so that he does not defile his offspring among his people, for I am the LORD who sanctifies him.”
Parallel translations
- WEB He shall not profane his offspring among his people, for I am Yahweh who sanctifies him.’”
- KJV Neither shall he profane his seed among his people: for I the LORD do sanctify him.
- NKJV Nor shall he profane his posterity among his people, for I the Lord sanctify him.’ ”
- NASB so that he will not profane his children among his people; for I am the Lord who sanctifies him.’ ”
- NLT so that he will not dishonor his descendants among his clan, for I am the Lord who makes him holy.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The high priest must not profane his offspring, for it is the Lord who sanctifies him. His holy line was to remain undefiled before God.
Overview
By marrying rightly, the high priest preserved the holiness of his descendants who would continue the priestly service. The grounding clause, 'I am Yahweh who sanctifies him,' again roots holiness in God's own work. The careful guarding of the priestly line anticipates the perfect and unbroken priesthood of Christ, who needs no successor (Heb. 7:24-25).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- 1 Cor 7:14For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his believing wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but now they are holy.
- Rom 11:16If the first part of the dough is holy, so is the whole batch; if the root is holy, so are the branches.
- Lev 21:8You are to regard him as holy, since he presents the food of your God. He shall be holy to you, because I the LORD am holy—I who set you apart.
- Mal 2:11Judah has broken faith; an abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned the LORD’s beloved sanctuary by marrying the daughter of a foreign god.
- Gen 18:19For I have chosen him, so that he will command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, in order that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has promised.”
- Ezra 9:2Indeed, the Israelites have taken some of their daughters as wives for themselves and their sons, so that the holy seed has been mixed with the people of the land. And the leaders and officials have taken the lead in this unfaithfulness!”
- Ezra 2:62These men searched for their family records, but they could not find them and so were excluded from the priesthood as unclean.
- Mal 2:15Has not the LORD made them one, having a portion of the Spirit? And why one? Because He seeks godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit and do not break faith with the wife of your youth.
- Neh 13:23–29In those days I also saw Jews who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 21:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.