King James Version KJV
Good News Translation GNT
1 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:
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The Lord commanded Moses to tell the Aaronite priests, "No priest is to make himself ritually unclean by taking part in the funeral ceremonies when a relative dies,
2 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,
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unless it is his mother, father, son, daughter, brother,
3 And for his sister a virgin, that is nigh unto him, which hath had no husband; for her may he be defiled.
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or unmarried sister living in his house.
4 But he shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself.
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He shall not make himself unclean at the death of those related to him by marriage.
5 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.
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"No priest shall shave any part of his head or trim his beard or cut gashes on his body to show that he is in mourning.
6 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.
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He must be holy and must not disgrace my name. He offers food offerings to me, and he must be holy.
7 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.
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A priest shall not marry a woman who has been a prostitute or a woman who is not a virgin or who is divorced; he is holy.
8 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.
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The people must consider the priest holy, because he presents the food offerings to me. I am the Lord; I am holy and I make my people holy.
9 And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire.
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If a priest's daughter becomes a prostitute, she disgraces her father; she shall be burned to death.
10 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;
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"The High Priest has had the anointing oil poured on his head and has been consecrated to wear the priestly garments, so he must not leave his hair uncombed or tear his clothes to show that he is in mourning.
11 Neither shall he go in to any dead body, nor defile himself for his father, or for his mother;
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He has been dedicated to me and is not to make himself ritually unclean nor is he to defile my sacred Tent by leaving it and entering a house where there is a dead person, even if it is his own father or mother.
12 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.
13 And he shall take a wife in her virginity.
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He shall marry a virgin,
14 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.
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not a widow or a divorced woman or a woman who has been a prostitute. He shall marry only a virgin from his own clan.
15 Neither shall he profane his seed among his people: for I the LORD do sanctify him.
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Otherwise, his children, who ought to be holy, will be ritually unclean. I am the Lord and I have set him apart as the High Priest."
16 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
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The Lord commanded Moses
17 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.
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to tell Aaron, "None of your descendants who has any physical defects may present the food offering to me. This applies for all time to come.
18 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,
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No man with any physical defects may make the offering: no one who is blind, lame, disfigured, or deformed;
19 Or a man that is brokenfooted, or brokenhanded,
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no one with a crippled hand or foot;
20 Or crookbackt, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;
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no one who is a hunchback or a dwarf; no one with any eye or skin disease; and no eunuch.
21 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.
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No descendant of Aaron the priest who has any physical defects may present the food offering to me.
22 He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy.
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Such a man may eat the food offered to me, both the holy food offering and the very holy food offering,
23 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.
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but because he has a physical defect, he shall not come near the sacred curtain or approach the altar. He must not profane these holy things, because I am the Lord and I make them holy."
24 And Moses told it unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel.
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This, then, is what Moses said to Aaron, the sons of Aaron, and to all the people of Israel.
The King James Version is in the public domain.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.