priests The descendants of Aaron were set apart for the priesthood in a ceremony described in Exod 28–29 and carried out in Lev 8.

One must not make himself unclean for a dead person It was the responsibility of people other than the priest’s immediate family to bury the priest’s relatives.

21:2 direct relative closest This group includes a priest’s mother, father, daughter, brother, and virgin sister.

21:5 they shall not shave bald patches on their head Shaving the head and cutting the body were mourning customs associated with Canaanite religious practices (see 19:28 and note; Ezek 44:20).

21:6 food The Hebrew word used here is lechem, commonly understood as “bread,” but the word is also used as a general term for food.

21:7 defiled The Hebrew text here seems to refer broadly to a woman who was not sexually pure before marriage.

divorced from her husband The divorced woman and the prostitute are listed side by side in this prohibition. A priest may not marry either of them because they no longer virgins (compare Lev 21:14).

21:9 is disgracing her father Such behavior brings shame to the priestly office.

she shall be burned in the fire Death by fire is also the punishment for sexual depravity in 20:14.

21:10 higher than his brothers Refers to the high priest. See note on 6:20.

on whose head the oil of anointment is poured This alludes to the high priest’s installation ceremony, where special garments were given and oil was used for anointing (Exod 29; Lev 8).

21:11 he shall not go near any dead person According to vv. 1–3, the priests were able to temporarily defile themselves only for their closest relatives. The high priest must follow stricter restrictions than those of vv. 1–3.

21:14 a virgin The Hebrew word used here, bethulah, is used for a woman who has never been sexually active. Other terms may signify a virgin alongside other ideas. For example, Isa 7:14 uses almah, which may refer to a woman who is a virgin but the term does not inherently connote virginity.

The Virgin Shall Conceive: The Vocabulary of Virginity

21:15 he shall not profane his offspring A marriage to a woman not of the priestly clan and not a virgin would mean that the priest’s sons would be ineligible for priestly duty. They would therefore be “profaned”—rendered common or non-sacred. See note on Lev 20:3.

21:17 a physical defect Refers to a physical defect, as indicated by the list that follows (v. 18). The rule also reinforced the idea of God’s perfection and the needed perfection of sacred space—which is a reflection of God. The following verses list the possible blemishes that disqualify one from service (vv. 17–23).

21:20 a crushed testicle The implications of crushed testicles can also be seen in Deut 23:1. In the Deuteronomic context, exclusion from the assembly of the Lord is at stake. On the implications of emasculation in the ancient Near East, see the note on Deut 23:1.

21:22 the most holy things and from the holy things A priest who had a physical defect was not deprived of food from offerings to which priests were entitled. He was merely prohibited from performing priestly duties within sacred space (see Lev 21:17). However, there were restrictions on eating when it involved sacred space (see 22:1–9).

21:23 he must not enter the curtain The veil leading into the overall tabernacle structure, not the veil before the holy of holies. Only the high priest could go through that veil once a year—on the Day of Atonement (ch. 16). The regulations here focus more generally on any priest. Priests were not allowed to enter sacred space if they had a physical defect.