The Word Am I

The Third Book of Moses: Leviticus

Unlocked Dynamic Bible :: World English Bible Catholic

- Chapter 19 -

1
Yahweh also said to Moses,
2
“Speak to all the people of Israel and tell them this: ’You must be holy, because Yahweh your God is holy, and he wants you to be like him.
3
Each of you must respect your father and your mother. And you must honor the Sabbath days. It is Yahweh, your God, who is commanding you to do these things.
4
Do not worship idols, which are worth nothing, or make metal statues of gods for yourselves. Yahweh is your God; it is he who is telling you this. He is the only one you must worship.
5
Yahweh also says this: ’When you bring an offering to promise friendship with me, offer it in a way that I will accept.
6
The meat should be eaten on the day that you sacrifice it, but you may eat some of it on the next day. However, you must burn anything that remains until the third day.
7
For any of it to be eaten on the third day is very displeasing to me, and I will not accept that offering.
8
I will punish anyone who eats it after the second day, because he will have not respected what I say is holy. And that person must no longer be allowed to associate with my people.

Love Your Neighbor

(Romans 13:8–10)
9
When you harvest your grain, leave the grain standing at the edges of the field and in the corners. Do not pick up the sheaves that have fallen to the ground.
10
And when you harvest your grapes, do not go back a second time to try to harvest some more, and do not pick up the grapes that have fallen on the ground. Leave those things for the poor people and for foreigners who are living among you. I, Yahweh your God, am commanding you those things.
11
Do not steal anything. Do not tell lies. Do not deceive each other.
12
Do not call upon me to punish you if you say something that you know is false. If you do this, you will dishonor me. Do not forget that I am Yahweh, your God.
13
Do not cheat anyone or steal from anyone. If you have agreed to pay your workers at the end of the day, do what you have promised. Do not keep those wages until the next day.
14
Do not curse deaf people, and do not put things in the path of blind people to cause them to stumble. I, Yahweh, am commanding this.
15
Always judge people fairly. Do not do special favors for either poor people or rich people.
16
Do not spread false rumors about other people. Do not remain silent in court if your testimony would keep an innocent person from being executed. I, Yahweh, am commanding this.
17
Do not hate anyone. Instead, honestly rebuke others who ought to be rebuked, in order that you also will not be guilty.
18
Do not try to get revenge against someone or be angry with someone for a long time. Instead, love other people like you love yourself. I, Yahweh your God, am commanding this.

Keep My Statutes

19
Obey my laws. Do not allow two different kinds of animals to mate with each other. Do not plant two different kinds of seed in the same field. Do not wear clothing made from two different kinds of material.
20
If a man sleeps with a slave woman who has been promised to marry some other man, but if she has not been bought by that man and is still a slave, these two people must be punished. But because she was still a slave, she and the man who slept with her must not be executed.
21
However, that man must bring a ram to be slaughtered at the entrance of the sacred tent area, to be an offering in order that he no longer be guilty for his sin.
22
The priest will offer that ram to me. Then I will forgive that man for the sin which he committed.
23
When you enter the land that I have promised to give to you, and when you plant various kinds of fruit trees, you must not eat any of their fruit for three years.
24
In the fourth year you must set aside all of their fruit to belong to me; you must set it apart as holy, an offering to give me praise.
25
But in the fifth year, you will be permitted to eat their fruit. If you do that, your trees will produce much fruit. I, Yahweh your God, am promising that.
26
Do not eat any meat that still has the animal’s blood in it. Do not consult spirits to find out what will happen in the future, and do not practice sorcery.
27
Do not shave the hair at the sides of your heads as pagan people do.
28
Do not cut your bodies when you are mourning for people who have died, and do not put tattoos on your bodies. I, Yahweh your God, am commanding this.
29
Do not disgrace your daughters by forcing them to become prostitutes. If you cause them to become prostitutes, soon the land will be filled with prostitutes and all other kinds of people’s wicked behavior.
30
Honor my Sabbath days and revere my sacred tent, because I am Yahweh.
31
Do not seek advice from those who try to get the spirits of dead people to give them advice. If you do that, I will no longer accept you. I am Yahweh your God.
32
Stand up when old people enter the room, and show that you respect them. You must also honor me, your God; that is who I am.
33
When foreigners live among you in your land, do not mistreat them.
34
You must treat them like you treat your fellow citizens. Love them as you love yourselves, and do not forget that once when you were foreigners in Egypt you were badly mistreated by the people of Egypt. I, Yahweh your God, am commanding you to do this.
35
When you are measuring things, to see how long they are or how much they weigh or how many there are,
36
use correct measuring sticks and scales and weights on the scales and measuring baskets and other measuring containers. I am Yahweh, your God, who brought you out of Egypt.
37
Obey carefully all my laws and decrees. It is I, Yahweh, who am commanding you these things.’”
1
The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
2
Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and tell them, ‘You shall be holy; for I, the LORD your God, am holy.
3
“‘Each one of you shall respect his mother and his father. You shall keep my Sabbaths. I am the LORD your God.
4
“‘Don’t turn to idols, nor make molten gods for yourselves. I am the LORD your God.
5
“‘When you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to the LORD, you shall offer it so that you may be accepted.
6
It shall be eaten the same day you offer it, and on the next day. If anything remains until the third day, it shall be burned with fire.
7
If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination. It will not be accepted;
8
but everyone who eats it shall bear his iniquity, because he has profaned the holy thing of the LORD, and that soul shall be cut off from his people.

Love Your Neighbor

(Romans 13:8–10)
9
“‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field, neither shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest.
10
You shall not glean your vineyard, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the foreigner. I am the LORD your God.
11
“‘You shall not steal. “‘You shall not lie. “‘You shall not deceive one another.
12
“‘You shall not swear by my name falsely, and profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.
13
“‘You shall not oppress your neighbor, nor rob him. “‘The wages of a hired servant shall not remain with you all night until the morning.
14
“‘You shall not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before the blind; but you shall fear your God. I am the LORD.
15
“‘You shall do no injustice in judgment. You shall not be partial to the poor, nor show favoritism to the great; but you shall judge your neighbor in righteousness.
16
“‘You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people. “‘You shall not endanger the life (a) of your neighbor. I am the LORD.
17
“‘You shall not hate your brother in your heart. You shall surely rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him.
18
“‘You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people; but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.

Keep My Statutes

19
“‘You shall keep my statutes. “‘You shall not cross-breed different kinds of animals. “‘You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed; “‘Don’t wear a garment made of two kinds of material.
20
“‘If a man lies carnally with a woman who is a slave girl, pledged to be married to another man, and not ransomed or given her freedom; they shall be punished. They shall not be put to death, because she was not free.
21
He shall bring his trespass offering to the LORD, to the door of the Tent of Meeting, even a ram for a trespass offering.
22
The priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the LORD for his sin which he has committed; and the sin which he has committed shall be forgiven him.
23
“‘When you come into the land, and have planted all kinds of trees for food, then you shall count their fruit as forbidden.(b) For three years it shall be forbidden to you. It shall not be eaten.
24
But in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, for giving praise to the LORD.
25
In the fifth year you shall eat its fruit, that it may yield its increase to you. I am the LORD your God.
26
“‘You shall not eat any meat with the blood still in it. You shall not use enchantments, nor practice sorcery.
27
“‘You shall not cut the hair on the sides of your head or clip off the edge of your beard.
28
“‘You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you. I am the LORD.
29
“‘Don’t profane your daughter, to make her a prostitute; lest the land fall to prostitution, and the land become full of wickedness.
30
“‘You shall keep my Sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary; I am the LORD.
31
“‘Don’t turn to those who are mediums, nor to the wizards. Don’t seek them out, to be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God.
32
“‘You shall rise up before the gray head and honor the face of the elderly; and you shall fear your God. I am the LORD.
33
“‘If a stranger lives as a foreigner with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong.
34
The stranger who lives as a foreigner with you shall be to you as the native-born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you lived as foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.
35
“‘You shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in measures of length, of weight, or of quantity.
36
You shall have just balances, just weights, a just ephah,(c) and a just hin.(d) I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
37
“‘You shall observe all my statutes and all my ordinances, and do them. I am the LORD.’”

Footnotes

(a)19:16 literally, “blood”
(b)19:23 literally, “uncircumcised”
(c)19:36 1 ephah is about 22 liters or about 2/3 of a bushel
(d)19:36 A hin is about 6.5 liters or 1.7 gallons.