Old/New Testament
Chapter 21
Regulations for Priests. 1 The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: ‘No one shall become unclean by touching a dead person[a] 2 except for a close relative, his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his brother, 3 or his unmarried sister, who is near to him, for she has no husband. For these he can become unclean. 4 But he is not to become unclean for people related by marriage, becoming unclean for them.
5 “ ‘Priests must not shave their heads bald nor trim their beards nor shall they cut their flesh.[b] 6 They shall be holy to their God, and they are not to profane the name of their God, for they present offerings made by fire to the Lord, the food of their God. Therefore, they will be holy. 7 They are not to marry a prostitute or a woman who has been defiled, nor are they to marry a woman who has been divorced by her husband, for he is holy to his God.[c] 8 You shall therefore consecrate him, for he offers the bread of your God. He will be holy to you, for I, the Lord, who sanctify you, am holy.
9 “ ‘If the daughter of any priest defiles herself by playing the whore, thus defiling her father, then she is to be burned with fire.
10 “ ‘The priest who is the most important from among his brothers, upon whose head was poured the oil of anointing, and who was consecrated to wear the garments, he is not to uncover his head or rend his garments 11 nor shall he make himself unclean by touching any dead body, even that of his own father or mother. 12 He shall not leave the sanctuary nor desecrate the sanctuary of his God, for the consecration of the oil of anointing of his God is on him. I am the Lord. 13 He shall marry a woman who is a virgin. 14 He shall not marry a widow or a divorced woman or a woman who has defiled herself by fornication. Rather, he is to marry a virgin from his own people 15 so that he not profane his posterity among his people. I am the Lord, who sanctifies him.’ ”
16 Priestly Defects. The Lord spoke to Moses saying, 17 “Speak to Aaron saying: ‘Any of your descendants who has a defect is not to draw near to offer the bread of his God. 18 No one who has a defect shall approach, whether he be blind or lame, disfigured or deformed, 19 or if he has a crippled foot or hand, 20 or if he be hunchbacked or dwarfed, or if he has an eye defect, or a scab or sore or damaged testicles. 21 No descendant of Aaron the priest who has a defect shall draw near to present offerings made by fire to the Lord. He who has a blemish shall not come to offer the bread of his God 22 for the bread of his God is most holy. He can eat what is holy, 23 but he shall not enter inside the veil[d] or approach the altar because of his defect, lest he defile the sanctuary. I am the Lord, who makes them holy.’ ”
24 Moses said this to Aaron and to his sons and to all of the children of Israel.
Chapter 22
Protecting What Is Sanctified. 1 The Lord spoke to Moses saying, 2 “Tell Aaron and his son to treat the holy things of the children of Israel with respect so that they not profane my holy name by those things that they have consecrated to me. I am the Lord.
3 “Say to them: Any of your descendants who approaches these holy things that the children of Israel have consecrated to the Lord while he is unclean, that person will be cut off from my presence. I am the Lord.
4 “Any descendant who is a leper or who has a discharge shall not eat of the holy things until he is clean. Whoever touches anything made unclean by contact with a dead person or who has had an emission of semen 5 or whoever touches any creeping thing that can make him unclean, or touches a man whose uncleanness he acquires, whatever the source of uncleanness, 6 if someone touches one such a person, then he shall be unclean until the evening, and he shall not eat of the holy things unless he bathes himself with water. 7 When the sun sets, he shall be clean. He can then eat the holy things, for it is his food. 8 He shall not eat anything that died on its own or was torn apart by wild beasts, thereby defiling himself. I am the Lord. 9 They shall therefore observe my statutes lest they become guilty and die when they profane it. I am the Lord, who sanctifies them.[e]
10 “No foreigner can eat the holy things. No guest of the priest or hired hand can eat the holy things. 11 But if the priest buys a slave, the slave can eat it, and if a slave is born to his household, he can eat his food. 12 If a priest’s daughter marries an outsider, she cannot eat an offering of the holy things. 13 But if a priest’s daughter is a widow or divorced and she has no children, and she has returned to her father’s household as when she was young, she can eat from her father’s portion of food, but no outsider is to eat of it. 14 If someone eats some of the holy things by accident, he is to add a fifth to its value and give the holy thing to the priest. 15 They must not profane the holy things of the children of Israel that they offer to the Lord 16 lest they bear the guilt of their trespass when they eat their holy things. I am the Lord, who consecrates them.”
17 Acceptable Offerings.[f]The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 18 “Speak to Aaron and to his sons and to all the children of Israel saying: If anyone from the house of Israel or from among the aliens living in Israel presents a burnt offering as a votive offering or a free-will offering to the Lord, 19 it must be a male without blemish from among the cattle or the sheep or the goats, for you to be found acceptable. 20 You shall offer nothing with a defect; it shall not be acceptable for you. 21 If someone offers a peace offering as the fulfillment of a vow or as a free-will offering, whether it be from the cattle or the sheep, it must be perfect to be acceptable. It must have no defect. 22 You shall not offer anything that is blind or injured or maimed, or anything with sores or scabs or scales. You shall not use these as an offering to the Lord by fire, on the altar to the Lord. 23 You can offer a young bull or a lamb that has any parts that are in excess or lacking as a free-will offering, but it is not acceptable for a votive offering. 24 You shall not offer anything that is bruised or crushed or broken or cut to the Lord. You shall not make this type of offering in your land. 25 You shall not offer food from a foreigner’s hand to your God. All of these things have their corruption in them and their blemishes in them; they are not acceptable for you.”
26 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 27 “When a young bull or a sheep or a goat is brought as an offering, you shall leave it for seven days with its mother. On the eighth day, it shall be acceptable as an offering made by fire to the Lord. 28 You are not to kill a cow or ewe with its young on the same day. 29 When you offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving[g] to the Lord, you are to do it in the correct manner. 30 You shall eat it on the day that you offer it; none of it is to be left over until the next day. I am the Lord. 31 You shall observe my commandments and obey them. I am the Lord.
32 “You shall not profane my holy name, for I am to be hallowed among the children of Israel. I am the Lord who hallows you, 33 who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord.”
Chapter 28
Jesus Is Raised from the Dead.[a] 1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to visit the sepulcher. 2 And behold, there was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord, descended from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat upon it. 3 His face shone like lightning, and his garments were as white as snow. 4 The guards were so paralyzed with fear of him that they became like dead men.
5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid! I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has been raised, as he promised he would be. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has been raised from the dead and now he is going ahead of you to Galilee. There you will see him.’ Behold, I have told you.”
8 They were filled with fear and great joy, and they ran from the tomb to inform his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus came to meet them, saying, “Greetings.” They approached him, embraced his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be fearful. Go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee. There they will see me.”[b]
11 The Report of the Guard.[c] While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 After the chief priests had conferred with the elders, they presented a large sum of money to the soldiers 13 and gave them this order: “Say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole the body while we were asleep.’ 14 And should the governor hear anything in this regard, we will explain the situation to him and you will be safe.” 15 The soldiers took the money and did as they had been instructed. And this story is still circulated among the Jews to this very day.
16 Jesus Gives the Great Commission.[d] Then the eleven disciples set out for Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to meet him. 17 When they saw him, they prostrated themselves before him, although some doubted. 18 Then Jesus approached them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,[e] 20 and teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the world.”
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