Leviticus 21:9 kjv
And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire.
Leviticus 21:9 nkjv
The daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by playing the harlot, she profanes her father. She shall be burned with fire.
Leviticus 21:9 niv
"?'If a priest's daughter defiles herself by becoming a prostitute, she disgraces her father; she must be burned in the fire.
Leviticus 21:9 esv
And the daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by whoring, profanes her father; she shall be burned with fire.
Leviticus 21:9 nlt
"If a priest's daughter defiles herself by becoming a prostitute, she also defiles her father's holiness, and she must be burned to death.
Leviticus 21 9 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 10:3 | Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke… By those who come near Me I will be hallowed... | God's holiness demands high standards for His priests. |
| Exod 19:6 | And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation... | The entire nation called to holiness, especially priests. |
| Lev 20:7 | ‘Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God.' | Call to general holiness for all Israel. |
| Lev 21:1 | And the Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: ‘No one shall defile himself... | Introduction to priestly purity laws. |
| Lev 21:4 | He shall not defile himself... | Priests forbidden from certain forms of defilement. |
| Lev 21:6 | They shall be holy to their God and not profane the name of their God, for they offer the Lord’s food offerings... | Priests must remain holy and not profane God's name. |
| Num 18:7 | ...you and your sons with you shall attend to your priesthood... I give your priesthood as a service of gift, and any outsider who comes near shall be put to death. | Emphasizes the priesthood's unique and holy role. |
| Deut 22:21 | ...they shall bring the young woman to the door of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death... for she has committed an outrageous act... | General penalty for a non-priestly daughter's illicit acts. |
| Gen 38:24 | And it came to pass about three months after that, Judah was told, “Tamar your daughter-in-law has played the harlot... Bring her out, and let her be burned.” | Example of burning for similar offenses (Tamar's specific case). |
| Lev 20:14 | If a man marries both a woman and her mother, it is wickedness... they shall be burned with fire, he and they... | Burning as punishment for incest, indicating extreme defilement. |
| Josh 7:15, 25 | ...and he who is taken with the devoted things shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has... And all Israel stoned him with stones, and they burned them with fire... | Burning after execution (stoning) for great sin (Achan). |
| Prov 19:26 | He who mistreats his father and drives out his mother is a son who brings shame and reproach. | Illustrates familial shame from misconduct. |
| Prov 29:15 | The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother. | Lack of discipline brings dishonor to parents. |
| Rom 2:24 | For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” | Misconduct by God's people brings dishonor to His name. |
| 1 Cor 6:18-20 | Flee sexual immorality... Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit... you were bought with a price. | NT emphasis on fleeing sexual immorality as sin against God. |
| 1 Pet 1:15-16 | but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” | NT reiteration of the call to holiness for all believers. |
| 1 Pet 2:9 | But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people... | Believers as a new covenant priesthood with corresponding responsibilities. |
| Heb 12:14 | Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. | Holiness is essential for a relationship with God. |
| 1 Tim 3:11 | Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. | Standard of conduct for wives of church leaders. |
| Rev 21:8 | But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur... | Final judgment against the sexually immoral. |
Leviticus 21 verses
Leviticus 21 9 Meaning
Leviticus 21:9 stipulates a severe penalty for the daughter of a priest who engages in illicit sexual activity (whoredom). Her defiling act is not merely a personal sin but is considered an act that desecrates or profanes her father, who is consecrated to God's holy service. Due to this unique position and the profound dishonor brought upon God's sanctuary through her father's office, the prescribed punishment is death by burning with fire. This underscores the paramount importance of holiness, especially for those connected to the priestly lineage.
Leviticus 21 9 Context
Leviticus 21 details specific purity and holiness requirements for Aaron and his descendants, the priests of Israel. Unlike general purity laws applicable to all Israelites, these statutes are elevated due to the priests' unique role as intermediaries between God and the people. They handle holy offerings, serve in the Tabernacle/Temple, and must remain consecrated to the Lord. The chapter outlines rules regarding mourning practices, physical blemishes, whom they can marry, and their household's purity. Verse 9 is particularly stringent because the defilement by a priest's daughter directly undermines the holiness of the priestly office and, by extension, God's sacred dwelling and name. This law serves to uphold the high standards demanded of those entrusted with holy things, distinguishing God's people from surrounding pagan cultures that engaged in cultic prostitution. The historical context reflects a society where family honor was integral, and the conduct of family members directly reflected on the head of the household and his standing.
Leviticus 21 9 Word analysis
And the daughter: Emphasizes a specific individual, whose lineage connects her directly to the sacred priestly office. Her actions thus carry amplified weight.
of any priest: (Hebrew: ’îš kōhēn - man, priest) Identifies her direct relationship to one set apart for God’s service, signifying that she, too, shares in the privileged proximity to holiness and therefore bears greater responsibility.
if she profane herself: (Hebrew: kî tēḥēl from chalal) This is a crucial term. Chalal means "to wound, pierce, profane, desecrate, make common." It’s the antithesis of qodesh (holy). By her action, she treats her sacred status as "common" or "unholy," defiling what God has set apart. This word often implies a deliberate act of defilement or degradation from a holy state.
by whoredom: (Hebrew: li-znôt - to commit harlotry, prostitution, illicit sexual relations). This refers to any unchaste or promiscuous sexual act, not solely commercial prostitution. In a broader biblical sense, zanah (the root) is often used metaphorically for spiritual unfaithfulness or idolatry, associating deep spiritual betrayal with physical infidelity.
she profaneth her father: Her act brings profound shame, dishonor, and defilement upon her father's consecrated position. The sin of the child contaminates the parent’s spiritual and public standing, potentially impeding his ministry and bringing the priesthood into disrepute among the people, and before God. This illustrates the corporate nature of responsibility in ancient Israel.
she shall be burnt with fire: (Hebrew: bā-’ēš tiśśārēp̄). This specifies the ultimate, severest form of capital punishment. Burning symbolizes complete obliteration, purification (though paradoxically, fire is also used for divine judgment), and the removal of the defiled object from the community utterly. For certain extreme transgressions (like specific forms of incest or prostitution involving a priest's daughter), burning demonstrated the extreme revulsion towards the sin's profound defilement of the holy. In some cases, it may have followed a prior execution (like stoning) to ensure the body was not preserved and to symbolize purification or obliteration of the contamination, though in Gen 38:24 and Lev 20:14, the texts suggest direct execution by fire.
"profane herself by whoredom" and "profaneth her father": These phrases highlight the core concept. Her sexual misconduct isn't just a personal failing; it's a transgression against the sacred, leveraging her unique connection to the priesthood to undermine its sanctity. This double "profaning" underscores the gravity.
Leviticus 21 9 Bonus section
The specific severity of burning for this offense, contrasted with stoning for other capital sexual sins, suggests an even deeper level of defilement that required the complete annihilation of the body, potentially to prevent ritual pollution of the land through burial. This type of punishment was rare in Israelite law, typically reserved for acts seen as an "abominable crime" or a deep defilement connected to a spiritual breach, such as incest (Lev 20:14) or Achan’s sin of bringing detestable things into the camp (Josh 7:15, 25). For a priest's daughter, the act of zanah transformed her from an embodiment of potential holiness into a profound source of pollution that threatened the entire system of sacred worship. In a broader New Testament sense, as all believers are considered a "royal priesthood" (1 Pet 2:9), this passage, though pertaining to the Old Covenant Aaronic priesthood, implicitly encourages believers today to uphold high standards of purity, recognizing that personal moral conduct can impact the corporate witness and the honor of God’s name.
Leviticus 21 9 Commentary
Leviticus 21:9 unveils the exceptionally high standard of holiness expected of those affiliated with the sacred priesthood. The law's severity is proportional to the sanctity of the office and the defilement caused. A priest's daughter was implicitly considered a partaker in the priest's consecrated status. Therefore, her engagement in "whoredom"—any illicit sexual conduct—was a blatant act of profaning this sacred connection. This brought direct dishonor upon her father, tarnishing his purity, compromising his service, and blaspheming God’s name by proxy. The prescribed punishment of burning signified an ultimate judgment and purification. It underscored the absolute intolerance for defilement within the sacred sphere of God's chosen representatives and ensured the removal of profound moral corruption from the community. It also served as a stark warning against anything that could undermine the spiritual integrity of the people and the integrity of their representation before a holy God. This demonstrates God’s zeal for His own holiness and the seriousness with which He views moral purity, especially within His appointed leadership and their immediate families.