Leviticus 22:1-9
Those who handle what is holy must guard their purity before God.
1 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
2 “Tell Aaron and his sons to separate themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, which they make holy to me, and that they not profane my holy name. I am Yahweh.
3 “Tell them, ‘If anyone of all your offspring throughout your generations approaches the holy things which the children of Israel make holy to Yahweh, having his uncleanness on him, that soul shall be cut off from before me. I am Yahweh.
4 “ ‘Whoever of the offspring of Aaron is a leper or has a discharge shall not eat of the holy things until he is clean. Whoever touches anything that is unclean by the dead, or a man who has a seminal emission,
5 or whoever touches any creeping thing whereby he may be made unclean, or a man from whom he may become unclean, whatever uncleanness he has—
6 the person that touches any such shall be unclean until the evening, and shall not eat of the holy things unless he bathes his body in water.
7 When the sun is down, he shall be clean; and afterward he shall eat of the holy things, because it is his bread.
8 He shall not eat that which dies of itself or is torn by animals, defiling himself by it. I am Yahweh.
9 “ ‘They shall therefore follow my commandment, lest they bear sin for it and die in it, if they profane it. I am Yahweh who sanctifies them.
Those who handle what is holy must guard their purity before God.
This passage instructs priests to guard their purity when handling sacred offerings so that they do not profane the LORD’s holy things and incur guilt.
After Leviticus 21 addresses the holiness required of priests in their persons, families, and bodily fitness for altar service, Leviticus 22 turns to the priests' relationship to the holy offerings themselves. The movement is from who may serve, to how holy food and holy gifts must be approached. Verses 1-9 introduce the chapter by warning priests not to profane the sacred donations of Israel through careless contact while unclean.
Leviticus assumes Israel's wilderness sanctuary arrangement, where Aaron and his sons serve as priests and receive portions from offerings consecrated by the Israelites. Because these offerings are holy to the LORD, priestly consumption or handling is regulated. The concern is not mere social etiquette but sanctuary holiness: defiled priests must not approach or eat holy things until their uncleanness is resolved according to the law.
Holy Food, Acceptable Offerings, and Reverence for the LORD's Holy Name
The LORD's holy name must not be profaned by careless priests, unauthorized eating, or defective offerings, because He sanctifies Israel and redeemed them from Egypt to be their God.