15 Then the Levitical priests, those descendants of Tsadok who fulfilled the duties of my sanctuary when the Israeli people were wandering away from me, they’ll approach me to worship me. They’ll stand in front of me to offer me the fat and the blood. That’s the master Yahweh’s declaration. 16 They’ll come to my sanctuary and approach my table to worship me and to fulfill their duties to me. 17 When they come to the gates of the inner courtyard, they’ll have to dress in linen clothing, because they mustn’t wear wool inside the courtyard gates or in the temple.[ref] 18 They must wear linen turbans on their heads and linen underclothes around their waists. They mustn’t dress in clothing that makes them sweat. 19 When they go back out to the outer courtyard to go back again to the people, they must take off the clothes they wore when they served—they must take them off and lay them down in a sacred room, so they don’t make other people sacred by contact with their special clothing.[ref]

20 The priests mustn’t shave their heads or allow their hair to hang loosely, but they must keep the hair on their heads neatly trimmed. 21 No priest should drink wine before he comes to the inner court.[ref] 22 Also, priests can’t marry widows of men who weren’t priests, or women who’ve been divorced—they’re permitted to marry only Israeli women who’ve never been married, or widows of other priests.

23 They must teach the people the difference between things that are sacred and things that are not, and teach them how to know what things are acceptable to me and what things are not.[ref] 24 In a dispute they must judge in accordance with my instructions and regulations. They must keep my law and my statutes at every religious celebration, and they must observe my sacred rest days.

25 Priests mustn’t defile themselves by going near a person’s dead body. However, if the dead person was his father or mother, son or daughter, or brother or unmarried sister, then they can defile themselves, 26 and after they’ve been purified, they must wait for seven days. 27 Then after that, when he goes into the inner courtyard to serve in the sacred place, he must bring a sin offering for himself. That’s the master Yahweh’s declaration.

28 The priests must not own any land—I am their inheritance and I’ll be their property.[ref] 29 They’ll have the food offerings, the sin offerings, and the guilt offerings to eat, plus everything in Yisrael that’s devoted to Yahweh will be theirs.[ref] 30 The best of the firstfruits from every harvest and every contribution from the people will belong to the priests, and you Israelis will give the first of your bread dough[fn] to the priests so that blessing may rest on your home. 31 Priests must not eat the meat of any bird or animal that’s found dead or that’s been killed by any other animal.[ref]