Leviticus / Chapter 21

Leviticus 21

24 verses • Westminster Leningrad Codex

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

Regulations for priestly holiness address two levels: ordinary priests must avoid corpse contamination (with exceptions for immediate family), and the high priest must avoid it entirely. Physical disqualifications for altar service are listed. The chapter protects the holiness of the priestly office as mediators of God's presence.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

The double speech formula emor... ve'amarta ("say... and tell them") intensifies the urgency. The word nephesh ("person") here paradoxically means "corpse" -- the living-soul term designates a dead body. The high priest's total separation from death-contamination (not even for parents, v11) reflects his unique proximity to the source of life. Physical-blemish restrictions (v17-23) are about representational fitness, not inherent worth -- blemished priests still eat the sacred food.

Translation Friction

The verse about ba'al (v4) is notoriously difficult: the word can mean "husband," "master," or "leader." We followed the marital reading (prohibition against contracting corpse-impurity for in-laws) while noting the alternatives. The reflexive verb yitamma ("make himself unclean") required rendering that preserved the active choice involved -- the priest incurs impurity by choosing contact with the dead. The mourning practices (v5) -- head-shaving, beard-trimming, skin-cutting -- are pagan death rituals, and we identified them as such.

Connections

The high priest's unique restrictions anticipate Heb 7:26 ("separated from sinners"). The blemish list parallels the unblemished requirement for sacrificial animals (1:3; 22:17-25). The priestly mourning restrictions overlap with Ezekiel's experience (Ezek 24:16-17). The graduated holiness (people < priests < high priest) reflects the tabernacle's spatial gradient (court < holy place < most holy place).

Leviticus 21:1

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֱמֹ֥ר אֶל־הַכֹּהֲנִ֖ים בְּנֵ֣י אַהֲרֹ֑ן וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֲלֵהֶ֔ם לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ לֹֽא־יִטַּמָּ֖א בְּעַמָּֽיו׃

The LORD told Moses: Say to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and tell them — a priest must not make himself ritually unclean through contact with a dead person among his people,

KJV And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There shall none be defiled for the dead among his people:

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The double speech formula emor... ve'amarta ('say... and tell them') intensifies the urgency of the instruction — Moses must not merely relay it but press it firmly upon the priests. The word nephesh here means 'dead person' (literally 'soul/person'), a usage where the living-soul term paradoxically designates a corpse. The verb yitamma ('make himself unclean') is reflexive: the priest actively incurs impurity by choosing contact with the dead. This opening verse establishes that priestly holiness demands separation from death-contamination that ordinary Israelites are permitted.

Leviticus 21:2

כִּ֚י אִם־לִשְׁאֵר֔וֹ הַקָּרֹ֖ב אֵלָ֑יו לְאִמּ֣וֹ וּלְאָבִ֔יו וְלִבְנ֥וֹ וּלְבִתּ֖וֹ וּלְאָחִֽיו׃

except for his closest blood relatives: his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, and his brother.

KJV But for his kin, that is near unto him, that is, for his mother, and for his father, and for his son, and for his daughter, and for his brother,

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The term she'ero ('his flesh/kin') refers to the nearest blood relations — those so close they are considered part of one's own body. The list is precise and exhaustive for this exception: five categories of immediate family. Notably absent is the priest's wife, though later rabbinic tradition included her. The ordering — mother before father — may reflect the mother's primacy in early household bonds, or simply follow the Hebrew poetic rhythm.

Leviticus 21:3

וְלַאֲחֹת֤וֹ הַבְּתוּלָה֙ הַקְּרוֹבָ֣ה אֵלָ֔יו אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹֽא־הָיְתָ֖ה לְאִ֑ישׁ לָ֖הּ יִטַּמָּֽא׃

Also for his virgin sister who remains close to him because she has not yet married — for her he may make himself unclean.

KJV And for his sister a virgin, that is nigh unto him, which hath had no husband; for her may he be defiled.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The betulah ('virgin') qualification is critical: once a sister marries, she enters her husband's family unit and is no longer considered the priest's closest kin. The phrase haqerovah elav ('who is close to him') indicates both physical proximity (she still lives in the family household) and relational closeness. A married sister would have her husband's family to attend to her burial. This exception underscores that the prohibition in verse 1 applies to extended kin and community members, not one's innermost family circle.

Leviticus 21:4

לֹ֥א יִטַּמָּ֖א בַּ֣עַל בְּעַמָּ֑יו לְהֵ֖חַלּֽוֹ׃

He must not make himself unclean as a married man among his people, thereby desecrating himself.

KJV But he shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

This verse is notoriously difficult. The word ba'al can mean 'husband,' 'master,' or 'leader.' If read as 'husband,' the verse forbids the priest from contracting corpse-impurity for his wife's relatives (in-laws). If read as 'leader/chief man,' the emphasis is on his public status: precisely because of his prominence he must not profane himself (lehechallo — from challal, 'to profane/desecrate'). The rendering follows the marital reading, which fits the immediate context of family-based exceptions in verses 2–3.

Leviticus 21:5

לֹֽא־[יקרחה] (יִקְרְח֤וּ) קׇרְחָה֙ בְּרֹאשָׁ֔ם וּפְאַ֥ת זְקָנָ֖ם לֹ֣א יְגַלֵּ֑חוּ וּבִ֨בְשָׂרָ֔ם לֹ֥א יִשְׂרְט֖וּ שָׂרָֽטֶת׃

They must not shave bald patches on their heads, trim the edges of their beards, or make cuts in their skin.

KJV They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

Three prohibited mourning practices are listed, all associated with pagan death rituals in the ancient Near East: qorchah ('bald patch' — ritual head-shaving for the dead), shaving pe'at zaqanam ('the edge/corner of their beard'), and seret ('gash/cut' — self-laceration). These same prohibitions appear for all Israelites in 19:27–28, but are restated here with special force for priests. The bracketed kethiv/qere notation in the Hebrew ([yiqrechu]/yiqrechah) reflects a textual variant between singular and plural forms, both meaning 'shave bald.'

Leviticus 21:6

קְדֹשִׁ֤ים יִהְיוּ֙ לֵאלֹ֣הֵיהֶ֔ם וְלֹ֣א יְחַלְּל֔וּ שֵׁ֖ם אֱלֹהֵיהֶ֑ם כִּי֩ אֶת־אִשֵּׁ֨י יְהֹוָ֜ה לֶ֧חֶם אֱלֹהֵיהֶ֛ם הֵ֥ם מַקְרִיבִ֖ם וְהָ֥יוּ קֹֽדֶשׁ׃

They must be holy to their God and must not desecrate the name of their God, because they are the ones who present the LORD's fire offerings — the food of their God. Therefore they must be holy.

KJV They shall be holy unto their God, and not profane the name of their God: for the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and the bread of their God, they do offer: therefore they shall be holy.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

This verse provides the theological rationale for priestly restrictions: qedoshim yihyu ('they must be holy') frames holiness as an obligation, not a suggestion. The key term lechem eloheihem ('the food/bread of their God') does not imply God literally eats — it is a conventional ancient Near Eastern expression for offerings presented at the divine table. The verb yechalelu ('desecrate,' from challal) stands in direct opposition to qodesh ('holy'): the priest who engages in pagan mourning rites profanes the very Name he is consecrated to honor.

Leviticus 21:7

אִשָּׁ֨ה זֹנָ֤ה וַחֲלָלָה֙ לֹ֣א יִקָּ֔חוּ וְאִשָּׁ֛ה גְּרוּשָׁ֥ה מֵאִישָׁ֖הּ לֹ֣א יִקָּ֑חוּ כִּֽי־קָדֹ֥שׁ ה֖וּא לֵאלֹהָֽיו׃

They must not marry a woman who is a prostitute or who has been desecrated, nor may they marry a woman divorced from her husband, because the priest is holy to his God.

KJV They shall not take a wife that is a whore, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he is holy unto his God.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

Three categories of women are forbidden as priestly wives: zonah ('prostitute' — whether a professional sex worker or a woman of sexual impropriety), challalah ('a desecrated woman' — from challal, possibly a woman born of an illegitimate priestly marriage or one who has lost her sanctified status), and gerushah ('a divorced woman'). The concern is not the woman's moral character per se but the priest's holiness status: his household must reflect the same unblemished consecration as his service. The singular 'he is holy' (qadosh hu) applies the principle individually to each priest.

Leviticus 21:8

וְקִ֨דַּשְׁתּ֔וֹ כִּֽי־אֶת־לֶ֥חֶם אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ ה֣וּא מַקְרִ֑יב קָדֹשׁ֙ יִֽהְיֶה־לָּ֔ךְ כִּ֣י קָד֔וֹשׁ אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָ֖ה מְקַדִּשְׁכֶֽם׃

You must treat him as holy, because he presents the food of your God. He must be holy to you, because I, the LORD who sets you apart as holy, am holy.

KJV Thou shalt sanctify him therefore; for he offereth the bread of thy God: he shall be holy unto thee: for I the LORD, which sanctify you, am holy.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The address shifts from the priests to the community: veqidashto ('you shall sanctify him') is second person singular, commanding each Israelite to uphold the priest's sanctified status. The grounding formula ki qadosh ani YHWH meqaddishkhem ('because I, the LORD who makes you holy, am holy') anchors all priestly holiness in divine holiness itself. The participle meqaddishkhem ('the one who makes you holy') emphasizes God's ongoing sanctifying action — holiness is not self-generated but conferred by God and maintained through obedience.

Leviticus 21:9

וּבַת֙ אִ֣ישׁ כֹּהֵ֔ן כִּ֥י תֵחֵ֖ל לִזְנ֑וֹת אֶת־אָבִ֙יהָ֙ הִ֣יא מְחַלֶּ֔לֶת בָּאֵ֖שׁ תִּשָּׂרֵֽף׃

If the daughter of a priest desecrates herself by engaging in prostitution, she desecrates her father — she must be burned with fire.

KJV And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The verb techel ('she profanes/desecrates,' from challal) links the daughter's sexual misconduct directly to her father's priestly status: hi mechallelet ('she is desecrating') — her actions actively profane him. The punishment ba'esh tissareph ('she shall be burned with fire') is exceptionally severe, exceeding the standard penalty for sexual immorality, precisely because the priestly household carries a heightened level of sanctity. The fire may correspond symbolically to the fire offerings the priest presents — the same element that consecrates the altar now executes judgment on the desecrated household.

Leviticus 21:10

וְהַכֹּהֵן֩ הַגָּד֨וֹל מֵאֶחָ֜יו אֲֽשֶׁר־יוּצַ֥ק עַל־רֹאשׁ֣וֹ ׀ שֶׁ֤מֶן הַמִּשְׁחָה֙ וּמִלֵּ֣א אֶת־יָד֔וֹ לִלְבֹּ֖שׁ אֶת־הַבְּגָדִ֑ים אֶת־רֹאשׁוֹ֙ לֹ֣א יִפְרָ֔ע וּבְגָדָ֖יו לֹ֥א יִפְרֹֽם׃

The priest who is greatest among his brothers — the one on whose head the anointing oil has been poured and who has been ordained to wear the sacred garments — must not let his hair hang loose or tear his garments.

KJV And he that is the high priest among his brethren, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured, and that is consecrated to put on the garments, shall not uncover his head, nor rend his clothes;

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The high priest (hakohen hagadol — literally 'the great priest') is identified by two consecration markers: the anointing oil (shemen hamishchah) poured on his head, and the filling of his hand (umille et yado — an ordination idiom meaning 'to install in office,' literally 'to fill the hand,' likely referring to placing sacred objects in the priest's hands during investiture). Two mourning signs are forbidden: yifra ('let loose' — disheveling the hair as a grief display) and yifrom ('tear' — rending garments). These are standard expressions of grief permitted to ordinary Israelites and even regular priests, but the high priest's consecrated status overrides personal mourning.

Leviticus 21:11

וְעַ֛ל כׇּל־נַפְשֹׁ֥ת מֵ֖ת לֹ֣א יָבֹ֑א לְאָבִ֥יו וּלְאִמּ֖וֹ לֹ֥א יִטַּמָּֽא׃

He must not go near any dead body at all. He must not make himself unclean even for his father or his mother.

KJV Neither shall he go in to any dead body, nor defile himself for his father, or for his mother;

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The phrase kol nafshot met ('any dead person' — literally 'all souls of the dead') is comprehensive: no exceptions. The contrast with ordinary priests (vv 2–3) is stark — whereas they may contract corpse-impurity for immediate family, the high priest may not do so even for his own parents (le'aviv ule'immo). This absolute prohibition underscores that the high priest's consecration supersedes all natural family obligations. His holiness status is so elevated that even the deepest human grief must yield to his sacred role.

Leviticus 21:12

וּמִן־הַמִּקְדָּשׁ֙ לֹ֣א יֵצֵ֔א וְלֹ֣א יְחַלֵּ֔ל אֵ֖ת מִקְדַּ֣שׁ אֱלֹהָ֑יו כִּ֡י נֵ֠זֶר שֶׁ֣מֶן מִשְׁחַ֧ת אֱלֹהָ֛יו עָלָ֖יו אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָֽה׃

He must not leave the sanctuary area, and he must not desecrate the sanctuary of his God, because the consecration of the anointing oil of his God is upon him. I am the LORD.

KJV Neither shall he go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for the crown of the anointing oil of his God is upon him: I am the LORD.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The word nezer ('consecration/crown/separation') is the same root used for the Nazirite vow (Numbers 6), signifying a state of dedicated separation. Here it refers to the anointing oil's ongoing consecrating effect on the high priest — he carries its mark permanently. The phrase lo yetse ('he must not go out') likely means he must not leave the sanctuary precincts to attend a funeral, not that he is physically confined there at all times. The divine signature ani YHWH ('I am the LORD') closes the instruction with ultimate authority.

Leviticus 21:13

וְה֕וּא אִשָּׁ֥ה בִבְתוּלֶ֖יהָ יִקָּֽח׃

He must marry a woman who is a virgin.

KJV And he shall take a wife in her virginity.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The phrase bivtuleiha ('in her virginity') uses the plural construct of betulim, indicating the full state of virginity rather than simply the noun betulah ('virgin'). The high priest's marriage requirement is stricter than the ordinary priest's (v 7): while regular priests are forbidden prostitutes, desecrated women, and divorcees, the high priest is restricted to an even narrower category — only a virgin qualifies. This requirement ensures that the high priestly line originates from an unblemished marital union.

Leviticus 21:14

אַלְמָנָ֤ה וּגְרוּשָׁה֙ וַחֲלָלָ֣ה זֹנָ֔ה אֶת־אֵ֖לֶּה לֹ֣א יִקָּ֑ח כִּ֛י אִם־בְּתוּלָ֥ה מֵעַמָּ֖יו יִקַּ֥ח אִשָּֽׁה׃

A widow, a divorced woman, a desecrated woman, or a prostitute — he must not marry any of these. He may only take a virgin from his own people as a wife.

KJV A widow, or a divorced woman, or profane, or an harlot, these shall he not take: but he shall take a virgin of his own people to wife.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The high priest's forbidden marriage list adds almanah ('widow') to the three categories already banned for ordinary priests (v 7). A widow, though morally blameless, has been 'opened' through a prior marriage and no longer meets the virginity requirement. The phrase me'ammav ('from his own people') restricts the high priest's marriage pool to Israelite women — specifically virgins within his own community. The four-fold exclusion list (widow, divorcee, challalah, zonah) followed by the single permitted category (betulah from his people) creates a stark rhetorical contrast.

Leviticus 21:15

וְלֹֽא־יְחַלֵּ֥ל זַרְע֖וֹ בְּעַמָּ֑יו כִּ֛י אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָ֖ה מְקַדְּשֽׁוֹ׃

He must not desecrate his offspring among his people, because I am the LORD who sets him apart as holy.

KJV Neither shall he profane his seed among his people: for I the LORD do sanctify him.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The verb yechallel ('desecrate,' from challal) applied to zar'o ('his offspring/seed') reveals the rationale behind the marriage restrictions: an improper union would produce challal children — offspring with compromised priestly status. The term challal in priestly contexts means 'profaned' or 'disqualified from sacred service.' The closing formula ani YHWH meqadsho ('I am the LORD who sanctifies him') grounds the entire high-priestly section (vv 10–15) in God's own sanctifying action — the restrictions exist to preserve what God Himself has consecrated.

Leviticus 21:16

וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר׃

The LORD spoke to Moses:

KJV And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The speech formula vayedabber YHWH el Mosheh lemor ('the LORD spoke to Moses, saying') marks a new section within the chapter. This third-person narrative frame transitions from the high priest's marriage laws (vv 10–15) to the physical-blemish disqualifications (vv 17–24). The shift to a fresh divine speech signals that the following regulations, though thematically related, carry independent legislative force.

Leviticus 21:17

דַּבֵּ֥ר אֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֖ן לֵאמֹ֑ר אִ֣ישׁ מִֽזַּרְעֲךָ֞ לְדֹרֹתָ֗ם אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִהְיֶ֥ה בוֹ֙ מ֔וּם לֹ֣א יִקְרַ֔ב לְהַקְרִ֖יב לֶ֥חֶם אֱלֹהָֽיו׃

Speak to Aaron and tell him: Any man among your descendants throughout their generations who has a physical defect must not approach to present the food of his God.

KJV Speak unto Aaron, saying, Whosoever he be of thy seed in their generations that hath any blemish, let him not approach to offer the bread of his God.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

This instruction is directed to Aaron personally (daber el Aharon), not to the priests collectively — emphasizing that these rules govern his own lineage. The word mum ('defect/blemish') is the chapter's key technical term for physical disqualification. The verb yiqrav ('approach') paired with lehaqriv ('to present/offer') uses the same root q-r-b twice: the blemished priest may not draw near to bring near. The phrase lechem elohav ('the food of his God') again denotes sacrificial offerings using the conventional 'food' metaphor.

Leviticus 21:18

כִּ֥י כׇל־אִ֛ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־בּ֥וֹ מ֖וּם לֹ֣א יִקְרָ֑ב אִ֤ישׁ עִוֵּר֙ א֣וֹ פִסֵּ֔חַ א֥וֹ חָרֻ֖ם א֥וֹ שָׂרֽוּעַ׃

No man who has a physical defect may approach: whether blind, or lame, or with a disfigured face, or with a limb too long,

KJV For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The blemish catalogue begins with four conditions. Ivver ('blind') and pisseach ('lame') are clear physical disabilities. Charum ('disfigured' — possibly a slit or sunken nose, or more broadly a facial deformity) is debated; the root ch-r-m suggests mutilation or something cut away. Sarua ('extended/stretched out' — a limb that is disproportionately long or has extra digits) completes the first group. These are not moral judgments but ritual standards: the priest who offers must physically mirror the 'unblemished' (tamim) quality required of the sacrificial animal itself.

Leviticus 21:19

א֣וֹ אִ֔ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־יִהְיֶ֥ה ב֖וֹ שֶׁ֣בֶר רָ֑גֶל א֖וֹ שֶׁ֥בֶר יָֽד׃

or a man with a broken foot or a broken hand,

KJV Or a man that is brokenfooted, or brokenhanded,

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The phrase shever regel ('fracture of the foot') and shever yad ('fracture of the hand') use shever ('break/fracture'), likely referring to a permanent deformity from a healed fracture rather than a temporary injury. The pairing of foot and hand covers the body's primary instruments of mobility and service — a priest must be physically whole in the limbs he uses to carry offerings and perform altar duties.

Leviticus 21:20

אֽוֹ־גִבֵּ֣ן אוֹ־דַ֔ק א֖וֹ תְּבַלֻּ֣ל בְּעֵינ֑וֹ א֤וֹ גָרָב֙ א֣וֹ יַלֶּ֔פֶת א֖וֹ מְר֥וֹחַ אָֽשֶׁךְ׃

or hunchbacked, or stunted in growth, or with a defect in his eye, or with a festering rash, or with scabs, or with crushed testicles.

KJV Or crookbackt, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

Six more disqualifying conditions: gibben ('hunchbacked' — spinal curvature), daq ('thin/stunted' — possibly a dwarf or an emaciated person; the root means 'crushed fine'), teballul be'eino ('a mixing/confusion in his eye' — likely a cataract, clouded lens, or iris defect), garav ('scab/itch' — a chronic skin disease), yallefet ('running sore/eczema' — a spreading skin condition), and meroach ashekh ('crushed testicle' — testicular damage rendering the man sexually impaired). The list mirrors the blemish catalogue for sacrificial animals in 22:22–24, reinforcing the principle that the one who offers must match the offering's standard of physical wholeness.

Leviticus 21:21

כׇּל־אִ֞ישׁ אֲשֶׁר־בּ֣וֹ מ֗וּם מִזֶּ֙רַע֙ אַהֲרֹ֣ן הַכֹּהֵ֔ן לֹ֣א יִגַּ֔שׁ לְהַקְרִ֖יב אֶת־אִשֵּׁ֣י יְהֹוָ֑ה מ֣וּם בּ֔וֹ אֵ֚ת לֶ֣חֶם אֱלֹהָ֔יו לֹ֥א יִגַּ֖שׁ לְהַקְרִֽיב׃

No man from the line of Aaron the priest who has a physical defect may come forward to present the LORD's fire offerings. He has a defect; he must not come forward to present the food of his God.

KJV No man that hath a blemish of the seed of Aaron the priest shall come nigh to offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire: he hath a blemish; he shall not come nigh to offer the bread of his God.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

This verse serves as a summary restatement, framing the blemish list (vv 18–20) with a definitive prohibition. The double statement — lo yiggash lehaqriv... lo yiggash lehaqriv ('he must not come forward to present... he must not come forward to present') — hammers the restriction through repetition. The phrase ishei YHWH ('the fire offerings of the LORD') and lechem elohav ('the food of his God') are used in parallel, confirming they refer to the same sacrificial offerings described from two angles: their mode of presentation (by fire) and their conceptual category (divine food).

Leviticus 21:22

לֶ֣חֶם אֱלֹהָ֔יו מִקׇּדְשֵׁ֖י הַקֳּדָשִׁ֑ים וּמִן־הַקֳּדָשִׁ֖ים יֹאכֵֽל׃

He may eat the food of his God from both the most holy offerings and the holy offerings.

KJV He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

This verse provides a crucial qualification: the blemished priest is barred from altar service but retains his priestly right to eat the sacred portions. The distinction between qodshei haqodashim ('the most holy things' — grain offerings, sin offerings, guilt offerings eaten only by priests within the sanctuary) and haqodashim ('the holy things' — breast and thigh portions of peace offerings, firstfruits, tithes) preserves the full range of priestly food entitlements. The defect disqualifies from service, not from status — the blemished priest remains a priest.

Leviticus 21:23

אַ֣ךְ אֶל־הַפָּרֹ֜כֶת לֹ֣א יָבֹ֗א וְאֶל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֛חַ לֹ֥א יִגַּ֖שׁ כִּֽי־מ֣וּם בּ֑וֹ וְלֹ֤א יְחַלֵּל֙ אֶת־מִקְדָּשַׁ֔י כִּ֛י אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָ֖ה מְקַדְּשָֽׁם׃

But he must not approach the curtain or come near the altar, because he has a defect. He must not desecrate my holy places, because I am the LORD who makes them holy.

KJV Only he shall not go in unto the vail, nor come nigh unto the altar, because he hath a blemish; that he profane not my sanctuaries: for I the LORD do sanctify them.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

Two sacred zones are explicitly off-limits: the parokhet ('curtain/veil' — the screen separating the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place) and the mizbeach ('altar' — the bronze altar of burnt offering in the courtyard). The verb yechallel ('desecrate,' from challal) appears for the final time in this chapter, closing the inclusio opened in verse 6: priests who fail to maintain the required standard of wholeness risk profaning (mechallel) the very sanctuaries (miqdashay — plural, referring to the entire sacred complex) that God has consecrated (meqaddesh). The divine self-identification ani YHWH meqaddisham ('I am the LORD who makes them holy') asserts that sanctuary holiness originates in God, not in priestly performance.

Leviticus 21:24

וַיְדַבֵּ֣ר מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֖ן וְאֶל־בָּנָ֑יו וְאֶֽל־כׇּל־בְּנֵ֖י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

So Moses communicated this to Aaron, to his sons, and to all the Israelites.

KJV And Moses told it unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

The closing verse confirms that Moses faithfully transmitted (vayedabber — 'he spoke/communicated') God's instructions to all three audiences: Aaron (the high priest), his sons (the ordinary priests), and all the Israelites (the broader community addressed in v 8). The inclusion of kol benei Yisrael ('all the sons/children of Israel') indicates that the community bears collective responsibility for upholding priestly standards — these are not private guild rules but public covenant regulations.

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