Leviticus 21:5

Translation
King James Version
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.
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KJV (with Strong's)
They shall not make H7139 baldness H7144 upon their head H7218, neither shall they shave off H1548 the corner H6285 of their beard H2206, nor make H8295 any cuttings H8296 in their flesh H1320.
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Complete Jewish Bible
Cohanim are not to make bald spots on their heads, mar the edges of their beards or cut gashes in their flesh.
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Berean Standard Bible
Priests must not make bald spots on their heads, shave off the edges of their beards, or make cuts in their bodies.
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American Standard Version
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.
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World English Bible Messianic
“‘They shall not shave their heads, neither shall they shave off the corners of their beards, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.
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Geneva Bible (1599)
They shall not make balde partes vpon their head, nor shaue off the locks of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.
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Young's Literal Translation
they do not make baldness on their head, and the corner of their beard they do not shave, and in their flesh they do not make a cutting;
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See also
Deuteronomy 14:1Ezekiel 44:20Leviticus 19:27Leviticus 19:28Jeremiah 48:37Amos 8:10Leviticus 10:6
In the KJVVerse 3,351 of 31,102

Study This Verse

SUMMARY

Leviticus 21:5 sets forth specific prohibitions for the Aaronic priesthood concerning their physical appearance and mourning rituals. These divine commands forbid priests from intentionally making themselves bald, shaving the corners of their beards, or making any cuttings in their flesh. These regulations were crucial for distinguishing the consecrated priests from the defiling customs of surrounding pagan nations, thereby emphasizing their unique role as holy representatives of Yahweh and upholding the sanctity of the human body as God's sacred creation.

CONTEXT

  • Literary Context: Leviticus chapters 21 and 22 meticulously detail the stringent laws governing the Aaronic priesthood, underscoring their unique status and the rigorous requirements for their holiness and ritual purity. Chapter 21, in particular, focuses on the personal conduct and physical integrity demanded of the priests, including restrictions related to marriage, contact with the dead, and physical blemishes. Verse 5, situated within this comprehensive framework, directly addresses external expressions of grief and body modifications. Such practices were prevalent among pagan cultures but were deemed utterly incompatible with the consecrated life of those serving the holy God of Israel. These prohibitions are an integral part of a broader divine mandate for the priests to embody a visible and spiritual separation that unequivocally reflected the divine standard of holiness.
  • Historical & Cultural Context: The ancient Near East was saturated with diverse religious practices, many of which involved ritualistic mourning and various forms of bodily mutilation. Practices such as shaving the head or specific parts of the beard, or gashing the body, were common expressions of extreme grief, self-abasement, or desperate attempts to appease deities. For instance, the prophets of Baal famously "cut themselves with swords and lances, after their custom, until the blood gushed out upon them" during their contest with Elijah on Mount Carmel, as vividly recorded in 1 Kings 18:28. Similarly, ancient Egyptian, Canaanite, and Mesopotamian cultures engaged in various forms of ritualistic body alteration. By explicitly forbidding these practices, God ensured that His priests, and by extension His people, were visibly distinct from these pagan nations, whose worship often involved defiling and destructive rituals. This distinction powerfully underscored the unique nature of Yahweh's worship, which valued life, bodily integrity, and an authentic, non-mutilating expression of grief, a principle also prohibited for all Israelites in Leviticus 19:28 and Deuteronomy 14:1.
  • Key Themes: Leviticus 21:5 contributes significantly to several overarching themes within the book of Leviticus and the broader Pentateuch. The primary theme is Holiness, emphasizing that God's people, especially His priests, must be set apart from the defiling practices of the world. This verse underscores the concept of Distinction and Separation, illustrating how God desired Israel to be visibly different from the pagan nations around them, whose worship often involved practices anathema to Yahweh's character. The prohibitions also highlight the Sanctity of the Human Body, viewing it as God's creation, not to be desecrated through self-mutilation or practices associated with idolatry and hopeless mourning. This aligns with the broader call for Israel to be a "kingdom of priests and a holy nation" found in Exodus 19:6. The regulations concerning the priests' appearance were not merely ceremonial but served as a constant visual reminder of their consecrated status and their role in mediating between a holy God and His people, as further elaborated in Leviticus 10:10.

EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS

Key Word Analysis

  • Baldness (Hebrew, qorchâh', H7144): This term refers to an intentional shaving or plucking of hair from the head. In this context, it specifically denotes a deliberate act of disfigurement, often associated with extreme grief for the dead or as an act of devotion to pagan deities. Such practices were common among non-Israelite peoples to express sorrow or seek favor from their gods, making this prohibition a clear mark of distinction for God's priests.
  • Corner (Hebrew, pêʼâh', H6285): This word literally means "extremity" or "side," and in this context, it refers to the sideburns or the edges of the beard, particularly around the temples and cheeks. The prohibition against shaving these areas was not against all beard trimming, but specifically targeted styles or practices associated with pagan priests or mourning rites, which often involved shaping the beard in distinctive, cultic ways. This command served to visually differentiate the Israelite priesthood from their pagan counterparts, ensuring their appearance reflected their unique consecration to Yahweh.
  • Cuttings (Hebrew, sereṭ', H8296): This term refers to an incision or gash. In the context of "cuttings in their flesh," it denotes self-mutilation, such as gashing or branding the body. This practice was a widespread pagan ritual, performed to express intense grief, appease deities, or induce ecstatic states. The prohibition underscores the sanctity of the human body as God's creation and rejects practices that defile or dishonor it, particularly those linked to idolatry or desperate, hopeless mourning.

Verse Breakdown

  • "They shall not make baldness upon their head": This clause explicitly forbids the priests from shaving or plucking hair from their heads as a sign of mourning or religious devotion. This practice was common in pagan cultures as an extreme expression of grief for the dead or as a ritualistic act for false gods, and its prohibition ensured the priests' visual distinction and adherence to God's standards of holiness, setting them apart from such defiling customs.
  • "neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard": This command prohibits the priests from trimming or shaving the sideburns or edges of their beards in a manner associated with pagan religious practices. While beards were generally worn, specific styles or complete removal of the beard's "corners" were linked to idolatrous rituals or mourning customs, making this a crucial identifier of the priest's separation unto Yahweh and a visible sign of his unique consecration.
  • "nor make any cuttings in their flesh": This final prohibition forbids any form of self-mutilation, such as gashing, branding, or tattooing the body. Such practices were often performed in pagan contexts to appease deities, express profound sorrow, or enter into ecstatic worship. For the priests, this command underscored the sanctity of the human body as God's creation and reinforced their complete separation from the defiling and desperate rituals of the surrounding nations, emphasizing the purity required of those who ministered to the Holy One.

Literary Devices

Leviticus 21:5 primarily employs Prohibition through a series of direct negative commands ("shall not make," "neither shall they shave," "nor make"). This imperative language underscores the absolute and non-negotiable nature of the divine decree, leaving no room for ambiguity regarding the priests' conduct. The verse also utilizes a form of Parallelism, listing three distinct but related actions that are all forbidden. This rhetorical device emphasizes the comprehensive nature of the priests' required separation from pagan practices, highlighting that their entire physical presentation was to reflect their consecrated status. Each forbidden act serves as a powerful Symbol of the priest's consecrated status; their physical appearance and bodily integrity were to visibly reflect their internal holiness and their unique, exclusive relationship with Yahweh. The entire verse functions as a stark Contrast to the prevailing customs of surrounding cultures, vividly highlighting the distinctiveness of Israel's worship and the unparalleled purity demanded of those who served the one true God.

THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS

Leviticus 21:5 powerfully articulates the foundational principle of holiness and separation that permeated the Israelite priesthood. These prohibitions were not arbitrary cultural quirks but were deeply rooted in God's desire for His consecrated servants to be visibly and spiritually distinct from the idolatrous and defiling practices of the pagan nations. The physical body, as God's creation and a vessel for His service, was to be honored and preserved, not desecrated through rituals associated with false gods or hopeless grief. This emphasis on external distinction served as a constant, tangible reminder of the internal purity and devotion required of those who ministered in the presence of a holy God, setting an uncompromising standard for all who would draw near to Him and underscoring the profound chasm between Yahweh's worship and pagan cults.

REFLECTION AND APPLICATION

While the specific commands of Leviticus 21:5 were directed at the Aaronic priesthood and their unique ceremonial role, the timeless principles of holiness, distinction, and respect for the body resonate deeply with believers today. As Christians, we are called to be a "royal priesthood" and a "holy nation" (1 Peter 2:9), set apart for God's sacred purposes in a world often defined by values and practices contrary to His. This passage challenges us to critically examine our own expressions of grief, our bodily choices, and our cultural engagements. Are we allowing worldly customs, despair, or the pursuit of fleeting trends to dictate our responses and appearance, or are we seeking to honor God in all things, reflecting His hope, His life-giving truth, and the sanctity of the life He has graciously given us? Our outward appearance and actions should consistently bear witness to our inward transformation and our unwavering commitment to Christ, ensuring that we do not inadvertently align ourselves with practices that dishonor God or obscure our identity as His holy people.

Questions for Reflection

  • In what ways might current cultural practices, even seemingly innocuous ones, subtly contradict God's call for holiness and distinction in my life as a believer?
  • How does my approach to grief and loss reflect a distinctly Christian hope and trust in God's sovereignty, rather than the despair or superstitious practices of those without God?
  • Considering my body as a "temple of the Holy Spirit" (1 Corinthians 6:19), what choices can I make to better honor God with my physical self and my outward presentation?

FAQ

Why were these specific practices forbidden for the priests?

Answer: These specific practices—making baldness, shaving beard corners, and cutting the flesh—were forbidden because they were common mourning rituals and religious rites practiced by pagan nations surrounding Israel. For example, 1 Kings 18:28 vividly describes the prophets of Baal cutting themselves as part of their worship. God intended His priests to be visibly and spiritually distinct from these idolatrous cultures, symbolizing their unique consecration to Him and His absolute holiness. Their appearance was to reflect God's purity and separation from defiling practices, ensuring that their ministry and person were untainted by pagan associations, thereby upholding the sanctity of their office and the worship of Yahweh.

Does this verse mean Christians cannot get tattoos or shave their heads?

Answer: While Leviticus 21:5 specifically addresses the Israelite priesthood and their unique ceremonial role, the underlying principle is about avoiding practices associated with pagan idolatry, self-mutilation, and defilement. The prohibition against "cuttings in their flesh" in this context refers to ritualistic self-mutilation for the dead or false gods, a practice also forbidden to all Israelites in Leviticus 19:28. Modern tattoos and head-shaving (e.g., for fashion, medical reasons, or personal preference) are generally not performed in the context of pagan worship, self-mutilation for the dead, or idolatry. Therefore, a direct, literal application of these specific prohibitions to all Christians today regarding modern practices is often debated. Instead, emphasis shifts to the New Testament principles of honoring God with our bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) and avoiding practices that cause others to stumble or compromise our witness and allegiance to Christ.

CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT

Leviticus 21:5, with its stringent demands for priestly holiness and distinctiveness, finds its ultimate and perfect fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. As our great High Priest, Jesus perfectly embodied the holiness and separation that the Levitical priests could only imperfectly shadow and aspire to. Unlike the Aaronic priests, whose bodies were subject to defilement, physical blemishes, and death, Jesus' body was undefiled, without blemish, and offered as the perfect, once-for-all sacrifice for sin, as profoundly highlighted in Hebrews 7:26-27. He never engaged in any defiling practices, nor did He need to mourn with the hopeless rituals of paganism, for He is the resurrection and the life, conquering death itself (John 11:25). Through His perfect life of obedience and His atoning death on the cross, Christ not only fulfilled the Law's demands for holiness but also inaugurated a new covenant where all believers become a "royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9), called to live lives of spiritual distinctiveness and purity. This new identity means we are to reflect His glory rather than conforming to the world's patterns (Romans 12:2). The physical prohibitions for the Old Testament priests thus powerfully point forward to the profound spiritual transformation and consecrated living that is now made possible for all who are in Christ, by the power of His indwelling Spirit (Ephesians 2:19-22).

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Commentary on Leviticus 21 verses 1–9

It was before appointed that the priests should teach the people the statutes God had given concerning the difference between clean and unclean, Lev 10:10, Lev 10:11. Now here it is provided that they should themselves observe what they were to teach the people. Note, Those whose office it is to instruct must do it by example as well as precept, Ti1 4:12. The priests were to draw nearer to God than any of the people, and to be more intimately conversant with sacred things, and therefore it was required of them that they should keep at a greater distance than others from every thing that was defiling and might diminish the honour of their priesthood.

I. They must take care not to disparage themselves in their mourning for the dead. All that mourned for the dead were supposed to come near the body, if not to touch it: and the Jews say, "It made a man ceremonially unclean to come within six feet of a dead corpse;" nay, it is declared (Num 19:14) that all who come into the tent where the dead body lies shall be unclean seven days. Therefore all the mourners that attended the funeral could not but defile themselves, so as not to be fit to come into the sanctuary for seven days: for this reason it is ordered, 1. That the priests should never put themselves under this incapacity of coming into the sanctuary, unless it were for one of their nearest relations, Lev 21:1-3. A priest was permitted to do it for a parent or a child, for a brother or an unmarried sister, and therefore, no doubt (though this is not mentioned) for the wife of his bosom; for Ezekiel, a priest, would have mourned for his wife if he had not been particularly prohibited, Eze 24:17. By this allowance God put an honour upon natural affection, and favoured it so far as to dispense with the attendance of his servants for seven days, while they indulged themselves in their sorrow for the death of their dear relations; but, beyond this period, weeping must not hinder sowing, nor their affection to their relations take them off from the service of the sanctuary. Nor was it at all allowed for the death of any other, no, not of a chief man among the people, as some read it, Lev 21:4. They must not defile themselves, no, nor for the high priest himself, unless thus akin to them. Though there is a friend that is nearer than a brother, yet the priests must not pay this respect to the best friend they had, except he were a relation, lest, if it were allowed for one, others should expect it, and so they should be frequently taken off from their work: and it is hereby intimated that there is a particular affection to be reserved for those that are thus near akin to us; and, when any such are removed by death, we ought to be affected with it, and lay it to heart, as the near approach of death to ourselves, and an alarm to us to prepare to follow. 2. That they must not be extravagant in the expressions of their mourning, no, not for their dearest relations, Lev 21:5. Their mourning must not be either, (1.) Superstitious, according to the manner of the heathen, who cut off their hair, and let out their blood, in honour of the imaginary deities which presided (as they thought) in the congregation of the dead, that they might engage them to be propitious to their departed friends. Even the superstitious rites used of old at funerals are an indication of the ancient belief of the immortality of the soul, and its existence in a separate state: and though the rites themselves were forbidden by the divine law, because they were performed to false gods, yet the decent respect which nature teaches and which the law allows to be paid to the remains of our deceased friends, shows that we are not to look upon them as lost. Nor, (2.) Must it be passionate or immoderate. Note, God's ministers must be examples to others of patience under affliction, particularly that which touches in a very tender part, the death of their near relations. They are supposed to know more than others of the reasons why we must not sorrow as those that have no hope (Th1 4:13), and therefore they ought to be eminently calm and composed, that they may be able to comfort others with the same comforts wherewith they are themselves comforted of God. The people were forbidden to mourn for the dead with superstitious rites (Lev 19:27, Lev 19:28), and what was unlawful to them was much more unlawful to the priest. The reason given for their peculiar care not to defile themselves we have (Lev 21:6): Because they offered the bread of their God, even the offerings of the Lord made by fire, which were the provisions of God's house and table. They are highly honoured, and therefore must not stain their honour by making themselves slaves to their passions; they are continually employed in sacred service, and therefore must not be either diverted from or disfitted for the services they were called to. If they pollute themselves, they profane the name of their God on whom they attend: if the servants are rude and of ill behaviour, it is a reflection upon the master, as if he kept a loose and disorderly house. Note, All that either offer or eat the bread of our God must be holy in all manner of conversation, or else they profane that name which they pretend to sanctify.

II. They must take care not to degrade themselves in their marriage, Lev 21:7. A priest must not marry a woman of ill fame, that either had been guilty or was suspected to have been guilty of uncleanness. He must not only not marry a harlot, though ever so great a penitent for her former whoredoms, but he must not marry one that was profane, that is, of a light carriage or indecent behaviour. Nay, he must not marry one that was divorced, because there was reason to think it was for some fault she was divorced. The priests were forbidden to undervalue themselves by such marriages as these, which were allowed to others, 1. Lest it should bring a present reproach upon their ministry, harden the profane in their profaneness, and grieve the hearts of serious people: the New Testament gives laws to ministers' wives (Ti1 3:11), that they be grave and sober, that the ministry be not blamed. 2. Lest it should entail a reproach upon their families; for the work and honour of the priesthood were to descend as an inheritance to their children after them. Those do not consult the good of their posterity as they ought who do not take care to marry such as are of good report and character. He that would seek a godly seed (as the expression is, Mal 2:15) must first seek a godly wife, and take heed of a corruption of blood. It is added here (Lev 21:8), Thou shalt sanctify him, and he shall be holy unto thee. "Not only thou, O Moses, by taking care that these laws be observed, but thou, O Israel, by all endeavours possible to keep up the reputation of the priesthood, which the priests themselves must do nothing to expose or forfeit. He is holy to his God (Lev 21:7), therefore he shall be holy unto thee." Note, We must honour those whom our God puts honour upon. Gospel ministers by this rule are to be esteemed very highly in love for their works' sake (Th1 5:13), and every Christian must look upon himself as concerned to be the guardian of their honour.

III. Their children must be afraid of doing any thing to disparage them (Lev 21:9): If the daughter of any priest play the whore, her crime is great; she not only polluteth but profaneth herself: other women have not that honour to lose that she has, who, as one of a priest's family, has eaten of the holy things, and is supposed to have been better educated than others. Nay, she profaneth her father; he is reflected upon, and every body will be ready to ask, "Why did not he teach her better?" And the sinners in Zion will insult and say, "Here is your priest's daughter." Her punishment there must be peculiar: She shall be burnt with fire, for a terror to all priests' daughters. Note, The children of ministers ought, of all others, to take heed of doing any thing that is scandalous, because in them it is doubly scandalous, and will be punished accordingly by him whose name is Jealous.

Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–9. Public domain.
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Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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