Of the priests' mourning, 1-5. Of their holiness, 6. Of their marriages, 7. Of their estimation, 8. Of the priest's daughter convicted of lewdness, 9. Of the high priest's holiness, 10-12. Of his marriage, 13-15. The priests who have blemishes must not minister in the sanctuary, 16-24.
1 And the LORD said to Moses, "Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them, 'No one shall be defiled for the dead among his people, 2 But for his kin who are near to him, for his mother, for his father, for his son, for his daughter, for his brother, 3 And for his sister, a virgin, who is near to him and has had no husband—for her he may be defiled. 4 But he shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself. 5 They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh. 6 They shall be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God. For they offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire and the bread of their God; therefore, they shall be holy. 7 They shall not take a wife who is a lewd woman, or profane, neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband, for he is holy to his God. 8 You shall sanctify him therefore, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you. For I, the LORD, who sanctify you, am holy. 9 And the daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by lewdness, she profanes her father. She shall be burnt with fire.
10 'And he who is the high priest among his brothers, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured, and who is consecrated to put on the garments, shall not uncover his head, nor rend his clothes, 11 Neither shall he go near any dead body, nor defile himself for his father or for his mother, 12 Neither 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. 13 And he shall take a wife in her virginity. 14 A widow, a divorced woman, profane, or a harlot, these he shall not take, but he shall take a virgin of his own people for a wife, 15 Neither shall he profane his offspring among his people. For I, the LORD, sanctify him.'"
16 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 17 "Speak to Aaron, saying, 'Whoever he may be of your offspring in their generations who has any blemish, let him not approach to offer the bread of his God. 18 For whatever man he may be who has a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, a lame, or he who has a flat nose, or anything superfluous, 19 Or a man who is broken-footed, broken-handed, 20 Crooked-backed, a dwarf, who has a blemish in his eye, has scurvy, is scabbed, or has his peculiar members broken. 21 No man of the offspring of Aaron the priest who has a blemish shall come near to offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire. He has a blemish. He shall not come near to offer the bread of his God. 22 He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy and of the holy. 23 Only he shall not go in to the veil, nor come near to the altar, because he has a blemish, so that he may not profane my sanctuaries. For I, the LORD, sanctify them.'" 24 And Moses told it to Aaron and to his sons and to all the children of Israel.
Matthew Henry Commentary - Leviticus, Chapter 21[➚]