Old/New Testament

Priestly Holiness

21 The Lord told Moses, “Speak to the priests, Aaron’s sons, and tell them that no priest is to defile himself on account of the dead among his people, ² except his close relatives—his mother, father, son, daughter, brother, or ³ virgin sister (who is a near relative of him and did not have a husband—^[a] he may defile himself for her). ⁴ Because he is a husband among his people, he is not to defile himself, thereby polluting himself.

⁵ “They are not to cut their hair in ritualistic patterns^[b] on their heads, deface the edges of their beards, or make incisions in their flesh. ⁶ They are to be holy to their God. They are not to defile the name of their God, because they’re the ones who bring the offerings of the Lord made by fire—the food of their God—so they are to be holy.

⁷ “They are not to marry^[c] a prostitute or a woman who has been dishonored or who was divorced from her husband, because the priest^[d] is holy to his God. ⁸ Consecrate him, because he’s the one who offers the food of your God. He is to be holy for you, because I, the Lord, the one who sanctifies you, am holy.

⁹ “Now if the daughter of any priest defiles herself by being a prostitute, she defiles her father. She is to be incinerated.

¹⁰ “The high priest among his relatives—whose head has been anointed with oil and who has been consecrated to put on the priestly clothing—is not to let his hair hang loose or to tear his clothes. ¹¹ He is not to come near any dead body—whether the deceased^[e] is his father or his mother—so as not to defile himself. ¹² He is not to go out of the sanctuary or defile the sanctuary of his God, because his God’s consecrating oil of anointing rests on him. I am the Lord.

¹³ “Furthermore, he is to marry a true virgin.^{[f] 14} He is not to marry a widow or one who has been divorced, has been defiled, or has been a prostitute. Instead, he is to take a virgin from among his people as his wife.

¹⁵ “He is not to defile his children^[g] among his people, because I am the Lord, who sets him apart.”

On Physical Defects

¹⁶ The Lord told Moses, ¹⁷ “Tell Aaron that whoever of your descendants throughout their generations has a bodily defect is not to approach to offer the food of his God. ¹⁸ Indeed, any person who has a defect is not to approach the Tent of Meeting—^[h] the blind, the lame, one who is mutilated in the face or who has a very long limb, ¹⁹ or a person who has a fractured foot or hand, ²⁰ has scoliosis,^[i] is a dwarf, or has an eye defect, an itching disease, scabs, or a crushed testicle. ²¹ None of the descendants of Aaron the priest who has a defect is to approach to bring offerings of the Lord made by fire, since he has a defect. He is not to approach to offer the food of his God. ²² However, he may eat the food of his God, including the most holy and the holy offerings, ²³ but he is not to enter through the curtain nor approach the altar, since he has a defect. That way, he won’t defile my sanctuary, since I am the Lord, who sets you apart.”

²⁴ Moses told all of this^[j] to Aaron, to his sons, and to all the Israelis.

Holy Offerings

22 Later on, the Lord told Moses, ² “Tell Aaron and his sons that they are to separate themselves for the sacred things of the Israelis and that they are not to defile my holy name. I am the Lord. ³ Tell them that whoever among your descendants throughout your generations approaches the sacred things that the Israelis had consecrated to the Lord while still remaining unclean is to be eliminated from my presence. I am the Lord. ⁴ If one of Aaron’s descendants has an infectious skin disease or a discharge, he is not to eat anything sacred until he has been cleansed. Anyone who touches an unclean thing on account of the dead, or who has a seminal discharge, ⁵ or who becomes unclean by touching a creeping creature or another human being, whatever the uncleanness may be— ⁶ such a person^[k] who comes in contact with anything like this will become unclean until evening. As a result, he is not to eat the sacred things unless he has bathed himself^[l] with water. ⁷ When the sun has gone down and he has been cleansed, he may eat of the sacred things, since that’s his food. ⁸ He is not to eat the carcass of an animal that was torn by animals,^[m] thereby defiling himself with it. I am the Lord. ⁹ They are to keep my charge. By doing so, they won’t bear the punishment of sin because of it and therefore die if they’ve been defiled by it. I am the Lord, who sets them apart.”

Other Prohibitions

¹⁰ “No resident alien is to eat anything sacred. Neither the visitor^[n] of the priest nor a hired laborer is to eat anything sacred. ¹¹ If a priest acquires a slave as property with his own money, he may eat with him. Those who were born in his house may eat his food. ¹² If a priest’s daughter marries a resident alien, she is not to eat the sacred raised offerings. ¹³ If the priest’s daughter is a widow, or is divorced and childless,^[o] so that she has to return to her father’s house as in her younger days,^[p] she may eat her father’s food, but no resident alien may eat it. ¹⁴ If a person eats anything sacred inadvertently, he is to add a fifth part to it and then give the sacred thing to the priest. ¹⁵ They are not to defile the sacred things of the Israelis that they have offered^[q] to the Lord, ¹⁶ thereby causing them to bear the punishment of their iniquity for wrongdoing when they eat their sacred things, because I am the Lord, who sets them apart.”

Acceptable Offerings

¹⁷ The Lord told Moses, ¹⁸ “Tell Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelis that when a person from the house of Israel or from the resident aliens living in Israel brings his offering to the Lord as a whole burnt offering (whether in fulfillment of a promise or a free will offerings), ¹⁹ so that he’ll be sure to be accepted,^[r] he is to offer^[s] a male without defect from the bulls, the lambs, and the goats. ²⁰ However, whatever has a defect is not to be offered, because it won’t be acceptable for you.

²¹ “If a person brings a peace offering sacrifice to the Lord to fulfill a vow or a free will offering from the herd or the flock, it is to be sound in order to be accepted, without any defect in it. ²² You are not to bring to the Lord an offering that is blind, fractured, mutilated, or infected with ulcers, scurvy, or scales. You are not to present any of them as an offering made by fire on the altar for the Lord.

²³ “You may offer a bull or lamb that has one limb longer than the other or that is stunted as a free will offering, but it’s not acceptable in fulfillment of a promise. ²⁴ You are not to bring to the Lord an animal^[t] that has been emasculated, crushed, torn, or cut apart. You are not to practice this in your land. ²⁵ A resident alien is not to offer as food to your God any of these items, because they are afflicted with ritual corruption due to their defects. They’re not acceptable for you.”

²⁶ The Lord told Moses, ²⁷ “Whenever a bull, a sheep, or a goat is born, it is to remain for seven days under the care of its mother. But on the eighth day onwards, it may be accepted as an offering made by fire to the Lord. ²⁸ However, you are not to slaughter a bull or a ewe along with its offspring on the same day. ²⁹ When you offer^[u] a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord, bring it so that it’s acceptable for you. ³⁰ It is to be eaten that same day. You are not to leave any of it until morning. I am the Lord.

³¹ “Keep my commands and observe them. I am the Lord.

³² “You are not to defile my sacred name, because I’ve been set apart in the midst of the Israelis. Furthermore, I am the Lord, who sets you apart— ³³ who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord.”

Jesus is Raised from the Dead^(A)

28 After the Sabbaths,^[a] around dawn on the first day of the week,^[b] Mary Magdalene^[c] and the other Mary went to take a look at the burial site.^{[d] 2} Suddenly, there was a powerful earthquake, because an angel of the Lord had come down from heaven, approached the stone, rolled it away, and was sitting on top of it. ³ His appearance was bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. ⁴ Trembling from fear, even the guards themselves became catatonic.^[e]

⁵ Responding to the women, the angel said, “Stop being frightened! I know you’re looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here. He has been raised, just as he said. Come and see the place where he^[f] was lying. ⁷ Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead. He is going ahead of you into Galilee, and you will see him there. Remember, I have told you!”

⁸ So they quickly left the tomb, terrified but also ecstatic, and ran to tell Jesus’^[g] disciples. ⁹ Suddenly, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They went up to him, took hold of his feet, and worshipped him. ¹⁰ Then Jesus told them, “Stop being frightened! Go and tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.”

The Guards Report to the High Priests

¹¹ While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and told the high priests everything that had happened. ¹² So they met with the elders and agreed on a plan to give the soldiers a large^[h] amount of money. ¹³ They said, “Say that Jesus’^[i] disciples came at night and stole him while you were sleeping. ¹⁴ If this is reported to the governor, we’ll personally persuade him to keep you out of trouble.”^{[j] 15} So the soldiers^[k] took the money, did as they were instructed, and this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

Jesus Commissions His Disciples^(B)

¹⁶ The eleven disciples went into Galilee to the hillside to which Jesus had directed them. ¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshipped him, though some had doubts. ¹⁸ Then Jesus approached them and told them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore, as you go, disciple people in all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to obey everything that I’ve commanded you. And remember, I am with you each and every day^[l] until the end of the age.”^[m]