ויקרא, פרק כ״א, פסוק י״ט

Priests serving in the Tabernacle were required to maintain a state of physical wholeness, with careful attention paid to the integrity of their limbs. The primary approach among commentators is that the focus on the hands and feet establishes a fundamental rule regarding these physical requirements: a priest is disqualified only by defects that are visibly exposed on the outside of the body. Internal physical abnormalities, such as a missing spleen or kidney, do not prevent a priest from performing his duties [תורה תמימה, רלב״ג].

Regarding the origin of these physical flaws, the sources offer complementary perspectives. Some explain that the restriction applies to injuries caused by accidents or external trauma, rendering the priest unfit for service for as long as the bone remains unhealed [ספורנו, ביאור שטיינזלץ, העמק דבר]. Other perspectives note that the restriction is based entirely on the person's current physical state rather than the event that caused it, meaning the disqualification naturally expands to include limb deformities present from birth [תורה תמימה, מלבי״ם]. Furthermore, a physical defect does not need to be obvious while the priest is standing still. Even if a flaw is completely hidden at rest and only becomes noticeable during physical effort, routine work, or walking, it fully disqualifies him from service [העמק דבר].

The definition of a damaged leg extends far beyond a simple fractured bone, encompassing various structural deformities. This includes conditions where the knees bend inward and knock together during walking, bowlegs where the knees cannot touch when the heels are placed together, backward-facing feet, or an unnatural bone protruding from a toe [תורה תמימה, מלבי״ם].

Similarly, a damaged hand is not limited to a severely fractured arm. It includes any broken bone, even a fracture in a single finger. The restriction also covers structural abnormalities of the hands, such as missing fingers or fingers that have been webbed together since birth, provided they have not been medically separated [תורה תמימה, מלבי״ם].