWH, sanctifying them.”

24 Therefore, Moses spoke to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all of Israel, everything that had been commanded to him.

And Moses speaks to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the sons of Israel.