New King James Version (NKJV)

The Priestly Ministry Begins

1 It came to pass on theeighth day that Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.

2 And he said to Aaron, “Take for yourself a youngbull as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering, without blemish, and offer them before theLord.

3 And to the children of Israel you shall speak, saying,‘Take a kid of the goats as a sin offering, and a calf and a lamb, both of the first year, without blemish, as a burnt offering,

4 also a bull and a ram as peace offerings, to sacrifice before theLord, anda grain offering mixed with oil; fortoday theLordwill appear to you.’ ”

5 So they brought what Moses commanded before the tabernacle of meeting. And all the congregation drew near and stood before theLord.

6 Then Moses said, “This is the thing which theLordcommanded you to do, and the glory of theLordwill appear to you.”

7 And Moses said to Aaron, “Go to the altar,offer your sin offering and your burnt offering, and make atonement for yourself and for the people.Offer the offering of the people, and make atonement for them, as theLordcommanded.”

8 Aaron therefore went to the altar and killed the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself.

9 Then the sons of Aaron brought the blood to him. And he dipped his finger in the blood, put it on the horns of the altar, and poured the blood at the base of the altar.

10 But the fat, the kidneys, and the fatty lobe from the liver of the sin offering he burned on the altar, as theLordhad commanded Moses.

11 The flesh and the hide he burned with fire outside the camp.

12 And he killed the burnt offering; and Aaron’s sons presented to him the blood,which he sprinkled all around on the altar.

13 Then they presented the burnt offering to him, with its pieces and head, and he burned them on the altar.

14 And he washed the entrails and the legs, and burned them with the burnt offering on the altar.

15 Then he brought the people’s offering, and took the goat, which was the sin offering for the people, and killed it and offered it for sin, like the first one.

16 And he brought the burnt offering and offered itaccording to the prescribed manner.

17 Then he brought the grain offering, took a handful of it, and burned it on the altar,besides the burnt sacrifice of the morning.

18 He also killed the bull and the ram assacrifices of peace offerings, which were for the people. And Aaron’s sons presented to him the blood, which he sprinkled all around on the altar,

19 and the fat from the bull and the ram—the fatty tail, what covers the entrails and the kidneys, and the fatty lobe attached to the liver;

20 and they put the fat on the breasts.Then he burned the fat on the altar;

21 but the breasts and the right thigh Aaron wavedas a wave offering before theLord, as Moses had commanded.

22 Then Aaron lifted his hand toward the people,blessed them, and came down from offering the sin offering, the burnt offering, and peace offerings.

23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of meeting, and came out and blessed the people. Then the glory of theLordappeared to all the people,

24 andfire came out from before theLordand consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, theyshouted and fell on theirfaces.

The Profane Fire of Nadab and Abihu

1 ThenNadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron,each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offeredprofane fire before theLord, which He had not commanded them.

2 Sofire went out from theLordand devoured them, and they died before theLord.

3 And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what theLordspoke, saying:

# ‘By thosewho come near Me

I must be regarded as holy;

And before all the people

I must be glorified.’ ”

So Aaron held his peace.

4 Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near,carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.”

5 So they went near and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said.

6 And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, andwrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which theLordhas kindled.

7 You shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die,for the anointing oil of theLordis upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.

Conduct Prescribed for Priests

8 Then theLordspoke to Aaron, saying:

9 “Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations,

10 that you maydistinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean,

11 and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which theLordhas spoken to them by the hand of Moses.”

12 And Moses spoke to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons who were left:“Take the grain offering that remains of the offerings made by fire to theLord, and eat it without leaven beside the altar;for it is most holy.

13 You shall eat it in aholy place, because it is your due and your sons’ due, of the sacrifices made by fire to theLord; forso I have been commanded.

14 The breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering you shall eat in a clean place, you, your sons, and yourdaughters with you; for they are your due and your sons’due, which are given from the sacrifices of peace offerings of the children of Israel.

15 The thigh of the heave offering and the breast of the wave offering they shall bring with the offerings of fat made by fire, to offer as a wave offering before theLord. And it shall be yours and your sons’ with you, by a statute forever, as theLordhas commanded.”

16 Then Moses made careful inquiry aboutthe goat of the sin offering, and there it was—burned up. And he was angry with Eleazar and Ithamar, the sons of Aaron who were left, saying,

17 “Why have you not eaten the sin offering in a holy place, since it is most holy, and God has given it to you to bearthe guilt of the congregation, to make atonement for them before theLord?

18 See!Its blood was not brought inside the holy place; indeed you should have eaten it in a holy place,as I commanded.”

19 And Aaron said to Moses, “Look,this day they have offered their sin offering and their burnt offering before theLord, and such things have befallen me! If I had eaten the sin offering today,would it have been accepted in the sight of theLord?”

20 So when Moses heard that, he was content.

Foods Permitted and Forbidden

1 Now theLordspoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them,

2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying,‘These are the animals which you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth:

3 Among the animals, whatever divides the hoof, having cloven hooves and chewing the cud—that you may eat.

4 Nevertheless these you shallnot eat among those that chew the cud or those that have cloven hooves: the camel, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you;

5 the rock hyrax, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you;

6 the hare, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you;

7 and the swine, though it divides the hoof, having cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud,is unclean to you.

8 Their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch.They are unclean to you.

9 ‘These you may eat of all that are in the water: whatever in the water has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers—that you may eat.

10 But all in the seas or in the rivers that do not have fins and scales, all that move in the water or any living thing which is in the water, they are anabomination to you.

11 They shall be an abomination to you; you shall not eat their flesh, but you shall regard their carcasses as an abomination.

12 Whatever in the water does not have fins or scales—that shall be an abomination to you.

13 ‘And these you shall regard as an abomination among the birds; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the buzzard,

14 the kite, and the falcon after its kind;

15 every raven after its kind,

16 the ostrich, the short-eared owl, the sea gull, and the hawk after its kind;

17 the little owl, the fisher owl, and the screech owl;

18 the white owl, the jackdaw, and the carrion vulture;

19 the stork, the heron after its kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.

20 ‘All flying insects that creep on all fours shall be an abomination to you.

21 Yet these you may eat of every flying insect that creeps on all fours: those which have jointed legs above their feet with which to leap on the earth.

22 These you may eat:the locust after its kind, the destroying locust after its kind, the cricket after its kind, and the grasshopper after its kind.

23 But all other flying insects which have four feet shall be an abomination to you.

Unclean Animals

24 ‘By these you shall become unclean; whoever touches the carcass of any of them shall be unclean until evening;

25 whoever carries part of the carcass of any of themshall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening:

26 The carcass of any animal which divides the foot, but is not cloven-hoofed or does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. Everyone who touches it shall be unclean.

27 And whatever goes on its paws, among all kinds of animals that go on all fours, those are unclean to you. Whoever touches any such carcass shall be unclean until evening.

28 Whoever carries any such carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. It is unclean to you.

29 ‘These also shall be unclean to you among the creeping things that creep on the earth: the mole,the mouse, and the large lizard after its kind;

30 the gecko, the monitor lizard, the sand reptile, the sand lizard, and the chameleon.

31 These are unclean to you among all that creep. Whoevertouches them when they are dead shall be unclean until evening.

32 Anything on which any of them falls, when they are dead shall be unclean, whether it is any item of wood or clothing or skin or sack, whatever item it is, in which any work is done,it must be put in water. And it shall be unclean until evening; then it shall be clean.

33 Anyearthen vessel into which any of them fallsyou shall break; and whatever is in it shall be unclean:

34 in such a vessel, any edible food upon which water falls becomes unclean, and any drink that may be drunk from it becomes unclean.

35 And everything on which a part of any such carcass falls shall be unclean; whether it is an oven or cooking stove, it shall be broken down; for they are unclean, and shall be unclean to you.

36 Nevertheless a spring or a cistern, in which there is plenty of water, shall be clean, but whatever touches any such carcass becomes unclean.

37 And if a part of any such carcass falls on any planting seed which is to be sown, it remains clean.

38 But if water is put on the seed, and if a part of any such carcass falls on it, it becomes unclean to you.

39 ‘And if any animal which you may eat dies, he who touches its carcass shall beunclean until evening.

40 He who eats of its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. He also who carries its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening.

41 ‘And every creeping thing that creeps on the earth shall be an abomination. It shall not be eaten.

42 Whatever crawls on its belly, whatever goes on all fours, or whatever has many feet among all creeping things that creep on the earth—these you shall not eat, for they are an abomination.

43 You shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creeps; nor shall you make yourselves unclean with them, lest you be defiled by them.

44 For I am theLordyourGod. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, andyou shall be holy; for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

45 For I am theLordwho brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God.You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.

46 ‘This is the law of the animals and the birds and every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps on the earth,

47 to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, and between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.’ ”

The Ritual After Childbirth

1 Then theLordspoke to Moses, saying,

2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If awoman has conceived, and borne a male child, thenshe shall be unclean seven days;as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean.

3 And on theeighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.

4 She shall then continue in the blood of her purification thirty-three days. She shall not touch any hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are fulfilled.

5 ‘But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her customary impurity, and she shall continue in the blood of her purification sixty-six days.

6 ‘When the days of her purification are fulfilled, whether for a son or a daughter, she shall bring to the priest alamb of the first year as a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove as asin offering, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

7 Then he shall offer it before theLord, and make atonement for her. And she shall be clean from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who has borne a male or a female.

8 ‘And if she is not able to bring a lamb, then she may bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons—one as a burnt offering and the other as a sin offering.So the priest shall make atonement for her, and she will be clean.’ ”

The Law Concerning Leprosy

1 And theLordspoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:

2 “When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling,a scab, or a bright spot, and it becomes on the skin of his body like a leprous sore,then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests.

3 The priest shall examine the sore on the skin of the body; and if the hair on the sore has turned white, and the sore appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a leprous sore. Then the priest shall examine him, and pronounce him unclean.

4 But if the bright spot is white on the skin of his body, and does not appear to be deeper than the skin, and its hair has not turned white, then the priest shall isolate the one who has the soreseven days.

5 And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day; and indeed if the sore appears to be as it was, and the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall isolate him another seven days.

6 Then the priest shall examine him again on the seventh day; and indeed if the sore has faded, and the sore has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean; it is only a scab, and heshall wash his clothes and be clean.

7 But if the scab should at all spread over the skin, after he has been seen by the priest for his cleansing, he shall be seen by the priest again.

8 And if the priest sees that the scab has indeed spread on the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is leprosy.

9 “When the leprous sore is on a person, then he shall be brought to the priest.

10 And the priest shall examine him; and indeed if the swelling on the skin is white, and it has turned the hair white, and there is a spot of raw flesh in the swelling,

11 it is an old leprosy on the skin of his body. The priest shall pronounce him unclean, and shall not isolate him, for he is unclean.

12 “And if leprosy breaks out all over the skin, and the leprosy covers all the skin of the one who has the sore, from his head to his foot, wherever the priest looks,

13 then the priest shall consider; and indeed if the leprosy has covered all his body, he shall pronounce him clean who has the sore. It has all turnedwhite. He is clean.

14 But when raw flesh appears on him, he shall be unclean.

15 And the priest shall examine the raw flesh and pronounce him to be unclean; for the raw flesh is unclean. It is leprosy.

16 Or if the raw flesh changes and turns white again, he shall come to the priest.

17 And the priest shall examine him; and indeed if the sore has turned white, then the priest shall pronounce him clean who has the sore. He is clean.

18 “If the body develops aboil in the skin, and it is healed,

19 and in the place of the boil there comes a white swelling or a bright spot, reddish-white, then it shall be shown to the priest;

20 and if, when the priest sees it, it indeed appears deeper than the skin, and its hair has turned white, the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a leprous sore which has broken out of the boil.

21 But if the priest examines it, and indeed there are no white hairs in it, and it is not deeper than the skin, but has faded, then the priest shall isolate him seven days;

22 and if it should at all spread over the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a leprous sore.

23 But if the bright spot stays in one place, and has not spread, it is the scar of the boil; and the priest shall pronounce him clean.

24 “Or if the body receives aburn on its skin by fire, and the raw flesh of the burn becomes a bright spot, reddish-white or white,

25 then the priest shall examine it; and indeed if the hair of the bright spot has turned white, and it appears deeper than the skin, it is leprosy broken out in the burn. Therefore the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a leprous sore.

26 But if the priest examines it, and indeed there are no white hairs in the bright spot, and it is not deeper than the skin, but has faded, then the priest shall isolate him seven days.

27 And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day. If it has at all spread over the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a leprous sore.

28 But if the bright spot stays in one place, and has not spread on the skin, but has faded, it is a swelling from the burn. The priest shall pronounce him clean, for it is the scar from the burn.

29 “If a man or woman has a sore on the head or the beard,

30 then the priest shall examine the sore; and indeed if it appears deeper than the skin, and there is in it thin yellow hair, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a scaly leprosy of the head or beard.

31 But if the priest examines the scaly sore, and indeed it does not appear deeper than the skin, and there is no black hair in it, then the priest shall isolate the one who has the scale seven days.

32 And on the seventh day the priest shall examine the sore; and indeed if the scale has not spread, and there is no yellow hair in it, and the scale does not appear deeper than the skin,

33 he shall shave himself, but the scale he shall not shave. And the priest shall isolate the one who has the scale another seven days.

34 On the seventh day the priest shall examine the scale; and indeed if the scale has not spread over the skin, and does not appear deeper than the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean. He shall wash his clothes and be clean.

35 But if the scale should at all spread over the skin after his cleansing,

36 then the priest shall examine him; and indeed if the scale has spread over the skin, the priest need not seek for yellow hair. He is unclean.

37 But if the scale appears to be at a standstill, and there is black hair grown up in it, the scale has healed. He is clean, and the priest shall pronounce him clean.

38 “If a man or a woman has bright spots on the skin of the body, specifically white bright spots,

39 then the priest shall look; and indeed if the bright spots on the skin of the body are dull white, it is a white spot that grows on the skin. He is clean.

40 “As for the man whose hair has fallen from his head, he is bald, but he is clean.

41 He whose hair has fallen from his forehead, he is bald on the forehead, but he is clean.

42 And if there is on the bald head or baldforehead a reddish-white sore, it is leprosy breaking out on his bald head or his bald forehead.

43 Then the priest shall examine it; and indeed if the swelling of the sore is reddish-white on his bald head or on his bald forehead, as the appearance of leprosy on the skin of the body,

44 he is a leprous man. He is unclean. The priest shall surely pronounce him unclean; his sore is on hishead.

45 “Now the leper on whom the sore is, his clothes shall be torn and his headbare; and he shallcover his mustache, and cry,‘Unclean! Unclean!’

46 He shall be unclean. All the days he has the sore he shall be unclean. He is unclean, and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shall beoutside the camp.

The Law Concerning Leprous Garments

47 “Also, if a garment has a leprous plague in it, whether it is a woolen garment or a linen garment,

48 whether it is in the warp or woof of linen or wool, whether in leather or in anything made of leather,

49 and if the plague is greenish or reddish in the garment or in the leather, whether in the warp or in the woof, or in anything made of leather, it is a leprous plague and shall be shown to the priest.

50 The priest shall examine the plague and isolate that which has the plague seven days.

51 And he shall examine the plague on the seventh day. If the plague has spread in the garment, either in the warp or in the woof, in the leather or in anything made of leather, the plague is anactive leprosy. It is unclean.

52 He shall therefore burn that garment in which is the plague, whether warp or woof, in wool or in linen, or anything of leather, for it is an active leprosy; the garment shall be burned in the fire.

53 “But if the priest examines it, and indeed the plague has not spread in the garment, either in the warp or in the woof, or in anything made of leather,

54 then the priest shall command that they wash the thing in which is the plague; and he shall isolate it another seven days.

55 Then the priest shall examine the plague after it has been washed; and indeed if the plague has not changed its color, though the plague has not spread, it is unclean, and you shall burn it in the fire; it continues eating away, whether the damage is outside or inside.

56 If the priest examines it, and indeed the plague has faded after washing it, then he shall tear it out of the garment, whether out of the warp or out of the woof, or out of the leather.

57 But if it appears again in the garment, either in the warp or in the woof, or in anything made of leather, it is a spreading plague; you shall burn with fire that in which is the plague.

58 And if you wash the garment, either warp or woof, or whatever is made of leather, if the plague has disappeared from it, then it shall be washed a second time, and shall be clean.

59 “This is the law of the leprous plague in a garment of wool or linen, either in the warp or woof, or in anything made of leather, to pronounce it clean or to pronounce it unclean.”

The Ritual for Cleansing Healed Lepers

1 Then theLordspoke to Moses, saying,

2 “This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing: Heshall be brought to the priest.

3 And the priest shall go out of the camp, and the priest shall examine him; and indeed, if the leprosy is healed in the leper,

4 then the priest shall command to take for him who is to be cleansed two living and clean birds,cedar wood,scarlet, andhyssop.

5 And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water.

6 As for the living bird, he shall take it, the cedar wood and the scarlet and the hyssop, and dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water.

7 And he shallsprinkle itseven times on him who is to be cleansed from the leprosy, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose in the open field.

8 He who is to be cleansedshall wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, andwash himself in water, that he may be clean. After that he shall come into the camp, andshall stay outside his tent seven days.

9 But on theseventh day he shall shave all the hair off his head and his beard and his eyebrows—all his hair he shall shave off. He shall wash his clothes and wash his body in water, and he shall be clean.

10 “And on the eighth dayhe shall take two male lambs without blemish, one ewe lamb of the first year without blemish, three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil asa grain offering, and one log of oil.

11 Then the priest who makes him clean shall present the man who is to be made clean, and those things, before theLord, at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

12 And the priest shall take one male lamb andoffer it as a trespass offering, and the log of oil, andwave them as a wave offering before theLord.

13 Then he shall kill the lambin the place where he kills the sin offering and the burnt offering, in a holy place; foras the sin offering is the priest’s, so is the trespass offering.It is most holy.

14 The priest shall take some of the blood of the trespass offering, and the priest shall put iton the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.

15 And the priest shall take some of the log of oil, and pour it into the palm of his own left hand.

16 Then the priest shall dip his right finger in the oil that is in his left hand, and shallsprinkle some of the oil with his finger seven times before theLord.

17 And of the rest of the oil in his hand, the priest shall put some on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the blood of the trespass offering.

18 The rest of the oil that is in the priest’s hand he shall put on the head of him who is to be cleansed.So the priest shall make atonement for him before theLord.

19 “Then the priest shall offerthe sin offering, and make atonement for him who is to be cleansed from his uncleanness. Afterward he shall kill the burnt offering.

20 And the priest shall offer the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar. So the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall beclean.

21 “Butif he is poor and cannot afford it, then he shall take one male lamb as a trespass offering to be waved, to make atonement for him, one-tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering, a log of oil,

22 and two turtledoves or two young pigeons, such as he is able to afford: one shall be a sin offering and the other a burnt offering.

23 He shall bring them to the priest on the eighth day for his cleansing, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, before theLord.

24 And the priest shall take the lamb of the trespass offering and the log of oil,and the priest shall wave them as a wave offering before theLord.

25 Then he shall kill the lamb of the trespass offering, and the priest shall take some of the blood of the trespass offering and put it on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.

26 And the priest shall pour some of the oil into the palm of his own left hand.

27 Then the priest shall sprinkle with his right finger some of the oil that is in his left hand seven times before theLord.

28 And the priest shall put some of the oil that is in his hand on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, on the thumb of the right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the place of the blood of the trespass offering.

29 The rest of the oil that is in the priest’s hand he shall put on the head of him who is to be cleansed, to make atonement for him before theLord.

30 And he shall offer one ofthe turtledoves or young pigeons, such as he can afford—

31 such as he is able to afford, the one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, with the grain offering. So the priest shall make atonement for him who is to be cleansed before theLord.

32 This is the law for one who had a leprous sore, who cannot affordthe usual cleansing.”

The Law Concerning Leprous Houses

33 And theLordspoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:

34 “When you have come into the land of Canaan, which I give you as a possession, andI put the leprous plague in a house in the land of your possession,

35 and he who owns the house comes and tells the priest, saying, ‘It seems to me that there issome plague in the house,’

36 then the priest shall command that they empty the house, before the priest goes into it to examine the plague, that all that is in the house may not be made unclean; and afterward the priest shall go in to examine the house.

37 And he shall examine the plague; and indeed if the plague is on the walls of the house with ingrained streaks, greenish or reddish, which appear to be deep in the wall,

38 then the priest shall go out of the house, to the door of the house, and shut up the house seven days.

39 And the priest shall come again on the seventh day and look; and indeed if the plague has spread on the walls of the house,

40 then the priest shall command that they take away the stones in which is the plague, and they shall cast them into an unclean place outside the city.

41 And he shall cause the house to be scraped inside, all around, and the dust that they scrape off they shall pour out in an unclean place outside the city.

42 Then they shall take other stones and put them in the place of those stones, and he shall take other mortar and plaster the house.

43 “Now if the plague comes back and breaks out in the house, after he has taken away the stones, after he has scraped the house, and after it is plastered,

44 then the priest shall come and look; and indeed if the plague has spread in the house, it isan active leprosy in the house. It is unclean.

45 And he shall break down the house, its stones, its timber, and all the plaster of the house, and he shall carry them outside the city to an unclean place.

46 Moreover he who goes into the house at all while it is shut up shall be unclean untilevening.

47 And he who lies down in the house shallwash his clothes, and he who eats in the house shall wash his clothes.

48 “But if the priest comes in and examines it, and indeed the plague has not spread in the house after the house was plastered, then the priest shall pronounce the house clean, because the plague is healed.

49 Andhe shall take, to cleanse the house, two birds, cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop.

50 Then he shall kill one of the birds in an earthen vessel over running water;

51 and he shall take the cedar wood, the hyssop, the scarlet, and the living bird, and dip them in the blood of the slain bird and in the running water, and sprinkle the house seven times.

52 And he shall cleanse the house with the blood of the bird and the running water and the living bird, with the cedar wood, the hyssop, and the scarlet.

53 Then he shall let the living bird loose outside the city in the open field, andmake atonement for the house, and it shall be clean.

54 “This is the law for anyleprous sore and scale,

55 for theleprosy of a garmentand of a house,

56 for a swelling and a scab and a bright spot,

57 toteach when it is unclean and when it is clean. This is the law of leprosy.”

The Law Concerning Bodily Discharges

1 And theLordspoke to Moses and Aaron, saying,

2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them:‘When any man has a discharge from his body, his discharge is unclean.

3 And this shall be his uncleanness in regard to his discharge—whether his body runs with his discharge, or his body is stopped up by his discharge, it is his uncleanness.

4 Every bed is unclean on which he who has the discharge lies, and everything on which he sits shall be unclean.

5 And whoevertouches his bed shallwash his clothes andbathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

6 He who sits on anything on which he who has thedischarge sat shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

7 And he who touches the body of him who has the discharge shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

8 If he who has the dischargespits on him who is clean, then he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

9 Any saddle on which he who has the discharge rides shall be unclean.

10 Whoever touches anything that was under him shall be unclean until evening. He who carries any of those things shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

11 And whomever the one who has the discharge touches, and has not rinsed his hands in water, he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

12 Thevessel of earth that he who has the discharge touches shall be broken, and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.

13 ‘And when he who has a discharge is cleansed of his discharge, thenhe shall count for himself seven days for his cleansing, wash his clothes, and bathe his body in running water; then he shall be clean.

14 On the eighth day he shall take for himselftwo turtledoves or two young pigeons, and come before theLord, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and give them to the priest.

15 Then the priest shall offer them,the one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering.So the priest shall make atonement for him before theLordbecause of his discharge.

16 ‘If any man has an emission of semen, then he shall wash all his body in water, and be unclean until evening.

17 And any garment and any leather on which there is semen, it shall be washed with water, and be unclean until evening.

18 Also, when a woman lies with a man, and there is an emission of semen, they shall bathe in water, andbe unclean until evening.

19 ‘If a woman has a discharge, and the discharge from her body is blood, she shall be set apart seven days; and whoever touches her shall be unclean until evening.

20 Everything that she lies on during her impurity shall be unclean; also everything that she sits on shall be unclean.

21 Whoever touches her bed shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

22 And whoever touches anything that she sat on shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

23 If anything is on her bed or on anything on which she sits, when he touches it, he shall be unclean until evening.

24 Andif any man lies with her at all, so that her impurity is on him, he shall be unclean seven days; and every bed on which he lies shall be unclean.

25 ‘Ifa woman has a discharge of blood for many days, other than at the time of her customary impurity, or if it runs beyond her usual time of impurity, all the days of her unclean discharge shall be as the days of her customary impurity. She shall be unclean.

26 Every bed on which she lies all the days of her discharge shall be to her as the bed of her impurity; and whatever she sits on shall be unclean, as the uncleanness of her impurity.

27 Whoever touches those things shall be unclean; he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and be unclean until evening.

28 ‘Butif she is cleansed of her discharge, then she shall count for herself seven days, and after that she shall be clean.

29 And on the eighth day she shall take for herself two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and bring them to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

30 Then the priest shall offer the one as a sin offering and the other as aburnt offering, and the priest shall make atonement for her before theLordfor the discharge of her uncleanness.

31 ‘Thus you shallseparate the children of Israel from their uncleanness, lest they die in their uncleanness when theydefile My tabernacle that is among them.

32 This is the law for one who has a discharge,and for him who emits semen and is unclean thereby,

33 and for her who is indisposed because of her customary impurity, and for one who has a discharge, either manor woman,and for him who lies with her who is unclean.’ ”

The Day of Atonement

1 Now theLordspoke to Moses afterthe death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered profane fire before theLord, and died;

2 and theLordsaid to Moses: “Tell Aaron your brothernot to come at just any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, lest he die; forI will appear in the cloud above the mercy seat.

3 “Thus Aaron shallcome into the Holy Place:with the blood of a young bull as a sin offering, and of a ram as a burnt offering.

4 He shall put theholy linen tunic and the linen trousers on his body;he shall be girded with a linen sash, and with the linen turban he shall be attired. These are holy garments. Therefore he shall wash his body in water, and put them on.

5 And he shall take fromthe congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats as a sin offering, and one ram as a burnt offering.

6 “Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering, which is for himself, andmake atonement for himself and for his house.

7 He shall take the two goats and present them before theLordat the door of the tabernacle of meeting.

8 Then Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats: one lot for theLordand the other lot for the scapegoat.

9 And Aaron shall bring the goat on which theLord’s lot fell, and offer it as a sin offering.

10 But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be presented alive before theLord, to makeatonement upon it, and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness.

11 “And Aaron shall bring the bull of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement forhimself and for his house, and shall kill the bull as the sin offering which is for himself.

12 Then he shall takea censer full of burning coals of fire from the altar before theLord, with his hands full ofsweet incense beaten fine, and bring it inside the veil.

13 And he shall put the incense on the fire before theLord, that the cloud of incense may cover themercy seat that is on the Testimony, lest hedie.

14 He shall take some of the blood of the bull andsprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.

15 “Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its bloodinside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat.

16 So he shallmake atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, for all their sins; and so he shall do for the tabernacle of meeting which remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness.

17 There shall beno man in the tabernacle of meeting when he goes in to make atonement in the Holy Place, until he comes out, that he may make atonement for himself, for his household, and for all the assembly of Israel.

18 And he shall go out to the altar that is before theLord, and make atonement forit, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around.

19 Then he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, cleanse it, andconsecrate it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.

20 “And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the tabernacle of meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat.

21 Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat,confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins,putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man.

22 The goat shallbear on itself all their iniquities to an uninhabited land; and he shallrelease the goat in the wilderness.

23 “Then Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of meeting,shall take off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the Holy Place, and shall leave them there.

24 And he shall wash his body with water in a holy place, put on his garments, come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, and make atonement for himself and for the people.

25 The fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar.

26 And he who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothesand bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.

27 The bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. And they shall burn in the fire their skins, their flesh, and their offal.

28 Then he who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp.

29 “This shall be a statute forever for you:In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether a native of your own country or a stranger who dwells among you.

30 For on that day the priest shall make atonement for you, tocleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before theLord.

31 It is a sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever.

32 And the priest, who is anointed andconsecrated to minister as priest in his father’s place, shall make atonement, and put on the linen clothes, the holy garments;

33 then he shall make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tabernacle of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly.

34 This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel, for all their sins,once a year.” And he did as theLordcommanded Moses.

The Sanctity of Blood

1 And theLordspoke to Moses, saying,

2 “Speak to Aaron, to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘This is the thing which theLordhas commanded, saying:

3 “Whatever man of the house of Israel whokills an ox or lamb or goat in the camp, or who kills it outside the camp,

4 and does not bring it to the door of the tabernacle of meeting to offer an offering to theLordbefore the tabernacle of theLord, the guilt of bloodshed shall beimputed to that man. He has shed blood; and that man shall be cut off from among his people,

5 to the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrificeswhich they offer in the open field, that they may bring them to theLordat the door of the tabernacle of meeting, to the priest, and offer them as peace offerings to theLord.

6 And the priestshall sprinkle the blood on the altar of theLordat the door of the tabernacle of meeting, andburn the fat for a sweet aroma to theLord.

7 They shall no more offer their sacrificesto demons, after whom theyhave played the harlot. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations.” ’

8 “Also you shall say to them: ‘Whatever man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you,who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice,

9 and does notbring it to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, to offer it to theLord, that man shall be cut off from among his people.

10 ‘And whatever man of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, who eats any blood,I will set My face against that person who eats blood, and will cut him off from among his people.

11 For thelife of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altarto make atonement for your souls; forit is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.’

12 Therefore I said to the children of Israel, ‘No one among you shall eat blood, nor shall any stranger who dwells among you eat blood.’

13 “Whatever man of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell among you, whohunts and catches any animal or bird that may be eaten, he shallpour out its blood andcover it with dust;

14 for it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.’

15 “And every person who eats what died naturally or what was torn by beasts, whether he is a native of your own country or a stranger,he shall both wash his clothes andbathe in water, and be unclean until evening. Then he shall be clean.

16 But if he does not wash them or bathe his body, thenhe shall bear his guilt.”

Laws of Sexual Morality

1 Then theLordspoke to Moses, saying,

2 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them:‘I am theLordyour God.

3 According to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do; andaccording to the doings of the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you, you shall not do; nor shall you walk in their ordinances.

4 You shall observe My judgments and keep My ordinances, to walk in them: I am theLordyour God.

5 You shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am theLord.

6 ‘None of you shall approach anyone who is near of kin to him, to uncover his nakedness: I am theLord.

7 The nakedness of your father or the nakedness of your mother you shall not uncover. She is your mother; you shall not uncover her nakedness.

8 The nakedness of yourfather’s wife you shall not uncover; it is your father’s nakedness.

9 The nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father, or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or elsewhere, their nakedness you shall not uncover.

10 The nakedness of your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter, their nakedness you shall not uncover; for theirs is your own nakedness.

11 The nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, begotten by your father—she is your sister—you shall not uncover her nakedness.

12 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister; she is near of kin to your father.

13 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, for she is near of kin to your mother.

14 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother. You shall not approach his wife; she is your aunt.

15 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law—she is your son’s wife—you shall not uncover her nakedness.

16 You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife; it is your brother’s nakedness.

17 You shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and herdaughter, nor shall you take her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter, to uncover her nakedness. They are near of kin to her. It is wickedness.

18 Nor shall you take a womanas a rival to her sister, to uncover her nakedness while the other is alive.

19 ‘Also you shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness aslong as she is in hercustomary impurity.

20 Moreover you shall not lie carnally with yourneighbor’s wife, to defile yourself with her.

21 And you shall not let any of your descendantspass throughthe fire toMolech, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am theLord.

22 You shall not lie witha male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

23 Nor shall you mate with anyanimal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is perversion.

24 ‘Do not defile yourselves with any of these things;for by all these the nations are defiled, which I am casting out before you.

25 Forthe land is defiled; therefore Ivisit the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the landvomits out its inhabitants.

26 You shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations, either any of your own nation or any stranger who dwells among you

27 (for all these abominations the men of the land have done, who were before you, and thus the land is defiled),

28 lestthe land vomit you out also when you defile it, as it vomited out the nations that were before you.

29 For whoever commits any of these abominations, the persons who commit them shall be cut off from among their people.

30 ‘Therefore you shall keep My ordinance, sothat you do not commit any of these abominable customs which were committed before you, and that you do not defile yourselves by them:I am theLordyour God.’ ”