Leviticus 21:4

Study note

Setting — God instructs Moses on priestly conduct, positioning this restriction between mourning rules for a blood relative and prohibitions against ritual disfigurement. The words — יִטַּמָּ֖א (yi.ta.Ma') means "he will make himself unclean," and לְהֵחַלְּל֥וֹ (le./He.cha.L/o) means "to profane himself." The thread — The prohibition against defiling oneself for a close relative reappears in Ezekiel 24:16, where the prophet is commanded not to mourn his wife. Why it lands — The text demands that priests maintain ritual purity even when personal loss would normally justify mourning, establishing sacred duty above customary grief.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.