Leviticus 16
Christian Standard Bible
The Day of Atonement
16 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of two of Aaron’s sons when they approached the presence(A) of[a] the Lord and died.(B) 2 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell your brother Aaron that he may not come whenever he wants into the holy place(C) behind the curtain(D) in front of the mercy seat(E) on the ark or else he will die, because I appear in the cloud(F) above the mercy seat.(G)
3 “Aaron is to enter the most holy place(H) in this way: with a young bull for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.(I) 4 He is to wear a holy linen tunic, and linen undergarments are to be on his body. He is to tie a linen sash around him and wrap his head with a linen turban.(J) These are holy garments; he must bathe his body with water before he wears them. 5 He is to take from the Israelite community two male goats for a sin offering and one ram for a burnt offering.(K)
6 “Aaron will present the bull for his sin offering and make atonement for himself and his household. 7 Next he will take the two goats and place them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 8 After Aaron casts lots(L) for the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other for an uninhabitable place,[b][c](M) 9 he is to present the goat chosen by lot for the Lord and sacrifice it as a sin offering.(N) 10 But the goat chosen by lot for an uninhabitable place is to be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement with it by sending it into the wilderness(O) for an uninhabitable place.
11 “When Aaron presents the bull for his sin offering and makes atonement for himself and his household, he will slaughter the bull for his sin offering. 12 Then he is to take a firepan full of blazing coals from the altar before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense,(P) and bring them inside the curtain.(Q) 13 He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, so that the cloud(R) of incense covers the mercy seat that is over the testimony,(S) or else he will die.(T) 14 He is to take some of the bull’s blood(U) and sprinkle it with his finger against the east side of the mercy seat; then he will sprinkle some of the blood with his finger before the mercy seat seven times.(V)
15 “When he slaughters the male goat for the people’s sin offering and brings its blood inside the curtain, he will do the same with its blood as he did with the bull’s blood: He is to sprinkle it against the mercy seat and in front of it. 16 He will make atonement for the most holy place in this way for all their sins because of the Israelites’ impurities and rebellious acts.(W) He will do the same for the tent of meeting that remains among them, because it is surrounded by their impurities. 17 No one may be in the tent of meeting from the time he enters to make atonement in the most holy place until he leaves after he has made atonement for himself, his household, and the whole assembly of Israel.(X) 18 Then he will go out to the altar that is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He is to take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood and put it on the horns on all sides of the altar. 19 He is to sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse and set it apart(Y) from the Israelites’ impurities.(Z)
20 “When he has finished making atonement for the most holy place, the tent of meeting, and the altar, he is to present the live male goat. 21 Aaron will lay both his hands on the head of the live goat and confess(AA) over it all the Israelites’ iniquities(AB) and rebellious acts—all their sins.(AC) He is to put them on the goat’s head and send it away into the wilderness(AD) by the man appointed for the task.[d] 22 The goat will carry all their iniquities into a desolate land,(AE) and the man will release it there.
23 “Then Aaron is to enter the tent of meeting, take off the linen garments(AF) he wore when he entered the most holy place, and leave them there. 24 He will bathe his body with water in a holy place(AG) and put on his clothes.(AH) Then he must go out and sacrifice his burnt offering and the people’s burnt offering; he will make atonement for himself and for the people. 25 He is to burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar. 26 The man who released the goat for an uninhabitable place is to wash his clothes and bathe his body with water; afterward he may reenter the camp. 27 The bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought into the most holy place to make atonement, must be brought outside the camp(AI) and their hide,(AJ) flesh, and waste burned.(AK) 28 The one who burns them is to wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may reenter the camp.
29 “This is to be a permanent statute(AL) for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month you are to practice self-denial(AM) and do no work,(AN) both the native and the alien(AO) who resides among you. 30 Atonement will be made for you on this day to cleanse you,(AP) and you will be clean from all your sins before the Lord. 31 It is a Sabbath(AQ) of complete rest for you,(AR) and you must practice self-denial; it is a permanent statute. 32 The priest who is anointed and ordained[e](AS) to serve as high priest(AT) in place of his father will make atonement. He will put on the linen garments, the holy garments, 33 and make atonement for the most holy place. He will make atonement for the tent of meeting and the altar and will make atonement for the priests and all the people of the assembly. 34 This is to be a permanent statute for you, to make atonement for the Israelites once a year(AU) because of all their sins.” And all this was done as the Lord commanded Moses.
Footnotes
- 16:1 LXX, Tg, Syr, Vg read they brought strange fire before; Nm 3:4
- 16:8 Lit for Azazel, also in vv. 10 (2x),26
- 16:8 Traditionally “for the scapegoat”; perhaps a term that means “for the goat that departs,” or “for removal,” or “for a rough, difficult place,” or “for a goat-demon”; Hb obscure, also in vv. 10,26
- 16:21 Lit wilderness in the hand of a ready man
- 16:32 Lit and will fill his hand
Leviticus 19
Christian Standard Bible
Laws of Holiness
19 The Lord spoke to Moses: 2 “Speak to the entire Israelite community and tell them: Be holy(A) because I, the Lord your God, am holy.(B)
3 “Each of you is to respect his mother and father.(C) You are to keep my Sabbaths; I am the Lord your God. 4 Do not turn to worthless idols(D) or make cast images(E) of gods for yourselves;(F) I am the Lord your God.
5 “When you offer a fellowship sacrifice to the Lord, sacrifice it so that you may be accepted. 6 It is to be eaten on the day you sacrifice it or on the next day, but what remains on the third day must be burned.(G) 7 If any is eaten on the third day, it is a repulsive thing; it will not be accepted.(H) 8 Anyone who eats it will bear his iniquity, for he has profaned what is holy to the Lord. That person is to be cut off from his people.(I)
9 “When you reap the harvest of your land, you are not to reap to the very edge of your field or gather the gleanings(J) of your harvest. 10 Do not strip your vineyard bare or gather its fallen grapes. Leave them for the poor(K) and the resident alien;(L) I am the Lord your God.
11 “Do not steal.(M) Do not act deceptively(N) or lie(O) to one another. 12 Do not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God;(P) I am the Lord.
13 “Do not oppress(Q) your neighbor or rob(R) him. The wages due a hired worker(S) must not remain with you until morning. 14 Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind,(T) but you are to fear your God;(U) I am the Lord.(V)
15 “Do not act unjustly(W) when deciding a case. Do not be partial(X) to the poor or give preference to the rich;(Y) judge your neighbor fairly. 16 Do not go about spreading slander(Z) among your people; do not jeopardize[a] your neighbor’s life; I am the Lord.
17 “Do not harbor hatred against your brother.[b](AA) Rebuke your neighbor directly, and you will not incur guilt because of him.(AB) 18 Do not take revenge(AC) or bear a grudge against members of your community, but love your neighbor as yourself;(AD) I am the Lord.
19 “You are to keep my statutes. Do not crossbreed two different kinds of your livestock, sow your fields with two kinds of seed, or put on a garment made of two kinds of material.(AE)
20 “If a man has sexual intercourse with a woman who is a slave designated for another man, but she has not been redeemed(AF) or given her freedom, there must be punishment.[c] They are not to be put to death, because she had not been freed. 21 However, he must bring a ram as his guilt[d] offering to the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting.(AG) 22 The priest will make atonement on his behalf before the Lord with the ram of the guilt offering for the sin he has committed, and he will be forgiven for the sin he committed.
23 “When you come into the land and plant any kind of tree for food, you are to consider the fruit forbidden.[e] It will be forbidden to you for three years; it is not to be eaten. 24 In the fourth year all its fruit is to be consecrated as a praise offering(AH) to the Lord. 25 But in the fifth year you may eat its fruit. In this way its yield will increase for you;(AI) I am the Lord your God.
26 “You are not to eat anything with blood in it.[f](AJ) You are not to practice divination(AK) or witchcraft.(AL) 27 You are not to cut off the hair at the sides of your head or mar the edge of your beard.(AM) 28 You are not to make gashes on your bodies for the dead(AN) or put tattoo marks on yourselves; I am the Lord.
29 “Do not debase[g](AO) your daughter by making her a prostitute,(AP) or the land will be prostituted and filled with depravity. 30 Keep my Sabbaths and revere my sanctuary;(AQ) I am the Lord.
31 “Do not turn to mediums[h](AR) or consult spiritists,[i](AS) or you will be defiled by them; I am the Lord your God.
32 “You are to rise in the presence of the elderly and honor the old.(AT) Fear your God; I am the Lord.
33 “When an alien resides with you in your land, you must not oppress(AU) him. 34 You will regard the alien who resides with you as the native-born among you. You are to love him as yourself,(AV) for you were aliens in the land of Egypt;(AW) I am the Lord your God.
35 “Do not be unfair(AX) in measurements of length, weight, or volume. 36 You are to have honest balances,(AY) honest weights, an honest dry measure,[j] and an honest liquid measure;[k](AZ) I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. 37 Keep all my statutes and all my ordinances and do them; I am the Lord.”
Leviticus 26
Christian Standard Bible
Covenant Blessings and Discipline
26 “Do not make worthless idols for yourselves,(A) set up a carved image or sacred pillar for yourselves, or place a sculpted stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the Lord your God. 2 Keep my Sabbaths and revere my sanctuary;(B) I am the Lord.
3 “If you follow my statutes and faithfully observe my commands, 4 I will give you rain at the right time, and the land will yield its produce, and the trees of the field will bear their fruit. 5 Your threshing will continue until grape harvest, and the grape harvest will continue until sowing time; you will have plenty of food to eat and live securely in your land.(C) 6 I will give peace to the land, and you will lie down with nothing to frighten you. I will remove dangerous animals from the land, and no sword will pass through your land.(D) 7 You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall before you by the sword. 8 Five of you will pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you will pursue ten thousand; your enemies will fall before you by the sword.(E)
9 “I will turn to you, make you fruitful and multiply you, and confirm my covenant with you. 10 You will eat the old grain of the previous year and will clear out the old to make room for the new. 11 I will place my residence[a] among you, and I will not reject you.(F) 12 I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people.(G) 13 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, so that you would no longer be their slaves. I broke the bars of your yoke(H) and enabled you to live in freedom.[b]
14 “But if you do not obey me and observe all these commands— 15 if you reject my statutes and despise my ordinances, and do not observe all my commands—and break my covenant, 16 then I will do this to you: I will bring terror(I) on you—wasting disease and fever that will cause your eyes to fail and your life to ebb away. You will sow your seed in vain because your enemies will eat it. 17 I will turn[c] against you, so that you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even though no one is pursuing you.(J)
18 “But if after these things you will not obey me, I will proceed to discipline you seven times for your sins.(K) 19 I will break down your strong pride. I will make your sky like iron and your land like bronze, 20 and your strength will be used up for nothing.(L) Your land will not yield its produce, and the trees of the land will not bear their fruit.
21 “If you act with hostility toward me and are unwilling to obey me, I will multiply your plagues seven times for your sins.(M) 22 I will send wild animals against you that will deprive you of your children, ravage your livestock, and reduce your numbers until your roads are deserted.(N)
23 “If in spite of these things you do not accept my discipline, but act with hostility toward me, 24 then I will act with hostility toward you; I also will strike you seven times for your sins. 25 I will bring a sword against you(O) to execute the vengeance of the covenant. Though you withdraw into your cities, I will send a pestilence among you, and you will be delivered into enemy hands. 26 When I cut off your supply of bread, ten women will bake your bread in a single oven and ration out your bread by weight, so that you will eat but not be satisfied.(P)
27 “And if in spite of this you do not obey me but act with hostility toward me, 28 I will act with furious hostility toward you; I will also discipline you seven times for your sins. 29 You will eat the flesh of your sons; you will eat the flesh of your daughters.(Q) 30 I will destroy your high places, cut down your shrines,[d] and heap your lifeless bodies on the lifeless bodies of your idols;(R) I will reject you. 31 I will reduce your cities to ruins and devastate your sanctuaries. I will not smell the pleasing aroma of your sacrifices.(S) 32 I also will devastate the land, so that your enemies who come to live there will be appalled by it. 33 But I will scatter you among the nations, and I will draw a sword to chase after you. So your land will become desolate, and your cities will become ruins.
34 “Then the land will make up for its Sabbath years during the time it lies desolate, while you are in the land of your enemies. At that time the land will rest and make up for its Sabbaths. 35 As long as it lies desolate, it will have the rest it did not have during your Sabbaths when you lived there.
36 “I will put anxiety in the hearts of those of you who survive in the lands of their enemies. The sound of a wind-driven leaf will put them to flight, and they will flee as one flees from a sword, and fall though no one is pursuing them. 37 They will stumble over one another as if fleeing from a sword though no one is pursuing them. You will not be able to stand against your enemies. 38 You will perish among the nations; the land of your enemies will devour you. 39 Those[e] who survive in the lands of your enemies will waste away because of their iniquity; they will also waste away because of their ancestors’ iniquities along with theirs.
40 “But when they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their ancestors—their unfaithfulness that they practiced against me, and how they acted with hostility toward me, 41 and I acted with hostility toward them and brought them into the land of their enemies—and when their uncircumcised hearts are humbled(T) and they make amends for their iniquity, 42 then I will remember my covenant with Jacob. I will also remember my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land. 43 For the land abandoned by them will make up for its Sabbaths by lying desolate without the people, while they make amends for their iniquity, because they rejected my ordinances and abhorred my statutes. 44 Yet in spite of this, while they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject or abhor them so as to destroy them and break my covenant with them, since I am the Lord their God.(U) 45 For their sake I will remember the covenant with their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations to be their God; I am the Lord.”
46 These are the statutes, ordinances, and laws the Lord established between himself and the Israelites through Moses on Mount Sinai.
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