CHAPTER XXI _The priests shall not mourn for the dead, except for near_ _relatives, such as_ mother, father, son, daughter, _and_ sister _if a virgin_, 1-4. _They shall not shave their heads nor beards, nor make any_ _cuttings in the flesh, because they are holy unto God_, 5, 6. _A priest shal... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:4. _A CHIEF MAN AMONG HIS PEOPLE_] The word בעל _baal_ signifies a _master, chief, husband_, c., and is as variously translated here. 1. He being a _chief_ among the people, it would be improper to see him in such a state of humiliation as mourning for the dead necessarily implie... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:5. _THEY SHALL NOT MAKE BALDNESS_] _See the note on "_Leviticus 19:27_"_. It is supposed that these things were particularly prohibited, because used superstitiously by the Egyptian priests, who, according to _Herodotus_, shaved the whole body every third day, that there might be... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:7. THAT IS _A WHORE_] A prostitute, though even reclaimed. _PROFANE_] A heathen, or one who is not a cordial believer in the true God. _PUT AWAY FROM HER HUSBAND_] Because this very circumstance might lead to suspicion that the priest and the divorced woman might have been impro... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:9. _SHE SHALL BE BURNT WITH FIRE._] Probably not burnt alive, but strangled first, and then burnt afterward. Though it is barely possible that some kind of _branding_ may be intended.... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:10. HE THAT IS _THE HIGH PRIEST_] This is the first place where this title is introduced; the title is very emphatic, הכהן הגדול _haccohen haggadol, that priest, the great_ _one_. For the meaning of כהן _cohen_, _see the note on "_Genesis 14:18_"_. As the chief or high priest was... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:12. _THE CROWN OF THE ANOINTING OIL _- IS _UPON HIM_] By his office the priest represented Christ in his _sacrificial_ character; by his _anointing_, the _prophetic_ influence; and by the crown, the _regal dignity_ of our Lord.... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:13. _HE SHALL TAKE A WIFE IN HER VIRGINITY._] בתוליה _bethuleyha_. This is a full proof that בתולה _bethulah_ is the proper Hebrew term for a _virgin_; from the emphatic root בתל _bathal_, to _separate_; because such a person was in her _separate_ state, and had never been in any... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:17. _WHOSOEVER - HATH_ ANY _BLEMISH, LET HIM NOT APPROACH TO_ _OFFER THE BREAD OF HIS GOD._] Never was a wiser, a more rational, and a more expedient law enacted relative to sacred matters. The man who ministers in holy things, who professes to be the interpreter of the will of G... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:18. _A BLIND MAN_] That is, in _one_ eye; for he that was utterly blind could not possibly be employed in such a service. A _flat nose_, like that of an _ape_; so the best versions. _Any_ _thing superfluous_, such as six fingers, six toes, c.... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:19. _BROKEN-FOOTED, OR BROKEN-HANDED_] Club-footed, bandy-legged, c. or having the ankle, wrist, or fingers dislocated.... [ Continue Reading ]
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 SCABB... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse Leviticus 21:23. _HE SHALL NOT GO IN UNTO THE VEIL_] The priest with a blemish was not permitted to enter into the holy of holies, nor to burn incense, nor to offer the shew-bread, nor to light the golden candlestick, c. In short, he was not permitted to perform any essential function of the p... [ Continue Reading ]