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 sɛ, “Ka kyerɛ asɔfoɔ no sɛ, ‘Wɔnnsɔ efunu 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 wɔbɛsɔ efunu mu a, na ɛyɛ wɔn fieni, sɛ ebia, ɛna, agya, ɔbabarima, ɔbabaa, 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 onuabaa a ɔyɛ ɔbaabunu a ɔte ase no na ɔdan ɔsɔfoɔ 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.
Ɛfiri sɛ, ɔsɔfoɔ no yɛ obi a ɔtua ne nkurɔfoɔ ano a ɛnsɛ sɛ ɔgu ne ho fi sɛdeɛ onipa foforɔ bi bɛtumi agu ne ho fi no.
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].
“‘Asɔfoɔ no nni ho kwan sɛ wɔbɔ’, yi wɔn abɔgyesɛ 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 wɔgu ne din ho fi. Sɛ ɛba saa a, wɔremfata sɛ wɔde ogya bɛbɔ aduane afɔdeɛ ama Awurade wɔn Onyankopɔn.
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 ɔsɔfoɔ ware odwamanfoɔ anaa ɔbaa bi a ɔfiri ɔman foforɔ so. Ɔnni ho kwan sɛ ɔware ɔbaa bi a wagyae awadeɛ, ɛfiri sɛ, ɔsɔfoɔ 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 ɔsɔfoɔ no asi hɔ sɛ ɔmmɔ mo Onyankopɔn afɔdeɛ; ɔyɛ kronkron na me Awurade a mete 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.
“‘Ɔsɔfoɔ babaa biara a ɔbɛbɔ adwaman no gu nʼagya ne ɔno ankasa ho fi, enti ɛsɛ sɛ wɔhye 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 ɔsɔfopanin a wɔde ngo sononko bi asra no ahyɛ no atadeɛ sononko no gyaa ne tirinwi ma ɛsensɛn wɔ ayiyɛ mu. Saa ara nso na ɔnni ho kwan sɛ ɔsunsuane nʼatadeɛ 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.
Ɔnni ho kwan sɛ ɔkɔ efunu ho—nʼagya anaa ne maame funu koraa ɔnni ho kwan sɛ ɔkɔ ho.
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].
Sɛ ɔgu so reyɛ nʼasɔfodwuma wɔ kronkronbea hɔ a, ɔnni ho kwan sɛ ɔfiri adi. Ɛnsɛ sɛ ɔfa mʼAhyiaeɛ Ntomadan sɛ efie bi kɛkɛ, ɛfiri sɛ, ne Onyankopɔn ngo a wɔde tee ne ho no da so wɔ ne so. Mene Awurade.
13 Women whom you priests marry must be virgins.
“‘Ɛsɛ sɛ ɔware ɔbaabunu.
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 okunafoɔ anaa ɔbaa bi a wagyae awadeɛ anaa odwamanfoɔ. Ɛsɛ sɛ ɔbaa a ɔbɛware no no yɛ ɔbaabunu a ɔfiri ne ɔman mu,
sɛdeɛ ɛbɛyɛ a ɔngu ne mma ho fi wɔ ne nkurɔfoɔ mu. Mene Awurade a metee ne ho no.’”
16 Yahweh also said to Moses/me,
Awurade ka kyerɛɛ Mose sɛ,
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 sɛ, ɛfiri awoɔ ntoatoasoɔ so kɔsi awoɔ ntoatoasoɔ so no, nʼasefoɔ biara a wɔadi dɛm no nni ho kwan sɛ wɔbɔ Onyankopɔn afɔdeɛ.
18 No one who is blind or lame or deformed, or whose [face is] disfigured,
Obi a wadi dɛm mmɛm me: onifirani anaa apakye anaa deɛ 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 deɛ ɔyɛ afu anaa akwatia anaa deɛ nʼani nyɛ anaa deɛ ekuro atutu no anaa deɛ ɔyɛ ɛtwo.
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.
Ɔsɔfoɔ Aaron aseni biara a wadi dɛm mma mmɛbɔ ɔhyeɛ afɔdeɛ mma Awurade. Wadi dɛm, ɛno enti ɛnsɛ sɛ ɔtwe bɛn sɛ ɔde ne Onyankopɔn aduane rebrɛ no.
22 Priests who have defects are permitted to eat the various kinds of holy food offered to me.
Nanso sɛ wɔbɔ afɔdeɛ no wie a, ɔsɔfoɔ no tumi ma no Onyankopɔn afɔdeɛ no aduane no bi di a ɛmfa ho sɛ ɛyɛ afɔdeɛ 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 enti, ɔnni ho kwan sɛ ɔkɔ ntwamutam no akyi anaa ɔbɛn afɔrebukyia no. Yei bɛgu me kronkronbea hɔ ho fi na ɛyɛ Awurade na wate 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 mmammarima ne Israelfoɔ nyinaa.
