Leviticus 21

1 The Lord said also to Moses: Speak to the priests the sons of Aaron, and thou shalt say to them: Let not a priest incur an uncleanness at 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 But only for his kin, such as are near in blood, that is to say, for his father and for his mother, and for his son, and for his daughter, for his brother also,

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 And for a maiden sister, who hath had no 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 for the prince of his people shall he do any thing that may make him unclean.

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

5 Neither shall they shave their head, nor their beard, nor 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 shall not profane his name: for they offer the burnt offering of the Lord, and the bread of their God, and therefore 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 to wife a harlot or a vile prostitute, nor one that has been put away from her husband: because 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 offer the leaves of proposition. Let them therefore be holy, because I also am holy, the Lord, who sanctify 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 be taken in whoredom, and dishonour the name of her father, she shall be burnt with 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 to say, the priest, is the greatest among his brethren. upon whose head the oil of unction hath been poured, and whose hands have been consecrated for the priesthood, and who hath been vested with the holy vestments, shall not uncover his head, he shall not rend his garments:

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 Nor shall he go in at all to any dead person: not even for his father, or his mother, shall he be defiled:

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

12 Neither shall he go out of the holy places, lest he defile the sanctuary of the Lord, because the oil of the holy unction 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 unto his wife:

And he takes a wife in her virginity;

14 But a widow or one that is divorced, or defiled, or a harlot, he shall not take, but a maid of 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 kindred with the common people of his nation: for I am the Lord who sanctify 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: Whosoever of thy seed throughout their families, hath a blemish, he shall not offer 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 be blind, if he be lame, if he have a little, or a great, or 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 if his hand be broken,

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

20 If he be crookbacked, or blear eyed, or have a pearl in his eye, or a continual scab, or a dry scurf in his body, or a rupture:

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 Whosoever of the seed of Aaron the priest hath a blemish, he shall not approach to offer sacrifices to the Lord, nor 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 He shall eat nevertheless of the loaves, that are offered in the sanctuary,

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

23 Yet so that he enter not within the veil, nor approach to the altar, because he hath a blemish, and he must not defile my sanctuary. I am the Lord who sanctify 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 Moses therefore spoke to Aaron, and to his sons and to all Israel, all the things that had been commanded him.

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