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Leviticus 11-16
New Catholic Bible

Norms Concerning Ritual Purity[a]

Chapter 11

Clean and Unclean Animals.[b] 1 The Lord said to Moses and to Aaron, 2 “Tell the children of Israel: These are the animals that you may eat from among all the animals upon the earth. 3 You may eat any animal that has a cloven hoof and that eats its cud. 4 From among those animals that chew their cud and have cloven hoofs, you shall not eat the following: camels, for it chews its cud but does not have a divided hoof, so it will be considered to be unclean; 5 the rock badger, for it chews its cud but does not have a divided hoof, so it will be considered to be unclean; 6 the hare, for it chews its cud but does not have a divided hoof, so it will be considered to be unclean; 7 the pig, for its hoof is divided and is cloven hoofed, but it does not chew its cud, so it will be considered to be unclean. 8 You shall not eat their meat nor shall you touch their carcasses. They will be considered to be unclean.

9 “These are the animals that you may eat that live in the water: you may eat anything that has fins and scales in the seas or the rivers. 10 But all the animals that move through the water, whether seas or rivers, that do not have fins or scales will be considered to be an abomination.

11 “They will be an abomination for you. You shall not eat their meat and you shall consider their carcasses to be an abomination. 12 Everything in the water that does not have fins and scales will be an abomination for you.

13 “Among birds the following will be considered to be an abomination; they will not be eaten for they are an abomination: the eagle, the bearded vulture and the osprey, 14 the vulture and every type of falcon, 15 every type of raven, 16 the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, and every type of hawk, 17 the owl, the cormorant, the ibis, 18 the swan, the pelican, the carrion vulture, 19 the stork, every kind of heron, the hoopoe, and the bat.

20 “All winged creatures that crawl upon four legs will be considered to be an abomination for you. 21 Yet from among the insects that walk upon all fours, you may eat those that have two legs above their feet to jump upon the earth. 22 Therefore, you may eat the following: all kinds of locusts, every kind of bald locust, every kind of grasshopper, and every kind of cricket. 23 But every other flying insect that has four feet will be considered to be an abomination.

24 “By these you shall become unclean, whoever touches their carcasses shall be unclean until the evening 25 and whoever carries their carcasses must wash his clothes and shall be unclean until the evening. 26 You shall consider every animal to be unclean that has undivided hoofs and does not chew its cud. Whoever touches them shall be unclean. 27 Every animal that walks upon all fours and walks upon its paws will be unclean to you. Whoever touches their carcasses shall be considered to be unclean until the evening. 28 Whoever carries their carcasses must wash his clothes and shall be considered to be unclean until the evening. These animals will be considered to be unclean.

29 [c]“These are the animals that crawl upon the earth that will be considered to be unclean: the weasel, the mouse, every kind of tortoise, 30 the gecko, the crocodile, the lizard, the snail, and the chameleon. 31 These creeping things will be unclean for you. Whoever touches their dead bodies will be considered to be unclean until the evening. 32 Anything upon which one of these falls when it is dead will be considered to be unclean, whether it be a wooden vessel or clothing or a skin or a sack, no matter what it is made of. It is to be washed in water and will be considered to be unclean until the evening. Then it will be clean. 33 If one of them falls into an earthen vessel, whatever it contains, it will be considered to be unclean, and it will be broken. 34 Any food upon which water falls will be considered to be unclean. Any liquid that can be drunk in any vessel will be considered to be unclean. 35 Everything upon which any part of their carcass falls will be considered to be unclean. Ovens and stoves will be smashed. They are unclean, and will be held to be unclean by you. 36 But a spring or a cistern where water is stored will be clean. Whoever touches their carcasses shall be unclean. 37 If any part of their carcasses falls upon seed for sowing, it will still be clean. 38 But if water falls on the seed and part of their carcasses falls on it, it is unclean to you.

39 “If an animal dies that was intended for food, whoever touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening. 40 Whoever eats some of its carcass shall wash his clothes and shall be unclean until the evening. Whoever picks up its carcass shall wash his clothes and shall be unclean until the evening.

41 “Every creeping thing that crawls upon the earth will be an abomination. It will not be eaten. 42 Everything that goes about upon its belly, and everything that goes about upon on all four legs, and everything that has many feet, hence, any of the creeping things that crawl upon the earth, are not to be eaten, for they are an abomination. 43 You shall not make yourselves abominable with any of the creeping things that crawl, nor shall you defile yourselves because of them, lest you make yourselves unclean.

44 [d]“I am the Lord, your God. Consecrate yourselves and be holy for I am holy.[e] You will not defile yourselves with any of the creeping things that crawl upon the earth. 45 I am the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. Therefore, be holy, for I am holy.

46 “This is the law concerning animals and birds and every living creature that moves in the water and everything that crawls upon the earth, 47 so that you might know the difference between that which is unclean and that which is clean, between the animals that you can eat and those that you should not eat.”

Chapter 12

Purification after Childbirth.[f] 1 The Lord said to Moses, “Say to the children of Israel: 2 When a woman becomes pregnant and gives birth to a male child, she shall be considered to be unclean for seven days, just as when she menstruates. 3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin will be circumcised. 4 Then she shall continue for thirty-three days in the blood of her purifying. She shall not touch any holy thing nor shall she enter into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are complete. 5 But if she gives birth to a girl, she shall be unclean for two weeks as during her menstruation. She shall continue in the blood of her purifying for sixty-six days.[g]

6 “When the days of her purification for a son or a daughter are complete, she shall bring a year-old lamb as a burnt offering and a pigeon or a turtledove as a sin offering to the priest at the entrance to the meeting tent. 7 He shall offer it before the Lord and make atonement for her. She shall be cleansed from the flow of her blood. This is the law for a woman who has borne a male or female child. 8 If she cannot afford to offer a lamb, she shall offer two turtledoves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. The priest shall make atonement for her and she shall be clean.”[h]

Chapter 13

Infections of the Skin.[i] 1 The Lord said to Moses and to Aaron, 2 “When someone has a swelling or a scab or a spot on his skin, and it turns out to be leprosy, then he shall be brought to the priest Aaron or one of his sons who is a priest. 3 The priest shall examine the diseased spot on his skin. If the hair of the diseased spot has become white and the sore seems to be deeper than the surface of the skin, then the disease is leprosy. When the priest has examined it, he shall pronounce him unclean. 4 But if the spot on his skin is white and is not deeper than the skin and the hair on it has not become white, the priest shall quarantine the person with the sore for seven days. 5 On the seventh day the priest shall examine that person again. If he sees that the sore has not changed, and the sore has not spread, he shall quarantine that person for another seven days. 6 The priest shall examine that person again on the seventh day. If the sore has darkened, and the sore has not spread, then the priest shall declare that person clean. It was only a scab. He shall wash his clothes and shall be considered to be clean. 7 But if the scab spreads after the priest has examined him and declared him to be clean, then he must be examined by the priest again. 8 The priest shall examine it, and if the sore has spread, the priest shall pronounce him to be unclean for it is leprosy.

9 “When a person has a leprous sore, he shall be brought to the priest 10 and the priest shall examine him. If there is a white bump on the skin and the hair on it has turned white, and there is tender, raw flesh on the bump, 11 then it is a chronic leprosy of the skin of his body. The priest shall declare him unclean, but he shall not quarantine him for he is unclean. 12 If the leprosy breaks out upon the skin so that the leprosy covers all of the skin of the diseased person wherever the priest examined him, from head to foot, 13 then the priest shall examine the person whose flesh is covered with leprosy. He shall declare him clean when it has all turned white, for he is clean. 14 But when some raw skin appears on him, he shall be held to be unclean. 15 The priest, when he sees the raw skin, shall declare him unclean. The raw skin is unclean; it is leprosy. 16 But if the raw skin becomes white, then he shall come before the priest 17 and the priest shall examine him. If he sees that the sore has turned white, the priest shall declare the person with the sore to be clean, for he is clean.

18 “When someone has a boil on the skin that has healed, 19 and then a whitish-red bump or spot appears where the boil was, he shall show it to the priest. 20 The priest shall examine it. If he sees that it is deeper than the skin and the hair has turned white, then the priest shall declare him to be unclean. It is a leprous sore that has broken out from the boil. 21 But if the priest, upon examining it, sees that it does not have white hair and it is not deeper than the skin, but rather it is a bit darker, then the priest shall quarantine him for seven days. 22 If it spreads over the skin, then the priest shall declare him to be unclean, for the spot is leprous. 23 But if the spot stays put and does not spread, then it is a scar from the boil and the priest shall declare him to be clean.

24 “When someone has a burn, and the raw burn becomes a reddish-white spot, 25 then the priest shall examine it. If the hair of the spot has turned white and it appears to be deeper than the skin, then it is leprosy. It has broken out of the burn. The priest shall declare him unclean, for it is a leprous sore. 26 But if the priest examines it and there is no white hair on the spot and it is not deeper than the skin, but is a bit darker, then the priest shall quarantine him for seven days. 27 On the seventh day the priest shall examine him again. If it has spread over the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him to be unclean. It is a leprous sore. 28 But if the spot has remained where it was and it has not spread on the skin, but it is somewhat darker, then it is only the swelling of a burn. The priest shall declare him to be clean, because it is only the scar from a burn.

29 “When a man or a woman has a sore on the head or the beard, 30 the priest will examine the sore. If it is deeper than the skin and the hair on it is yellow and thin, then the priest shall pronounce it to be unclean. It is the scab of leprosy of the head or the beard. 31 But if the priest examines the scab and it is not deeper than the skin and there is no black hair on it, then the priest shall quarantine the person with the scab for seven days. 32 On the seventh day the priest shall examine the sore. If the scab has not spread and there is no yellow hair on it, and the scab does not appear to be deeper than the skin, 33 then the man shall be shaven, but the scab is not to be shaved. He is to be quarantined another seven days. 34 On the seventh day the priest shall examine the scab. If the scab has not spread on the skin and it does not appear to be deeper than the skin, then the priest shall declare him to be clean. He shall wash his clothes, for he is clean. 35 But if the scab spreads after his cleansing, 36 the priest shall examine him. If the scab has spread, the priest need not look for yellow hair. He is unclean. 37 But if, from his viewpoint, the scab has not grown larger and black hair has grown upon it, then the scab is clean. The priest shall declare him clean. 38 When a man or a woman has white spots on the skin of the body, 39 the priest shall examine that person. If the spots on the skin of the body are dull white, it is only a skin rash. The person is clean.

40 “When a man has lost the hair on his head and he is bald, he is clean. 41 If he has lost the hair from the front of his head, and he has a bald forehead, he is clean. 42 But if there is a white reddish sore on his bald head or his bald forehead, it is leprosy that has broken out on his bald head or his bald forehead. 43 The priest shall examine him. If the swollen sore on his bald head or his bald forehead is reddish-white, looking like leprosy on the skin, 44 then he has leprosy and he is unclean. The priest shall declare him unclean because of the sore on his head.

45 [j]“Anyone who is infected with leprosy shall wear torn clothes, his head is to be uncovered, and he is to cover his moustache. He shall cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ 46 As long as he is infected, he shall be utterly unclean. He will live alone; his dwelling shall be outside of the camp.

47 Infections in Fabrics.“When a garment has a leprous mark on it, whether it be a woolen garment or a linen garment, 48 whether it is in the weave or the knit of the wool or the linen, or if it is a skin or anything made of a skin, 49 if there is a green or red spot on the garment or the skin, whether in the weave or the knit or on anything made of skin, it is to be considered a mark of leprosy and it is to be shown to the priest. 50 The priest shall look at the spot, and shall secure that thing that is infected for seven days. 51 He shall examine the mark on the seventh day. If the spot on the garment has spread, whether it be in the weave or the knit, or on the skin or on anything that is made of skin, then the spot is an active leprosy. It is unclean. 52 He shall burn the garment, whether the spot is in the weave or the knit, whether it is made of wool or linen or is anything made of skin. It has an active leprosy, and it shall be burned in the fire. 53 But if the priest examines it and the spot has not spread on the garment, either in the weave or the knit or on anything made of skin, 54 then the priest shall order that the thing with the mark be washed,[k] and he shall secure it for seven more days. 55 The priest shall examine the thing with the spot after it has been washed. If the color of the spot has not changed, even if it has not spread, it is unclean. It shall be burned in the fire whether the bare spot is on the inside or outside. 56 If the priest examines the garment and the spot has faded after the washing, then he shall tear it out of the garment, whether it be made of skin or woven or knitted. 57 But if it reappears on the garment, whether in the weave or the knit or on anything made of skin, it is spreading. Whatever is infected shall be burned in the fire. 58 The garment, whether of weave or knit or anything made of skin, that has been washed and no longer has the spot, shall be washed a second time and it will then be clean. 59 These are the statutes concerning infections of leprosy upon garments, whether woolen or linen, woven or knitted, or on anything made of skin, on how to declare it clean or to declare it unclean.”

Chapter 14

Purification of Skin Diseases. 1 The Lord spoke to Moses saying, 2 “This is the law for the day of the cleansing of a person with leprosy, when he is brought to the priest: 3 The priest is to go outside of the camp and examine him. If the priest discovers that the sores of leprosy on the leper have been healed, 4 the priest will order that two live, clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop be brought to the person who is to be cleansed. 5 The priest shall order that one of the birds be killed over fresh water that is in a clay pot. 6 He is to take the live bird and dip the cedar wood, the scarlet yarn, the hyssop, and the live bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the fresh water. 7 He shall sprinkle the one who is to be declared cleansed seven times. He will then release the live bird in the open fields. 8 The person who is being cleansed shall wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and wash himself with water. He will then be considered to be clean. Thereafter he may come into the camp, but he shall stay outside of his tent for seven days. 9 On the seventh day he shall shave off all of his hair. He must shave the hair off his head, his beard, his eyebrows, and the rest of his hair. He shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water, and he shall then be clean.

10 “On the eighth day he shall take two male lambs without blemish and one ewe lamb, a year old, without blemish, and three-tenths of a portion of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering, and a log measure of oil. 11 The priest who will purify the man to be made clean shall present him and these things before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 12 The priest shall take one of the lambs and offer it along with the log measure of oil. This shall be a guilt offering. He shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord. 13 He shall slay the lamb in the same place that he is going to slay the sin offering and the burnt offering, in the sanctuary, for the sin offering belongs to the priest just like the guilt offering. It is most holy. 14 [l]The priest shall take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right ear lobe of the one who is being cleansed, as well as on the thumb of his right hand and the big toe of his right foot. 15 The priest shall take some oil from the log measure of oil and pour it into the palm of his own left hand. 16 The priest shall dip his right finger into the oil that is in his left hand. With his finger he shall sprinkle the oil seven times before the Lord. 17 The priest shall take the rest of the oil in his hand and put it on the right ear lobe of the one who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the big toe of his right foot, and upon the blood of the guilt offering. 18 He shall pour the rest of the oil that is in his hand upon the head of the one who is being cleansed. The priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord. 19 The priest shall then offer the sin offering and make atonement for the uncleanness of the one who is being cleansed. Afterward he shall slay the burnt offering. 20 The priest shall offer the burnt offering and the cereal offering upon the altar. The priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be clean.

21 A Poor Person’s Offerings.“If he is poor and cannot afford all this, then he shall bring one lamb for a guilt offering to be waved, to make atonement for him, and one-tenth a measure of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering, and a log measure of oil, 22 and two turtledoves or two young pigeons, whichever he is able to obtain. One will be for a sin offering, and the other will be for a burnt offering. 23 He shall bring them to the priest on the eighth day of his cleansing, at the entrance to the tent of meeting before the Lord. 24 The priest shall take the lamb of the guilt offering and the log measure of oil, and the priest shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord. 25 He shall slay the lamb of the guilt offering. The priest shall take the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right ear lobe of the one who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the big toe of his right foot. 26 The priest shall pour the oil into the palm of his own left hand. 27 The priest shall dip his right finger into the oil that is in his left hand. He shall sprinkle the oil with his finger seven times before the Lord. 28 The priest shall take the rest of the oil that is in his hand and put it on the right ear lobe of the one who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the big toe of his right foot, upon the places that he put the blood of the guilt offering. 29 He shall pour the rest of the oil in his hand upon the head of the one who is being cleansed. The priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord. 30 He shall offer one of the turtledoves or one of the young pigeons, whichever he is able to obtain. 31 Whatever he has, one of them will be offered as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering together with the cereal offering. The priest shall make atonement before the Lord for the one who is being cleansed.

32 “This is the law for the person who has leprosy and who cannot afford the things that are needed for cleansing.”

33 Treatment of Skin Infections in Houses. The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 34 “When you come into the land of Canaan that I am giving to you as a possession, and I send the infection of leprosy upon a house in the land of your possession, 35 the owner of the house will come and speak to the priest saying, ‘It seems as if there is an infection in the house.’ 36 The priest shall then order that they empty out the house before he enters to examine the infection, lest all that is within the house be declared unclean. When they have finished, the priest shall go in to examine the house. 37 He shall look at the infection, and if the infection on the walls of the house is a green or red spot, and if it seems to be deeper than the surface, 38 then the priest will go out of the door of the house, and he shall close up the house for seven days. 39 On the seventh day the priest shall come back and see if the infection has spread on the walls of the house. 40 The priest shall then command that they take the stones from the place that is infected and they shall throw them outside the city into an unclean place. 41 He shall have the entire inside of the house scraped. They are to throw the plaster that they scraped off into a place outside the city, in an unclean place. 42 They shall take other stones and put them where the first stones were, and they shall take other plaster and plaster the house.

43 “If the infection in the house breaks out again, after they have taken away the stones and scraped the house and plastered it, 44 then the priest shall come and examine it. If the infection in the house has spread, then it is an active leprosy in the house and it is unclean. 45 He shall break down the house. All the stones and wood and plaster of the house will be carried outside of the city to an unclean place. 46 Furthermore, the person who enters the house while it is closed will be unclean until the evening. 47 He who lies down in the house shall wash his clothes, and he who eats in the house shall wash his clothes.

48 “But if the priest comes and examines it, and the infection in the house has not spread after it has been replastered, then the priest shall declare it to be clean, for the infection has been cured. 49 He shall obtain two birds, cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop to ritually purify the house. 50 He shall kill one of the birds over fresh water that is in a clay pot. 51 Then he shall take the cedar wood, the scarlet yarn, the hyssop, and the live bird, and he shall dip them into the blood of the slain bird and into the fresh water, and sprinkle the house seven times. 52 He shall purify the house with the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop, and the scarlet yarn. 53 Then he shall release the live bird in an open field outside of the city. Thus he shall have made atonement for the house, and it shall be clean.

54 “These are the statutes concerning all types of sores of leprosy and scabs, 55 for infections upon garments and houses, 56 for swollen spots, rashes, and bright spots, 57 to decide whether something is unclean or clean. This is the law concerning leprosy.”

Chapter 15[m]

Personal Uncleanness. 1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘When any man has a bodily discharge, that discharge is unclean. 3 This bodily discharge shall make him unclean whether it is running or it has stopped. His discharge shall make him unclean. 4 Every bed upon which he lies when he has a discharge shall be unclean, as shall everything upon which he is sitting. 5 Whoever touches his bed will wash his clothes and bathe in water and he shall be unclean until the evening. 6 Whoever sits on anything upon which the man with the discharge sat shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and shall be unclean until the evening. 7 Whoever touches a man who has had a discharge shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and shall be unclean until the evening. 8 If someone who has a discharge spits on someone who is clean, that person shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and shall be unclean until the evening. 9 Everything that a man who has a discharge rides upon shall be unclean. 10 Whoever touches anything that was under him shall be unclean until the evening, and whoever carries those things must wash his clothes and bathe in water and he shall be unclean until the evening. 11 Whoever is touched by a man with a discharge who has not rinsed his hands in water shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and shall be unclean until the evening. 12 Any clay vessel that is touched by someone with a discharge shall be broken, and any wooden utensil shall be washed.

13 “ ‘When a man has been cleansed[n] from his discharge, he shall count off seven days from his cleansing. He shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in running water, and he shall be clean. 14 On the eighth day he shall take two turtledoves or two young pigeons and come before the Lord, at the entrance to the tent of meeting, and he shall give them to the priest. 15 The priest shall then offer them, one as a sin offering and one as a burnt offering. The priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord for his discharge.

16 “ ‘If any man has an emission of semen, he shall wash his whole body with water and he shall be unclean until the evening. 17 If any semen falls on any garment or on any skin, it is to be washed with water and it shall be unclean until the evening.

18 “ ‘When a woman lies with a man and they have sex, they shall both bathe with water and they shall be unclean until the evening.

19 “ ‘If a woman has a discharge and the discharge from her body is blood, then she shall be impure for seven days, and whoever touches her shall be unclean until the evening. 20 Everything upon which she lies during her menstrual impurity shall be unclean, and everything upon which she sits shall be unclean. 21 Whoever touches her bed shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and shall be unclean until the evening. 22 Whoever touches anything upon which she sat shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and shall be unclean until the evening. 23 Whoever touches anything that was on her bed or on something upon which she sat shall be unclean until the evening. 24 If any man lies with her so that her impurity is upon him, he shall be unclean for seven days and any bed upon which he lies shall be unclean.

25 “ ‘If a woman has a discharge of blood for many days outside of the normal time of her impurity, or if it runs beyond the time of her impurity, then all the days when she has an unclean discharge shall be the same as the days of her menstrual impurity. She shall be unclean. 26 Every bed upon which she lies all during the time of her discharge shall be for her like the bed of her impurity. Everything upon which she sits shall be unclean, just like the uncleanness of her time of menstrual impurity. 27 Whoever touches these things shall be unclean. He shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and shall be unclean until the evening.

28 “ ‘But if she is cleansed of her discharge, then she shall wait for seven days, and she shall then be clean. 29 On the eighth day, she shall take two turtledoves or two young pigeons and she shall bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 30 The priest shall offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. The priest shall make atonement for her before the Lord for her impure discharge.

31 “ ‘Thus you will keep the children of Israel from their uncleanness, lest they die[o] in their uncleanness when they defile my tabernacle that is in their midst. 32 This is the law for anyone who has a discharge or who has an emission of semen and is therefore unclean 33 and for the woman who is having her menstrual discharge, and for someone having a discharge, whether man or woman, and for the man who lies with a woman who is unclean.’ ”

Chapter 16[p]

The Day of Atonement. The Lord spoke to Moses after the two sons of Aaron died, after they came before the Lord. 2 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother that he should not come into the sanctuary, inside of the veil, before the seat of atonement that is on the Ark whenever he wants, lest he die, for I will appear in the cloud over the seat of atonement. 3 Aaron is to come into the sanctuary with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 4 He shall put on the holy linen tunic and the linen undergarments. He shall wrap the linen sash around himself and put on the linen turban. He shall put these holy garments on after he has washed his body with water. 5 He shall take two kid goats as a sin offering and one ram as a burnt offering from the assembly of the children of Israel.

6 “Aaron shall offer the young bull as a sin offering for himself, making atonement for himself and his household. 7 He shall then take the two goats and bring them before the Lord, at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 8 Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats, designating one goat for the Lord and the other one for the scapegoat.[q] 9 Aaron shall take the goat upon which the Lord’s lot fell and shall offer it as a sin offering. 10 But the goat upon which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord, to make atonement upon it, and to send it out into the wilderness as the scapegoat.

11 “Aaron shall bring the young bull of the sin offering that is for himself and make atonement for himself and for his household. He shall slay the young bull as a sin offering for himself.[r] 12 Then he shall take a censer full of burning coals from the fire on the altar before the Lord. His hands are to be full of finely ground sweet incense. He shall bring these inside the veil. 13 He shall put the incense on the fire before the Lord, so that the cloud of incense might cover the seat of atonement that is on the Testimony, lest he die. 14 He shall take some of the blood from the young bull, and shall sprinkle it with his finger upon the east part of the seat of atonement. Seven times he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger in front of the seat of atonement.

15 “He shall then slay the goat of the sin offering for the people and he shall bring its blood inside the veil. He shall do the same thing with this blood as he did with the blood of the young bull. He shall sprinkle it on the seat of atonement and in front of the seat of atonement. 16 Thus he shall make atonement for the sanctuary, for the uncleanness of the children of Israel, for their transgressions, and for all their sins. This is what he shall do for the tent of meeting that resides in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 No one is to be inside of the tent of meeting when he enters to make atonement in the sanctuary, until the time that he exits, so that he can make atonement for himself and for his household and for all of the assembly of Israel. 18 He shall go to the altar that is before the Lord and he shall make atonement for it. He shall take some of the blood of the young bull and some of the blood of the goat and he shall put it on the horns around the altar. 19 He shall sprinkle the blood upon it with his finger seven times, cleansing it and purifying it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.

20 The Scapegoat.“When he has finished making an atonement for the sanctuary, and for the tent of meeting, and for the altar, he shall bring out the live goat. 21 Aaron shall lay both of his hands upon the head of the live goat and confess all of the iniquities of the children of Israel over it, and all of their transgressions, and all of their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat. The goat shall then be sent away, led by the hand of a man appointed to lead it into the wilderness.[s] 22 The goat shall bear all of their iniquities into an isolated place. The man shall release it into the wilderness.

23 “Aaron shall then enter the tent of meeting and take off the linen garments that he put on when he entered the sanctuary, and he shall leave them there. 24 He shall wash himself in a holy place and put on his normal clothes. He shall then come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people to make atonement for himself and for the people. 25 He shall burn the fat of the sin offering upon the altar.

26 “The man who led the scapegoat away shall wash his clothes and bathe himself with water, and then he can enter the camp. 27 The young bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought into the sanctuary to make atonement, must be carried outside of the camp and burned with fire. This includes its hide, its meat, and its dung. 28 The man who burned them shall wash his clothes and bathe himself with water, and then he can come into the camp.

29 The Fast.“This will be a statute for you forever. On the tenth day of the seventh month, you must humble your spirits and do no work, whether it is a countryman or an alien dwelling among you[t] 30 for that is the day that the priest shall make atonement for you, to cleanse you of your sins before the Lord, so that you may be clean. 31 It will be a Sabbath rest, and you will humble your spirits. This is a statute forever. 32 The priest who is anointed and consecrated to succeed his father as priest shall make atonement. He shall wear the sacred linen garments. 33 He shall make atonement for the sanctuary, for the tent of meeting, and for the altar. He shall make atonement for the priest and all the assembly of the people. 34 This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel for all of their sins once a year.” Moses did as the Lord had commanded him.

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 11:1 Lacking as they did a knowledge of many of the secrets of nature, the ancients imagined hidden forces that were stronger than those of human beings and could do them harm. It was from this remote past that Israel inherited many prohibitions for their daily lives (chs. 11–16).
  2. Leviticus 11:1 The animals forbidden were all those that were consecrated to pagan divinities or whose flesh excited repugnance. In classifying the animals that are listed, the author relies on more or less accurate observation (see also Deut 14:3ff); some of the animals are difficult to identify. The distinction between clean and unclean was abolished by Christian revelation (Mk 7:14, 23; Acts 10:9-16).
  3. Leviticus 11:29 The prescriptions listed are also to be regarded as hygienic measures.
  4. Leviticus 11:44 These verses give the deeper reason for the criteria of clean and unclean: the Lord had delivered his people from Egyptian slavery so that they might acknowledge and worship him as the only true God. Animals that crawled along the ground did not enjoy a good reputation; in fact, the serpent, which was venerated by pagans, was regarded from the outset as an instrument of evil (Gen 3).
  5. Leviticus 11:44 Be holy for I am holy: the central and repeated theme of Leviticus is holiness. The children of Israel are totally dedicated to God and to be like him because of what he has done for his people (see Mt 5:48).
  6. Leviticus 12:1 It was thought that any woman bearing a child lost some of her vital energy; she would recover it by means of rites uniting her to God, the source of all life. Even the mother of Jesus would submit to this law of Leviticus (Lk 2:22-38).
  7. Leviticus 12:5 This prescription shows the inferiority of women in the mind of the ancient East.
  8. Leviticus 12:8 Allowance is made for those too poor to provide the prescribed offering following childbirth; doves or pigeons will suffice (see Lev 1:14).
  9. Leviticus 13:1 These infectious diseases are the subject of detailed prescriptions that had for their purpose to safeguard the community. Leprosy, which was both repugnant and contagious, was especially feared; since it was the sign of a corruption, it rendered unclean anyone who contracted it. It was often regarded as a punishment from God (Num 12:10; 2 Chr 26:19-21). The priests, who were charged with diagnosing the sickness, had drawn up a list of primitive rites in keeping with their obligation of safeguarding the people from any blemish that might exclude them from worship (see Mk 1:44; Lk 17:14).
  10. Leviticus 13:45 The leper had to wear a sign of mourning, such as torn clothing and uncombed hair, so that he might be recognized and relegated to the fringes of the community. These unfortunate people were still suffering this cruel lot in gospel times (Mt 8:1-4; Mk 1:40-45; Lk 5:12-16; 17:11-19).
  11. Leviticus 13:54 Washed: it is not surprising that even in ancient times the treatment for disorders involved cleansing with water.
  12. Leviticus 14:14 Applying the blood of the guilt offering to the person’s extremities by the priest indicated cleansing of the whole person. This mirrors the total consecration of Aaron to God by Moses in Lev 8:23.
  13. Leviticus 15:1 God is the master of life. For this reason, everything having to do with fertility and genital activity has an element of mystery and sacredness and acquires a religious value.
  14. Leviticus 15:13 Cleansed: God is the one who heals the person; the priest attests to the work done by God and ritually purifies the person.
  15. Leviticus 15:31 Lest they die: the importance of atonement to be made by the priest on behalf of anyone considered unclean according to the impure discharges in chapter 15. Through ritual cleansing the person is restored physically, but most importantly spiritually.
  16. Leviticus 16:1 Once a year, the high priest entered alone into the innermost part of the sanctuary and with the blood sprinkled the propitiatory, that is, the costly covering that contained the Ark of the Covenant and that symbolized the seat of God. The purpose of this rite was to expiate the uncleannesses with which the children of Israel had stained God’s dwelling and to renew the personal relationship which the covenant at Sinai had established between God and his people.

    1 
    The ceremony of atonement also continued a primitive Semitic practice: a goat was taken out into the wilderness, that is, into infertile and wretched land, and was let go there, not as an offering to a demon, Azazel (the word appears in the Hebrew text) but in order to get rid of the sins of which the animal was the symbolic bearer.
    The Letter to the Hebrews recalls this liturgy in order to assert that Christ fulfilled in a definitive way what was done on the Day of Atonement; that is, he took upon himself the sins of the world and made expiation for them by means of his own blood (Heb 9:6-14).

  17. Leviticus 16:8 The Hebrew text has “azazel” for scapegoat. This was the name of a demon which the ancient Hebrews and the Canaanites believed dwelled in the barren wilderness, that is, in a place where God did not exercise his fructifying activity.
  18. Leviticus 16:11 In order for Aaron to be an acceptable minister for the people in the sanctuary, he himself had to be ritually cleansed (see Heb 5:1-3).
  19. Leviticus 16:21 Aaron transferred the sins of the people by laying both hands on the sacrificial animal, thereby winning atonement for their transgressions.
  20. Leviticus 16:29 This is the only place in the Old Testament where a penance is required before offering sacrifice.
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Leviticus 11-16
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Clean and Unclean Food(A)

11 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Say to the Israelites: ‘Of all the animals that live on land, these are the ones you may eat:(B) 3 You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud.

4 “‘There are some that only chew the cud or only have a divided hoof, but you must not eat them.(C) The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is ceremonially unclean for you. 5 The hyrax, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you. 6 The rabbit, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you. 7 And the pig,(D) though it has a divided hoof, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. 8 You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you.(E)

9 “‘Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams you may eat any that have fins and scales. 10 But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales—whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water—you are to regard as unclean.(F) 11 And since you are to regard them as unclean, you must not eat their meat; you must regard their carcasses as unclean.(G) 12 Anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales is to be regarded as unclean by you.(H)

13 “‘These are the birds you are to regard as unclean and not eat because they are unclean: the eagle,[a] the vulture, the black vulture, 14 the red kite, any kind(I) of black kite, 15 any kind of raven,(J) 16 the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, 17 the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, 18 the white owl,(K) the desert owl, the osprey, 19 the stork,(L) any kind(M) of heron, the hoopoe and the bat.(N)

20 “‘All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be regarded as unclean by you.(O) 21 There are, however, some flying insects that walk on all fours that you may eat: those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. 22 Of these you may eat any kind of locust,(P) katydid, cricket or grasshopper. 23 But all other flying insects that have four legs you are to regard as unclean.

24 “‘You will make yourselves unclean by these;(Q) whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening.(R) 25 Whoever picks up one of their carcasses must wash their clothes,(S) and they will be unclean till evening.(T)

26 “‘Every animal that does not have a divided hoof or that does not chew the cud is unclean for you; whoever touches the carcass of any of them will be unclean. 27 Of all the animals that walk on all fours, those that walk on their paws are unclean for you; whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. 28 Anyone who picks up their carcasses must wash their clothes, and they will be unclean till evening.(U) These animals are unclean for you.

29 “‘Of the animals that move along the ground, these are unclean for you:(V) the weasel, the rat,(W) any kind of great lizard, 30 the gecko, the monitor lizard, the wall lizard, the skink and the chameleon. 31 Of all those that move along the ground, these are unclean for you. Whoever touches them when they are dead will be unclean till evening. 32 When one of them dies and falls on something, that article, whatever its use, will be unclean, whether it is made of wood, cloth, hide or sackcloth.(X) Put it in water; it will be unclean till evening, and then it will be clean. 33 If one of them falls into a clay pot, everything in it will be unclean, and you must break the pot.(Y) 34 Any food you are allowed to eat that has come into contact with water from any such pot is unclean, and any liquid that is drunk from such a pot is unclean. 35 Anything that one of their carcasses falls on becomes unclean; an oven or cooking pot must be broken up. They are unclean, and you are to regard them as unclean. 36 A spring, however, or a cistern for collecting water remains clean, but anyone who touches one of these carcasses is unclean. 37 If a carcass falls on any seeds that are to be planted, they remain clean. 38 But if water has been put on the seed and a carcass falls on it, it is unclean for you.

39 “‘If an animal that you are allowed to eat dies,(Z) anyone who touches its carcass(AA) will be unclean till evening. 40 Anyone who eats some of its carcass(AB) must wash their clothes, and they will be unclean till evening.(AC) Anyone who picks up the carcass must wash their clothes, and they will be unclean till evening.

41 “‘Every creature that moves along the ground is to be regarded as unclean; it is not to be eaten. 42 You are not to eat any creature that moves along the ground, whether it moves on its belly or walks on all fours or on many feet; it is unclean. 43 Do not defile yourselves by any of these creatures.(AD) Do not make yourselves unclean by means of them or be made unclean by them. 44 I am the Lord your God;(AE) consecrate yourselves(AF) and be holy,(AG) because I am holy.(AH) Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves along the ground.(AI) 45 I am the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt(AJ) to be your God;(AK) therefore be holy, because I am holy.(AL)

46 “‘These are the regulations concerning animals, birds, every living thing that moves about in the water and every creature that moves along the ground. 47 You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.(AM)’”

Purification After Childbirth

12 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Say to the Israelites: ‘A woman who becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son will be ceremonially unclean for seven days, just as she is unclean during her monthly period.(AN) 3 On the eighth day(AO) the boy is to be circumcised.(AP) 4 Then the woman must wait thirty-three days to be purified from her bleeding. She must not touch anything sacred or go to the sanctuary until the days of her purification are over. 5 If she gives birth to a daughter, for two weeks the woman will be unclean, as during her period. Then she must wait sixty-six days to be purified from her bleeding.

6 “‘When the days of her purification for a son or daughter are over,(AQ) she is to bring to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting a year-old lamb(AR) for a burnt offering and a young pigeon or a dove for a sin offering.[b](AS) 7 He shall offer them before the Lord to make atonement for her, and then she will be ceremonially clean from her flow of blood.

“‘These are the regulations for the woman who gives birth to a boy or a girl. 8 But if she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons,(AT) one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering.(AU) In this way the priest will make atonement for her, and she will be clean.(AV)’”

Regulations About Defiling Skin Diseases

13 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “When anyone has a swelling(AW) or a rash or a shiny spot(AX) on their skin that may be a defiling skin disease,[c](AY) they must be brought to Aaron the priest(AZ) or to one of his sons[d] who is a priest. 3 The priest is to examine the sore on the skin, and if the hair in the sore has turned white and the sore appears to be more than skin deep, it is a defiling skin disease. When the priest examines that person, he shall pronounce them ceremonially unclean.(BA) 4 If the shiny spot(BB) on the skin is white but does not appear to be more than skin deep and the hair in it has not turned white, the priest is to isolate the affected person for seven days.(BC) 5 On the seventh day(BD) the priest is to examine them,(BE) and if he sees that the sore is unchanged and has not spread in the skin, he is to isolate them for another seven days. 6 On the seventh day the priest is to examine them again, and if the sore has faded and has not spread in the skin, the priest shall pronounce them clean;(BF) it is only a rash. They must wash their clothes,(BG) and they will be clean.(BH) 7 But if the rash does spread in their skin after they have shown themselves to the priest to be pronounced clean, they must appear before the priest again.(BI) 8 The priest is to examine that person, and if the rash has spread in the skin, he shall pronounce them unclean; it is a defiling skin disease.

9 “When anyone has a defiling skin disease, they must be brought to the priest. 10 The priest is to examine them, and if there is a white swelling in the skin that has turned the hair white and if there is raw flesh in the swelling, 11 it is a chronic skin disease(BJ) and the priest shall pronounce them unclean. He is not to isolate them, because they are already unclean.

12 “If the disease breaks out all over their skin and, so far as the priest can see, it covers all the skin of the affected person from head to foot, 13 the priest is to examine them, and if the disease has covered their whole body, he shall pronounce them clean. Since it has all turned white, they are clean. 14 But whenever raw flesh appears on them, they will be unclean. 15 When the priest sees the raw flesh, he shall pronounce them unclean. The raw flesh is unclean; they have a defiling disease.(BK) 16 If the raw flesh changes and turns white, they must go to the priest. 17 The priest is to examine them, and if the sores have turned white, the priest shall pronounce the affected person clean;(BL) then they will be clean.

18 “When someone has a boil(BM) on their skin and it heals, 19 and in the place where the boil was, a white swelling or reddish-white(BN) spot(BO) appears, they must present themselves to the priest. 20 The priest is to examine it, and if it appears to be more than skin deep and the hair in it has turned white, the priest shall pronounce that person unclean. It is a defiling skin disease(BP) that has broken out where the boil was. 21 But if, when the priest examines it, there is no white hair in it and it is not more than skin deep and has faded, then the priest is to isolate them for seven days. 22 If it is spreading in the skin, the priest shall pronounce them unclean; it is a defiling disease. 23 But if the spot is unchanged and has not spread, it is only a scar from the boil, and the priest shall pronounce them clean.(BQ)

24 “When someone has a burn on their skin and a reddish-white or white spot appears in the raw flesh of the burn, 25 the priest is to examine the spot, and if the hair in it has turned white, and it appears to be more than skin deep, it is a defiling disease that has broken out in the burn. The priest shall pronounce them unclean; it is a defiling skin disease.(BR) 26 But if the priest examines it and there is no white hair in the spot and if it is not more than skin deep and has faded, then the priest is to isolate them for seven days.(BS) 27 On the seventh day the priest is to examine that person,(BT) and if it is spreading in the skin, the priest shall pronounce them unclean; it is a defiling skin disease. 28 If, however, the spot is unchanged and has not spread in the skin but has faded, it is a swelling from the burn, and the priest shall pronounce them clean; it is only a scar from the burn.(BU)

29 “If a man or woman has a sore on their head(BV) or chin, 30 the priest is to examine the sore, and if it appears to be more than skin deep and the hair in it is yellow and thin, the priest shall pronounce them unclean; it is a defiling skin disease on the head or chin. 31 But if, when the priest examines the sore, it does not seem to be more than skin deep and there is no black hair in it, then the priest is to isolate the affected person for seven days.(BW) 32 On the seventh day the priest is to examine the sore,(BX) and if it has not spread and there is no yellow hair in it and it does not appear to be more than skin deep, 33 then the man or woman must shave themselves, except for the affected area, and the priest is to keep them isolated another seven days. 34 On the seventh day the priest is to examine the sore,(BY) and if it has not spread in the skin and appears to be no more than skin deep, the priest shall pronounce them clean. They must wash their clothes, and they will be clean.(BZ) 35 But if the sore does spread in the skin after they are pronounced clean, 36 the priest is to examine them, and if he finds that the sore has spread in the skin, he does not need to look for yellow hair; they are unclean.(CA) 37 If, however, the sore is unchanged so far as the priest can see, and if black hair has grown in it, the affected person is healed. They are clean, and the priest shall pronounce them clean.

38 “When a man or woman has white spots on the skin, 39 the priest is to examine them, and if the spots are dull white, it is a harmless rash that has broken out on the skin; they are clean.

40 “A man who has lost his hair and is bald(CB) is clean. 41 If he has lost his hair from the front of his scalp and has a bald forehead, he is clean. 42 But if he has a reddish-white sore on his bald head or forehead, it is a defiling disease breaking out on his head or forehead. 43 The priest is to examine him, and if the swollen sore on his head or forehead is reddish-white like a defiling skin disease, 44 the man is diseased and is unclean. The priest shall pronounce him unclean because of the sore on his head.

45 “Anyone with such a defiling disease must wear torn clothes,(CC) let their hair be unkempt,[e] cover the lower part of their face(CD) and cry out, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’(CE) 46 As long as they have the disease they remain unclean. They must live alone; they must live outside the camp.(CF)

Regulations About Defiling Molds

47 “As for any fabric that is spoiled with a defiling mold—any woolen or linen clothing, 48 any woven or knitted material of linen or wool, any leather or anything made of leather— 49 if the affected area in the fabric, the leather, the woven or knitted material, or any leather article, is greenish or reddish, it is a defiling mold and must be shown to the priest.(CG) 50 The priest is to examine the affected area(CH) and isolate the article for seven days. 51 On the seventh day he is to examine it,(CI) and if the mold has spread in the fabric, the woven or knitted material, or the leather, whatever its use, it is a persistent defiling mold; the article is unclean.(CJ) 52 He must burn the fabric, the woven or knitted material of wool or linen, or any leather article that has been spoiled; because the defiling mold is persistent, the article must be burned.(CK)

53 “But if, when the priest examines it, the mold has not spread in the fabric, the woven or knitted material, or the leather article, 54 he shall order that the spoiled article be washed. Then he is to isolate it for another seven days. 55 After the article has been washed, the priest is to examine it again, and if the mold has not changed its appearance, even though it has not spread, it is unclean. Burn it, no matter which side of the fabric has been spoiled. 56 If, when the priest examines it, the mold has faded after the article has been washed, he is to tear the spoiled part out of the fabric, the leather, or the woven or knitted material. 57 But if it reappears in the fabric, in the woven or knitted material, or in the leather article, it is a spreading mold; whatever has the mold must be burned. 58 Any fabric, woven or knitted material, or any leather article that has been washed and is rid of the mold, must be washed again. Then it will be clean.”

59 These are the regulations concerning defiling molds in woolen or linen clothing, woven or knitted material, or any leather article, for pronouncing them clean or unclean.

Cleansing From Defiling Skin Diseases

14 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “These are the regulations for any diseased person at the time of their ceremonial cleansing, when they are brought to the priest:(CL) 3 The priest is to go outside the camp and examine them.(CM) If they have been healed of their defiling skin disease,[f](CN) 4 the priest shall order that two live clean birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop(CO) be brought for the person to be cleansed.(CP) 5 Then the priest shall order that one of the birds be killed over fresh water in a clay pot.(CQ) 6 He is then to take the live bird and dip it, together with the cedar wood, the scarlet yarn and the hyssop, into the blood of the bird that was killed over the fresh water.(CR) 7 Seven times(CS) he shall sprinkle(CT) the one to be cleansed of the defiling disease, and then pronounce them clean. After that, he is to release the live bird in the open fields.(CU)

8 “The person to be cleansed must wash their clothes,(CV) shave off all their hair and bathe with water;(CW) then they will be ceremonially clean.(CX) After this they may come into the camp,(CY) but they must stay outside their tent for seven days. 9 On the seventh day(CZ) they must shave off all their hair;(DA) they must shave their head, their beard, their eyebrows and the rest of their hair. They must wash their clothes and bathe themselves with water, and they will be clean.(DB)

10 “On the eighth day(DC) they must bring two male lambs and one ewe lamb(DD) a year old, each without defect, along with three-tenths of an ephah[g](DE) of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering,(DF) and one log[h] of oil.(DG) 11 The priest who pronounces them clean shall present(DH) both the one to be cleansed and their offerings before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting.(DI)

12 “Then the priest is to take one of the male lambs and offer it as a guilt offering,(DJ) along with the log of oil; he shall wave them before the Lord as a wave offering.(DK) 13 He is to slaughter the lamb in the sanctuary area(DL) where the sin offering[i] and the burnt offering are slaughtered. Like the sin offering, the guilt offering belongs to the priest;(DM) it is most holy. 14 The priest is to take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot.(DN) 15 The priest shall then take some of the log of oil, pour it in the palm of his own left hand,(DO) 16 dip his right forefinger into the oil in his palm, and with his finger sprinkle some of it before the Lord seven times.(DP) 17 The priest is to put some of the oil remaining in his palm on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot, on top of the blood of the guilt offering.(DQ) 18 The rest of the oil in his palm the priest shall put on the head of the one to be cleansed(DR) and make atonement for them before the Lord.

19 “Then the priest is to sacrifice the sin offering and make atonement for the one to be cleansed from their uncleanness.(DS) After that, the priest shall slaughter the burnt offering 20 and offer it on the altar, together with the grain offering, and make atonement for them,(DT) and they will be clean.(DU)

21 “If, however, they are poor(DV) and cannot afford these,(DW) they must take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for them, together with a tenth of an ephah[j] of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering, a log of oil, 22 and two doves or two young pigeons,(DX) such as they can afford, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering.(DY)

23 “On the eighth day they must bring them for their cleansing to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting,(DZ) before the Lord.(EA) 24 The priest is to take the lamb for the guilt offering,(EB) together with the log of oil,(EC) and wave them before the Lord as a wave offering.(ED) 25 He shall slaughter the lamb for the guilt offering and take some of its blood and put it on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot.(EE) 26 The priest is to pour some of the oil into the palm of his own left hand,(EF) 27 and with his right forefinger sprinkle some of the oil from his palm seven times before the Lord. 28 Some of the oil in his palm he is to put on the same places he put the blood of the guilt offering—on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot. 29 The rest of the oil in his palm the priest shall put on the head of the one to be cleansed, to make atonement for them before the Lord.(EG) 30 Then he shall sacrifice the doves or the young pigeons, such as the person can afford,(EH) 31 one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering,(EI) together with the grain offering. In this way the priest will make atonement before the Lord on behalf of the one to be cleansed.(EJ)”

32 These are the regulations for anyone who has a defiling skin disease(EK) and who cannot afford the regular offerings(EL) for their cleansing.

Cleansing From Defiling Molds

33 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 34 “When you enter the land of Canaan,(EM) which I am giving you as your possession,(EN) and I put a spreading mold in a house in that land, 35 the owner of the house must go and tell the priest, ‘I have seen something that looks like a defiling mold in my house.’ 36 The priest is to order the house to be emptied before he goes in to examine the mold, so that nothing in the house will be pronounced unclean. After this the priest is to go in and inspect the house. 37 He is to examine the mold on the walls, and if it has greenish or reddish(EO) depressions that appear to be deeper than the surface of the wall, 38 the priest shall go out the doorway of the house and close it up for seven days.(EP) 39 On the seventh day(EQ) the priest shall return to inspect the house. If the mold has spread on the walls, 40 he is to order that the contaminated stones be torn out and thrown into an unclean place outside the town.(ER) 41 He must have all the inside walls of the house scraped and the material that is scraped off dumped into an unclean place outside the town. 42 Then they are to take other stones to replace these and take new clay and plaster the house.

43 “If the defiling mold reappears in the house after the stones have been torn out and the house scraped and plastered, 44 the priest is to go and examine it and, if the mold has spread in the house, it is a persistent defiling mold; the house is unclean.(ES) 45 It must be torn down—its stones, timbers and all the plaster—and taken out of the town to an unclean place.

46 “Anyone who goes into the house while it is closed up will be unclean till evening.(ET) 47 Anyone who sleeps or eats in the house must wash their clothes.(EU)

48 “But if the priest comes to examine it and the mold has not spread after the house has been plastered, he shall pronounce the house clean,(EV) because the defiling mold is gone. 49 To purify the house he is to take two birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop.(EW) 50 He shall kill one of the birds over fresh water in a clay pot.(EX) 51 Then he is to take the cedar wood, the hyssop,(EY) the scarlet yarn and the live bird, dip them into the blood of the dead bird and the fresh water, and sprinkle the house seven times.(EZ) 52 He shall purify the house with the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop and the scarlet yarn. 53 Then he is to release the live bird in the open fields(FA) outside the town. In this way he will make atonement for the house, and it will be clean.(FB)”

54 These are the regulations for any defiling skin disease,(FC) for a sore, 55 for defiling molds(FD) in fabric or in a house, 56 and for a swelling, a rash or a shiny spot,(FE) 57 to determine when something is clean or unclean.

These are the regulations for defiling skin diseases and defiling molds.(FF)

Discharges Causing Uncleanness

15 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When any man has an unusual bodily discharge,(FG) such a discharge is unclean. 3 Whether it continues flowing from his body or is blocked, it will make him unclean. This is how his discharge will bring about uncleanness:

4 “‘Any bed the man with a discharge lies on will be unclean, and anything he sits on will be unclean. 5 Anyone who touches his bed must wash their clothes(FH) and bathe with water,(FI) and they will be unclean till evening.(FJ) 6 Whoever sits on anything that the man with a discharge sat on must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

7 “‘Whoever touches the man(FK) who has a discharge(FL) must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

8 “‘If the man with the discharge spits(FM) on anyone who is clean, they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

9 “‘Everything the man sits on when riding will be unclean, 10 and whoever touches any of the things that were under him will be unclean till evening; whoever picks up those things(FN) must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

11 “‘Anyone the man with a discharge touches without rinsing his hands with water must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

12 “‘A clay pot(FO) that the man touches must be broken, and any wooden article(FP) is to be rinsed with water.

13 “‘When a man is cleansed from his discharge, he is to count off seven days(FQ) for his ceremonial cleansing; he must wash his clothes and bathe himself with fresh water, and he will be clean.(FR) 14 On the eighth day he must take two doves or two young pigeons(FS) and come before the Lord to the entrance to the tent of meeting and give them to the priest. 15 The priest is to sacrifice them, the one for a sin offering[k](FT) and the other for a burnt offering.(FU) In this way he will make atonement before the Lord for the man because of his discharge.(FV)

16 “‘When a man has an emission of semen,(FW) he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean till evening.(FX) 17 Any clothing or leather that has semen on it must be washed with water, and it will be unclean till evening. 18 When a man has sexual relations with a woman and there is an emission of semen,(FY) both of them must bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

19 “‘When a woman has her regular flow of blood, the impurity of her monthly period(FZ) will last seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean till evening.

20 “‘Anything she lies on during her period will be unclean, and anything she sits on will be unclean. 21 Anyone who touches her bed will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.(GA) 22 Anyone who touches anything she sits on will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening. 23 Whether it is the bed or anything she was sitting on, when anyone touches it, they will be unclean till evening.

24 “‘If a man has sexual relations with her and her monthly flow(GB) touches him, he will be unclean for seven days; any bed he lies on will be unclean.

25 “‘When a woman has a discharge of blood for many days at a time other than her monthly period(GC) or has a discharge that continues beyond her period, she will be unclean as long as she has the discharge, just as in the days of her period. 26 Any bed she lies on while her discharge continues will be unclean, as is her bed during her monthly period, and anything she sits on will be unclean, as during her period. 27 Anyone who touches them will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

28 “‘When she is cleansed from her discharge, she must count off seven days, and after that she will be ceremonially clean. 29 On the eighth day she must take two doves or two young pigeons(GD) and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 30 The priest is to sacrifice one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. In this way he will make atonement for her before the Lord for the uncleanness of her discharge.(GE)

31 “‘You must keep the Israelites separate from things that make them unclean, so they will not die in their uncleanness for defiling my dwelling place,[l](GF) which is among them.’”

32 These are the regulations for a man with a discharge, for anyone made unclean by an emission of semen,(GG) 33 for a woman in her monthly period, for a man or a woman with a discharge, and for a man who has sexual relations with a woman who is ceremonially unclean.(GH)

The Day of Atonement(GI)

16 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron who died when they approached the Lord.(GJ) 2 The Lord said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses(GK) into the Most Holy Place(GL) behind the curtain(GM) in front of the atonement cover(GN) on the ark, or else he will die. For I will appear(GO) in the cloud(GP) over the atonement cover.

3 “This is how Aaron is to enter the Most Holy Place:(GQ) He must first bring a young bull(GR) for a sin offering[m] and a ram for a burnt offering.(GS) 4 He is to put on the sacred linen tunic,(GT) with linen undergarments next to his body; he is to tie the linen sash around him and put on the linen turban.(GU) These are sacred garments;(GV) so he must bathe himself with water(GW) before he puts them on.(GX) 5 From the Israelite community(GY) he is to take two male goats(GZ) for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.

6 “Aaron is to offer the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household.(HA) 7 Then he is to take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 8 He is to cast lots(HB) for the two goats—one lot for the Lord and the other for the scapegoat.[n](HC) 9 Aaron shall bring the goat whose lot falls to the Lord and sacrifice it for a sin offering. 10 But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement(HD) by sending it into the wilderness as a scapegoat.

11 “Aaron shall bring the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household,(HE) and he is to slaughter the bull for his own sin offering. 12 He is to take a censer full of burning coals(HF) from the altar before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense(HG) and take them behind the curtain. 13 He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the smoke of the incense will conceal the atonement cover(HH) above the tablets of the covenant law, so that he will not die.(HI) 14 He is to take some of the bull’s blood(HJ) and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the atonement cover.(HK)

15 “He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people(HL) and take its blood behind the curtain(HM) and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: He shall sprinkle(HN) it on the atonement cover and in front of it. 16 In this way he will make atonement(HO) for the Most Holy Place(HP) because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the tent of meeting,(HQ) which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 No one is to be in the tent of meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he comes out, having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel.

18 “Then he shall come out to the altar(HR) that is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He shall take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood and put it on all the horns of the altar.(HS) 19 He shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and to consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.(HT)

20 “When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat.(HU) 21 He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat(HV) and confess(HW) over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task. 22 The goat will carry on itself all their sins(HX) to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness.

23 “Then Aaron is to go into the tent of meeting and take off the linen garments(HY) he put on before he entered the Most Holy Place, and he is to leave them there.(HZ) 24 He shall bathe himself with water in the sanctuary area(IA) and put on his regular garments.(IB) Then he shall come out and sacrifice the burnt offering for himself and the burnt offering for the people,(IC) to make atonement for himself and for the people.(ID) 25 He shall also burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar.

26 “The man who releases the goat as a scapegoat(IE) must wash his clothes(IF) and bathe himself with water;(IG) afterward he may come into the camp. 27 The bull and the goat for the sin offerings, whose blood was brought into the Most Holy Place to make atonement, must be taken outside the camp;(IH) their hides, flesh and intestines are to be burned up. 28 The man who burns them must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may come into the camp.(II)

29 “This is to be a lasting ordinance(IJ) for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month(IK) you must deny yourselves[o](IL) and not do any work(IM)—whether native-born(IN) or a foreigner residing among you— 30 because on this day atonement will be made(IO) for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins.(IP) 31 It is a day of sabbath rest, and you must deny yourselves;(IQ) it is a lasting ordinance.(IR) 32 The priest who is anointed and ordained(IS) to succeed his father as high priest is to make atonement. He is to put on the sacred linen garments(IT) 33 and make atonement for the Most Holy Place, for the tent of meeting and the altar, and for the priests and all the members of the community.(IU)

34 “This is to be a lasting ordinance(IV) for you: Atonement is to be made once a year(IW) for all the sins of the Israelites.”

And it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 11:13 The precise identification of some of the birds, insects and animals in this chapter is uncertain.
  2. Leviticus 12:6 Or purification offering; also in verse 8
  3. Leviticus 13:2 The Hebrew word for defiling skin disease, traditionally translated “leprosy,” was used for various diseases affecting the skin; here and throughout verses 3-46.
  4. Leviticus 13:2 Or descendants
  5. Leviticus 13:45 Or clothes, uncover their head
  6. Leviticus 14:3 The Hebrew word for defiling skin disease, traditionally translated “leprosy,” was used for various diseases affecting the skin; also in verses 7, 32, 54 and 57.
  7. Leviticus 14:10 That is, probably about 11 pounds or about 5 kilograms
  8. Leviticus 14:10 That is, about 1/3 quart or about 0.3 liter; also in verses 12, 15, 21 and 24
  9. Leviticus 14:13 Or purification offering; also in verses 19, 22 and 31
  10. Leviticus 14:21 That is, probably about 3 1/2 pounds or about 1.6 kilograms
  11. Leviticus 15:15 Or purification offering; also in verse 30
  12. Leviticus 15:31 Or my tabernacle
  13. Leviticus 16:3 Or purification offering; here and throughout this chapter
  14. Leviticus 16:8 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain; also in verses 10 and 26.
  15. Leviticus 16:29 Or must fast; also in verse 31
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