the Second Week after Easter
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New American Standard Bible (1995)
Leviticus 21:20
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- CondensedParallel Translations
or crook-backed, or a dwarf, or that has a blemish in his eye, or is scurvy, or scabbed, or has his stones broken;
Or crookbackt, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;
or a hunchback or a dwarf, or a spot in his eye or a skin disorder or a skin eruption or a crushed testicle.
hunchbacks, dwarfs, men who have something wrong with their eyes, men who have an itching disease or a skin disease, or men who have damaged sex glands.
or a hunchback, or a dwarf, or one with a spot in his eye, or a festering eruption, or a feverish rash, or a crushed testicle.
or a hunchback or a dwarf, or one who has a defect in his eye or eczema or scabs or crushed testicles.
or a contorted back, or one who is a dwarf, or has a spot in his eye, or a festering rash or scabs, or crushed testicles.
Or is crooke backt, or bleare eyed, or hath a blemish in his eye, or be skiruie, or skabbed, or haue his stones broken.
or a hunchback or a dwarf, or one who has a defect in his eye or eczema or scabs or crushed testicles.
if he is a hunchback or a dwarf, if an eye or his skin is diseased, or if his testicles have been damaged.
a hunched back, stunted growth, a cataract in his eye, festering or running sores, or damaged testicles —
or hump-backed, or withered, or that hath a spot in his eye, or hath the itch, or scabs, or his testicles broken.
men with bent backs, men who are dwarfs, men who are cross-eyed, men with rashes or bad skin diseases, and men with crushed testicles.
or a hunchback or a dwarf or a man with a defect in his sight or an itching disease or scabs or crushed testicles.
Or crooked back or is a dwarf or whose eyebrows have fallen or whose eyes are dimmed or has cataract in his eyes or has leprosy or a hunchback or has one testicle;
no one who is a hunchback or a dwarf; no one with any eye or skin disease; and no eunuch.
or who is a hunchback or a dwarf, or who has an eye defect, a festering rash, scabs, or a crushed testicle.
or one humpbacked, or one emaciated, or with a spot in his eye, or a scurvy one, or one scabbed, or one with crushed testicles.
or is croke backed, or hath eny blemysh in the eye, or is gleyd, or is skyrvye or scaulde, or hath his stones broken.
or crook-backed, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or is scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;
Or one whose back is bent, or one who is unnaturally small, or one who has a damaged eye, or whose skin is diseased, or whose sex parts are damaged;
Or is crooke backt, or bleare eyed, or haue a webbe or other blemishe in his eyes, or be skuruie, or skabbed, or hath his stones broken:
or crook-backed, or a dwarf, or that hath his eye overspread, or is scabbed, or scurvy, or hath his stones crushed;
Or crooke backt, or a dwarfe, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scuruy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken:
or hump-backed, or blear-eyed, or that has lost his eye-lashes, or a man who has a malignant ulcer, or tetter, or one that has lost a testicle.
or crookbackt, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or is scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken;
or who is a hunchback or dwarf, or who has an eye defect, a festering rash, scabs, or a crushed testicle.
if he hath a botche; ether if he is blereiyed; if he hath whijt colour in the iye, that lettith the siyt; if he hath contynuel scabbe; if he hath a drye scabbe in the bodi; ethir `is brokun `in the pryuy membris.
or hump-backed, or a dwarf, or with a mixture in his eye, or a scurvy person, or scabbed, or broken-testicled.
or crook-backed, or a dwarf, or that has a blemish in his eye, or is scurvy, or scabbed, or has his stones broken;
Or crooked-backed, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his peculiar members broken:
or crook-backed, or a dwarf, or that has a blemish in his eye, or is scurvy, or scabbed, or has his stones broken;
or is a hunchback or a dwarf, or a man who has a defect in his eye, or eczema or scab, or is a eunuch.
or is hunchbacked or dwarfed, or has a defective eye, or skin sores or scabs, or damaged testicles.
or a man with a crooked upper back from birth, or a very little man, or one who has a bad eye or skin trouble or sores, or one whose sex parts have been crushed.
or a hunchback, or a dwarf, or a man with a blemish in his eyes or an itching disease or scabs or crushed testicles.
or is hump-backed or a dwarf, or hath defective vision, - or hath scurvy or scab, or is crushed in the stones:
If he be crookbacked; or blear eyed; or have a pearl in his eye, or a continual scab, or a dry scurf in his body, or a rupture.
or a hunchback, or a dwarf, or a man with a defect in his sight or an itching disease or scabs or crushed testicles;
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
a dwarf: or, too slender
or hath: Deuteronomy 23:1
Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 28:27 - scab Matthew 26:65 - the high priest
Cross-References
He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; therefore it is said, "Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD."
"He will be a wild donkey of a man, His hand will be against everyone, And everyone's hand will be against him; And he will live to the east of all his brothers."
"As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I will bless him, and will make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation.
So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the appointed time of which God had spoken to him.
Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.
now therefore, swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me or with my offspring or with my posterity, but according to the kindness that I have shown to you, you shall show to me and to the land in which you have sojourned."
Abraham said, "I swear it."
But Abraham complained to Abimelech because of the well of water which the servants of Abimelech had seized.
When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a peaceful man, living in tents.
"Now then, please take your gear, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me;
Gill's Notes on the Bible
Or crookbackt,.... That has a protuberance, or bunch upon his back, one that we commonly call "hunchbacked"; the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem paraphrase it,
"whose eyebrows lying cover his eyes;''
and so Jarchi, interprets it, the hair of whose eyebrows is long and lying; and so other Jewish writers understand it of some deformity about the eyes, the hair of the eyebrows being thick and heavy over them, and so hinder the sight, at least it makes the person not so sightly and graceful; it is said b, he that hath no eyebrows, or but one eyebrow, is the "Gibben" (the word here used) spoken of in the law,
Leviticus 21:20:
or a dwarf; one of a small stature, as Aben Ezra, as generally hunchbacked persons are, and so unfit to attend the altar, being scarce able to reach up to it, and do the business of it, as well as must make a very mean appearance; but the above Targums understand this also of some blemish about the eyes, paraphrasing it
"or he that has no hair on his eyebrows,''
just the reverse of the former; Jarchi seems to understand it of a thin small film upon the eye; though something of that kind seems to be intended in the next clause:
or that hath a blemish in his eye; a mixture, a confusion, or rather a suffusion in it, as the above Targum; in which, as one of them says, the white is mixed with the black, and with which agrees what is said in the Misnah c, where it is asked, what is the confusion or suffusion? the white which spreads in the his, and enters into the black of the eye; it seems to be a white speck in the pupil of the eye, and so Jarchi, Kimchi d, and others interpret it:
or be scurvy or scabbed; both these were kinds of ulcers, according to the Jewish writers, particularly Jarchi, who says of the first, that it is a dry scab within and without; and of the other, that it is the Egyptian scab, which is moist without and dry with it; and so the Targum of Jonathan:
or hath his stones broken; this is differently interpreted in the Misnah e, and by other Jewish writers; some say it signifies one that has no testicles, or only one; so the Septuagint and the Jerusalem Targum: others, whose testicles are broken or bruised, so Jarchi: or are inflated, so Akiba, Aben Ezra, and the Targum of Jonathan; some understand it of an "hernia" or rupture, when a man is burstened: all which may in a moral and mystical sense signify either some defect in the understanding, or vices in the heart or life, which render unfit for public service in the sanctuary.
b Becorot, c. 7. sect. 2. c Ib. c. 6. sect. 2. d Ut supra, (Sepher Shorash.) rad. בלל. e Becorot, c. 7. sect. 5.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
He was not treated as an outcast, but enjoyed his privileges as a son of Aaron, except in regard to active duties.
Leviticus 21:20
A dwarf - One who is small and wasted, either short, as in the text, or slender, as in the margin. It is hardly likely that dwarfishness would be overlooked in this enumeration. So most critical authorities.
Scurry or scabbed - These words most probably include all affected with any skin disease.
Leviticus 21:22
See Leviticus 2:3 note; Leviticus 6:25 note.
Leviticus 21:23
Sanctuaries - The places especially holy, including the most holy place, the holy place, and the altar.
This law is of course to be regarded as one development of the great principle that all which is devoted to the service of God should be as perfect as possible of its kind.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Leviticus 21:20. Crooked-backed — Hunch-backed or gibbous. A dwarf, דק dak, a person too short or too thin, so as to be either particularly observable, or ridiculous in his appearance.
A blemish in his eye — A protuberance on the eye, observable spots or suffusions.
Scurvy, or scabbed — A bad habit of body, evidenced by scorbutic or scrofulous affections.
Stones broken — Is ruptured; an infirmity which would render him incapable of fulfilling the duties of his office, which might be often very fatiguing.
In the above list of blemishes we meet with some that might render the priest contemptible in the eyes of men, and be the means of leading them, not only to despise the man, but to despise the ministry itself; and we meet with others that would be a very great impediment in the discharge of his ministerial duties, and therefore any person thus blemished is by this law precluded from the ministry.
The blemishes here enumerated have been considered by some in an allegorical point of view, as if only referring to the necessity of moral purity; but although holiness of heart and righteousness of life be essentially necessary in a minister of God, yet an absence of the defects mentioned above is, I fully believe, what God intends here, and for the reasons too which have been already advanced. It must however be granted, that there have been some eminent divines who have been deformed; and some with certain blemishes have been employed in the Christian ministry, and have been useful. The Mosaic rule, however, will admit of but few exceptions, when even examined according to the more extended interpretation of the Christian system.
"The Hebrews say there are in all 120 blemishes which disable the priest-eight in the head, two in the neck, nine in the ears, five in the brows, seven in the eyelids, nineteen in the eyes, nine in the nose, nine in the mouth, three in the belly, three in the back, seven in the hands, sixteen in the secrets, eight in any part of the body, eight in the skin, and seven in the strength and in the breath." - Ainsworth. In ancient times, even among heathens, persons of the most respectable appearance were appointed to the priesthood; and the emperor, both among the ancient Greeks and Romans, was both king and priest. It is reported of Metellus, that, having lost an eye in endeavouring to save the Palladium from the flames, when the temple of Vesta was on fire, he was denied the priesthood, though he had rendered such an excellent piece of service to the public; yet the public opinion was that a priest who was defective in any member was to be avoided as ominous. - See Dodd. "At Elis, in Greece, the judges chose the finest looking man to carry the sacred vessels of the deity; he that was next to him in beauty and elegance led the ox; and the third in personal beauty, c., carried the garlands, ribbons, wine, and the other matters used for the sacrifice." - Athen. Deipnisoph., l. xiii., c. 2.
Formerly the Church of England was very cautious in admitting to her ministry those who had gross personal defects but now we find the hump-backed, the jolt-headed, bandy-legged, club-footed, one-eyed, &c., priests even of her high places. Why do our prelates ordain such?