22Leviticus 22

The Holiness of the Offerings

1The Lord commanded MosesSelect Leviticus 22:1

2to tell Aaron and his sons, “You must not bring disgrace on my holy name, so treat with respect the sacred offerings that the people of Israel dedicate to me. I am the Lord.Select Leviticus 22:2

3If any of your descendants, while he is ritually unclean, comes near the sacred offerings which the people of Israel have dedicated to me, he can never again serve at the altar. This applies for all time to come. I am the Lord.Select Leviticus 22:3

4“None of the descendants of Aaron who has a dreaded skin disease or a discharge may eat any of the sacred offerings until he is ritually clean. Any priest is unclean if he touches anything which is unclean through contact with a corpse or if he has an emission of semenSelect Leviticus 22:4

5or if he has touched an unclean animal or person.Select Leviticus 22:5

6Any priest who becomes unclean remains unclean until evening, and even then he may not eat any of the sacred offerings until he has taken a bath.Select Leviticus 22:6

7After the sun sets he is clean, and then he may eat the sacred offerings, which are his food.Select Leviticus 22:7

8He shall not eat the meat of any animal that has died a natural death or has been killed by wild animals; it will make him unclean. I am the Lord.Select Leviticus 22:8

9“All priests shall observe the regulations that I have given. Otherwise, they will become guilty and die, because they have disobeyed the sacred regulations. I am the Lord and I make them holy.Select Leviticus 22:9

10“Only a member of a priestly family may eat any of the sacred offerings; no one else may eat them—not even someone staying with a priest or hired by him.Select Leviticus 22:10

11But a priest's slaves, bought with his own money or born in his home, may eat the food the priest receives.Select Leviticus 22:11

12A priest's daughter who marries someone who is not a priest may not eat any of the sacred offerings.Select Leviticus 22:12

13But a widowed or divorced daughter who has no children and who has returned to live in her father's house as a dependent may eat the food her father receives as a priest. Only a member of a priestly family may eat any of it.Select Leviticus 22:13

14“If any people who are not members of a priestly family eat any of the sacred offerings without intending to, they must repay the priest its full value plus an additional 20 percent.Select Leviticus 22:14

15The priests shall not profane the sacred offeringsSelect Leviticus 22:15

16by letting any unauthorized people eat them; this would bring guilt and punishment on such people. I am the Lord and I make the offerings holy.”Select Leviticus 22:16

17The Lord commanded MosesSelect Leviticus 22:17

18to give Aaron and his sons and all the people of Israel the following regulations. When any Israelite or any foreigner living in Israel presents a burnt offering, whether as fulfillment of a vow or as a freewill offering, the animal must not have any defects.Select Leviticus 22:18

19To be accepted, it must be a male without any defects.Select Leviticus 22:19

20If you offer any animal that has any defects, the Lord will not accept it.Select Leviticus 22:20

21When anyone presents a fellowship offering to the Lord, whether as fulfillment of a vow or as a freewill offering, the animal must be without any defects if it is to be accepted.Select Leviticus 22:21

22Do not offer to the Lord any animal that is blind or crippled or mutilated, or that has a running sore or a skin eruption or scabs. Do not offer any such animals on the altar as a food offering.Select Leviticus 22:22

23As a freewill offering you may offer an animal that is stunted or not perfectly formed, but it is not acceptable in fulfillment of a vow.Select Leviticus 22:23

24Do not offer to the Lord any animal whose testicles have been crushed, cut, bruised, or torn off. This is not permitted in your land.Select Leviticus 22:24

25Do not offer as a food offering any animal obtained from a foreigner. Such animals are considered defective and are not acceptable.Select Leviticus 22:25

27When a calf or a lamb or a kid is born, it must not be taken from its mother for seven days, but after that it is acceptable as a food offering.Select Leviticus 22:27

28Do not sacrifice a cow and its calf or a sheep and its lamb or a goat and its kid on the same day.Select Leviticus 22:28

29When you offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord, follow the rules so that you will be accepted;Select Leviticus 22:29

30eat it the same day and leave none of it until the next morning.Select Leviticus 22:30

31The Lord said, “Obey my commands; I am the Lord.Select Leviticus 22:31

32Do not bring disgrace on my holy name; all the people of Israel must acknowledge me to be holy. I am the Lord and I make you holy;Select Leviticus 22:32

33and I brought you out of Egypt to become your God. I am the Lord.”Select Leviticus 22:33