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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 a dead person among his people, 2 except for a close relative, such as his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his brother, 3 or his young unmarried sister. Because she has no husband, he may make himself unclean for her. 4 He must not make himself unclean for people who are related to him by marriage, and so defile himself.
5 ‘Priests must not make bald spots on their heads, shave the edges of their beards, or make gashes in their flesh. 6 They must be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God. Because they present the offerings made to the Lord by fire, the food of their God, they must be holy.
7 ‘They must not marry a woman defiled by prostitution, nor can they marry a woman divorced from her husband, for the priest is holy to his God. 8 You are to consider him as holy, for he offers up the food of your God. He is to be holy to you, because I, the Lord who sets you apart as holy, am holy.
9 ‘If the daughter of a priest defiles herself by becoming a prostitute, she dishonours her father; she must be burned with 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 unkempt or tear his clothes. 11 He must not enter a place where there is a dead body or make himself unclean, even for his father or mother. 12 He must not leave the sanctuary or he will desecrate the sanctuary of his God, for the consecration of the anointing oil of his God is on him. I am the Lord.
13 ‘He is to marry a woman who is a virgin. 14 He must not marry a widow, a divorced woman, or a woman defiled by prostitution. He is to marry a virgin from his own people, 15 so he does not defile his offspring among his people; for I am the Lord who sets him apart as holy’.”
16 The Lord said to Moses, 17 “Say to Aaron: ‘None of your descendants throughout their generations who has a defect may come near to offer the food of his God. 18 No man who has any defect is to come near: no man who is blind or lame, facially disfigured or deformed, 19 or a man with a crippled foot or hand, 20 or who is a hunchback or a dwarf, or has an eye defect, or a festering rash or scabs or crushed testicles. 21 No descendant of Aaron the priest who has a defect is to come near to present the offerings made to the Lord by fire. If he has a defect he is not to come near to offer the food of his God. 22 He may eat the food of his God from what is most holy, as well as from what is holy. 23 But because he has a defect, he must not go near the curtain or approach the altar, and so desecrate My sanctuary. I am the Lord who sets them apart as holy’.”
24 So Moses told this to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites.