Leviticus 21:8
New International Version
Regard 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.

New Living Translation
You must treat them as holy because they offer up food to your God. You must consider them holy because I, the LORD, am holy, and I make you holy.

English Standard Version
You shall sanctify him, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you, for I, the LORD, who sanctify you, am holy.

Berean Standard Bible
You are to regard him as holy, since he presents the food of your God. He shall be holy to you, because I the LORD am holy—I who set you apart.

King James Bible
Thou 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.

New King James Version
Therefore you shall consecrate him, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you, for I the LORD, who sanctify you, am holy.

New American Standard Bible
You shall consecrate him, therefore, because he offers the food of your God. He shall be holy to you; for I the LORD, who sanctifies you, am holy.

NASB 1995
‘You shall consecrate him, therefore, for he offers the food of your God; he shall be holy to you; for I the LORD, who sanctifies you, am holy.

NASB 1977
‘You shall consecrate him, therefore, for he offers the bread of your God; he shall be holy to you; for I the LORD, who sanctifies you, am holy.

Legacy Standard Bible
Therefore, you shall set him apart as holy, for he brings near the food of your God; he shall be holy to you; for I Yahweh, who makes you holy, am holy.

Amplified Bible
You shall consecrate him, therefore, for he offers the food of your God; he shall be holy to you; for I the LORD, who sanctifies you, am holy.

Christian Standard Bible
You are to consider him holy since he presents the food of your God. He will be holy to you because I, the LORD who sets you apart, am holy.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
You are to consider him holy since he presents the food of your God. He will be holy to you because I, Yahweh who sets you apart, am holy.

American Standard Version
Thou shalt sanctify him therefore; for he offereth the bread of thy God: he shall be holy unto thee: for I Jehovah, who sanctify you, am holy.

Contemporary English Version
because I am holy. And so, you must be treated with proper respect, since you offer food sacrifices to me, the God of holiness.

English Revised Version
Thou 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.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Be holy because you offer the food of your God. Be holy because I, the LORD, am holy. I set you apart as holy.

Good News Translation
The people must consider the priest holy, because he presents the food offerings to me. I am the LORD; I am holy and I make my people holy.

International Standard Version
Consecrate him, because he's the one who offers the food of your God. He is to be holy for you, because I, the LORD, the one who sanctifies you, am holy.

Majority Standard Bible
You are to regard him as holy, since he presents the food of your God. He shall be holy to you, because I the LORD am holy?I who set you apart.

NET Bible
You must sanctify him because he presents the food of your God. He must be holy to you because I, the LORD who sanctifies you all, am holy.

New Heart English Bible
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.

Webster's Bible Translation
Thou shalt sanctify him therefore, for he offereth the bread of thy God: he shall be holy to thee: for I the LORD, who sanctify you, am holy.

World English Bible
Therefore you shall sanctify him, for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be holy to you, for I Yahweh, who sanctify you, am holy.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
and you have sanctified him, for he is bringing the bread of your God near. He is holy to you, for I, YHWH, sanctifying you, [am] holy.

Young's Literal Translation
and thou hast sanctified him, for the bread of thy God he is bringing near; he is holy to thee; for holy am I, Jehovah, sanctifying you.

Smith's Literal Translation
And he consecrated him, for he bringing the bread of thy God: holy shall he be to thee: for I Jehovah consecrating you am holy,
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And offer the leaves of proposition. Let them therefore be holy, because I also am holy, the Lord, who sanctify them.

Catholic Public Domain Version
and they offer the bread of the presence. Therefore, let them be holy, for I also am holy: the Lord, who sanctifies them.

New American Bible
Honor him as holy for he offers the food of your God; he shall be holy to you, because I, the LORD, am holy who make you holy.

New Revised Standard Version
and you shall treat them as holy, since they offer the food of your God; they shall be holy to you, for I the LORD, I who sanctify you, am holy.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
You shall sanctify him therefore; for he offers the bread of your God; he shall be holy to you; for he is holy, because I am the LORD who sanctifies you.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Hallow him, because he is bringing the bread of your God; he shall be holy to you because I AM holy, I LORD JEHOVAH, who hallow you.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Thou shalt sanctify him therefore; for he offereth the bread of thy God; he shall be holy unto thee; for I the LORD, who sanctify you, am holy.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And thou shalt hallow him; he offers the gifts of the Lord your God: he shall be holy, for I the Lord that sanctify them am holy.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Holiness Required of Priests
7A priest must not marry a woman defiled by prostitution or divorced by her husband, for the priest is holy to his God. 8You are to regard him as holy, since he presents the food of your God. He shall be holy to you, because I the LORD am holy— I who set you apart. 9If a priest’s daughter defiles herself by prostituting herself, she profanes her father; she must be burned in the fire.…

Cross References
Exodus 19:6
And unto Me you shall be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you are to speak to the Israelites.”

1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

Deuteronomy 7:6
For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His prized possession out of all peoples on the face of the earth.

1 Thessalonians 4:7
For God has not called us to impurity, but to holiness.

Isaiah 62:12
And they will be called the Holy People, the Redeemed of The LORD; and you will be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.

1 Corinthians 1:2
To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours:

Exodus 28:36
You are to make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it as on a seal: HOLY TO THE LORD.

Hebrews 12:14
Pursue peace with everyone, as well as holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.

Numbers 16:5
Then he said to Korah and all his followers, “Tomorrow morning the LORD will reveal who belongs to Him and who is holy, and He will bring that person near to Himself. The one He chooses He will bring near to Himself.

2 Corinthians 6:17
“Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”

Malachi 2:7
For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, because he is the messenger of the LORD of Hosts.

Ephesians 5:27
and to present her to Himself as a glorious church, without stain or wrinkle or any such blemish, but holy and blameless.

Psalm 106:16
In the camp they envied Moses, as well as Aaron, the holy one of the LORD.

Romans 12:1
Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

Isaiah 52:11
Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing; come out from it, purify yourselves, you who carry the vessels of the LORD.


Treasury of Scripture

You shall sanctify him therefore; for he offers the bread of your God: he shall be holy to you: for I the LORD, which sanctify you, am holy.

sanctify

Leviticus 21:6
They 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.

Exodus 19:10,14
And the LORD said unto Moses, Go unto the people, and sanctify them to day and to morrow, and let them wash their clothes, …

Exodus 28:41
And thou shalt put them upon Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him; and shalt anoint them, and consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office.

for I

Leviticus 11:44,45
For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth…

Leviticus 19:2
Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.

Leviticus 20:7,8
Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your God…

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Leviticus 21
1. Of the priests' mourning
6. Of their holiness
7. Of their marriages
8. Of their estimation
9. Of the high priest's holiness
10. Of his marriage
13. The priests that have blemishes must not minister in the sanctuary














You are to regard him as holy
This phrase emphasizes the sanctity of the priesthood. The Hebrew word for "holy" is "qadosh," which means set apart or sacred. In the context of ancient Israel, priests were set apart for the service of God, and their lives were to reflect this divine calling. The community was instructed to honor and respect the priests, recognizing their role as mediators between God and the people. This respect was not just for the individual but for the office they held, which was instituted by God Himself.

since he presents the food of your God
The phrase highlights the priest's role in offering sacrifices and maintaining the rituals that were central to Israelite worship. The "food of your God" refers to the offerings made on the altar, which were seen as a form of sustenance for God, symbolizing the people's devotion and obedience. The Hebrew term for "presents" is "qarab," meaning to bring near or offer. This act of presenting offerings was a sacred duty, underscoring the priest's role in facilitating the people's relationship with God.

He shall be holy to you
Reiterating the priest's sanctity, this phrase calls the community to recognize and uphold the holiness of the priest. The repetition of the concept of holiness underscores its importance. The priest's holiness was not inherent but derived from his service to God. This holiness was to be acknowledged by the people, ensuring that the priest's role was respected and that the community maintained a proper relationship with God through their reverence for His appointed servants.

because I, the LORD, am holy
This declaration by God establishes the ultimate standard of holiness. The Hebrew name for God here is "YHWH," the sacred tetragrammaton, emphasizing His eternal and unchanging nature. God's holiness is the foundation for the holiness of His people and His priests. It is a call to emulate His purity and righteousness. The holiness of the priesthood is a reflection of God's own holiness, and the people are reminded that their relationship with God is based on His divine nature.

I who set you apart
The phrase "set you apart" comes from the Hebrew "badal," meaning to divide or separate. This is a reminder of Israel's unique covenant relationship with God. The nation was chosen to be distinct from other peoples, and the priesthood was a further distinction within the nation. This separation was not for privilege but for service, to be a light to the nations and to uphold God's laws and statutes. The priesthood's sanctity was a microcosm of Israel's calling to be a holy nation.

(8) Thou shalt sanctify him therefore.--This is addressed to the Jewish community. They are to take care that the priest does not contract such illegal marriages, and to sanctify him only who acts in obedience to these statutes. The Jewish priest is thus placed under the supervision of the people. His sacred office, and his duly performing the priestly functions. are their concern. If he refused to conform to the law of sanctity, the people, according to the administrators of the Law during the second Temple, were to compel him to do so by the penalty of administering to him the prescribed number of stripes.

He shall be holy unto thee.--On the other hand, when he acts in accordance with his sacred office, the people must reverence his holy person. Hence the administrators of the Law during the second Temple enacted that the priest is to take precedence on public occasions. Thus, when the people assemble, he opens the meeting by invoking God's blessing. At the reading of the Law of God in the synagogue, he is called up first to the rostrum to read the first portion, and at table he recites the benedictions over the repast. This honour the Jews assign to the priests to this day.



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
You are to regard him as holy,
וְקִדַּשְׁתּ֔וֹ (wə·qid·daš·tōw)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine singular | third person masculine singular
Strong's 6942: To be set apart or consecrated

since
כִּֽי־ (kî-)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

he
ה֣וּא (hū)
Pronoun - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1931: He, self, the same, this, that, as, are

presents
מַקְרִ֑יב (maq·rîḇ)
Verb - Hifil - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 7126: To come near, approach

the food
לֶ֥חֶם (le·ḥem)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3899: Food, bread, grain

of your God.
אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ (’ĕ·lō·he·ḵā)
Noun - masculine plural construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

He shall be
יִֽהְיֶה־ (yih·yeh-)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

holy
קָדֹשׁ֙ (qā·ḏōš)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 6918: Sacred, God, an angel, a saint, a sanctuary

to you,
לָּ֔ךְ (lāḵ)
Preposition | second person feminine singular
Strong's Hebrew

because
כִּ֣י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

I,
אֲנִ֥י (’ă·nî)
Pronoun - first person common singular
Strong's 589: I

the LORD
יְהוָ֖ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

who sets you apart,
מְקַדִּשְׁכֶֽם׃ (mə·qad·diš·ḵem)
Verb - Piel - Participle - masculine singular construct | second person masculine plural
Strong's 6942: To be set apart or consecrated

am holy.
קָד֔וֹשׁ (qā·ḏō·wōš)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 6918: Sacred, God, an angel, a saint, a sanctuary


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OT Law: Leviticus 21:8 You shall sanctify him therefore (Le Lv Lev.)
Leviticus 21:7
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