Leviticus18

Leviticus 18 outlines God's commands to Israel regarding sexual purity and other abominable practices. The LORD instructs them not to follow the customs of Egypt or Canaan, but to obey His statutes. The chapter specifically prohibits various forms of incest, adultery, child sacrifice, homosexual acts, and bestiality, warning that such defilement will cause the land to expel its inhabitants.
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Call to Embrace God's Statutes

1
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2
Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, I am the LORD your God. ​
3
After the doings of the land of Egypt, wherein ye dwelt, shall ye not do: and after the doings of the land of Canaan, whither I bring you, shall ye not do: neither shall ye walk in their ordinances. ​
4
Ye shall do my judgments, and keep mine ordinances, to walk therein: I am the LORD your God.
5
Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD. ​

Prohibited Sexual Relations (Incest)

6
None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness: I am the LORD. ​
7
The nakedness of thy father, or the nakedness of thy mother, shalt thou not uncover: she is thy mother; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
8
The nakedness of thy father's wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father's nakedness. ​
9
The nakedness of thy sister, the daughter of thy father, or daughter of thy mother, whether she be born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover.
10
The nakedness of thy son's daughter, or of thy daughter's daughter, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover: for theirs is thine own nakedness.
11
The nakedness of thy father's wife's daughter, begotten of thy father, she is thy sister, thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
12
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father's sister: she is thy father's near kinswoman.
13
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy mother's sister: for she is thy mother's near kinswoman.
14
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father's brother, thou shalt not approach to his wife: she is thine aunt.
15
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy daughter in law: she is thy son's wife; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
16
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy brother's wife: it is thy brother's nakedness. ​
17
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter, neither shalt thou take her son's daughter, or her daughter's daughter, to uncover her nakedness; for they are her near kinswomen: it is wickedness.
18
Neither shalt thou take a wife to her sister, to vex her, to uncover her nakedness, beside the other in her life time. ​

Warning Against Other Abominations

19
Also thou shalt not approach unto a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is put apart for her uncleanness. ​
20
Moreover thou shalt not lie carnally with thy neighbour's wife, to defile thyself with her.
21
And thou shalt not let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD. ​
22
Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. ​
23
Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion. ​

The Consequences of Defiling the Land

24
Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you: ​
25
And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants. ​
26
Ye shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourneth among you:
27
(For all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled;)
28
That the land spue not you out also, when ye defile it, as it spued out the nations that were before you.
29
For whosoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among their people. ​
30
Therefore shall ye keep mine ordinance, that ye commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God.

Study Notes for Leviticus 18

Verse 2

This proclamation establishes the covenant relationship between Yahweh and Israel, emphasizing that the laws are rooted in God’s identity as their sovereign authority.

Verse 3

Israel is commanded to maintain behavioral distinction from the corrupt practices of both their recent past (Egypt) and the land they are about to enter (Canaan), reinforcing the theme of holiness.

Verse 5

The promise that 'he shall live in them' signifies covenant blessing and flourishing—physical health, prosperity, and continuation within the land, rather than a guarantee of eternal life.

Verse 6

This verse introduces the central theme of kinship prohibitions. 'Uncover their nakedness' is a common biblical euphemism for sexual intercourse.

Verse 8

This prohibition applies even if the father is deceased, indicating that marriage to a stepmother is viewed as a violation of the father’s conjugal rights and honor.

Verse 16

Generally prohibits marriage to a sister-in-law. This is distinct from the later law of levirate marriage (Deut. 25:5-10), which is a mandatory exception if the brother died childless.

Verse 18

This verse is widely interpreted as prohibiting sororal polygyny—marrying two sisters simultaneously. The explicit reasoning is pragmatic: to prevent domestic jealousy and strife ('to vex her').

Verse 19

Intercourse during a woman’s menstrual impurity (*niddah*) was forbidden because it involved contact with a powerful source of ritual defilement.

Verse 21

The prohibition against sacrificing children to Molech (likely a deity associated with the Ammonites) is categorized as profaning God’s name, as it links Yahweh's people with horrific pagan rites.

Verse 22

This is a key prohibition against male homosexual intercourse, classified as *to'evah* ('abomination'), denoting something ritually and morally repugnant to God and the covenant community.

Verse 23

Bestiality is prohibited as 'confusion' (*tevel*), signifying the blurring and destruction of the divinely established boundaries between human and animal life.

Verse 24

These sexual and ritual sins are identified as the very acts that led to the defilement of the Canaanite nations, justifying God’s judgment upon them.

Verse 25

The land is personified: it becomes ritually defiled by the inhabitants' sin and eventually 'vomits out' those who corrupt it, establishing a direct link between moral behavior and territorial security.

Verse 29

The penalty for committing these specific abominations is to be 'cut off,' which typically means excommunication from the covenant community, often resulting in premature death or execution.

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