Imamat 21:18

21:18 Certainly ¹  no man who has a physical flaw is to approach: a blind man, or one who is lame, or one with a slit nose, ²  or a limb too long,

Imamat 21:21

21:21 No man from the descendants of Aaron the priest who has a physical flaw may step forward ³  to present the Lord’s gifts; he has a physical flaw, so he must not step forward to present the food of his God.

Imamat 21:23

21:23 but he must not go into the veil-canopy ⁴  or step forward to the altar because he has a physical flaw. Thus ⁵  he must not profane my holy places, for I am the Lord who sanctifies them.’”

[21:18]  ¹ tn The particle כִּי (ki) in this context is asseverative, indicating absolutely certainty (GKC 498 §159.ee).

[21:18]  ² tn Lexically, the Hebrew term חָרֻם (kharum) seems to refer to a split nose or perhaps any number of other facial defects (HALOT 354 s.v. II חרם qal; cf. G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 292, n. 7); cf. KJV, ASV “a flat nose”; NASB “a disfigured face.” The NJPS translation is “a limb too short” as a balance to the following term which means “extended, raised,” and apparently refers to “a limb too long” (see the explanation in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 146).

[21:21]  ³ tn Or “shall approach” (see HALOT 670 s.v. נגשׁ).

[21:23]  ⁴ sn See the note on Lev 16:2 for the rendering “veil-canopy.”

[21:23]  ⁵ tn Heb “And.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.