Bible/Leviticus/21

Leviticus 21:5

21:4 But he shall not defile himself, being a chief man among his people, to profane himself. he: or, being an husband among his people, he shall not defile himself for his wife, etc
They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.

KJV

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“‘They shall not shave their heads or shave off the corners of their beards or make any cuttings in their flesh.

They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.

They shall not make baldness on their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.

21:6 They shall be holy unto their God, and not profane the name of their God: for the offerings of the LORD made by fire, and the bread of their God, they do offer: therefore they shall be holy.

What does Leviticus 21:5 mean?

Leviticus 21:5 is a verse in the book of Leviticus, in the Old Testament. In the original Hebrew, key words include קָרַח (qârach), קׇרְחָה (qorchâh), רֹאשׁ (rôʼsh).

Hebrew interlinear

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They
shall
not
makeקָרַחqârach/kaw-rakh'/H7139to depilate
baldnessקׇרְחָהqorchâh/kor-khaw'/H7144baldness
upon
their
head,רֹאשׁrôʼsh/roshe/H7218the head (as most easily shaken), whether literal or figurative (in many applications, of place, time, rank, itc.)
neither
shall
they
shave
offגָּלַחgâlach/gaw-lakh'/H1548properly, to be bald, i.e. (causatively) to shave; figuratively to lay waste
the
cornerפֵּאָהpêʼâh/pay-aw'/H6285properly, mouth in a figurative sense, i.e. direction, region, extremity
of
their
beard,זָקָןzâqân/zaw-kawn'/H2206the beard (as indicating age)
nor
makeשָׂרַטsâraṭ/saw-rat'/H8295to gash
any
cuttingsשֶׂרֶטsereṭ/seh'-ret/H8296an incision
in
their
flesh.בָּשָׂרbâsâr/baw-sawr'/H1320flesh (from its freshness); by extension, body, person; also (by euphemistically) the pudenda of aman

Topics

DefilementHigh Priest, thePriestsSanctificationUncleanness

Verses like this

Other verses that share key original-language words with Leviticus 21:5.

2 Samuel 10:4

Wherefore Hanun took David's servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away.

Ezekiel 27:31

And they shall make themselves utterly bald for thee, and gird them with sackcloth, and they shall weep for thee with bitterness of heart and bitter wailing.

Isaiah 15:2

He is gone up to Bajith, and to Dibon, the high places, to weep: Moab shall howl over Nebo, and over Medeba: on all their heads shall be baldness, and every beard cut off.

Isaiah 7:20

In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired, namely, by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet: and it shall also consume the beard.

Jeremiah 41:5

That there came certain from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven, and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the LORD.

Jeremiah 48:37

For every head shall be bald, and every beard clipped: upon all the hands shall be cuttings, and upon the loins sackcloth. clipped: Heb. diminished

Leviticus 14:9

But it shall be on the seventh day, that he shall shave all his hair off his head and his beard and his eyebrows, even all his hair he shall shave off: and he shall wash his clothes, also he shall wash his flesh in water, and he shall be clean.

Leviticus 19:27

Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard.

Frequently asked questions

What does Leviticus 21:5 say?

Leviticus 21:5 (King James Version) reads: "They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh."

Is Leviticus 21:5 in the Old or New Testament?

Leviticus 21:5 is in the Old Testament of the Bible, in the book of Leviticus.

Reflect

As you read Leviticus 21:5, what is one truth here you can carry into today?

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