Regulations for Conduct of Priests

21 And the Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: a‘None shall defile himself for the dead among his people, 2 except for his relatives who are nearest to him: his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, and his brother; 3 also his virgin sister who is near to him, who has had no husband, for her he may defile himself. 4 Otherwise he shall not defile himself, being a 1chief man among his people, to profane himself.

5 b‘They shall not make any bald place on their heads, nor shall they shave the edges of their beards nor make any cuttings in their flesh. 6 They shall be choly to their God and not profane the name of their God, for they offer the offerings of the Lord made by fire, and the dbread of their God; etherefore they shall be holy. 7 fThey shall not take a wife who is a harlot or a defiled woman, nor shall they take a woman gdivorced from her husband; for 2the priest is holy to his God. 8 Therefore you shall 3consecrate him, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you, for hI the Lord, who isanctify you, am holy. 9 The daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by playing the harlot, she profanes her father. She shall be jburned with fire.

10 ‘He who is the high priest among his brethren, on whose head the anointing oil was kpoured and who is consecrated to wear the garments, shall not luncover 4his head nor tear his clothes; 11 nor shall he go mnear any dead body, nor defile himself for his father or his mother; 12 nnor shall he go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for the oconsecration of the anointing oil of his God is upon him: I am the Lord. 13 And he shall take a wife in her virginity. 14 A widow or a divorced woman or a defiled woman or a harlot—these he shall not marry; but he shall take a virgin of his own people as wife. 15 Nor shall he profane his posterity among his people, for I the Lord sanctify him.’ ”

16 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “Speak to Aaron, saying: ‘No man of your descendants in succeeding generations, who has any defect, may approach to offer the bread of his God. 18 For any man who has a pdefect shall not approach: a man blind or lame, who has a marred face or any limb qtoo long, 19 a man who has a broken foot or broken hand, 20 or is a hunchback or a dwarf, or a man who has a defect in his eye, or eczema or scab, or is a eunuch. 21 No man of the descendants of Aaron the priest, who has a defect, shall come near to offer the offerings made by fire to the Lord. He has a defect; he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God. 22 He may eat the bread of his God, both the most holy and the holy; 23 only he shall not go near the rveil or approach the altar, because he has a defect, lest she profane My sanctuaries; for I the Lord sanctify them.’ ”

24 And Moses told it to Aaron and his sons, and to all the children of Israel.