Penalties for Breaking the Law

20 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ^2 (A)“Again, you shall say to the children of Israel: ^(B)‘Whoever of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who ^[a]dwell in Israel, who gives any of his descendants to Molech, he shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall ^(C)stone him with stones. ^3 (D)I will set My face against that man, and will ^[b]cut him off from his people, because he has given some of his descendants to Molech, to defile My sanctuary and profane My holy name. ⁴ And if the people of the land should in any way ^[c]hide their eyes from the man, when he gives some of his descendants to Molech, and they do not kill him, ⁵ then I will set My face against that man and against his family; and I will cut him off from his people, and all who prostitute themselves with him to commit harlotry with Molech.

⁶ ‘And ^(E)the person who turns to mediums and familiar spirits, to prostitute himself with them, I will set My face against that person and cut him off from his people. ^7 (F)Consecrate^[d] yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God. ⁸ And you shall keep ^(G)My statutes, and perform them: ^(H)I am the Lord who ^[e]sanctifies you.

⁹ ‘For ^(I)everyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. He has cursed his father or his mother. ^(J)His blood shall be upon him.

^10 (K)‘The man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death. ¹¹ The man who lies with his ^(L)father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. ¹² If a man lies with his ^(M)daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death. They have committed perversion. Their blood shall be upon them. ^13 (N)If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. ¹⁴ If a man marries a woman and her ^(O)mother, it is wickedness. They shall be burned with fire, both he and they, that there may be no wickedness among you. ¹⁵ If a man mates with an ^(P)animal, he shall surely be put to death, and you shall kill the animal. ¹⁶ If a woman approaches any animal and mates with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood is upon them.

¹⁷ ‘If a man takes his ^(Q)sister, his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter, and sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a wicked thing. And they shall be ^[f]cut off in the sight of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness. He shall bear his ^[g]guilt. ^18 (R)If a man lies with a woman during her ^[h]sickness and uncovers her nakedness, he has ^[i]exposed her flow, and she has uncovered the flow of her blood. Both of them shall be ^[j]cut off from their people.

¹⁹ ‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your ^(S)mother’s sister nor of your ^(T)father’s sister, for that would uncover his near of kin. They shall bear their guilt. ²⁰ If a man lies with his ^(U)uncle’s wife, he has uncovered his uncle’s nakedness. They shall bear their sin; they shall die childless. ²¹ If a man takes his ^(V)brother’s wife, it is an ^[k]unclean thing. He has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They shall be childless.

²² ‘You shall therefore keep all My ^(W)statutes and all My judgments, and perform them, that the land where I am bringing you to dwell ^(X)may not vomit you out. ^23 (Y)And you shall not walk in the statutes of the nation which I am casting out before you; for they commit all these things, and ^(Z)therefore I abhor them. ²⁴ But ^(AA)I have said to you, “You shall inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the Lord your God, ^(AB)who has separated you from the peoples. ^25 (AC)You shall therefore distinguish between clean animals and unclean, between unclean birds and clean, ^(AD)and you shall not make yourselves ^[l]abominable by beast or by bird, or by any kind of living thing that creeps on the ground, which I have separated from you as ^[m]unclean. ²⁶ And you shall be holy to Me, ^(AE)for I the Lord am holy, and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be Mine.

^27 (AF)‘A man or a woman who is a medium, or who has familiar spirits, shall surely be put to death; they shall stone them with stones. Their blood shall be upon them.’ ”

A Plea for Deliverance and Forgiveness

A Psalm of David.