Leviticus 21:18
New International Version
No man who has any defect may come near: no man who is blind or lame, disfigured or deformed;

New Living Translation
No one who has a defect qualifies, whether he is blind, lame, disfigured, deformed,

English Standard Version
For no one who has a blemish shall draw near, a man blind or lame, or one who has a mutilated face or a limb too long,

Berean Standard Bible
No man who has any defect may approach—no man who is blind, lame, disfigured, or deformed;

King James Bible
For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,

New King James Version
For any man who has a defect shall not approach: a man blind or lame, who has a marred face or any limb too long,

New American Standard Bible
For no one who has an impairment shall approach: a man who is blind, or one who limps, or one who has a slit nose, or one with any conspicuous feature,

NASB 1995
For no one who has a defect shall approach: a blind man, or a lame man, or he who has a disfigured face, or any deformed limb,

NASB 1977
‘For no one who has a defect shall approach: a blind man, or a lame man, or he who has a disfigured face, or any deformed limb,

Legacy Standard Bible
For no one who has a defect shall come near: a blind man or a lame man or he who has a disfigured face or any deformed limb,

Amplified Bible
For no man who has a defect shall approach [God’s altar as a priest]: no man who is blind or lame, or who has a disfigured face, or any deformed limb,

Christian Standard Bible
No man who has any defect is to come near: no man who is blind, lame, facially disfigured, or deformed;

Holman Christian Standard Bible
No man who has any defect is to come near: no man who is blind, lame, facially disfigured, or deformed;

American Standard Version
For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or anything superfluous,

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Because no man who has a defect in him shall come near: a man who is lame, or blind, or flat nosed, or whose ear is deformed.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
No man who has a blemish on him shall draw nigh; a man blind, lame, with his nose disfigured, or his ears cut,

Douay-Rheims Bible
Neither shall he approach to minister to him: If he be blind, if he be lame, if he have a little, or a great, or a crooked nose,

English Revised Version
For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Indeed, no one who has a physical defect may ever come near [the altar]. That means anyone who is blind or lame, who has a disfigured face, a deformity,

Good News Translation
No man with any physical defects may make the offering: no one who is blind, lame, disfigured, or deformed;

International Standard Version
Indeed, any person who has a defect is not to approach the Tent of Meeting— the blind, the lame, one who is mutilated in the face or who has a very long limb,

JPS Tanakh 1917
For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath any thing maimed, or anything too long,

Literal Standard Version
for no man in whom [is] a blemish draws near: a man blind, or lame, or disfigured, or deformed,

Majority Standard Bible
No man who has any defect may approach—no man who is blind, lame, disfigured, or deformed;

New American Bible
Anyone who has any of the following blemishes may not come forward: he who is blind, or lame, or who has a split lip, or a limb too long,

NET Bible
Certainly no man who has a physical flaw is to approach: a blind man, or one who is lame, or one with a slit nose, or a limb too long,

New Revised Standard Version
For no one who has a blemish shall draw near, one who is blind or lame, or one who has a mutilated face or a limb too long,

New Heart English Bible
For whatever man he is that has a blemish, he shall not draw near: a blind man, or a lame, or he who has a flat nose, or any deformity,

Webster's Bible Translation
For whatever man he may be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,

World English Bible
For whatever man he is that has a defect, he shall not draw near: a blind man, or a lame, or he who has a flat nose, or any deformity,

Young's Literal Translation
for no man in whom is blemish doth draw near -- a man blind, or lame or dwarfed, or enlarged,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Restrictions Against Those with Blemishes
17“Say to Aaron, ‘For the generations to come, none of your descendants who has a physical defect may approach to offer the food of his God. 18 No man who has any defect may approach— no man who is blind, lame, disfigured, or deformed; 19no man who has a broken foot or hand,…

Cross References
Leviticus 21:19
no man who has a broken foot or hand,

Leviticus 22:19
must offer an unblemished male from the cattle, sheep, or goats in order for it to be accepted on your behalf.

Leviticus 22:23
You may present as a freewill offering an ox or sheep that has a deformed or stunted limb, but it is not acceptable in fulfillment of a vow.


Treasury of Scripture

For whatever man he be that has a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that has a flat nose, or any thing superfluous,

a blind man

Isaiah 56:10
His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.

Matthew 23:16,17,19
Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! …

1 Timothy 3:2,3,7
A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; …

superfluous

Leviticus 22:23
Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts, that mayest thou offer for a freewill offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted.

Jump to Previous
Approach Blemish Blind Damaged Defect Deformed Deformity Disfigured Draw Face Flat Lame Maimed Mutilated Nose Superfluous Unnatural Use Whatever Whatsoever
Jump to Next
Approach Blemish Blind Damaged Defect Deformed Deformity Disfigured Draw Face Flat Lame Maimed Mutilated Nose Superfluous Unnatural Use Whatever Whatsoever
Leviticus 21
1. Of the priests' mourning
6. Of their holiness
7. Of their marriages
8. Of their estimation
9. Of the high priest's holiness
10. Of his marriage
13. The priests that have blemishes must not minister in the sanctuary














(18) For whatsoever man . . . --This part of the verse is simply an emphatic repetition of the same declaration at the end of the last verse to introduce the examples of the bodily blemishes which disqualified the priests for the service at the altar. A similar law obtained among the Greeks and Romans, that a priest should be perfect in all his parts; and according to the Hindoo law, Brahmins born with a bodily defect, or who received one before their sixteenth year, are excluded from the rites of consecration.

A blind man.--During the second Temple, this was not only interpreted to be partial blindness on both eyes, or on one eye, but was taken to include any blemish in the eye or in the eyelid, of which the administrators of the Law enumerate twenty-six cases, nineteen in the eye and seven in the eyelid.

Or a lame.--This was understood during the second Temple to refer to any imperfection in the gait of the priest, which might show itself in twenty different ways.

Or he that hath a flat nose.--Of the nasal deformity no less than nine different illustrations are given.

Or any thing superfluous.--That is, one member of the body more stretched out or longer than the others, or out of proportion, as an eye, shoulder, thigh, leg, &c.



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
No
כָל־ (ḵāl)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

man
אִ֛ישׁ (’îš)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 376: A man as an individual, a male person

who
אֲשֶׁר־ (’ă·šer-)
Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

has any defect
מ֖וּם (mūm)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3971: To stain, a blemish

may approach—
יִקְרָ֑ב (yiq·rāḇ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7126: To come near, approach

no man
אִ֤ישׁ (’îš)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 376: A man as an individual, a male person

who is blind,
עִוֵּר֙ (‘iw·wêr)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 5787: Blind

lame,
פִסֵּ֔חַ (p̄is·sê·aḥ)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 6455: Lame

disfigured,
חָרֻ֖ם (ḥā·rum)
Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine singular
Strong's 2763: To seclude, to devote to religious uses, to be blunt as to the nose

or
א֣וֹ (’ōw)
Conjunction
Strong's 176: Desire, if

deformed;
שָׂרֽוּעַ׃ (śā·rū·a‘)
Verb - Qal - QalPassParticiple - masculine singular
Strong's 8311: To prolong, be deformed by excess of members


Links
Leviticus 21:18 NIV
Leviticus 21:18 NLT
Leviticus 21:18 ESV
Leviticus 21:18 NASB
Leviticus 21:18 KJV

Leviticus 21:18 BibleApps.com
Leviticus 21:18 Biblia Paralela
Leviticus 21:18 Chinese Bible
Leviticus 21:18 French Bible
Leviticus 21:18 Catholic Bible

OT Law: Leviticus 21:18 For whatever man he is that has (Le Lv Lev.)
Leviticus 21:17
Top of Page
Top of Page