defile, be defiled

Definition:

The terms "defile" and "be defiled" refer to becoming polluted or dirty. Something can be defiled in a physical, moral, or ritual sense.

God warned the Israelites to not defile themselves by eating or touching things that he had declared as "unclean" and "unholy."
Certain things such as dead bodies and contagious diseases were declared by God to be unclean and would defile a person if they touched them.
God commanded the Israelites to avoid sexual sins. These would defile them and make them unacceptable to God.
There were also certain kinds of bodily processes that defiled a person temporarily until he could become ritually pure again.
In the New Testament, Jesus taught that sinful thoughts and actions are what truly defile a person.

The term "defile" can also be translated as "cause to be unclean" or "cause to be unrighteous" or "cause to be ritually unacceptable."
To "be defiled" could be translated as "become unclean" or "be caused to be morally unacceptable (to God)" or "become ritually unacceptable."

(See also: unclean · clean)