Leviticus 21-24

Names of God Bible

Holiness for All the Priests

21 Yahweh spoke to Moses, “Tell the priests, Aaron’s sons: None of you should become unclean by touching one of your relatives who has died. ² However, you are allowed to become unclean when one of your nearest relatives dies. These relatives include your mother, father, son, daughter, or brother, ³ and especially an unmarried virgin sister who is still close to you. ⁴ As the head of your people, you should never become unclean. That would make you unholy.

⁵ “You should never mourn by shaving bald spots on your heads, shaving the edges of your beards, or slashing your bodies.

⁶ “Be Elohim’s holy men, and don’t dishonor the name of your Elohim. Be holy because you bring sacrifices by fire to Yahweh. It is the food of your Elohim. ⁷ You should never marry prostitutes, those who have lost their virginity, or divorced women because a priest is Elohim’s holy man. ⁸ Be holy because you offer the food of your Elohim. Be holy because I, Yahweh, am holy. I set you apart as holy. ⁹ When a priest’s daughter dishonors herself by becoming a prostitute, she dishonors her father. She must be burned.

Holiness for the Chief Priest

¹⁰ “The priest who is anointed with oil and wears the chief priest’s clothes is chief over his brothers. He must never mourn by leaving his hair uncombed or by tearing his clothes. ¹¹ He must never go near any dead bodies or become unclean, even for his father or mother. ¹² He must not leave the holy tent of his Elohim. If he does, he will be dishonoring it, because he is dedicated with the anointing oil of his Elohim. I am Yahweh.

¹³ “The anointed priest must marry a virgin. ¹⁴ He must never marry a widow, a divorced woman, a woman who has lost her virginity, or a prostitute. He may only marry a virgin from his own people. ¹⁵ He must not dishonor his children among his people because I, Yahweh, set him apart as holy.”

¹⁶ Yahweh spoke to Moses, ¹⁷ “Tell Aaron: If any of your descendants (now or in future generations) has a physical defect, he must never bring food to offer to Elohim. ¹⁸ Indeed, no one who has a physical defect may ever come near the altar. That means anyone who is blind or lame, who has a disfigured face, a deformity, ¹⁹ or a crippled hand or foot, ²⁰ who is a hunchback or dwarf, who has defective sight, skin diseases, or crushed testicles. ²¹ If a descendant of the priest Aaron has a physical defect, he must never bring sacrifices by fire to Yahweh. He has a defect. He must never bring food to offer to Elohim. ²² He may eat the food of his Elohim—what is holy and what is very holy. ²³ However, he must never come up to the canopy or to the altar, since he has a physical defect. He must never dishonor the holy places because I, Yahweh, set them apart as holy.”

²⁴ So Moses spoke to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites.

Eating the Priests’ Share of the Sacrifice

22 Yahweh spoke to Moses, ² “Tell Aaron and his sons that they must respect the holy offerings which the Israelites set apart for me. In this way they will not dishonor my holy name. I am Yahweh.

³ “Tell them: In future generations if any of your descendants, while unclean, comes near the holy offerings the Israelites set apart for Yahweh, that person must be excluded from my presence. I am Yahweh.

⁴ “No descendant of Aaron who has a skin disease or a discharge may eat any of the holy offerings until he is clean. Any person who has an emission of semen or touches a dead body, ⁵ an unclean swarming creature or an unclean person ⁶ will be unclean until evening. He must not eat any of the holy offerings unless he has washed himself. ⁷ When the sun has set, he will be clean. Then he may eat the holy offerings because they are his food. ⁸ He must never eat the meat of an animal that dies naturally or is killed by wild animals. It will make him unclean. I am Yahweh. ⁹ The priests must do what I order, or their sin will bring them death because they dishonored a holy offering. I am Yahweh, who sets them apart as holy.

¹⁰ “Laypeople must never eat any holy offering, even if they are visiting a priest or are working for him. ¹¹ But if a priest buys a slave, the slave and anyone born in his household may eat the priest’s food. ¹² However, if a priest’s daughter marries a layman, she must never eat the food taken from the holy contributions. ¹³ If a priest’s daughter is widowed or divorced, doesn’t have any children, and comes back to live in her father’s home, she may eat her father’s food. But a layperson must never eat it.

¹⁴ “Those who eat a holy offering by mistake must give another holy offering to the priest and add one-fifth more to it. ¹⁵ Priests must not dishonor the holy offerings that the Israelites contribute to Yahweh. ¹⁶ They must make those people pay the penalty for their guilt because they have eaten the priests’ holy offerings. I am Yahweh, who sets them apart as holy.”

Animals Accepted for Sacrifice

¹⁷ Yahweh spoke to Moses, ¹⁸ “Tell Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites: Israelites or foreigners may bring burnt offerings to Yahweh for anything they vowed or as freewill offerings. ¹⁹ The offering must be a male that has no defects from your cattle, sheep, or goats in order to be accepted. ²⁰ Never bring any animal with a physical defect, because it will not be accepted on your behalf. ²¹ A person may bring Yahweh a fellowship offering to fulfill a vow or for a freewill offering. Whether it is from the cattle, sheep, or goats, it must be an animal that has no defects in order to be accepted. It must never be an animal that has defects. ²² Never bring Yahweh an animal that is blind, has broken bones, cuts, warts, scabs, or ringworm. Never give Yahweh any of these in a sacrifice by fire on the altar. ²³ You may use a bull or a sheep with a deformity or one that is stunted in growth as a freewill offering. However, it will not be accepted for a vow. ²⁴ Never bring Yahweh an animal that has bruised, crushed, torn out, or cut out testicles. Never do any of these things to an animal in your land. ²⁵ Never bring any kind of castrated animal received from a foreigner as a food offering for your Elohim. A castrated animal will not be accepted on your behalf because castration is a physical defect.”

²⁶ Yahweh spoke to Moses, ²⁷ “When a calf, a lamb, or a goat is born, it must stay with its mother for seven days. From the eighth day on it may be accepted as a sacrifice by fire to Yahweh. ²⁸ Never slaughter a cow or a sheep and its young the same day.

²⁹ “When you sacrifice a thank offering to Yahweh, do it in the proper way. ³⁰ Eat it the same day. Never leave any of it until morning. I am Yahweh.

³¹ “Carefully obey my commands. I am Yahweh. ³² Never dishonor my holy name. I will show my holiness among the Israelites. I am Yahweh, who sets you apart as holy. ³³ I brought you out of Egypt to be your Elohim. I am Yahweh.”

The Day of Worship

23 Yahweh spoke to Moses, ² “Tell the Israelites: These are the appointed festivals with Yahweh, which you must announce as holy assemblies. ³ You may work for six days. But the seventh day is a day of worship, a day when you don’t work, a holy assembly. Don’t do any work. It is Yahweh’s day of worship wherever you live.

⁴ “The following are Yahweh’s appointed festivals with holy assemblies, which you must announce at their appointed times.

The Spring Festivals

⁵ “The fourteenth day of the first month, in the evening, is Yahweh’s Passover. ⁶ The fifteenth day of this same month is Yahweh’s Festival of Unleavened Bread. For seven days you must eat unleavened bread. ⁷ On the first day there will be a holy assembly. Don’t do any regular work. ⁸ Bring Yahweh a sacrifice by fire for seven days. On the seventh day there will be a holy assembly. Don’t do any regular work.”

⁹ Yahweh spoke to Moses, ¹⁰ “Tell the Israelites: When you come to the land I am going to give you and you harvest grain, bring the priest a bundle of the first grain you harvest. ¹¹ He will present it to Yahweh so that you will be accepted. He will present it on the day after Passover. ¹² On the day you present the bundle, you must sacrifice a one-year-old male lamb that has no defects as a burnt offering to Yahweh. ¹³ Bring a grain offering of four quarts of flour mixed with olive oil with it. This will be a sacrifice by fire made to Yahweh, a soothing aroma. Use one quart of wine for the wine offering. ¹⁴ Don’t eat bread, roasted grain, or fresh grain until this same day, when you bring the offering to your Elohim. It is a permanent law for generations to come wherever you live.

¹⁵ “Count seven full weeks from the day after Passover (the day you bring the bundle of grain as an offering presented to the Lord) ¹⁶ until the day after the seventh week. This is a total of fifty days. Then bring a new grain offering to Yahweh. ¹⁷ Bring two loaves of bread from your homes to present to the Lord. Bake them with four quarts of flour. They are the first harvested grain for Yahweh. ¹⁸ With the bread bring seven one-year-old lambs that have no defects, one bull, and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to Yahweh. With these offerings also bring grain and wine offerings. They will be a sacrifice by fire, a soothing aroma to Yahweh. ¹⁹ Also sacrifice one male goat as an offering for sin and two one-year-old lambs as a fellowship offering. ²⁰ The priest must present them along with the bread of the first harvested grain as an offering to Yahweh. All this, along with the two lambs, will be holy and will belong to Yahweh’s priests. ²¹ Make an announcement that there will be a holy assembly on that same day. Don’t do any regular work. It is a permanent law for generations to come wherever you live.

²² “When you harvest the grain in your land, don’t harvest the grain in the corners of your fields or gather what is left after you’re finished. Leave it for poor people and foreigners. I am Yahweh your Elohim.”

The Fall Festivals

²³ Yahweh spoke to Moses, ²⁴ “Tell the Israelites: On the first day of the seventh month hold a worship festival. It will be a memorial day, a holy assembly announced by the blowing of rams’ horns. ²⁵ Don’t do any regular work. Bring a sacrifice by fire to Yahweh.”

²⁶ Yahweh spoke to Moses, ²⁷ “In addition, the tenth day of this seventh month is a special day for the payment for sins. There will be a holy assembly. Humble yourselves, and bring Yahweh a sacrifice by fire. ²⁸ Don’t do any work that day. It is a special day for the payment for sins. It is a time when you make peace with Yahweh your Elohim. ²⁹ Those who do not humble themselves on that day will be excluded from the people. ³⁰ I will kill those who do any work on that day. ³¹ Don’t do any work. It is a permanent law for generations to come wherever you live. ³² It is a day of worship, a day when you don’t work. Humble yourselves starting on the evening of the ninth day of the month. From that evening to the next, observe the day of worship.”

³³ Yahweh spoke to Moses, ³⁴ “Tell the Israelites: The fifteenth day of this seventh month is the Festival of Booths to Yahweh. It will last seven days. ³⁵ On the first day there will be a holy assembly. Don’t do any regular work. ³⁶ For seven consecutive days bring a sacrifice by fire to Yahweh. On the eighth day there will be a holy assembly. Bring Yahweh a sacrifice by fire. This is the last festival of the year. Don’t do any regular work.

³⁷ “These are Yahweh’s appointed festivals. Announce them as holy assemblies for bringing sacrifices by fire to Yahweh. Bring burnt offerings, grain offerings, other sacrifices, and wine offerings—each one on its special day. ³⁸ This is in addition to Yahweh’s days of worship, your gifts, all your vows, and your freewill offerings to Yahweh.

³⁹ “However, on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered what the land produces, celebrate Yahweh’s festival for seven days. The first and the eighth days will be worship festivals. ⁴⁰ On the first day take the best fruits, palm branches, the branches of leafy trees and poplars, and celebrate in the presence of Yahweh your Elohim for seven days. ⁴¹ It is Yahweh’s festival. Celebrate it for seven days each year. This is a permanent law for generations to come. Celebrate this festival in the seventh month. ⁴² Live in booths for seven days. Everyone born in Israel must live in booths ⁴³ so that generations to come may learn how I made the people of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of Egypt. I am Yahweh your Elohim.”

⁴⁴ So Moses told the Israelites about Yahweh’s appointed festivals.

Duties in the Tent of Meeting^(A)

24 Yahweh spoke to Moses, ² “Command the Israelites to bring you pure, virgin olive oil for the lamp stand so that the lamps won’t go out. ³ In the tent of meeting, outside the canopy where the words of my promise are, Aaron must keep the lamps lit in Yahweh’s presence from evening until morning. It is a permanent law for generations to come. ⁴ Aaron must keep the lamps on the pure gold lamp stand lit in Yahweh’s presence.

⁵ “Also take flour and bake twelve rings of bread. Each ring will contain four quarts of flour. ⁶ Put them in two stacks of six each on the gold table in Yahweh’s presence. ⁷ Lay pure incense on top of each stack. The incense on the bread will be a reminder, an offering by fire to Yahweh. ⁸ Every day of worship a priest must arrange the bread in Yahweh’s presence. It is a continual reminder of my promise^[a] to the Israelites. ⁹ The bread will belong to Aaron and his sons. They will eat it in a holy place. It is very holy, set apart from Yahweh’s offering by fire. This is a permanent law.”

The Man Who Cursed the Lord’s Name

¹⁰ A man, whose mother was Shelomith (daughter of Dibri, from the tribe of Dan in Israel) and whose father was from Egypt, got into a quarrel with an Israelite in the camp. ¹¹ The Israelite woman’s son began cursing Ha-shem and treating it with contempt. So they brought him to Moses.^{[b] 12} They kept him in custody until Yahweh told them what to do.

¹³ Yahweh spoke to Moses, ¹⁴ “The man who cursed my name must be taken outside the camp. All who heard him curse my name must lay their hands on his head. Then the whole congregation must stone him to death.

¹⁵ “Also tell the Israelites: Those who treat their Elohim with contempt will be punished for their sin. ¹⁶ But those who curse Yahweh’s name must be put to death. The whole congregation must stone them to death. It makes no difference whether they are Israelites or foreigners. Whoever curses Ha-shem must die.

¹⁷ “Whoever kills another person must be put to death. ¹⁸ Whoever kills an animal must replace it, life for life. ¹⁹ Whoever injures a neighbor must receive the same injury in return— ²⁰ a broken bone for a broken bone, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Whoever injures another person must receive the same injury in return. ²¹ Whoever kills an animal must replace it. Whoever kills a person must be put to death. ²² The same rule applies to every one of you. It makes no difference whether you are a foreigner or an Israelite, because I am Yahweh your Elohim.”

²³ Moses spoke to the people of Israel. So the man who had cursed Yahweh’s name was taken outside the camp. There they stoned him to death. The Israelites did as Yahweh commanded Moses.