The
Lord spoke
to Moses, saying: “Speak to all the congregation of the people of
Israel and say to them:
'You shall be holy,1 for I the Lord your God am holy. You shall each revere your mother and father,2 and you shall keep my sabbaths:3 I am the Lord your God. Do not turn to idols or make cast images for yourselves:4 I am the Lord your God.
When you offer a sacrifice of well-being to the Lord, offer it in such a way that it is acceptable in your behalf.5 It shall be eaten on the same day you offer it, or on the next day; and anything left over until the third day shall be consumed in fire. If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination; it will not be acceptable. All who eat it shall be subject to punishment, because they have profaned what is holy to the Lord; and any such person shall be cut off from the people.6
When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not strip your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien:7 I am the Lord your God.
You shall not steal;8 you shall not deal falsely;9 and you shall not lie to one another.10 And you shall not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God: I am the Lord.
You shall not defraud your neighbour; you shall not steal; and you shall not keep for yourself the wages of a labourer until morning.11 You shall not revile the deaf or put a stumbling-block before the blind;12 you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.
You shall not render an unjust judgement; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great: with justice you shall judge your neighbour.13 You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people,14 and you shall not profit by the blood of your neighbour:15 I am the Lord.
You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin;16 you shall reprove your neighbour, or you will incur guilt yourself. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people,17 but you shall love your neighbour as yourself:18 I am the Lord.
You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your animals breed with a different kind; you shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed; nor shall you put on a garment made of two different materials.19
If a man has sexual relations with a woman who is a slave, designated for another man but not ransomed or given her freedom, an inquiry shall be held.20 They shall not be put to death, since she has not been freed; but he shall bring a guilt-offering for himself to the Lord, at the entrance of the tent of meeting, a ram as guilt-offering. And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of guilt-offering before the Lord for his sin that he committed; and the sin he committed shall be forgiven him.21
When you come into the land and plant all kinds of trees for food, then you shall regard their fruit as forbidden; for three years it shall be forbidden to you; it must not be eaten.22 In the fourth year all their fruit shall be set apart for rejoicing in the Lord.23 But in the fifth year you may eat of their fruit, that their yield may be increased for you:24 I am the Lord your God.
You shall not eat anything with its blood.25 You shall not practise augury or witchcraft. You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard. You shall not make any gashes in your flesh for the dead or tattoo any marks upon you:26 I am the Lord.
Do not profane your daughter by making her a prostitute, so that the land may not become prostituted and full of depravity.27 You shall keep my sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary:28 I am the Lord.
Do not turn to mediums or wizards; do not seek them out, to be defiled by them:29 I am the Lord your God.
You shall rise before the aged, and defer to the old;30 and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.
When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien.31 The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt:32 I am the Lord your God.
You shall not cheat in measuring length, weight, or quantity.33 You shall have honest balances, honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
You shall keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and observe them:34 I am the Lord.'"35
'You shall be holy,1 for I the Lord your God am holy. You shall each revere your mother and father,2 and you shall keep my sabbaths:3 I am the Lord your God. Do not turn to idols or make cast images for yourselves:4 I am the Lord your God.
When you offer a sacrifice of well-being to the Lord, offer it in such a way that it is acceptable in your behalf.5 It shall be eaten on the same day you offer it, or on the next day; and anything left over until the third day shall be consumed in fire. If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination; it will not be acceptable. All who eat it shall be subject to punishment, because they have profaned what is holy to the Lord; and any such person shall be cut off from the people.6
When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not strip your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien:7 I am the Lord your God.
You shall not steal;8 you shall not deal falsely;9 and you shall not lie to one another.10 And you shall not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God: I am the Lord.
You shall not defraud your neighbour; you shall not steal; and you shall not keep for yourself the wages of a labourer until morning.11 You shall not revile the deaf or put a stumbling-block before the blind;12 you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.
You shall not render an unjust judgement; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great: with justice you shall judge your neighbour.13 You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people,14 and you shall not profit by the blood of your neighbour:15 I am the Lord.
You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin;16 you shall reprove your neighbour, or you will incur guilt yourself. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people,17 but you shall love your neighbour as yourself:18 I am the Lord.
You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your animals breed with a different kind; you shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed; nor shall you put on a garment made of two different materials.19
If a man has sexual relations with a woman who is a slave, designated for another man but not ransomed or given her freedom, an inquiry shall be held.20 They shall not be put to death, since she has not been freed; but he shall bring a guilt-offering for himself to the Lord, at the entrance of the tent of meeting, a ram as guilt-offering. And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of guilt-offering before the Lord for his sin that he committed; and the sin he committed shall be forgiven him.21
When you come into the land and plant all kinds of trees for food, then you shall regard their fruit as forbidden; for three years it shall be forbidden to you; it must not be eaten.22 In the fourth year all their fruit shall be set apart for rejoicing in the Lord.23 But in the fifth year you may eat of their fruit, that their yield may be increased for you:24 I am the Lord your God.
You shall not eat anything with its blood.25 You shall not practise augury or witchcraft. You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard. You shall not make any gashes in your flesh for the dead or tattoo any marks upon you:26 I am the Lord.
Do not profane your daughter by making her a prostitute, so that the land may not become prostituted and full of depravity.27 You shall keep my sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary:28 I am the Lord.
Do not turn to mediums or wizards; do not seek them out, to be defiled by them:29 I am the Lord your God.
You shall rise before the aged, and defer to the old;30 and you shall fear your God: I am the Lord.
When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien.31 The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt:32 I am the Lord your God.
You shall not cheat in measuring length, weight, or quantity.33 You shall have honest balances, honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
You shall keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and observe them:34 I am the Lord.'"35
1
The previous set of instructions were based on “you shall not
defile yourself” and not being like the pagans. This set is based
on “you shall be holy, for God is holy” and does not mention
Canaanites or Egyptians, but I am not positive that they differ in
intent.
2
From the 10 commandments, but this time with “revere”.
3
Also from 10 commandments.
4
Again from the 10 commandments.
5
Now the narrative moves back towards keeping the cultic practices
correctly
6
This is all simply repeated from chapter 7.
7
This is strikingly different from the preceding verses. Rather
than focusing on cultic practice, it asks Israelites to care for the
poor. This particular command is not followed by Christians.
8
Again from the 10 commandments.
9
Following this command would destroy the corporate marketing and
advertising world as we know it, not to mention much of the rest of
how businesses are currently run.
10
Again from the 10 commandments. Which of the 10 commandments are
repeated in this chapter seems random.
11
Another command that favors the poor. This one is also not
practiced today.
12
A command not to take advantage of the weaknesses of the disabled.
It is possible that this is meant metaphorically, and is a stressor
on the previous verse, but I think it is to be meant literally.
13
A threefold command regarding justice that interestingly protects
both the poor and the rich. This is the first command specifically
mentioning justice in Leviticus. Today's legal system, where the
wealthy get far better lawyers and can pay bails to stay out of
jail, obviously favors in rich, in defiance of this command.
14
Related to false witness.
15
This extends “Thou shall not kill” to “Thou shall not profit
by blood”. Mostly ignored today.
16
Good to command against hate, but in this context only applied to
one's kin.
17
Very strong words about maintaining good relations with others.
Don't hate, don't take vengeance, don't bear a grudge. All ignored
today.
18
“Love your neighbor as yourself” is an incredibly powerful
command. Only rarely have small communities been able to act it out
in practice.
19
These are difficult to understand the point of. They seem to relate
to a desire to preserve strict boundaries. Ignored today.
20 Slavery
is assumed, and the rights of a slave are less than those of a free
woman.
21
Fornication with a slave seems to be less serious. For some reason
a response is given here, unlike the other commands.
22
Again hard to understand. Perhaps allows the tree/fruit to mature.
23
God receives the first good harvest.
24
Following the command brings goodness. Trust in God and he will
provide. Ignored today.
25
Repeated from chapter 17.
26
Seem to relate to pagan religious practice. Ignored today.
27
So sad that this needs to be a command, but parents do it still
today.
28
Back to cultic practices.
29
Yet another response to pagan practice.
30
Respect for the elderly, not just one's parents. Mostly ignored
today.
31
Protection for foreigners' rights.
32
Amazing support for immigrants. Ignored today.
33
Relating “do not lie” to an economic situation.
34
Stresses the importance of following all that has just been
commanded.
35
“I am the Lord” repeated for the 14th time in the
passage.
Take-home: In a chapter unlike any in the Bible to this point, Israel is called to holiness by following a set of commands. The commands mix religious observation, honestly in social and economic relations, concern for the poor, and moral purity, seemingly without recognizing distinctions between “religious” and “ethical” behavior as we might today.
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