22 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron and his sons so that they (A)abstain from the holy things of the people of Israel, which they (B)dedicate to me, so that they do not (C)profane my holy name: I am the Lord. Say to them, ‘If any one of all your offspring throughout your generations approaches the holy things that the people of Israel dedicate to the Lord, while (D)he has an uncleanness, that person shall be cut off from my presence: I am the Lord. None of the offspring of Aaron who has a leprous disease or a (E)discharge may eat of the holy things (F)until he is clean. (G)Whoever touches anything that is unclean through contact with the dead or (H)a man who has had an emission of semen, and (I)whoever touches a swarming thing by which he may be made unclean or (J)a person from whom he may take uncleanness, whatever his uncleanness may be— the person who touches such a thing shall be unclean until the evening and shall not eat of the holy things unless he has (K)bathed his body in water. When the sun goes down he shall be clean, and afterward he may eat of the holy things, because (L)they are his food. (M)He shall not eat what dies of itself or is torn by beasts, and so make himself unclean by it: I am the Lord.’ They shall therefore keep my charge, (N)lest they bear sin for it and die thereby when they profane it: (O)I am the Lord who sanctifies them.

10 (P)“A lay person shall not eat of a holy thing; no foreign guest of the priest or hired worker shall eat of a holy thing, 11 but if a priest buys a slave[a] as his property for money, the slave[b] may eat of it, and (Q)anyone born in his house may eat of his food. 12 If a priest's daughter marries a layman, she shall not eat of the contribution of the holy things. 13 But if a priest's daughter is widowed or divorced and has no child and (R)returns to her father's house, (S)as in her youth, she may eat of her father's food; yet no lay person shall eat of it. 14 (T)And if anyone eats of a holy thing unintentionally, he shall add (U)the fifth of its value to it and give the holy thing to the priest. 15 They (V)shall not profane the holy things of the people of Israel, which they contribute to the Lord, 16 and so cause them (W)to bear iniquity and guilt, by eating their holy things: (X)for I am the Lord who sanctifies them.”

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Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 22:11 Or servant; twice in this verse
  2. Leviticus 22:11 Hebrew he

Priestly uncleanness

22 The Lord said to Moses: Tell Aaron and his sons to be very careful how they treat the holy things that the Israelites devote to me so that they do not make my holy name impure: I am the Lord. Say to them: If any descendant of yours should ever come near the holy things that the Israelites have dedicated to the Lord while he is in an unclean state, he will be cut off from before me; I am the Lord. Any descendant of Aaron who is afflicted with skin disease[a] or has a discharge cannot eat of the holy things until he is clean. Anyone who touches anything made unclean by a dead body, or who has an emission of semen, or who touches any swarming creature or another person who makes him unclean—whatever the uncleanness might be— the person who touches these things will be unclean until evening. He must not eat of the holy things unless he has bathed his body in water. Once the sun has set and he has become clean again, he may eat of the holy things, for that is his food. He must not eat an animal that has died naturally or that was killed by another animal, becoming unclean by doing so; I am the Lord. The priests must keep my requirement so that they don’t become liable to punishment and die for having made it impure.[b] I am the Lord, who makes them holy.

Unauthorized eating

10 No layperson is allowed to eat the holy offerings. No foreign guest or hired laborer of a priest can eat it. 11 But if a priest purchases a servant, that person can eat it, and servants born into the priest’s household can also eat his food. 12 If a priest’s daughter marries a layman, she is not allowed to eat the holy offerings. 13 But if a priest’s daughter is a widow or divorced and has no children and so returns to her father’s household as when she was young, she can eat her father’s food. But, again, no layperson is allowed to eat it. 14 If someone eats a holy offering unintentionally, they must provide the priest with an equal item, plus one-fifth. 15 The Israelites must not make the holy offerings impure that they offer up to the Lord 16 or make themselves liable to punishment requiring compensation by eating their own holy offerings. I am the Lord, who makes them holy.

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Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 22:4 The precise meaning is uncertain; traditionally leprosy—a term used for several different skin diseases.
  2. Leviticus 22:9 Vulg; MT and die in it