18 Nor shall you take a woman (A)as a rival to her sister, to uncover her nakedness while the other is alive.

19 ‘Also you shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness as (B)long as she is in her (C)customary impurity. 20 (D)Moreover you shall not lie carnally with your (E)neighbor’s wife, to defile yourself with her. 21 And you shall not let any of your descendants (F)pass through (G)the fire to (H)Molech, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. 22 You shall not lie with (I)a male as with a woman. It is an abomination. 23 Nor shall you mate with any (J)animal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is perversion.

24 (K)‘Do not defile yourselves with any of these things; (L)for by all these the nations are defiled, which I am casting out before you. 25 For (M)the land is defiled; therefore I (N)visit[a] the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the land (O)vomits out its inhabitants. 26 (P)You shall therefore [b]keep My statutes and My judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations, either any of your own nation or any stranger who dwells among you 27 (for all these abominations the men of the land have done, who were before you, and thus the land is defiled), 28 lest (Q)the land vomit you out also when you defile it, as it vomited out the nations that were before you. 29 For whoever commits any of these abominations, the persons who commit them shall be [c]cut off from among their people.

30 ‘Therefore you shall keep My [d]ordinance, so (R)that you do not commit any of these abominable customs which were committed before you, and that you do not defile yourselves by them: (S)I am the Lord your God.’ ”

Moral and Ceremonial Laws

19 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them: (T)‘You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.

(U)‘Every one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and (V)keep My Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God.

(W)‘Do not turn to idols, (X)nor make for yourselves [e]molded gods: I am the Lord your God.

‘And (Y)if you offer a sacrifice of a peace offering to the Lord, you shall offer it of your own free will. It shall be eaten the same day you offer it, and on the next day. And if any remains until the third day, it shall be burned in the fire. And if it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination. It shall not be accepted. Therefore everyone who eats it shall bear his iniquity, because he has profaned the hallowed offering of the Lord; and that person shall be cut off from his people.

(Z)‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 And you shall not glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather every grape of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the stranger: I am the Lord your God.

11 (AA)‘You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, (AB)nor lie to one another. 12 And you shall not (AC)swear by My name falsely, (AD)nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.

13 (AE)‘You shall not cheat your neighbor, nor rob him. (AF)The wages of him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until morning. 14 You shall not curse the deaf, (AG)nor put a stumbling block before the blind, but shall fear your God: I am the Lord.

15 ‘You shall do no injustice in (AH)judgment. You shall not (AI)be partial to the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty. In righteousness you shall judge your neighbor. 16 You shall not go about as a (AJ)talebearer among your people; nor shall you (AK)take a stand against the life of your neighbor: I am the Lord.

17 (AL)‘You shall not hate your brother in your heart. (AM)You shall surely [f]rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him. 18 (AN)You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, (AO)but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.

19 ‘You shall keep My statutes. You shall not let your livestock breed with another kind. You shall not sow your field with mixed seed. Nor shall a garment of mixed linen and wool come upon you.

20 ‘Whoever lies carnally with a woman who is (AP)betrothed to a man as a concubine, and who has not at all been redeemed nor given her freedom, for this there shall be [g]scourging; but they shall not be put to death, because she was not free. 21 And he shall bring his trespass offering to the Lord, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting, a ram as a trespass offering. 22 The priest shall make [h]atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the Lord for his sin which he has committed. And the sin which he has committed shall be forgiven him.

23 ‘When you come into the land, and have planted all kinds of trees for food, then you shall count their fruit as [i]uncircumcised. Three years it shall be as uncircumcised to you. It shall not be eaten. 24 But in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, a praise to the Lord. 25 And in the fifth year you may eat its fruit, that it may yield to you its increase: I am the Lord your God.

26 ‘You shall not eat anything with the blood, nor shall you practice divination or soothsaying. 27 You shall not shave around the sides of your head, nor shall you disfigure the edges of your beard. 28 You shall not (AQ)make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the Lord.

29 (AR)‘Do not prostitute your daughter, to cause her to be a harlot, lest the land fall into harlotry, and the land become full of wickedness.

30 ‘You shall [j]keep My Sabbaths and (AS)reverence My sanctuary: I am the Lord.

31 ‘Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after (AT)them, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God.

32 (AU)‘You shall [k]rise before the gray headed and honor the presence of an old man, and (AV)fear your God: I am the Lord.

33 ‘And (AW)if a stranger dwells with you in your land, you shall not mistreat him. 34 (AX)The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as [l]one born among you, and (AY)you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

35 ‘You shall do no injustice in judgment, in measurement of length, weight, or volume. 36 You shall have (AZ)honest scales, honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.

37 (BA)‘Therefore you shall observe all My statutes and all My judgments, and perform them: I am the Lord.’ ”

Penalties for Breaking the Law

20 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, (BB)“Again, you shall say to the children of Israel: (BC)‘Whoever of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who [m]dwell in Israel, who gives any of his descendants to Molech, he shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall (BD)stone him with stones. (BE)I will set My face against that man, and will [n]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. And if the people of the land should in any way [o]hide their eyes from the man, when he gives some of his descendants to Molech, and they do not kill him, 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.

‘And (BF)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. (BG)Consecrate[p] yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God. And you shall keep (BH)My statutes, and perform them: (BI)I am the Lord who [q]sanctifies you.

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

10 (BL)‘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 (BM)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 (BN)daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death. They have committed perversion. Their blood shall be upon them. 13 (BO)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 (BP)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 (BQ)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 (BR)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 [r]cut off in the sight of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness. He shall bear his [s]guilt. 18 (BS)If a man lies with a woman during her [t]sickness and uncovers her nakedness, he has [u]exposed her flow, and she has uncovered the flow of her blood. Both of them shall be [v]cut off from their people.

19 ‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your (BT)mother’s sister nor of your (BU)father’s sister, for that would uncover his near of kin. They shall bear their guilt. 20 If a man lies with his (BV)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 (BW)brother’s wife, it is an [w]unclean thing. He has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They shall be childless.

22 ‘You shall therefore keep all My (BX)statutes and all My judgments, and perform them, that the land where I am bringing you to dwell (BY)may not vomit you out. 23 (BZ)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 (CA)therefore I abhor them. 24 But (CB)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, (CC)who has separated you from the peoples. 25 (CD)You shall therefore distinguish between clean animals and unclean, between unclean birds and clean, (CE)and you shall not make yourselves [x]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 [y]unclean. 26 And you shall be holy to Me, (CF)for I the Lord am holy, and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be Mine.

27 (CG)‘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.’ ”

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 18:25 bring judgment for
  2. Leviticus 18:26 obey
  3. Leviticus 18:29 Put to death
  4. Leviticus 18:30 charge
  5. Leviticus 19:4 molten
  6. Leviticus 19:17 reprove
  7. Leviticus 19:20 punishment
  8. Leviticus 19:22 Lit. covering
  9. Leviticus 19:23 unclean
  10. Leviticus 19:30 observe
  11. Leviticus 19:32 rise to give honor
  12. Leviticus 19:34 native among you
  13. Leviticus 20:2 As resident aliens
  14. Leviticus 20:3 Put him to death
  15. Leviticus 20:4 disregard
  16. Leviticus 20:7 Set yourselves apart for the Lord
  17. Leviticus 20:8 sets you apart
  18. Leviticus 20:17 Put to death
  19. Leviticus 20:17 iniquity
  20. Leviticus 20:18 Or customary impurity
  21. Leviticus 20:18 Lit. made bare
  22. Leviticus 20:18 Put to death
  23. Leviticus 20:21 indecent, impure
  24. Leviticus 20:25 detestable or loathsome
  25. Leviticus 20:25 defiled

18 “‘Do not take your wife’s sister(A) as a rival wife and have sexual relations with her while your wife is living.

19 “‘Do not approach a woman to have sexual relations during the uncleanness(B) of her monthly period.(C)

20 “‘Do not have sexual relations with your neighbor’s wife(D) and defile yourself with her.

21 “‘Do not give any of your children(E) to be sacrificed to Molek,(F) for you must not profane the name of your God.(G) I am the Lord.(H)

22 “‘Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman;(I) that is detestable.(J)

23 “‘Do not have sexual relations with an animal and defile yourself with it. A woman must not present herself to an animal to have sexual relations with it; that is a perversion.(K)

24 “‘Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, because this is how the nations that I am going to drive out before you(L) became defiled.(M) 25 Even the land was defiled;(N) so I punished it for its sin,(O) and the land vomited out its inhabitants.(P) 26 But you must keep my decrees and my laws.(Q) The native-born and the foreigners residing among you must not do any of these detestable things, 27 for all these things were done by the people who lived in the land before you, and the land became defiled. 28 And if you defile the land,(R) it will vomit you out(S) as it vomited out the nations that were before you.

29 “‘Everyone who does any of these detestable things—such persons must be cut off from their people. 30 Keep my requirements(T) and do not follow any of the detestable customs that were practiced before you came and do not defile yourselves with them. I am the Lord your God.(U)’”

Various Laws

19 The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel(V) and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God,(W) am holy.(X)

“‘Each of you must respect your mother and father,(Y) and you must observe my Sabbaths.(Z) I am the Lord your God.(AA)

“‘Do not turn to idols or make metal gods for yourselves.(AB) I am the Lord your God.(AC)

“‘When you sacrifice a fellowship offering to the Lord, sacrifice it in such a way that it will be accepted on your behalf. It shall be eaten on the day you sacrifice it or on the next day; anything left over until the third day must be burned up.(AD) If any of it is eaten on the third day, it is impure and will not be accepted.(AE) Whoever eats it will be held responsible(AF) because they have desecrated what is holy(AG) to the Lord; they must be cut off from their people.(AH)

“‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges(AI) of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest.(AJ) 10 Do not go over your vineyard a second time(AK) or pick up the grapes that have fallen.(AL) Leave them for the poor and the foreigner.(AM) I am the Lord your God.

11 “‘Do not steal.(AN)

“‘Do not lie.(AO)

“‘Do not deceive one another.(AP)

12 “‘Do not swear falsely(AQ) by my name(AR) and so profane(AS) the name of your God. I am the Lord.

13 “‘Do not defraud or rob(AT) your neighbor.(AU)

“‘Do not hold back the wages of a hired worker(AV) overnight.(AW)

14 “‘Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind,(AX) but fear your God.(AY) I am the Lord.

15 “‘Do not pervert justice;(AZ) do not show partiality(BA) to the poor or favoritism to the great,(BB) but judge your neighbor fairly.(BC)

16 “‘Do not go about spreading slander(BD) among your people.

“‘Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life.(BE) I am the Lord.

17 “‘Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart.(BF) Rebuke your neighbor frankly(BG) so you will not share in their guilt.

18 “‘Do not seek revenge(BH) or bear a grudge(BI) against anyone among your people,(BJ) but love your neighbor(BK) as yourself.(BL) I am the Lord.

19 “‘Keep my decrees.(BM)

“‘Do not mate different kinds of animals.

“‘Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed.(BN)

“‘Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.(BO)

20 “‘If a man sleeps with a female slave who is promised to another man(BP) but who has not been ransomed or given her freedom, there must be due punishment.[a] Yet they are not to be put to death, because she had not been freed. 21 The man, however, must bring a ram to the entrance to the tent of meeting for a guilt offering to the Lord.(BQ) 22 With the ram of the guilt offering the priest is to make atonement for him before the Lord for the sin he has committed, and his sin will be forgiven.(BR)

23 “‘When you enter the land and plant any kind of fruit tree, regard its fruit as forbidden.[b] For three years you are to consider it forbidden[c]; it must not be eaten. 24 In the fourth year all its fruit will be holy,(BS) an offering of praise to the Lord. 25 But in the fifth year you may eat its fruit. In this way your harvest will be increased. I am the Lord your God.

26 “‘Do not eat any meat with the blood still in it.(BT)

“‘Do not practice divination(BU) or seek omens.(BV)

27 “‘Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.(BW)

28 “‘Do not cut(BX) your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.

29 “‘Do not degrade your daughter by making her a prostitute,(BY) or the land will turn to prostitution and be filled with wickedness.(BZ)

30 “‘Observe my Sabbaths(CA) and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the Lord.(CB)

31 “‘Do not turn to mediums(CC) or seek out spiritists,(CD) for you will be defiled by them. I am the Lord your God.

32 “‘Stand up in the presence of the aged, show respect(CE) for the elderly(CF) and revere your God.(CG) I am the Lord.(CH)

33 “‘When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. 34 The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born.(CI) Love them as yourself,(CJ) for you were foreigners(CK) in Egypt.(CL) I am the Lord your God.

35 “‘Do not use dishonest standards when measuring length, weight or quantity.(CM) 36 Use honest scales(CN) and honest weights, an honest ephah[d](CO) and an honest hin.[e](CP) I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt.(CQ)

37 “‘Keep all my decrees(CR) and all my laws(CS) and follow them. I am the Lord.’”

Punishments for Sin

20 The Lord said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites: ‘Any Israelite or any foreigner residing in Israel who sacrifices any of his children to Molek is to be put to death.(CT) The members of the community are to stone him.(CU) I myself will set my face against him and will cut him off from his people;(CV) for by sacrificing his children to Molek, he has defiled(CW) my sanctuary(CX) and profaned my holy name.(CY) If the members of the community close their eyes when that man sacrifices one of his children to Molek and if they fail to put him to death,(CZ) I myself will set my face against him and his family and will cut them off from their people together with all who follow him in prostituting themselves to Molek.

“‘I will set my face against anyone who turns to mediums and spiritists to prostitute themselves by following them, and I will cut them off from their people.(DA)

“‘Consecrate yourselves(DB) and be holy,(DC) because I am the Lord your God.(DD) Keep my decrees(DE) and follow them. I am the Lord, who makes you holy.(DF)

“‘Anyone who curses their father(DG) or mother(DH) is to be put to death.(DI) Because they have cursed their father or mother, their blood will be on their own head.(DJ)

10 “‘If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife(DK)—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress are to be put to death.(DL)

11 “‘If a man has sexual relations with his father’s wife, he has dishonored his father.(DM) Both the man and the woman are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.(DN)

12 “‘If a man has sexual relations with his daughter-in-law,(DO) both of them are to be put to death. What they have done is a perversion; their blood will be on their own heads.

13 “‘If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable.(DP) They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

14 “‘If a man marries both a woman and her mother,(DQ) it is wicked. Both he and they must be burned in the fire,(DR) so that no wickedness will be among you.(DS)

15 “‘If a man has sexual relations with an animal,(DT) he is to be put to death,(DU) and you must kill the animal.

16 “‘If a woman approaches an animal to have sexual relations with it, kill both the woman and the animal. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

17 “‘If a man marries his sister(DV), the daughter of either his father or his mother, and they have sexual relations, it is a disgrace. They are to be publicly removed(DW) from their people. He has dishonored his sister and will be held responsible.(DX)

18 “‘If a man has sexual relations with a woman during her monthly period,(DY) he has exposed the source of her flow, and she has also uncovered it. Both of them are to be cut off from their people.(DZ)

19 “‘Do not have sexual relations with the sister of either your mother or your father,(EA) for that would dishonor a close relative; both of you would be held responsible.

20 “‘If a man has sexual relations with his aunt,(EB) he has dishonored his uncle. They will be held responsible; they will die childless.(EC)

21 “‘If a man marries his brother’s wife,(ED) it is an act of impurity; he has dishonored his brother. They will be childless.(EE)

22 “‘Keep all my decrees and laws(EF) and follow them, so that the land(EG) where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out. 23 You must not live according to the customs of the nations(EH) I am going to drive out before you.(EI) Because they did all these things, I abhorred them.(EJ) 24 But I said to you, “You will possess their land; I will give it to you as an inheritance, a land flowing with milk and honey.”(EK) I am the Lord your God, who has set you apart from the nations.(EL)

25 “‘You must therefore make a distinction between clean and unclean animals and between unclean and clean birds.(EM) Do not defile yourselves by any animal or bird or anything that moves along the ground—those that I have set apart as unclean for you. 26 You are to be holy to me(EN) because I, the Lord, am holy,(EO) and I have set you apart from the nations(EP) to be my own.

27 “‘A man or woman who is a medium(EQ) or spiritist among you must be put to death.(ER) You are to stone them;(ES) their blood will be on their own heads.’”

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 19:20 Or be an inquiry
  2. Leviticus 19:23 Hebrew uncircumcised
  3. Leviticus 19:23 Hebrew uncircumcised
  4. Leviticus 19:36 An ephah was a dry measure having the capacity of about 3/5 of a bushel or about 22 liters.
  5. Leviticus 19:36 A hin was a liquid measure having the capacity of about 1 gallon or about 3.8 liters.