Leviticus 21
1 Yahweh also said to Moses/me, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them,
Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Mose se, “Ka kyerɛ Aaron mma asɔfo no se, ‘wonnso funu mu mfa ngu wɔn ho fi.
2 ‘You priests must not cause yourselves to become unfit to do my work by [touching] corpses. Priests are permitted to touch only the corpses of close relatives, such as the priest’s mother or father or his son or daughter or his brother.
Sɛ wobeso funu mu a, na ɛyɛ wɔn fini, sɛ ebia, ɛna, agya, ɔbabarima, ɔbabea, onuabarima
3 Priests are also permitted to touch the corpse of a sister if she is not married, because she has no husband [to bury her body].
anaa onuabea a ɔyɛ ɔbabun a onni kunu na ɔte ase no na ɔdan ɔsɔfo no.
4 Priests must not cause themselves to become unfit to do my work [DOU] by [touching corpses of] people who were married to one of their close relatives.
Ɛnsɛ sɛ ɔware ne busuani bi na ɔfa so gu ne ho fi.
5 You priests must not shave your heads or shave the edges of your beards or cut your bodies [to show that you are mourning for someone who has died].
“‘Asɔfo no nni ho kwan sɛ wɔbɔ tikwaw, yi wɔn abogyesɛ anaasɛ wɔsesa wɔn ho.
6 You must act in ways that I, your God, consider to be holy, and not disgrace my name/reputation. You are the ones who present to me the offerings that are burned. [It is as though] those offerings are food for me, your God; so you must act in ways that are holy.
Ɛsɛ sɛ wɔyɛ kronkron ma wɔn Onyankopɔn. Ɛnsɛ sɛ wogu ne din ho fi. Sɛ ɛba saa a, wɔremfata sɛ wɔde ogya bɛbɔ aduan afɔre ama Awurade wɔn Nyankopɔn.
7 You priests must not marry women who have been prostitutes or who have been divorced from their husbands, because you priests are (set apart for me/holy).
“‘Ɛnsɛ sɛ ɔsɔfo ware oguamanfo anaa ɔbea bi a ofi ɔman foforo so. Onni ho kwan sɛ ɔware ɔbea bi a wagyae aware, efisɛ ɔsɔfo yɛ onipa kronkron ma Onyankopɔn.
8 You must consider that you are holy, because you offer food to me, your God. Consider yourselves to be holy because I, Yahweh, [the one who caused you to be priests and] the one who enables you to be holy, am holy.
Wɔayi ɔsɔfo no asi hɔ sɛ ɔmmɔ mo Nyankopɔn afɔre; ɔyɛ kronkron na me Awurade a metew mo ho ma moyɛ kronkron no nso meyɛ kronkron.
9 If a priest’s daughter disgraces herself by becoming a prostitute, she disgraces her father; and she must be killed by being burned in a fire.
“‘Ɔsɔfo babea biara a ɔbɛbɔ aguaman no gu nʼagya ne ɔno ankasa ho fi, enti ɛsɛ sɛ wɔhyew no.
10 The Supreme Priest is the one among his relatives who has been [appointed for that work] by having his head anointed with olive oil. He is also the one who has been appointed to wear the special garments that priests wear. He must not allow the hair on his [head] to remain uncombed, and he must not tear his clothes [when he is mourning for someone].
“‘Ɛnsɛ sɛ ɔsɔfopanyin a wɔde ngo sononko bi asra no ahyɛ no atade sononko no gyaa ne tinwi a onni no ni anaasɛ ebetwa ne ntama mu.
11 He must not enter some place where there is a corpse. He must not do that and cause himself to become unfit for his work, even if it is his father or his mother who has died.
Onni ho kwan sɛ ɔkɔ beae a funu da hɔ; nʼagya anaa ne na funu koraa, onni ho kwan sɛ ɔkɔ ho na ɔde agu ne ho fi
12 He must not leave the Sacred Tent [to join those who are mourning], because he would cause himself to become unfit for his work and would also defile/desecrate the Sacred Tent. He must not leave the Sacred Tent [at that time], because by being anointed with olive oil he has been (appointed/set apart) to serve his God [in the Sacred Tent]. I, Yahweh, [am the one who am commanding this].
anaa nso sɛ ogu so reyɛ nʼasɔfodwuma wɔ kronkronbea hɔ a, ɛnsɛ sɛ ofi adi. Ɛnsɛ sɛ ɔfa me kronkronbea no sɛ ofi bi kɛkɛ, efisɛ ne Nyankopɔn ngo a wɔde tew ne ho no da so wɔ ne so. Mene Awurade.
13 Women whom you priests marry must be virgins.
“‘Ɛsɛ sɛ ɔware ɔbabun.
14 You priests must not marry widows or prostitutes or divorced women, because if you did that, [if you later have] sons, they would not be acceptable to be priests among your people. You must marry only virgins from among your own people. I am Yahweh, who sets priests apart to be holy.’”
Ɛnsɛ se ɔware okunafo anaa ɔbea bi a wagyae aware anaa oguamanfo. Ɛsɛ sɛ ɔbea a ɔbɛware no no yɛ ɔbabun a ofi ne man mu,
sɛnea ɛbɛyɛ a ongu ne mma ho fi wɔ ne nkurɔfo mu. Mene Awurade a metew ne ho no.’”
16 Yahweh also said to Moses/me,
Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Mose se,
17 “Say this to Aaron: 'For all future time, none of your descendants who has any defects [on his body] will be allowed to come near [the altar] to offer [sacrifices to me which will be like] [MET] my food:
“Ka kyerɛ Aaron se, efi awo ntoatoaso a ɛbɛba no so rekɔ no, wʼaseni biara a wadi dɛm no nni ho kwan sɛ ɔbɔ Onyankopɔn afɔre.
18 No one who is blind or lame or deformed, or whose [face is] disfigured,
Obi a wadi dɛm mmɛn me: onifuraefo anaa apakye anaa nea ɔwɔ honam akwaa mu sintɔ;
19 no man with a crippled foot or a crippled hand,
obi a ɔyɛ abasin anaa nansin,
20 no man who is a hunchback or a dwarf, no man whose eyes are defective, no man who has a skin disease [DOU] or whose testicles have been damaged is allowed to brings sacrifices.
anaa nea ɔyɛ afu anaa akwatia anaa nea nʼani nye anaa nea kuru atutu no anaa nea ɔyɛ twow.
21 No descendant of Aaron, the [first Supreme] Priest, who has any defect is allowed to come to the altar to offer to me, his God, sacrifices that will be burned.
Ɔsɔfo Aaron aseni biara a wadi dɛm mma mmɛbɔ ɔhyew afɔre mma Awurade. Wadi dɛm, ɛno nti ɛnsɛ sɛ otwiw bɛn sɛ ɔde ne Nyankopɔn aduan rebrɛ no.
22 Priests who have defects are permitted to eat the various kinds of holy food offered to me.
Nanso sɛ wɔbɔ afɔre no wie a, ɔsɔfo no tumi ma no Onyankopɔn afɔre no aduan no bi di a ɛmfa ho sɛ ɛyɛ afɔre kronkron.
23 But because of their defects, they must not go near the curtain [in the Sacred Tent] or near the altar, because if they did that, they would desecrate my Sacred Tent. I am Yahweh, the one who sets those places apart as being holy.'”
Nanso ne dɛm no nti, onni ho kwan sɛ ɔkɔ ntwamtam no akyi anaa ɔbɛn afɔremuka no. Eyi begu me kronkronbea hɔ ho fi na ɛyɛ Awurade na watew hɔ ho.”
24 So Moses/I told this to Aaron and to his sons and to all the Israeli people.
Enti Mose hyɛɛ mmara yi maa Aaron ne ne mmabarima ne Israelfo nyinaa.
