1 T he Lord said to Moses, “Say to the religious leaders, the sons of Aaron, ‘No one should make himself unclean for a dead person among his people,

The Lord said to Moses, Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them that none of them shall defile himself for the dead among his people,

2 e xcept for his own family, his mother, father, son, daughter and brother,

Except for his near kin, for his mother, father, son, daughter, brother,

3 o r his young sister who is near to him because she has had no husband. For her he may make himself unclean.

And for his sister, a virgin, who is near to him because she has had no husband; for her he may be defiled.

4 H e should not make himself unclean as a husband among his people, and so make himself sinful.

He shall not even defile himself, being a husband or being a chief man among his people, and so profane himself.

5 T hey should not cut all the hair from any part on their heads, or cut part of the hair off their face, or make cuts in their flesh.

The priests shall not shave the crown of their heads or clip off the corners of their beard or make any cuttings in their flesh.

6 T hey should be holy to their God and not put the name of their God to shame. For they give the gifts by fire to the Lord, the bread of their God. So they must be holy.

They shall be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God; for they offer the offerings made by fire to the Lord, the bread of their God; therefore they shall be holy.

7 T hey should not take a woman who is unclean because of selling the use of her body. They should not take a woman who is divorced from her husband. For the religious leader is holy to his God.

They shall not take a wife who is a harlot or polluted or profane or divorced, for is holy to his God.

8 S o you must set him apart, for he gives the bread of your God. He will be holy to you. For I, the Lord Who sets you apart, am holy.

You shall consecrate him therefore, for he offers the bread of your God; he shall be holy to you, for I the Lord Who sanctifies you am holy.

9 I f the daughter of any religious leader makes herself sinful by selling the use of her body, she puts her father to shame. She will be burned with fire.

The daughter of any priest who profanes herself by playing the harlot profanes her father; she shall be burned with fire.

10 ‘ The head religious leader on whose head the holy oil has been poured, and who has been set apart to wear the clothing, must not take the covering off his head or tear his clothes.

But he who is the high priest among his brethren, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured and who is consecrated to put on the garments, shall not let the hair of his head hang loose or rend his clothes,

11 H e must not go near any dead person or make himself unclean even for his father or mother.

Neither shall he go in where any dead body lies nor defile himself for his father or for his mother;

12 H e must not go out of the holy place or sin against the holy place of his God. For the crown of the holy oil of his God is on him. I am the Lord.

Neither shall he go out of the sanctuary nor desecrate or make ceremonially unclean the sanctuary of his God, for the crown or consecration of the anointing oil of his God is upon him. I am the Lord.

13 H e should take a wife who has never had a man before.

He shall take a wife in her virginity.

14 H e should not marry a woman whose husband has died, or a divorced woman, or one who has made herself sinful by selling the use of her body. But he should marry a woman from his own people, who has never had a man.

A widow or a divorced woman or a woman who is polluted or profane or a harlot, these he shall not marry, but he shall take as his wife a virgin of his own people,

15 B y doing this he will not sin against his children among his people. For I am the Lord Who makes him holy.’”

That he may not profane or dishonor his children among his people; for I the Lord do sanctify the high priest.

16 T hen the Lord said to Moses,

And the Lord said to Moses,

17 “ Say to Aaron, ‘None of your children or their children who has something wrong with his body should go near to give the bread as a gift to his God.

Say to Aaron, Any one of your sons in their successive generations who has any blemish, let him not come near to offer the bread of his God.

18 F or no one whose body is not perfect should come near, no blind man, or man who cannot walk, or one with a marked face, or a bad arm or leg,

For no man who has a blemish shall approach, a man blind or lame, or he who has a disfigured face or a limb too long,

19 o r a man who has a broken foot or hand,

Or who has a fractured foot or hand,

20 o r a man with a crooked upper back from birth, or a very little man, or one who has a bad eye or skin trouble or sores, or one whose sex parts have been crushed.

Or is a hunchback, or a dwarf, or has a defect in his eye, or has scurvy or itch, or scabs or skin trouble, or has damaged testicles.

21 N o man among the children of Aaron the religious leader, who has something wrong with his body, should come near to give the Lord’s gifts by fire. He should not come near to give the bread of his God, because he has something wrong with him.

No man of the offspring of Aaron the priest who has a blemish and is disfigured or deformed shall come near to offer the offerings of the Lord made by fire. He has a blemish; he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God.

22 H e may eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy and of the holy.

He may eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy and of the holy things,

23 B ut he should not come near the curtain or the altar, because he has something wrong with him, and so he may not sin against My holy places. For I am the Lord Who makes them holy.’”

But he shall not come within the veil or come near the altar, because he has a blemish, that he may not desecrate and make unclean My sanctuaries and hallowed things; for I the Lord do sanctify them.

24 S o Moses spoke to Aaron and to his sons and to all the people of Israel.

And Moses told it to Aaron and to his sons and to all the Israelites.