Yehezkiel 44:20-31

44:20 “‘They must not shave their heads ¹  nor let their hair grow long; ²  they must only trim their heads. 44:21 No priest may drink wine when he enters the inner court. 44:22 They must not marry a widow or a divorcee, but they may marry a virgin from the house of Israel ³  or a widow who is a priest’s widow. 44:23 Moreover, they will teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and show them how to distinguish between the ceremonially unclean and the clean. ⁴ 

44:24 “‘In a controversy they will act as judges; ⁵  they will judge according to my ordinances. They will keep my laws and my statutes regarding all my appointed festivals and will observe ⁶  my Sabbaths.

44:25 “‘They must not come near a dead person or they will be defiled; ⁷  however, for father, mother, son, daughter, brother or sister, they may defile themselves. 44:26 After a priest ⁸  has become ceremonially clean, they ⁹  must count off a period of seven days for him. 44:27 On the day he enters the sanctuary, into the inner court to serve in the sanctuary, he must offer his sin offering, declares the sovereign Lord.

44:28 “‘This will be their inheritance: I am their inheritance, and you must give them no property in Israel; I am their property. ¹⁰  44:29 They may eat the grain offering, the sin offering, and the guilt offering, and every devoted thing in Israel will be theirs. 44:30 The first of all the first fruits and all contributions of any kind ¹¹  will be for the priests; you will also give to the priest the first portion of your dough, so that a blessing may rest on your house. 44:31 The priests will not eat any bird or animal that has died a natural death or was torn to pieces by a wild animal. ¹² 

[44:20]  ¹ sn The shaving of the head was associated with mourning (Ezek 7:18).

[44:20]  ² sn Letting the hair grow was associated with the taking of a vow (Num 6:5; Acts 21:23-26).

[44:22]  ³ tn Heb “from the offspring of the house of Israel.”

[44:23]  ⁴ sn This task was a fundamental role of the priest (Lev 10:10).

[44:24]  ⁵ sn For a historical illustration of the priest carrying out this function, see 2 Chr 19:9-11.

[44:24]  ⁶ tn Heb “sanctify, set apart.”

[44:25]  ⁷ sn This law was part of the legal code for priests (Lev 21:1-3).

[44:26]  ⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the priest) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[44:26]  ⁹ tc One medieval Hebrew ms, the LXX, and the Syriac along with Lev 15:13, 28 read the verb as singular.

[44:28]  ¹⁰ sn See Num 18:20; Deut 10:9; 18:2; Josh 13:33; 18:7.

[44:30]  ¹¹ tn Heb has in addition “from your contributions,” a repetition unnecessary in English.

[44:31]  ¹² tn The words “by a wild animal” are not in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation as a clarification of the circumstances.

[44:31]  sn For this law, see Lev 7:24; 17:15.