The big picture
Leviticus 21 opens in verse 1 with “And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto…”, reaches its middle movement near verse 12 with “Neither shall he go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for the…”, and closes in verse 24 with “And Moses told it unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel.” Repeated or prominent terms include LORD, profane, holy, blemish, bread. Together, those details trace this chapter’s own movement from its opening to its conclusion.
Scripture beside the summary
Leviticus · King James Version · 24Leviticus 21:1-8
1–8: The LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and…
Leviticus 21:1–8 opens with “And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There…” and reaches “Thou shalt sanctify him therefore; for he offereth the bread of thy God: he shall be holy unto…” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Leviticus 21 develops its own movement around LORD, profane, holy, blemish, bread, with particular weight carried by holy, LORD, profane.
Context that brings the passage to life
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There shall none be defiled…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“And for his sister a virgin, that is nigh unto him, which hath had no husband; for her may he be defiled.” The line’s distinctive content terms include defiled, husband, nigh. Its relationship to verses 2 and 4 shows what work it does in this passage.
“They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
Leviticus 21:1-8
King James Version1And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There shall none be defiled for the dead among his people:
2But for his kin, that is near unto him, that is, for his mother, and for his father, and for his son, and for his daughter, and for his brother,
3And for his sister a virgin, that is nigh unto him, which hath had no husband; for her may he be defiled.
4But he shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself.
5They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.
6They 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.
7They shall not take a wife that is a whore, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he is holy unto his God.
8Thou 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.
Leviticus 21:9-16
9–16: The daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore…
Leviticus 21:9–16 opens with “And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her…” and reaches “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Leviticus 21 develops its own movement around LORD, profane, holy, blemish, bread, with particular weight carried by profane, LORD, anointing.
Context that brings the passage to life
“And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“Neither shall he go in to any dead body, nor defile himself for his father, or for his mother;” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
Leviticus 21:9-16
King James Version9And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire.
10And he that is the high priest among his brethren, upon whose head the anointing oil was poured, and that is consecrated to put on the garments, shall not uncover his head, nor rend his clothes;
11Neither shall he go in to any dead body, nor defile himself for his father, or for his mother;
12Neither 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 .
13And he shall take a wife in her virginity.
14A widow, or a divorced woman, or profane, or an harlot, these shall he not take: but he shall take a virgin of his own people to wife.
15Neither shall he profane his seed among his people: for I the LORD do sanctify him.
16And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Leviticus 21:17-24
17–24: Speak unto Aaron, saying, Whosoever he be of thy seed in their…
Leviticus 21:17–24 opens with “Speak unto Aaron, saying, Whosoever he be of thy seed in their generations that hath any…” and reaches “And Moses told it unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel.” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Leviticus 21 develops its own movement around LORD, profane, holy, blemish, bread, with particular weight carried by blemish, Aaron, bread.
Context that brings the passage to life
“Speak unto Aaron, saying, Whosoever he be of thy seed in their generations that hath any blemish, let him not approach…” Naming Aaron keeps the account rooted in particular people or places. Follow where the name returns and what changes around it.
“Or a man that is brokenfooted, or brokenhanded,” The line’s distinctive content terms include brokenfooted, brokenhanded. Its relationship to verses 18 and 20 shows what work it does in this passage.
“No man that hath a blemish of the seed of Aaron the priest shall come nigh to offer the offerings of the LORD made by…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
Leviticus 21:17-24
King James Version17Speak unto Aaron, saying, Whosoever he be of thy seed in their generations that hath any blemish, let him not approach to offer the bread of his God.
18For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,
19Or a man that is brokenfooted, or brokenhanded,
20Or crookbackt, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;
21No man that hath a blemish of the seed of Aaron the priest shall come nigh to offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire: he hath a blemish; he shall not come nigh to offer the bread of his God.
22He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy.
23Only he shall not go in unto the vail, nor come nigh unto the altar, because he hath a blemish; that he profane not my sanctuaries: for I the LORD do sanctify them.
24And Moses told it unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel.
Details worth noticing
The opening image
Leviticus 21:1 begins with “And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There shall none be defiled for the dead among his people:”
Where the chapter turns
Leviticus 21:4 forms a natural hinge: “But he shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself.”
The final note
Leviticus 21:24 leaves the reader with “And Moses told it unto Aaron, and to his sons, and unto all the children of Israel.”
A word trail through the chapter
The words LORD, profane, holy, blemish, bread, Aaron help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
How is God's faithfulness shown in both halves of the family?
Isaac is born as promised, and Ishmael is heard and preserved with a future of his own.
Why does a well deserve narrative space?
Water sustains life and makes residence possible in a land Abraham does not yet own.
KJV words made clear
- unto
- to
- thee
- you
- thou
- you
- thy
- your
- hath
- has
Text first
Where readers differ
The chapter summary begins with what the passage says and how its parts fit together. It does not assume one denomination has already settled every question. Where a conclusion depends on a tradition, literary theory, or historical reconstruction, that dependence is named openly.
The KJV text is presented first. Interpretive conclusions are labeled, and differences are introduced only when they help a reader understand why serious communities do not always reach the same answer.
Comparative interpretive notes for this chapter are in preparation. Until reviewed notes are ready, this page separates the KJV text from summary and application without claiming that serious readers agree on every question.