Rules for Priests
1The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: ‘A priest must not make himself ceremonially unclean for any of his people who die, 2except for a close relative, such as his mother or father, his son or daughter, his brother, 3or an unmarried sister who is dependent on him since she has no husband—for her he may make himself unclean. 4He must not make himself unclean for people related to him by marriage,21:4 Or unclean as a leader among his people and so defile himself.
5“ ‘Priests must not shave their heads or shave off the edges of their beards or cut their bodies. 6They must be holy to their God and must not profane the name of their God. Because they present the food offerings to the Lord, the food of their God, they are to be holy.
7“ ‘They must not marry women defiled by prostitution or divorced from their husbands, because priests are holy to their God. 8Regard them as holy, because they offer up the food of your God. Consider them holy, because I the Lord am holy—I who make you holy.
9“ ‘If a priest’s daughter defiles herself by becoming a prostitute, she disgraces her father; she must be burned in the fire.
10“ ‘The high priest, the one among his brothers who has had the anointing oil poured on his head and who has been ordained to wear the priestly garments, must not let his hair become unkempt21:10 Or not uncover his head or tear his clothes. 11He must not enter a place where there is a dead body. He must not make himself unclean, even for his father or mother, 12nor leave the sanctuary of his God or desecrate it, because he has been dedicated by the anointing oil of his God. I am the Lord.
13“ ‘The woman he marries must be a virgin. 14He must not marry a widow, a divorced woman, or a woman defiled by prostitution, but only a virgin from his own people, 15so that he will not defile his offspring among his people. I am the Lord, who makes him holy.’ ”
16The Lord said to Moses, 17“Say to Aaron: ‘For the generations to come none of your descendants who has a defect may come near to offer the food of his God. 18No man who has any defect may come near: no man who is blind or lame, disfigured or deformed; 19no man with a crippled foot or hand, 20or who is a hunchback or a dwarf, or who has any eye defect, or who has festering or running sores or damaged testicles. 21No descendant of Aaron the priest who has any defect is to come near to present the food offerings to the Lord. He has a defect; he must not come near to offer the food of his God. 22He may eat the most holy food of his God, as well as the holy food; 23yet because of his defect, he must not go near the curtain or approach the altar, and so desecrate my sanctuary. I am the Lord, who makes them holy.’ ”
24So Moses told this to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites.
祭司保持聖潔的條例
1耶和華對摩西說：「你要告訴做祭司的亞倫子孫：祭司不可因接觸死去的族人而使自己不潔淨， 2但骨肉至親，如父母、兒女、兄弟， 3以及未出嫁仍是處女的姊妹例外。 4祭司不可因姻親的關係而玷污自己。21·4 或譯「作為民中的首領，祭司不可玷污自己。」 5祭司不可剃光頭、修剪鬍鬚或割傷身體。 6他們要做上帝的聖潔之民，不可褻瀆我的名。因為他們負責獻我的火祭，即我的食物，所以要保持聖潔。 7他們不可娶妓女或被休的女人為妻，因為祭司要向上帝保持聖潔。 8要視祭司為聖潔的，因為他們負責獻你們上帝的食物。要視他們為聖潔的，因為使你們聖潔的我耶和華是聖潔的。 9如果有祭司的女兒做妓女，辱沒自己，她就是辱沒自己的父親，必須燒死她。
10「大祭司在眾祭司中職分最高，頭上澆過膏油，已經承受聖職、穿上聖衣，他不可披頭散髮、撕裂衣服。 11他不可接近死者，即使是父母也不可，以免玷污自己。 12他不可走出他上帝的聖所，以免褻瀆聖所，因為我的膏油已經使他聖潔。我是耶和華。 13他必須娶處女為妻， 14不可娶寡婦、被休的女人或被玷污的妓女，只可娶本族中的處女為妻， 15以免在民中玷污自己的子孫，因為我是使他們聖潔的耶和華。」
16耶和華對摩西說： 17「你告訴亞倫：你世世代代的子孫中，任何有殘疾的人都不可前來向他的上帝獻食物。 18任何殘疾的人，如瞎眼的、瘸腿的、五官不正的、畸形的、 19四肢傷殘的、 20駝背的、侏儒、患眼疾的、長疥癬的或睪丸受損的，都不可近前來獻祭。 21亞倫祭司的子孫中有殘疾的都不可向耶和華獻火祭。他們既然有殘疾，就不可近前來獻耶和華的食物。 22他們可以吃上帝的食物，聖的和至聖的都可以吃。 23但他們不可走近幔子或祭壇，因為他們有殘疾。這樣做是為了避免他們褻瀆我的聖所。我是使聖所聖潔的耶和華。」
24摩西把這些條例告訴了亞倫父子們和所有的以色列人。
