Go to Related Reading
About this book

Leviticus

About this book
Chapter 21

1 The Lord said to Moses, “Say to the priests, the sons of Aaron—say to them: ‘For a dead person no priest is to defile himself among his people, 2 except for his close relative who is near to him—his mother, his father, his son, his daughter, his brother, 3 and his virgin sister who is near to him, who has no husband—he may defile himself for her. 4 He must not defile himself as a husband among his people so as to profane himself. 5 Priests must not have a bald spot shaved on their head, they must not shave the corner of their beard, and they must not cut slashes in their body.⁠ 6 “‘They must be holy to their God, and they must not profane the name of their God, because they are the ones who present the Lord’s gifts, the food of their God. Therefore they must be holy. 7 They must not take a wife defiled by prostitution, nor are they to take a wife divorced from her husband, for the priest is holy to his God. 8 You must sanctify him because he presents the food of your God. He must be holy to you because I, the Lord who sanctifies you all, am holy. 9 If a daughter of a priest profanes herself by engaging in prostitution, she is profaning her father.⁠ She must be burned to death.⁠ 10 “‘The high priest—who is greater than his brothers, and on whose head the anointing oil is poured, and who has been ordained to wear the priestly garments—must neither dishevel the hair of his head nor tear his garments. 11 He must not go where there is any dead person; he must not defile himself even for his father or for his mother. 12 He must not go out from the sanctuary and must not profane the sanctuary of his God, because the dedication of the anointing oil of his God is on him. I am the Lord. 13 He must take a wife who is a virgin.⁠ 14 He must not marry a widow, a divorced woman, or one profaned by prostitution; he may only take a virgin from his people as a wife, 15 so that he does not profane his children among his people, for I am the Lord who sanctifies him.’” 16 The Lord spoke to Moses: 17 “Tell Aaron, ‘No man from your descendants throughout their generations who has a physical flaw is to approach to present the food of his God.⁠ 18 Certainly no man who has a physical flaw is to approach: a blind man, or one who is lame, or one with a slit nose, or who has a limb too long, 19 or a man who has had a broken leg or arm, 20 or a hunchback, or a dwarf, or one with a spot in his eye, or a festering eruption, or a feverish rash, or a crushed testicle. 21 No man from the descendants of Aaron the priest who has a physical flaw may step forward to present the Lord’s gifts; he has a physical flaw, so he must not step forward to present the food of his God. 22 He may eat both the most holy and the holy food of his God, 23 but he must not go near the special curtain or step forward to the altar because he has a physical flaw. Thus he must not profane my holy places, for I am the Lord who sanctifies them.’” 24 So Moses spoke these things to Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites.

Texts in conversation

Compare Leviticus 21:9 and Revelation 17:16

Hebrew Bible · New Testament

Share:

Summary

Revelation’s description of Babylon as a prostitute punished by burning is based on Leviticus, which requires death for a priest’s daughter who disgraces her family through prostitution. This punishment connects Babylon’s fate with priestly imagery.

Passages

Leviticus 21:9

Hebrew Bible
5 Priests must not have a bald spot shaved on their head, they must not shave the corner of their beard, and they must not cut slashes in their body. 6 “‘They must be holy to their God, and they must not profane the name of their God, because they are the ones who present the Lord’s gifts, the food of their God. Therefore they must be holy. 7 They must not take a wife defiled by prostitution, nor are they to take a wife divorced from her husband, for the priest is holy to his God. 8 You must sanctify him because he presents the food of your God. He must be holy to you because I, the Lord who sanctifies you all, am holy. 9 If a daughter of a priest profanes herself by engaging in prostitution, she is profaning her father. She must be burned to death. 10 “‘The high priest—who is greater than his brothers, and on whose head the anointing oil is poured, and who has been ordained to wear the priestly garments—must neither dishevel the hair of his head nor tear his garments.
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Leviticus

Revelation 17:16

New Testament
12 The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but will receive ruling authority as kings with the beast for one hour. 13 These kings have a single intent, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will make war with the Lamb, but the Lamb will conquer them, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those accompanying the Lamb are the called, chosen, and faithful.” 15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw (where the prostitute is seated) are peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages. 16 The ten horns that you saw, and the beast—these will hate the prostitute and make her desolate and naked. They will consume her flesh and burn her up with fire.
92–96 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Revelation

References

“... The angel then describes division in the ranks of evil: And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the whore. With traditional graphic metaphors, Revelation describes the destruction of Rome by the beast and his ten subordinate rulers (Isa. 49:26; Ezek. 16:35-41; 23:25-31; Hos. 2:2-7; Mic. 3:1-3). With the phrase make her desolate, literally “make her a desert,” the image changes from the waters back to the wilderness, using a word from the phrase “desolating sacrilege” (Luke 21:20). That she is naked contrasts with the luxurious clothes she formerly wore (v. 4). The beast and its ten horns then devour the whore, like the wild dogs that ate the flesh of the idolatrous Queen Jezebel (2 Kings 9:30-37; see also Jer. 10:25; Ezek. 39:4,17-20; Zeph. 3:3). The beast and his confederates will, in turn, be devoured like the whore (Rev. 19:17-21). Finally, the tormenters of the whore will burn her up with fire, the traditional punishment for harlotry (Lev. 21:9; cf. 18:8-9; Josh. 7:15; Jer. 38:18, 23). No doubt this is also an allusion to the suspicion that Nero set fire to Rome in A.D. 64 (Tac., Annals 15.38-41). The entire picture is one of mutiny—the beast (emperor) and his horn (provincial rulers) turning against the whore (city of Rome; see Ezek. 38:21; Hag. 2:22; Zech. 14:13). More symbolically, Rome’s power of seduction has become disgusting, like a whore who is destroyed by her clients. ...”
John R. Yeatts, Revelation (Scottdale, PA: Herald, 2003), 321.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

Your feedback

Leviticus 21:9 and Revelation 17:16

Leave a comment

Your questions and comments are welcome!

Comments

Glossary

Search the Library