The Meaning of Leviticus 21:11 Explained

Leviticus 21:11

KJV: Neither shall he go in to any dead body, nor defile himself for his father, or for his mother;

YLT: nor beside any dead person doth he come; for his father and for his mother he doth not defile himself;

Darby: Neither shall he come near any person dead, nor make himself unclean for his father and for his mother;

ASV: neither shall he go in to any dead body, nor defile himself for his father, or for his mother;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Neither shall he go in  to any dead  body,  nor defile  himself for his father,  or for his mother; 

What does Leviticus 21:11 Mean?

Chapter Summary: Leviticus 21

1  Of the priests' mourning
6  Of their holiness
7  Of their marriages
8  Of their estimation
9  Of the high priest's holiness
10  Of his marriage
13  The priests that have blemishes must not minister in the sanctuary

What do the individual words in Leviticus 21:11 mean?

And near any body dead nor shall he go for his father or his mother defile himself
וְעַ֛ל כָּל־ נַפְשֹׁ֥ת מֵ֖ת לֹ֣א יָבֹ֑א לְאָבִ֥יו וּלְאִמּ֖וֹ יִטַּמָּֽא

וְעַ֛ל  And  near 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
כָּל־  any 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
נַפְשֹׁ֥ת  body 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
מֵ֖ת  dead 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: מוּת  
Sense: to die, kill, have one executed.
לֹ֣א  nor 
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
יָבֹ֑א  shall  he  go 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
לְאָבִ֥יו  for  his  father 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אָב  
Sense: father of an individual.
וּלְאִמּ֖וֹ  or  his  mother 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l, Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אֵם  
Sense: mother.
יִטַּמָּֽא  defile  himself 
Parse: Verb, Hitpael, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: טָמֵא 
Sense: to be unclean, become unclean, become impure.