Leviticus

And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There shall none be defiled for the dead among his people:

1The LORD spoke to Moses. He said, "Tell the priests, the sons of Aaron, this rule. A priest must not make himself unclean by going near a dead body."

Note"Defiled" here does not mean dirty. It means a person could not join in worship for a time. Touching a dead body made a person unclean in this way.

2But for his kin, that is near unto him, that is, for his mother, and for his father, and for his son, and for his daughter, and for his brother,

2But he may do this for his closest family. That means his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, or his brother.

3And for his sister a virgin, that is nigh unto him, which hath had no husband; for her may he be defiled.

3He may also do it for his sister, if she has never married. She still belongs to his own household.

4But he shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself.

4He must not make himself unclean for people related to him by marriage. That would bring shame on him.

5They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.

5Priests must not shave bald spots on their heads. They must not shave off the edges of their beards. They must not cut their own skin.

6They shall be holy unto their God, and not profane the name of their God: for the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and the bread of their God, they do offer: therefore they shall be holy.

6They must be holy to their God. Holy means set apart for God alone. They must not treat God's name as if it were ordinary. They bring God the gifts burned on the altar. They bring the food set out for God. So they must be holy.

7They shall not take a wife that is a whore, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he is holy unto his God.

7A priest must not marry a woman who has sold herself for money. He must not marry a woman her husband has sent away. This is because a priest is set apart for his God.

8Thou shalt sanctify him therefore; for he offereth the bread of thy God: he shall be holy unto thee: for I the LORD, which sanctify you, am holy.

8You must treat the priest as holy. He brings the food offered to your God. He is set apart, and you must see him that way. I am the LORD, and I am holy. I am the one who makes you holy.

9And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire.

9If a priest's daughter sells herself for money, she does wrong. She brings shame on her father. She must be burned with fire.

10And he that is the high priest among his brethren, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured, and that is consecrated to put on the garments, shall not uncover his head, nor rend his clothes;

10One priest is the leader of all the others. He is called the high priest. Special oil was poured on his head. He was given the priest's clothes to wear. He must not let his hair hang loose. He must not tear his clothes.

Note"Rend his clothes" means tear them. Long ago, people tore their clothes and let their hair hang loose to show they were very sad.

11Neither shall he go in to any dead body, nor defile himself for his father, or for his mother;

11He must not go near any dead body at all. He must not do it even for his own father or mother.

12Neither shall he go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for the crown of the anointing oil of his God is upon him: I am the LORD.

12He must not leave the holy tent or treat it as ordinary. God's special oil is on him and marks him out. I am the LORD.

13And he shall take a wife in her virginity.

13The woman he marries must be a young woman who has never been married.

14A widow, or a divorced woman, or profane, or an harlot, these shall he not take: but he shall take a virgin of his own people to wife.

14He must not marry a widow, whose husband has died. He must not marry a woman her husband sent away. He must not marry a woman who sold herself for money. He must marry a young woman from his own people.

15Neither shall he profane his seed among his people: for I the LORD do sanctify him.

15That way his children will not lose their special place among the people. I am the LORD, and I make him holy.

16And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

16The LORD spoke to Moses again.

17Speak unto Aaron, saying, Whosoever he be of thy seed in their generations that hath any blemish, let him not approach to offer the bread of his God.

17"Tell Aaron this. If any man in your family line has a body defect, he must not come forward. He must not bring the food offered to his God."

18For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,

18No man with a body defect may come near. That means a man who is blind, or cannot walk well. It also means a man whose face is damaged, or whose body is misshapen.

NoteThe old English words "flat nose" and "any thing superfluous" mean a damaged face and a body part that is not shaped as it should be.

19Or a man that is brokenfooted, or brokenhanded,

19It also means a man with a broken foot or a broken hand.

20Or crookbackt, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;

20It means a man with a bent back, or a very small body. It means a man with a hurt eye, or sores, or scabs. It also means a man whose private parts have been crushed.

21No man that hath a blemish of the seed of Aaron the priest shall come nigh to offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire: he hath a blemish; he shall not come nigh to offer the bread of his God.

21No man from Aaron's family with a body defect may come near. He must not bring the gifts burned on the altar for the LORD. He has a defect. So he must not come near to bring God's food.

22He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy.

22He may still eat the food offered to his God. He may eat the most holy food and the holy food.

23Only he shall not go in unto the vail, nor come nigh unto the altar, because he hath a blemish; that he profane not my sanctuaries: for I the LORD do sanctify them.

23But he must not go near the curtain or the altar. This is because he has a body defect. He must not treat my holy places as ordinary. I am the LORD, and I make them holy.

Note"Vail" is an old spelling of veil. It was the thick curtain inside the holy tent.

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

24So Moses told all of this to Aaron and his sons. He told it to all the people of Israel too.