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The LORD said to Moses: “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: A priest must not defile himself for the dead among his people,
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except for his nearest kin: his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his brother,
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his sister, a virgin who is near to him because she has had no husband; for her he may defile himself.
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As a husband, he must not defile himself among his people and so profane his holiness.
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They shall not make bald patches on their heads, nor shave the edges of their beards, nor make cuts in their bodies.
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They shall be holy to their God and must not profane the name of their God, for they present the offerings by fire of the LORD, the food of their God; therefore they must be holy.
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They shall not take a woman who is a prostitute, or one who has been defiled, or a woman divorced by her husband, for the priest is holy to his God.
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You shall regard him as holy, for he offers the food of your God. He shall be holy to you, for I, the LORD, who sanctify you, am holy.
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If the daughter of a priest profanes herself by prostitution, she profanes her father’s holiness; she shall be burned with fire.
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The priest who is highest among his brothers, who has been anointed by pouring the anointing oil on his head and who has been ordained by putting on him the holy garments, shall not let his hair hang loose and shall not tear his clothes.
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He shall not go near any dead body; he shall not defile himself even for his father or his mother.
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He shall not leave the sanctuary, lest he profane the sanctuary of his God, for the anointing oil of his God, by which he has been set apart, is on his head; I am the LORD.
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He shall take a woman who is a virgin.
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A widow, or a divorced woman, or one who has been defiled, or a prostitute, he shall not take; but he shall take a virgin from among his own people,
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that he may not profane his offspring among his people, for I am the LORD who sanctifies him.”
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The LORD said to Moses:
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“Say to Aaron: None of your descendants throughout their generations who has a bodily defect shall come near to present the food of his God,
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because no one who has a bodily defect may come near: the blind, the lame, one who is disfigured, or one who has a limb too long,
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one who has a broken foot or a broken hand,
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one who is hunchbacked or dwarfed, or one who has a defect in his eye, or one who has scurvy or ringworm, or one whose testicles are crushed.
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No man among the descendants of Aaron the priest who has a bodily defect shall come near to present the offerings made by fire to the LORD; since he has a bodily defect, he shall not come near to present the food of his God.
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He may eat the food of his God, both the most holy offerings and the holy offerings.
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Only he shall not go in to the veil, and he shall not come near the altar, because he has a bodily defect, lest he profane My sanctuary; for I am the LORD, who sanctifies them.”
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So Moses spoke these words to Aaron and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel.
🕊️👑🛐 Summary of Leviticus 21 – The Holiness of the Priests as Representatives of the People
Leviticus 21 contains special ordinances about the higher standard of holiness for the priests, because they were appointed to serve directly before the Lord. The priest was to be a model of holiness and purity, both in personal life, in the family, and in service.
📌 1. Prohibitions for Ordinary Priests (verses 1–9)
Things forbidden for the ordinary priests:
- They must not become unclean by a dead body, except for their immediate family (father, mother, children, brothers and sisters).
- They must not shave a bald head, mar the beard, or make marks on the body for the dead.
- They must not marry a woman who is a prostitute, divorced, or defiled.
- A priest’s daughter who becomes a prostitute → brings shame and must be burned.
🎯 The priest must keep himself and his family holy because he bears the name of the Lord.
👑 2. Special Prohibitions for the High Priest (verses 10–15)
The High Priest had even higher requirements:
- He must not defile himself even for his dead parents.
- He must not leave the sanctuary.
- May marry only a virgin from his own people.
- The purpose: “So that he may not defile his offspring” (verse 15)
📖 For the High Priest symbolizes the perfection of service before God.
♿ 3. Physical Defects Hinder Priestly Service (verses 16–24)
- A priest who has a bodily defect (blind, lame, with a defect in hand/foot, boils, etc.)
➤ May eat from the offerings, but may not present the offering or enter the holy place.
📌 This is not about personal worth, but because the symbol of holiness and the wholeness of the priest’s body represent God’s holiness.
📖 Main Lessons
- God’s servants must guard holiness more highly than ordinary people.
- The family integrity of a spiritual leader is important in God’s sight.
- A priest’s marriage and relationships must not be casual—they must reflect purity.
- Holiness touches emotions, grief, the body, and service.
- A spiritual calling carries great responsibility.
✨ Spiritual Meaning
- In the New Testament, Jesus is the great and perfect High Priest (Hebrews 4:14–16):
➤ He is without defect, without sin, and faithful in service. - The high standard for priests reminds us that service is not a profession, but a holy calling.
- Today, all believers are priests of God (1 Peter 2:9), and we are all called to keep a holy life in word, deed, and relationships.
- An outward defect does not make a person spiritually lesser, but for symbolic service in Leviticus, it matters as a picture of the perfection of Christ.
