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Leviticus 20
1Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
2"Moreover, you shall tell the children of Israel, 'Anyone of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners in Israel, who gives any of his seed to Molech; he shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones.
3I also will set my face against that person, and will cut him off from among his people because he has given of his seed to Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name.
4If the people of the land all hide their eyes from that person, when he gives of his seed to Molech, and don't put him to death;
5then I will set my face against that man, and against his family, and will cut him off, and all who play the prostitute after him, to play the prostitute with Molech, from among their people.
6"'The person that turns to those who are mediums, and to the wizards, to play the prostitute after them, I will even set my face against that person, and will cut him off from among his people.
7"'Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am Yahweh your God.
8You shall keep my statutes, and do them. I am Yahweh who sanctifies you.
9"'For everyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death: he has cursed his father or his mother; his blood shall be upon him.
10"'The man who commits adultery with another man's wife, even 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 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 daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death: they have committed a perversion; their blood shall be upon them.
13"'If a man lies with a male, as 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 takes a wife and her 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 lies with an animal, he shall surely be put to death; and you shall kill the animal.
16"'If a woman approaches any animal, and lies down with it, you shall kill the woman, and the animal: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
17"'If a man takes his sister, his father's daughter, or his mother's daughter, and sees her nakedness, and she sees his nakedness; it is a shameful thing; and they shall be cut off in the sight of the children of their people: he has uncovered his sister's nakedness; he shall bear his iniquity.
18"'If a man lies with a woman having her monthly period, and uncovers her nakedness; he has made naked her fountain, and she has uncovered the fountain of her blood: and both of them shall be cut off from among their people.
19"'You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother's sister, nor of your father's sister; for he has made naked his close relative: they shall bear their iniquity.
20If a man lies with his 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 brother's wife, it is an impurity: he has uncovered his brother's nakedness; they shall be childless.
22"'You shall therefore keep all my statutes, and all my ordinances, and do them; that the land, where I am bringing you to dwell, may not vomit you out.
23You shall not walk in the customs of the nation, which I am casting out before you: for they did all these things, and therefore I abhorred them.
24But I have said to you, "You shall inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey." I am Yahweh your God, who has separated you from the peoples.
25"'You shall therefore make a distinction between the clean animal and the unclean, and between the unclean fowl and the clean: and you shall not make yourselves abominable by animal, or by bird, or by anything with which the ground teems, which I have separated from you as unclean for you.
26You shall be holy to me: for I, Yahweh, am holy, and have set you apart from the peoples, that you should be mine.
27"'A man or a woman that is a medium, or is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with stones; their blood shall be upon them.'"
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Abomination to God: Uncleanness Leviticus 20:13
If a man lies with a man as with a woman, they have both committed an abomination. They must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.
Adultery: Penalties For Leviticus 20:10–12
If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must surely be put to death. / If a man lies with his father’s wife, he has uncovered his father’s nakedness. Both must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. / If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both must surely be put to death. They have acted perversely; their blood is upon them.
An Adultress Leviticus 20:10
If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must surely be put to death.
Animals: Clean and Unclean Leviticus 20:25
You are therefore to distinguish between clean and unclean animals and birds. Do not become contaminated by any animal or bird, or by anything that crawls on the ground; I have set these apart as unclean for you.
Being Gay Leviticus 20:13
If a man lies with a man as with a woman, they have both committed an abomination. They must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.
Bestiality: General Scriptures Concerning Leviticus 20:16
If a woman approaches any animal to mate with it, you must kill both the woman and the animal. They must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.
Bisexuals Leviticus 20:13
If a man lies with a man as with a woman, they have both committed an abomination. They must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.
Black Magic Leviticus 20:6
Whoever turns to mediums or spiritists to prostitute himself with them, I will also set My face against that person and cut him off from his people.
Blood of Guilt Leviticus 20:9
If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood shall be upon him.
Blood: (On One's own Head) Guilt Leviticus 20:9
If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood shall be upon him.
Canaanites: Wickedness of Leviticus 20:23
You must not follow the statutes of the nations I am driving out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them.
Capital Punishment Leviticus 20:10
If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must surely be put to death.
Children: Involved in Guilt of Parents Leviticus 20:5
then I will set My face against that man and his family and cut off from among their people both him and all who follow him in prostituting themselves with Molech.
Children: Punishment of Leviticus 20:9
If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood shall be upon him.
Church: Rules of Discipline In, Mosaic and Christian Leviticus 20:18
If a man lies with a menstruating woman and has sexual relations with her, he has exposed the source of her flow, and she has uncovered the source of her blood. Both of them must be cut off from among their people.
Collusion in Sin Leviticus 20:4, 5
And if the people of the land ever hide their eyes and fail to put to death the man who gives one of his children to Molech, / then I will set My face against that man and his family and cut off from among their people both him and all who follow him in prostituting themselves with Molech.
Committing Adultery Leviticus 20:13
If a man lies with a man as with a woman, they have both committed an abomination. They must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.
Company: Evil Leviticus 20:23
You must not follow the statutes of the nations I am driving out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them.
Conspiracies Leviticus 20:6
Whoever turns to mediums or spiritists to prostitute himself with them, I will also set My face against that person and cut him off from his people.
Daughter: Forbidden to be Wife of Her Mother's Husband Leviticus 20:14
If a man marries both a woman and her mother, it is depraved. Both he and they must be burned in the fire, so that there will be no depravity among you.
Defilement: Moral, Caused by Giving Children to Molech Leviticus 20:3
And I will set My face against that man and cut him off from his people, because by giving his offspring to Molech, he has defiled My sanctuary and profaned My holy name.
Defilement: Things Liable to Ceremonial: The Sanctuary Leviticus 20:3
And I will set My face against that man and cut him off from his people, because by giving his offspring to Molech, he has defiled My sanctuary and profaned My holy name.
Disobedient Children Leviticus 20:9
If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood shall be upon him.
Disrespectful Children Leviticus 20:9
If anyone curses his father or mother, he must be put to death. He has cursed his father or mother; his blood shall be upon him.
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary
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Leviticus 20:2 Verse 2
Whosoever ... giveth any of his seed unto Molech--(See on Le 18:21). the people of the land shall stone him with stones, &c.--Criminals who were condemned to be stoned were led, with their hands bound, without the gates to a small eminence, where was a large stone placed at the bottom. When they had approached within ten cubits of the spot, they were exhorted to confess, that, by faith and repentance, their souls might be saved. When led forward to within four cubits, they were stripped almost naked, and received some stupefying draught, during which the witnesses prepared, by laying aside their outer garments, to carry into execution the capital sentence which the law bound them to do. The criminal, being placed on the edge of the precipice, was then pushed backwards, so that he fell down the perpendicular height on the stone lying below: if not killed by the fall, the second witness dashed a large stone down upon his breast, and then the "people of the land," who were by-standers, rushed forward, and with stones completed the work of death (Mt 21:44; Ac 7:58).
Leviticus 20:4 Verse 4
If the people of the land do any ways hide their eyes from the man, &c.--that is, connive at their countrymen practising the horrid rites of Molech. Awful was it that any Hebrew parents could so violate their national covenant, and no wonder that God denounced the severest penalties against them and their families. 7-19. Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy--The minute specification of the incestuous and unnatural crimes here enumerated shows their sad prevalence amongst the idolatrous nations around, and the extreme proneness of the Israelites to follow the customs of their neighbors. It is to be understood, that, whenever mention is made that the offender was "to be put to death" without describing the mode, stoning is meant. The only instance of another form of capital punishment occurs in Le 20:14, that of being burnt with fire; and yet it is probable that even here death was first inflicted by stoning, and the body of the criminal afterwards consumed by fire (Jos 7:15).
Leviticus 20:20 Verse 20
they shall die childless--Either by the judgment of God they shall have no children, or their spurious offspring shall be denied by human authority the ordinary privileges of children in Israel.
Leviticus 20:24 Verse 24
I ... have separated you from other people--Their selection from the rest of the nations was for the all-important end of preserving the knowledge and worship of the true God amid the universal apostasy; and as the distinction of meats was one great means of completing that separation, the law about making a difference between clean and unclean beasts is here repeated with emphatic solemnity.
Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
Pastoral and devotional reflections focused on spiritual formation and application.
Leviticus 20:1-9 Verses 1-9
Are we shocked at the unnatural cruelty of the ancient idolaters in sacrificing their children? We may justly be so. But are there not very many parents, who, by bad teaching and wicked examples, and by the mysteries of iniquity which they show their children, devote them to the service of Satan, and forward their everlasting ruin, in a manner even more to be lamented? What an account must such parents render to God, and what a meeting will they have with their children at the day of judgment! On the other hand, let children remember that he who cursed father or mother was surely put to death. This law Christ confirmed. Laws which were made before are repeated, and penalties annexed to them. If men will not avoid evil practices, because the law has made these practices sin, and it is right that we go on that principle, surely they should avoid them when the law has made them death, from a principle of self-preservation. In the midst of these laws comes in a general charge, Sanctify yourselves, and be ye holy. It is the Lord that sanctifies, and his work will be done, though it be difficult. Yet his grace is so far from doing away our endeavours, that it strongly encourages them. Work out your salvation, for it is God that worketh in you.
Leviticus 20:10-27 Verses 10-27
These verses repeat what had been said before, but it was needful there should be line upon line. What praises we owe to God that he has taught the evil of sin, and the sure way of deliverance from it! May we have grace to adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things; may we have no fellowship with unfruitful works of darkness, but reprove them.