And when the sun is down, he shall be clean, and shall afterward eat of the holy things; because it is his food.
Parallel translations
- WEB When the sun is down, he shall be clean; and afterward he shall eat of the holy things, because it is his bread.
- BSB When the sun has set, he will become clean, and then he may eat from the sacred offerings, for they are his food.
- NKJV And when the sun goes down he shall be clean; and afterward he may eat the holy offerings, because it is his food.
- NASB But when the sun sets, he will be clean, and afterward he may eat of the holy gifts, for it is his food.
- NLT When the sun goes down, he will be ceremonially clean again and may eat from the sacred offerings, for this is his food.
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
Once the sun sets, the priest who had become unclean is clean again and may resume eating the holy offerings that are his food.
Overview
This continues the rules guarding the holiness of the sacred portions reserved for priests. Ritual uncleanness barred a priest from eating the holy things until evening restored him, underscoring that access to God's gifts requires a fitting state. The holy food being called 'his bread' shows God provided for those who served at His altar, a principle Paul applies to gospel ministry (1 Corinthians 9:13-14).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Lev 21:22He shall eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy, and of the holy.
- Num 18:11–19And this is thine; the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel: I have given them unto thee, and to thy sons and to thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: every one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it.
- 1 Cor 9:13–14Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar?
- 1 Cor 9:4Have we not power to eat and to drink?
- Deut 18:3–4And this shall be the priest’s due from the people, from them that offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep; and they shall give unto the priest the shoulder, and the two cheeks, and the maw.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 22:7 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.