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Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Leviticus 21:7

"Because a priest is holy to his God he must not marry a woman who has been a harlot or a cult prostitute or a divorced woman. Make sure he is holy because he serves the food of your God. Treat him as holy because I, God , who make you holy, am holy.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Marriage;   Minister, Christian;   Mourning;   Priest;   Sanctification;   Uncleanness;   The Topic Concordance - Priests;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - High Priest, the;   Marriage;   Priests;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Mourning;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Holiness;   Priest;   Prostitution;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Priest, Christ as;   Priest, Priesthood;   Prostitution;   Worship;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Priest;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Leviticus;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Canon of the Old Testament;   Congregation, Assembly;   Crimes and Punishments;   Deuteronomy;   Hexateuch;   Holiness;   Law;   Leviticus;   Marriage;   Priests and Levites;   Sanctification, Sanctify;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Zacharias ;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Aaron;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Priesthood, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Harlot;   Law in the Old Testament;   Leviticus;   Profane;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Azulai, Azulay;   Commandments, the 613;   ḥalalah;   Holiness;   Priest;   Simeon ben Yoḥai;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
They shall not take a woman that is a prostitute, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he is holy to his God.
King James Version
They 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.
Lexham English Bible
"‘They shall not marry a woman who is a prostitute and defiled, nor shall they marry a woman divorced from her husband, because each priest is holy for his God.
New Century Version
"‘A priest must not marry an unclean prostitute or a divorced woman, because he is holy to his God.
New English Translation
They must not take a wife defiled by prostitution, nor are they to take a wife divorced from her husband, for the priest is holy to his God.
Amplified Bible
'They shall not take [as a wife] a woman who is a prostitute, nor a woman who is divorced from her husband; for the priest is holy to his God.
New American Standard Bible
'They shall not take a woman who is a prostitute and profaned, nor shall they take a woman divorced from her husband; for he is holy to his God.
Geneva Bible (1587)
They shall not take to wife an whore, or one polluted, neither shall they marrie a woman diuorced from her husband: for such one is holy vnto his God.
Legacy Standard Bible
They shall not take a woman who is profaned by harlotry, nor shall they take a woman divorced from her husband; for he is holy to his God.
Contemporary English Version
Don't marry a divorced woman or a woman who has served as a temple prostitute. You are holy,
Complete Jewish Bible
"‘A cohen is not to marry a woman who is a prostitute, who has been profaned or who has been divorced; because he is holy for his God.
Darby Translation
They shall not take as wife a whore, or a dishonoured woman; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband; for he is holy unto his God.
Easy-to-Read Version
"A priest serves God in a special way, so he must not marry a woman who has had sexual relations with any other man. He must not marry a prostitute or a divorced woman.
English Standard Version
They shall not marry a prostitute or a woman who has been defiled, neither shall they marry a woman divorced from her husband, for the priest is holy to his God.
George Lamsa Translation
They shall not marry a harlot or an unclean woman; neither shall they marry a woman who has been put away from her husband; for he is holy to his God.
Good News Translation
A priest shall not marry a woman who has been a prostitute or a woman who is not a virgin or who is divorced; he is holy.
Christian Standard Bible®
They are not to marry a woman defiled by prostitution. They are not to marry one divorced by her husband, for the priest is holy to his God.
Literal Translation
They shall not take a woman who is a prostitute, or polluted; nor shall they take a woman put away from her husband; for he is holy to his God.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
They shal take no whore, ner one that is defyled, or yt is put awaye from hir hußbande, for he is holy vnto his God:
American Standard Version
They shall not take a woman that is a harlot, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he is holy unto his God.
Bible in Basic English
They may not take as wife a loose or common woman, or one who has been put away by her husband: for the priest is holy to his God.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Let them not take a wyfe that is an whore, or polluted, nor put from her husband: for such a one is holy vnto his god.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
They shall not take a woman that is a harlot, or profaned; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband; for he is holy unto his God.
King James Version (1611)
They 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 vnto his God.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
They shall not take a woman who is a harlot and profaned, or a woman put away from her husband; for he is holy to the Lord his God.
English Revised Version
They shall not take a woman that is a harlot, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he is holy unto his God.
Berean Standard Bible
A priest must not marry a woman defiled by prostitution or divorced by her husband, for the priest is holy to his God.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
A preest schal not wedde a wijf a corrupt womman, and a `foul hoore, nether he schal wedde `hir that is forsakun of the hosebonde, for he is halewid to his God,
Young's Literal Translation
`A woman, a harlot, or polluted, they do not take, and a woman cast out from her husband they do not take, for he [is] holy to his God;
Update Bible Version
They shall not take a woman that is a prostitute, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he is holy to his God.
Webster's Bible Translation
They shall not take a wife [that is] a lewd woman, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he [is] holy to his God.
World English Bible
They shall not take a woman that is a prostitute, or profane; neither shall they take a woman put away from her husband: for he is holy to his God.
New King James Version
They shall not take a wife who is a harlot or a defiled woman, nor shall they take a woman divorced from her husband; for the priest [fn] is holy to his God.
New Living Translation
"Priests may not marry a woman defiled by prostitution, and they may not marry a woman who is divorced from her husband, for the priests are set apart as holy to their God.
New Life Bible
They should not take a woman who is unclean because of selling the use of her body. They should not take a woman who is divorced from her husband. For the religious leader is holy to his God.
New Revised Standard
They shall not marry a prostitute or a woman who has been defiled; neither shall they marry a woman divorced from her husband. For they are holy to their God,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
A woman that is unchaste or dishonoured, shall they not take, And a woman divorced from her husband, shall they not take, - For holy, he is unto his God.
Douay-Rheims Bible
They shall not take to wife a harlot or a vile prostitute, nor one that has been put away from her husband: because they are consecrated to their God,
Revised Standard Version
They shall not marry a harlot or a woman who has been defiled; neither shall they marry a woman divorced from her husband; for the priest is holy to his God.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
'They shall not take a woman who is profaned by harlotry, nor shall they take a woman divorced from her husband; for he is holy to his God.

Contextual Overview

1 God spoke to Moses: "Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron. Tell them, A priest must not ritually contaminate himself by touching the dead, except for close relatives: mother, father, son, daughter, brother, or an unmarried sister who is dependent on him since she has no husband; for these he may make himself ritually unclean, but he must not contaminate himself with the dead who are only related to him by marriage and thus profane himself. 5"Priests must not shave their heads or trim their beards or gash their bodies. They must be holy to their God and must not profane the name of their God. Because their job is to present the gifts of God , the food of their God, they are to be holy. 7"Because a priest is holy to his God he must not marry a woman who has been a harlot or a cult prostitute or a divorced woman. Make sure he is holy because he serves the food of your God. Treat him as holy because I, God , who make you holy, am holy. 9 "If a priest's daughter defiles herself in prostitution, she disgraces her father. She must be burned at the stake.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

that is a whore: Leviticus 21:8, Ezekiel 44:22, 1 Timothy 3:11

put away: Deuteronomy 24:1-4, Isaiah 50:1

Reciprocal: Genesis 21:10 - Cast out Exodus 19:6 - and an Leviticus 19:29 - to cause Leviticus 21:13 - General Numbers 30:9 - General Deuteronomy 24:2 - she may go Deuteronomy 33:8 - with thy Ezra 10:18 - the sons Titus 1:6 - the husband

Cross-References

Genesis 21:11
The matter gave great pain to Abraham—after all, Ishmael was his son. But God spoke to Abraham, "Don't feel badly about the boy and your maid. Do whatever Sarah tells you. Your descendants will come through Isaac. Regarding your maid's son, be assured that I'll also develop a great nation from him—he's your son, too."
Psalms 86:8
There's no one quite like you among the gods, O Lord, and nothing to compare with your works. All the nations you made are on their way, ready to give honor to you, O Lord, Ready to put your beauty on display, parading your greatness, And the great things you do— God, you're the one, there's no one but you!
Ephesians 3:10
The Secret Plan of God This is why I, Paul, am in jail for Christ, having taken up the cause of you outsiders, so-called. I take it that you're familiar with the part I was given in God's plan for including everybody. I got the inside story on this from God himself, as I just wrote you in brief. As you read over what I have written to you, you'll be able to see for yourselves into the mystery of Christ. None of our ancestors understood this. Only in our time has it been made clear by God's Spirit through his holy apostles and prophets of this new order. The mystery is that people who have never heard of God and those who have heard of him all their lives (what I've been calling outsiders and insiders) stand on the same ground before God. They get the same offer, same help, same promises in Christ Jesus. The Message is accessible and welcoming to everyone, across the board. This is my life work: helping people understand and respond to this Message. It came as a sheer gift to me, a real surprise, God handling all the details. When it came to presenting the Message to people who had no background in God's way, I was the least qualified of any of the available Christians. God saw to it that I was equipped, but you can be sure that it had nothing to do with my natural abilities. And so here I am, preaching and writing about things that are way over my head, the inexhaustible riches and generosity of Christ. My task is to bring out in the open and make plain what God, who created all this in the first place, has been doing in secret and behind the scenes all along. Through followers of Jesus like yourselves gathered in churches, this extraordinary plan of God is becoming known and talked about even among the angels!

Gill's Notes on the Bible

They shall not take a wife [that is] a whore, or profane,.... By the former is meant a common whore, that prostitutes herself to any one through lust or for gain; and by the latter one whose chastity is violated, but either unwillingly, that has been forced and ravished, or else willingly, being enticed, persuaded, and prevailed upon, but did not make a practice of it; this seems to be the true sense of the words: but the Jewish writers understand them differently; by a "whore" they suppose is meant one that is not an Israelitish woman, that is not born of an Israelite, at least of an Israelitish woman, as proselytes or freed persons; for they say there are no whores but such, or one that lies with such persons, she may not marry with; as such as are guilty of cutting off, or any of the Nethinim, or spurious persons, so Jarchi; and by a "profane" person they think is meant such as are born of those that are rejected, as the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases it; that is, that are either born of incestuous marriages, such as are forbidden, Leviticus 18:1; or that are born of those that are rejected in the priesthood, or whom a priest might not marry, as the daughter of a widow, by the high priest, or the daughter of one divorced, by a common priest, which is the sense of Jarchi:

neither shall they take a woman put away by her husband: which was, in these and later times, common for any offence, when the crime of adultery was not pretended; but this always supposed something bad or amiss, and made such a woman suspected of having done an unseemly thing, therefore priests were forbidden marrying such persons: the Targum of Jonathan adds,

"or by her husband's brother;''

and so takes in one that has loosed the shoe, as the Jews call her, who being left without issue, her husband's brother refused to marry her, and therefore she plucked off his shoe, and spit in his face, see

Deuteronomy 25:7; such an one a priest might not marry, according to this paraphrast, and other Jewish writers, and if he did was to be beaten a;

for he [is] holy unto his God; separated from common persons, and devoted to the service of God, and therefore not to be defiled with such sort of women, or to lie under any scandal or reproach through such, marriages.

a Misn. Maccot, c. 3. sect. 1.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Profane - A woman who has been seduced, or one of illegitimate birth. A somewhat stricter rule for the priests’ marriages was revealed to the prophet in later times, Ezekiel 44:22.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Leviticus 21:7. That is a whore — A prostitute, though even reclaimed.

Profane — A heathen, or one who is not a cordial believer in the true God.

Put away from her husband — Because this very circumstance might lead to suspicion that the priest and the divorced woman might have been improperly connected before.


 
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