Leviticus 21:13
in Leviticus 21The woman he marries must be a virgin.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he shall take a wife in her virginity.
KJV
And he shall take a wife in her virginity.
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This verse in Leviticus 21
Commentary
3 notes on this verseHe shall take a wife in her virginity - בתוליה bethuleyha. This is a full proof that בתולה bethulah is the proper Hebrew term for a virgin; from the emphatic root בתל bathal, to separate; because such a person was in her separate state, and had never been in any way united to man.
This site's exposition
he shall take a wife in her virginity
on Leviticus 21:13-15
The circle narrows at every step toward the altar. An ordinary Israelite may marry a widow, the priest at verse 7 may not marry a harlot or a divorced woman, and verse 14 adds the widow to the list for the high priest alone and requires a virgin of his own people. Verse 15 puts the reason on his seed rather than on himself, since the office passes to his sons, and closes with I the LORD do sanctify him.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
on Leviticus 21:13-14
The reason of this was to put a difference between him and other priests in this matter; and (as some suggest) that he might be a type of Christ, to whom the church was to be presented a chaste virgin, 2 Cor. xi. Christ must have our first love, our pure love, our entire love; thus the virgins love thee ( Cant. i. 3 ), and such only are fit to follow the Lamb, Rev. xiv.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
This means that he is not to wed a woman who is not a virgin, this being a negative commandment which is derived from a positive commandment [which carries the force of a positive commandment].
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
“He does not follow the bier [of a near relative]. Our Rabbis have further derived from this verse [the principle] that the High Priest may perform [the Divine Service] when he is an onen (a mourner), 28 See above, Seder Shemini, Note.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
4 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְה֕וּא | vehu' | and he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| אִשָּׁ֥ה | ʾishah | a woman | H802 → | 781 times |
| בִבְתוּלֶ֖יהָ | vivtuleiha | in virginiti<es> her | H1331 → | |
| יִקָּֽח׃ | yikach | he will take | H3947 → | 966 times |
וְה֕וּאand he
vehu'H1931 →1879 times
אִשָּׁ֥הa woman
ʾishahH802 →781 times
בִבְתוּלֶ֖יהָin virginiti<es> her
vivtuleihaH1331 →
יִקָּֽח׃he will take
yikachH3947 →966 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
2 Corinthians 11:2I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. For I promised you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.
it leads to
- Hosea 2:19–20
So I will betroth you to Me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in loving devotion and compassion.
- Ephesians 5:26–27
to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
- Isaiah 54:5
For your husband is your Maker—the LORD of Hosts is His name—the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; He is called the God of all the earth.
- Colossians 1:28
We proclaim Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.
- Hosea 2:19–20
Through
Leviticus 21:7A priest must not marry a woman defiled by prostitution or divorced by her husband, for the priest is holy to his God.
it leads to
- Leviticus 21:13–14
The woman he marries must be a virgin.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Leviticus 21:13–14
Through
Revelation 14:4These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they are virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They have been redeemed from among men as firstfruits to God and…
it leads to
- Revelation 3:4
But you do have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments, and because they are worthy, they will walk with Me in white.
- 2 Corinthians 11:2
I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. For I promised you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.
- James 1:18
He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we would be a kind of firstfruits of His creation.
- Revelation 3:4
About Leviticus
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.