Leviticus 6:18

18. whosoever toucheth them shall be holy] This does not mean that only priests who have properly purified themselves may touch the most holy things, but that anyone, priest or layman, who inadvertently comes in contact with anything that is ‘most holy,’ becomes holy (i.e. dedicated to God, and put at His disposal), cp. Jos_6:18; Jos_7:15. No rule is given here about the treatment of such persons; for inanimate things which are brought into contact with the ‘most holy,’ see Lev_6:27-28. According to Hag_2:12, the garment in which ‘holy flesh’ is carried, does not communicate holiness to the food which it may happen to touch.

Holiness is here regarded as a contagious quality; contact with holy things must be avoided, just as contact with things that are considered unclean is forbidden. This similarity in the treatment of things which from the levitical standpoint are so widely separated as the holy and the unclean is a survival of primitive modes of expression, due to imperfect conception of the gods, and of their relations to men. For further discussion of this subject see Driver (C. B.) on Exo_29:37, with quotation from Frazer, G. B., G. B. Gray on Num. (Intern. Crit. Comm.) pp. 209–211, Rob.-Sm. Rel. Sem.2 p. 152, and the note B, pp. 446 f., and HDB. Art. Uncleanness, iv. 826 f. Cp. notes on ch. 11.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Lev 6:18 All the males among the children of Aaron shall eat of it. [It shall be] a statute for ever in your generations concerning the offerings of the LORD made by fire: every one that toucheth them shall be holy.

Ver. 18. Shall be holy.] God "will be sanctified in all that draw near unto him."

“ … Procul hinc, procul este profani. ”

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

6:18 The priestly share did not belong exclusively to the priest conducting the sacrifice; it was to be shared with all of Aaron’s male descendants. The text does not indicate why these offerings could be eaten only by the males while other offerings were available to all members of the priests’ families (see study note on 10:13-15; see also Num 18:20-24). • will become holy: Or must be holy; also in Lev 6:27. Though uncleanness could be spread by touch (ch 15), Haggai implied that holiness could not (Hag 2:12). If an unclean person encountered that which was holy, disaster could result (Lev 10:1-3; 1 Sam 6:19-20; 2 Sam 6:6-8).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

(18) All the males among the children of Aaron.—The sin offerings, the trespass offerings, and the remainder of the peace offerings being most holy, could only be eaten by the male members of the families of the priests within the court of the sanctuary; whilst the offerings of tithes, fruit, the shoulder and breast of the people’s peace offerings, &c, being less holy, were not only eaten by the officiating priests in Jerusalem, but by their incapacitated sons, their daughters, &c, provided they were ritually clean. Any priest who ate the most holy things outside the wall of the courts, or the less holy things outside of the walls of Jerusalem, received forty stripes save one.

Every one that toucheth them shall be holy.—According to this rendering, which exhibits one of the views that obtained during the second Temple, the meaning is that any one who touches the sacrifices of the first order of holiness must not only be a descendant of Aaron and a male, but must have sanctified himself by undergoing the necessary ablutions. (See Lev_22:6-7.) There is, however, another view of the passage which is of equal, if not of anterior, date. That is, whoso or whatsoever toucheth them shall become holy. Any layman or any ordinary utensil, &c., becomes sacred by touching one of the higher order of sanctity. (See Exo_29:37; Exo_30:29; Eze_44:19; Eze_46:20; Hag_2:12.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the Lord spake unto Moses,.... At the same time the above laws were delivered:

saying; as follows.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Lord. As long as this law shall be enforced. (Menochius) --- Sanctified. Theodoret (q. 5,) seems to assert, that all such were obliged to serve the altar in some function or other. If any unclean person touched the victims wilfully, he was slain; if, by mistake, the blood sprinkled a garment, it was to be washed, ver. 27.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

It may be understood either,

1. Of persons, that none should touch or eat them but consecrated persons, to wit, priests. Or this may be an additional caution, that they who eat them should be not only priests, or their male children, but also

holy, i.e. having no uncleanness upon them, for in that case even the priests themselves might not touch them. Or rather,

2. Of things, as may be gathered by comparing this with Lev 6:27,28. Whatsoever toucheth them, as suppose the dish that receives them, the knife, or spoon, &c. which is used about them, those shall be taken for holy, and not employed for common uses. See Exo 29:37.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

18. Statute for ever — Chap. 17, note.

Every one that toucheth them shall be holy — This applies to persons and to things. The priest is forbidden to eat these oblations while ceremonially defiled, and the sacred utensils brought in contact with them must not be put to any secular use. Every layman who touched the most holy things became holy through contact, so that he must henceforth guard against defilement as scrupulously as the priests, but without their rights and prerogatives. This placed him in an awkward relation to secular things.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Everyone - That is, none should touch, or eat them, but consecrated persons, priests, or their sons.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

THIS IS THE LAW OF THE SIN-OFFERING. In Seder Vayikra He commanded concerning [the offerings in the following order]: the burnt-offering, the meal-offering, the peace-offerings, the sin-offering and the guilt-offering, [the reason for this order being] that at first He spoke about the freewill offerings [namely the burnt-offering, the meal-offering and the peace-offerings], and afterwards He mentioned those offerings which are obligatory upon the sinner. Here, however, [in Seder Tzav] the explanation is given first in connection with the burnt-offering and meal-offering, and only then about the sin-offering and guilt-offering, because He wished to explain the laws of the most holy offerings [in one group], since there is one law for them all, as He said [above in Verse 10] with reference to the meal-offering, it is most holy, as the sin-offering and the guilt-offering, and only afterwards He explains the law of those offerings which are less holy [namely, the peace-offerings].Now in this section [dealing with the sin-offering] He added many new laws. [The verse] This is the law of the sin-offering teaches that there is one law for all sin-offerings, or torath (“law” or “law of”) at the beginning of a section, denotes inclusion, while hi denotes exclusion. So also the word zoth (this), as it says here in this case, zoth torath … (this is the law of …), means exclusion. meaning that even the blood of “the inner sin-offerings” sin-offerings,” that if any of their blood was sprinkled upon a garment, the garment must be washed in a holy place [i.e., in the Court of the Sanctuary], But it does not say this law with regard to “the inner sin-offerings.” Since the section, however, begins with the expression [zoth] ‘torath’ hachatath (this is ‘the law’ of the sin-offering), and the word torath denotes inclusion, we know that the same law applies to both kinds of sin-offering. [if sprinkled upon a garment] must be washed off [in a holy place]. I might think that this applies also to a sin-offering brought from a bird, Scripture therefore says zoth [‘zoth’ torath hachatath (‘this’ is the law of the sin-offering) — and the word zoth denotes exclusion]. He also states here [in the verse before us], in the place where the burnt-offering is slaughtered shall the sin-offering be slaughtered before the Eternal, thus indicating that all sin-offerings must be slaughtered only on the northern side of the altar, since in the section of Vayikra this was stated only with reference to the sin-offering of the prince and of the individual;, Verses 29, 33. therefore here [in this section] they are all included — the sin-offerings of the public and “the inner sin-offerings.” sin-offerings,” that if any of their blood was sprinkled upon a garment, the garment must be washed in a holy place [i.e., in the Court of the Sanctuary], But it does not say this law with regard to “the inner sin-offerings.” Since the section, however, begins with the expression [zoth] ‘torath’ hachatath (this is ‘the law’ of the sin-offering), and the word torath denotes inclusion, we know that the same law applies to both kinds of sin-offering.The Rabbis have further interpreted: Most holy, this comes to include the peace-offerings of the public, and they were considered of a lesser degree of holiness. Only once a year, namely, on the Festival of Shevuoth, were peace-offerings brought by the public (see further, 23:19). These were considered among “the most holy offerings.” Offerings which were most holy were slaughtered on the north side of the altar, and could be eaten only by male priests, within the Court of the Sanctuary, during the same day and night; those that were holy to a lesser degree were slaughtered in any part of the Court, and could be eaten by any person, within the enclosed city of Jerusalem, for two days and the intervening night. The thanks-offering and the Nazirite’s ram, though holy to a lesser degree, could be eaten only the same day and the ensuing night. teaching that they may only be slaughtered on the northern side of the altar, as all offerings of the most holy degree are required to be slaughtered on the northern side. Hi (it is) — ‘it is’ the most holy, comes to exclude the thanks-offering and the ram of the Nazirite ). [thus teaching that they may be slaughtered anywhere in the Temple Court, as their holiness is of a lesser degree]. He further commanded here to give the meat of the sin-offerings to the sons of Aaron — that is, to the males and not the daughters of Aaron — and commanded them to eat it within the Court of the Tent of Meeting. In addition He mentioned [in this section] many new laws concerning absorption [of the taste of] the sin-offerings [by the vessels in which they are boiled].

Ramban (Nachmanides) on the Tanakh — English translation: “Commentary on the Torah by Ramban (Nachmanides). Translated and annotated by Charles B. Chavel. New York, Shilo Pub. House, 1971-1976” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.