Leviticus 22

1Yahweh spoke to Moses:

2“Tell Aaron and his sons to be careful with the holy offerings of the Israelites, which they consecrate to me, so that they do not profane my holy name. I am Yahweh.

3Say to them: Throughout your generations, if any of your descendants comes near the holy offerings that the Israelites consecrate to Yahweh while he is unclean, that person must be cut off from my presence. I am Yahweh.

4No descendant of Aaron who has a serious skin disease or a discharge may eat the holy offerings until he is clean. Anyone who touches anything made unclean by a dead person, or a man who has an emission of semen,

5or anyone who touches any swarming creature that makes him unclean, or any person who makes him unclean, whatever his uncleanness may be—

6the person who touches any of these will be unclean until evening and must not eat any of the holy offerings unless he has bathed his body in water.

7When the sun has set, he will be clean, and afterward he may eat the holy offerings, for they are his food.

8He must not eat an animal that died on its own or was torn by wild animals, and so become unclean by it. I am Yahweh.

9They must keep my charge, so that they do not incur sin because of it and die for it by profaning it. I am Yahweh, who sanctifies them.

10No outsider may eat a holy offering. Someone living with a priest, or a hired worker, may not eat a holy offering.

11But if a priest buys a person with his money, that person may eat it, and those born in his household may eat his food.

12If a priest’s daughter marries an outsider, she may not eat any of the holy contributions.

13But if a priest’s daughter is widowed or divorced and has no children, and she returns to her father’s household as in her youth, she may eat her father’s food. No outsider, however, may eat any of it.

14If anyone eats a holy offering unintentionally, he must add a fifth of its value to it and give the holy offering to the priest.

15The priests must not profane the holy offerings of the Israelites, which they present to Yahweh,

16and so cause them to bear iniquity and guilt by eating their holy offerings, for I am Yahweh, who sanctifies them.”

17Yahweh spoke to Moses:

18“Speak to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites, and say to them: When anyone from the house of Israel or from the foreigners in Israel presents his offering, whether for any of their vows or any of their freewill offerings that they present to Yahweh as a burnt offering,

19it must be a male without defect from the cattle, the sheep, or the goats, for it to be accepted on your behalf.

20Do not present anything that has a defect, for it will not be accepted on your behalf.

21When anyone presents a sacrifice of fellowship offerings to Yahweh from the herd or the flock, to fulfill a special vow or as a freewill offering, it must be without defect to be accepted; there must be no defect in it.

22Do not present to Yahweh anything blind, injured, or maimed, or anything with a running sore, a festering rash, or scabs. Do not put any of them on the altar as a fire offering to Yahweh.

23You may present as a freewill offering an ox or a sheep that has a limb too long or too short, but it will not be accepted for a vow.

24Do not present to Yahweh an animal whose testicles are bruised, crushed, torn, or cut. You must not do this in your land,

25and you must not accept any such animals from a foreigner and present them as the food of your God. They are mutilated and have defects; they will not be accepted on your behalf.”

26Yahweh spoke to Moses:

27“When a calf, a lamb, or a young goat is born, it is to stay with its mother for seven days. From the eighth day on it will be accepted as an offering, a fire offering to Yahweh.

28Do not slaughter a cow or a ewe and its young on the same day.

29When you sacrifice a thanksgiving sacrifice to Yahweh, sacrifice it so that it will be accepted on your behalf.

30It must be eaten on the same day; do not leave any of it until morning. I am Yahweh.

31Keep my commandments and do them. I am Yahweh.

32Do not profane my holy name, so that I will be treated as holy among the Israelites. I am Yahweh, who sanctifies you,

33who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. I am Yahweh.”