Leviticus 19
New Living Translation
Holiness in Personal Conduct
19 The Lord also said to Moses, 2 “Give the following instructions to the entire community of Israel. You must be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.
3 “Each of you must show great respect for your mother and father, and you must always observe my Sabbath days of rest. I am the Lord your God.
4 “Do not put your trust in idols or make metal images of gods for yourselves. I am the Lord your God.
5 “When you sacrifice a peace offering to the Lord, offer it properly so you[a] will be accepted by God. 6 The sacrifice must be eaten on the same day you offer it or on the next day. Whatever is left over until the third day must be completely burned up. 7 If any of the sacrifice is eaten on the third day, it will be contaminated, and I will not accept it. 8 Anyone who eats it on the third day will be punished for defiling what is holy to the Lord and will be cut off from the community.
9 “When you harvest the crops of your land, do not harvest the grain along the edges of your fields, and do not pick up what the harvesters drop. 10 It is the same with your grape crop—do not strip every last bunch of grapes from the vines, and do not pick up the grapes that fall to the ground. Leave them for the poor and the foreigners living among you. I am the Lord your God.
11 “Do not steal.
“Do not deceive or cheat one another.
12 “Do not bring shame on the name of your God by using it to swear falsely. I am the Lord.
13 “Do not defraud or rob your neighbor.
“Do not make your hired workers wait until the next day to receive their pay.
14 “Do not insult the deaf or cause the blind to stumble. You must fear your God; I am the Lord.
15 “Do not twist justice in legal matters by favoring the poor or being partial to the rich and powerful. Always judge people fairly.
16 “Do not spread slanderous gossip among your people.[b]
“Do not stand idly by when your neighbor’s life is threatened. I am the Lord.
17 “Do not nurse hatred in your heart for any of your relatives.[c] Confront people directly so you will not be held guilty for their sin.
18 “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.
19 “You must obey all my decrees.
“Do not mate two different kinds of animals. Do not plant your field with two different kinds of seed. Do not wear clothing woven from two different kinds of thread.
20 “If a man has sex with a slave girl whose freedom has never been purchased but who is committed to become another man’s wife, he must pay full compensation to her master. But since she is not a free woman, neither the man nor the woman will be put to death. 21 The man, however, must bring a ram as a guilt offering and present it to the Lord at the entrance of the Tabernacle.[d] 22 The priest will then purify him[e] before the Lord with the ram of the guilt offering, and the man’s sin will be forgiven.
23 “When you enter the land and plant fruit trees, leave the fruit unharvested for the first three years and consider it forbidden.[f] Do not eat it. 24 In the fourth year the entire crop must be consecrated to the Lord as a celebration of praise. 25 Finally, in the fifth year you may eat the fruit. If you follow this pattern, your harvest will increase. I am the Lord your God.
26 “Do not eat meat that has not been drained of its blood.
“Do not practice fortune-telling or witchcraft.
27 “Do not trim off the hair on your temples or trim your beards.
28 “Do not cut your bodies for the dead, and do not mark your skin with tattoos. I am the Lord.
29 “Do not defile your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the land will be filled with prostitution and wickedness.
30 “Keep my Sabbath days of rest, and show reverence toward my sanctuary. I am the Lord.
31 “Do not defile yourselves by turning to mediums or to those who consult the spirits of the dead. I am the Lord your God.
32 “Stand up in the presence of the elderly, and show respect for the aged. Fear your God. I am the Lord.
33 “Do not take advantage of foreigners who live among you in your land. 34 Treat them like native-born Israelites, and love them as you love yourself. Remember that you were once foreigners living in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.
35 “Do not use dishonest standards when measuring length, weight, or volume. 36 Your scales and weights must be accurate. Your containers for measuring dry materials or liquids must be accurate.[g] I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
37 “You must be careful to keep all of my decrees and regulations by putting them into practice. I am the Lord.”
Footnotes
Leviticus 19
Living Bible
19 1-2 The Lord also told Moses to tell the people of Israel, “You must be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy. You must respect your mothers and fathers, and obey my Sabbath law, for I am the Lord your God. 3-4 Do not make or worship idols, for I am Jehovah your God.
5 “When you sacrifice a peace offering to the Lord, offer it correctly so that it will be accepted: 6 Eat it the same day you offer it, or the next day at the latest; any remaining until the third day must be burned. 7 For any of it eaten on the third day is repulsive to me and will not be accepted. 8 If you eat it on the third day, you are guilty, for you profane the holiness of Jehovah, and you shall be excommunicated from Jehovah’s people.
9 “When you harvest your crops, don’t reap the corners of your fields, and don’t pick up stray grains of wheat from the ground. 10 It is the same with your grape crop—don’t strip every last piece of fruit from the vines, and don’t pick up the grapes that fall to the ground. Leave them for the poor and for those traveling through, for I am Jehovah your God.
11 “You must not steal nor lie nor defraud. 12 You must not swear to a falsehood, thus bringing reproach upon the name of your God, for I am Jehovah.
13 “You shall not rob nor oppress anyone, and you shall pay your hired workers promptly. If something is due them, don’t even keep it overnight.
14 “You must not curse the deaf nor trip up a blind man as he walks. Fear your God; I am Jehovah!
15 “Judges must always be just in their sentences, not noticing whether a person is poor or rich; they must always be perfectly fair.
16 “Don’t gossip. Don’t falsely accuse your neighbor of some crime,[a] for I am Jehovah.
17 “Don’t hate your brother. Rebuke anyone who sins; don’t let him get away with it, or you will be equally guilty. 18 Don’t seek vengeance. Don’t bear a grudge; but love your neighbor as yourself, for I am Jehovah.
19 “Obey my laws: Do not mate your cattle with a different kind; don’t sow your field with two kinds of seed; don’t wear clothes made of half wool and half linen.
20 “If a man seduces a slave girl[b] who is engaged to be married, they shall be tried in a court but not put to death, because she is not free. 21 The man involved shall bring his guilt offering to the Lord at the entrance of the Tabernacle; the offering shall be a ram. 22 The priest shall make atonement with the ram for the sin the man has committed, and it shall be forgiven him.
23 “When you enter the land and have planted all kinds of fruit trees, do not eat the first three crops, for they are considered ceremonially defiled.[c] 24 And the fourth year the entire crop shall be devoted to the Lord, and shall be given to the Lord in praise to him. 25 Finally, in the fifth year, the crop is yours.
26 “I am Jehovah your God! You must not eat meat with undrained blood nor use fortune-telling or witchcraft.
27 “You must not trim off your hair on your temples or clip the edges of your beard, as the heathen do.[d] 28 You shall not cut yourselves nor put tattoo marks upon yourselves in connection with funeral rites; I am the Lord.
29 “Do not violate your daughter’s sanctity by making her a prostitute, lest the land become full of enormous wickedness.
30 “Keep my Sabbath laws and reverence my Tabernacle, for I am the Lord.
31 “Do not defile yourselves by consulting mediums and wizards, for I am Jehovah your God.
32 “You shall give due honor and respect to the elderly, in the fear of God. I am Jehovah.
33 “Do not take advantage of foreigners in your land; do not wrong them. 34 They must be treated like any other citizen; love them as yourself, for remember that you too were foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am Jehovah your God.
35-36 “You must be impartial in judgment. Use accurate measurements—lengths, weights, and volumes—and give full measure, for I am Jehovah your God who brought you from the land of Egypt. 37 You must heed all of my commandments and ordinances, carefully obeying them, for I am Jehovah.”
Footnotes
- Leviticus 19:16 Don’t falsely accuse your neighbor of some crime, literally, “Neither shall you stand against the blood of your neighbor.”
- Leviticus 19:20 slave girl, literally, “not yet redeemed, nor given her freedom.”
- Leviticus 19:23 for they are considered ceremonially defiled, literally, “you shall count the fruit thereof as their uncircumcision.”
- Leviticus 19:27 as the heathen do, implied.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.