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Leviticus 19

Laws of Holiness and Justice

1The LORD told Moses 2to say to the community of Israel, “Be holy, because I, the LORD your God, am holy. 3Each of you must respect his mother and his father, and must keep the Sabbath, as I have commanded. I am the LORD your God.

Notes for verses 1–32 entries

Cross-references

  • Leviticus 19:2 – Leviticus 11:44–45 ; 1 Peter 1:16

  • Leviticus 19:3 – Exodus 20:8 , Exodus 20:12 ; Deuteronomy 5:12 , Deuteronomy 5:16

4“Do not abandon me and worship idols; do not make gods of metal and worship them. I am the LORD your God.

Notes for verse 41 entry

Cross-references

  • Leviticus 19:4 – Leviticus 26:1 ; Exodus 20:23 ; Exodus 34:17 ; Deuteronomy 27:15

5“When you kill an animal for a fellowship offering, keep the regulations that I have given you, and I will accept the offering. 6The meat must be eaten on the day the animal is killed or on the next day. Any meat left on the third day must be burnt, 7because it is ritually unclean, and if anyone eats it, I will not accept the offering. 8Anyone who eats it will be guilty of treating as ordinary what is dedicated to me, and he will no longer be considered one of my people.

9“When you harvest your fields, do not cut the corn at the edges of the fields, and do not go back to cut the ears of corn that were left. 10Do not go back through your vineyard to gather the grapes that were missed or to pick up the grapes that have fallen; leave them for poor people and foreigners. I am the LORD your God.

Notes for verses 9–101 entry

Cross-references

11“Do not steal or cheat or lie. 12Do not make a promise in my name if you do not intend to keep it; that brings disgrace on my name. I am the LORD your God.

Notes for verses 11–122 entries

Cross-references

  • Leviticus 19:11 – Exodus 20:15 , Exodus 20:16 ; Deuteronomy 5:19 , Deuteronomy 5:20

  • Leviticus 19:12 – Exodus 20:7 ; Deuteronomy 5:11 ; Matthew 5:33

13“Do not take advantage of anyone or rob him. Do not hold back the wages of someone you have hired, not even for one night. 14Do not curse a deaf man or put something in front of a blind man so as to make him stumble over it. Obey me; I am the LORD your God.

Notes for verses 13–142 entries

Cross-references

15“Be honest and just when you make decisions in legal cases; do not show favouritism to the poor or fear the rich. 16Do not spread lies about anyone, and when someone is on trial for his life, speak out if your testimony can help him. I am the LORD.

Notes for verses 15–161 entry

Cross-references

17“Do not bear a grudge against anyone, but settle your differences with him, so that you will not commit a sin because of him. 18Do not take revenge on anyone or continue to hate him, but love your neighbour as you love yourself. I am the LORD.

Notes for verses 17–183 entries

Text notes

  • Leviticus 19:17 so… him; or so that you do not commit this sin against him. View in passage

Cross-references

  • Leviticus 19:17 – Matthew 18:15

  • Leviticus 19:18 – Matthew 5:43 ; Matthew 19:19 ; Matthew 22:39 ; Mark 12:31 ; Luke 10:27 ; Romans 13:9 ; Galatians 5:14 ; James 2:8

19“Obey my commands. Do not crossbreed domestic animals. Do not plant two kinds of seed in the same field. Do not wear clothes made of two kinds of material.

Notes for verse 191 entry

Cross-references

20“If a slave woman is the recognized concubine of a man and she has not been paid for and freed, then if another man has sexual relations with her, they will be punished but not put to death, since she is a slave. 21The man shall bring a ram to the entrance of the Tent of my presence as his repayment offering, 22and with it the priest shall perform the ritual of purification to remove the man's sin, and God will forgive him.

Notes for verses 20–221 entry

Text notes

  • Leviticus 19:20 they… not; or an investigation will be made but they will not be. View in passage

23“When you come into the land of Canaan and plant any kind of fruit tree, consider the fruit ritually unclean for the first three years. During that time you must not eat it. 24In the fourth year all the fruit shall be dedicated as an offering to show your gratitude to me, the LORD. 25But in the fifth year you may eat the fruit. If you do all this, your trees will bear more fruit. I am the LORD your God.

Notes for verses 23–251 entry

Text notes

  • Leviticus 19:24 to show your gratitude to me; or in praise of me. View in passage

26“Do not eat any meat with blood still in it. Do not practise any kind of magic. 27Do not cut the hair on the sides of your head or trim your beard 28or tattoo yourselves or cut gashes in your body to mourn for the dead. I am the LORD.

Notes for verses 26–282 entries

Cross-references

  • Leviticus 19:26 – Genesis 9:4 ; Leviticus 7:26–27 ; Leviticus 17:10–14 ; Deuteronomy 12:16 , Deuteronomy 12:23 ; Deuteronomy 15:23 ; Deuteronomy 18:10

  • Leviticus 19:27–28 – Leviticus 2:5 ; Deuteronomy 14:1

29“Do not disgrace your daughters by making them temple prostitutes; if you do, you will turn to other gods and the land will be full of immorality. 30Keep the Sabbath, and honour the place where I am worshipped. I am the LORD.

Notes for verses 29–303 entries

Text notes

  • Leviticus 19:29 temple prostitutes: These women were found in Canaanite temples, where fertility gods were worshipped. It was believed that intercourse with these prostitutes assured fertile fields and herds. View in passage

Cross-references

31“Do not go for advice to people who consult the spirits of the dead. If you do, you will be ritually unclean. I am the LORD your God.

Notes for verse 311 entry

Cross-references

  • Leviticus 19:31 – Deuteronomy 18:11 ; 1 Samuel 28:3 ; 2 Kings 23:4 ; Isaiah 8:19

32“Show respect for old people and honour them. Reverently obey me; I am the LORD.

33“Do not ill-treat foreigners who are living in your land. 34Treat them as you would a fellow-Israelite, and love them as you love yourselves. Remember that you were once foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.

Notes for verses 33–341 entry

Cross-references

  • Leviticus 19:33–34 – Exodus 22:21 ; Deuteronomy 24:17–18 ; Deuteronomy 27:19

35“Do not cheat anyone by using false measures of length, weight, or quantity. 36Use honest scales, honest weights, and honest measures. I am the LORD your God, and I brought you out of Egypt. 37Obey all my laws and commands. I am the LORD.”

Notes for verses 35–371 entry

Cross-references

  • Leviticus 19:35–36 – Deuteronomy 25:13–16 ; Proverbs 20:10 ; Ezekiel 45:10

CopyrightGood News Translation® with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. Anglicisation © The British and Foreign Bible Society 1976, 1994, 2004 Additional material © The British and Foreign Bible Society 2017 The copyright for the derivative work of Anglicisation pertains only to the text within the Good News Translation (GNT) that British and Foreign Bible Society adapted for British literary usage, consistent with Section 103(b) of the United States Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 103(b). Bible text from the Good News Translation (GNT) is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by American Bible Society, 101 North Independence Mall East, Floor 8, Philadelphia, PA 19106-2155 (www.americanbible.org). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.