Leviticus 21:1-8 ▼

1 The LORD told Moses, |Speak to the priests, Aaron's sons, and tell them that no priest is to defile himself on account of the dead among his people,

2 except his close relatives—his mother, father, son, daughter, brother, or

3 virgin sister (who is a near relative of him and did not have a husband— he may defile himself for her).

4 Because he is a husband among his people, he is not to defile himself, thereby polluting himself.

5 |They are not to cut their hair in ritualistic patterns on their heads, deface the edges of their beards, or make incisions in their flesh.

6 They are to be holy to their God. They are not to defile the name of their God, because they're the ones who bring the offerings of the LORD made by fire—the food of their God—so they are to be holy.

7 |They are not to marry a prostitute or a woman who has been dishonored or who was divorced from her husband, because the priest is holy to his God.

8 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.