Leviticus 19

Various Laws

19The Lord said to Moses, ²“Speak to the entire assembly of Israel^d and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God,^e am holy.^f

³“ ‘Each of you must respect your mother and father,^g and you must observe my Sabbaths.^h I am the Lord your God.ⁱ

⁴“ ‘Do not turn to idols or make metal gods for yourselves.^j I am the Lord your God.^k

⁵“ ‘When you sacrifice a fellowship offering to the Lord, sacrifice it in such a way that it will be accepted on your behalf. ⁶It shall be eaten on the day you sacrifice it or on the next day; anything left over until the third day must be burned up.^{l 7}If any of it is eaten on the third day, it is impure and will not be accepted.^{m 8}Whoever eats it will be held responsibleⁿ because they have desecrated what is holy^o to the Lord; they must be cut off from their people.^p

⁹“ ‘When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges^q of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest.^{r 10}Do not go over your vineyard a second time^s or pick up the grapes that have fallen.^t Leave them for the poor and the foreigner.^u I am the Lord your God.

¹¹“ ‘Do not steal.^v

“ ‘Do not lie.^w

“ ‘Do not deceive one another.^x

¹²“ ‘Do not swear falsely^y by my name^z and so profane^a the name of your God. I am the Lord.

¹³“ ‘Do not defraud or rob^b your neighbor.^c

“ ‘Do not hold back the wages of a hired worker^d overnight.^e

¹⁴“ ‘Do not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block in front of the blind,^f but fear your God.^g I am the Lord.

¹⁵“ ‘Do not pervert justice;^h do not show partialityⁱ to the poor or favoritism to the great,^j but judge your neighbor fairly.^k

¹⁶“ ‘Do not go about spreading slander^l among your people.

“ ‘Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life.^m I am the Lord.

¹⁷“ ‘Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart.ⁿ Rebuke your neighbor frankly^o so you will not share in their guilt.

¹⁸“ ‘Do not seek revenge^p or bear a grudge^q against anyone among your people,^r but love your neighbor^s as yourself.^t I am the Lord.

¹⁹“ ‘Keep my decrees.^u

“ ‘Do not mate different kinds of animals.

“ ‘Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed.^v

“ ‘Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.^w

²⁰“ ‘If a man sleeps with a female slave who is promised to another man^x but who has not been ransomed or given her freedom, there must be due punishment.^a Yet they are not to be put to death, because she had not been freed. ²¹The man, however, must bring a ram to the entrance to the tent of meeting for a guilt offering to the Lord.^{y 22}With the ram of the guilt offering the priest is to make atonement for him before the Lord for the sin he has committed, and his sin will be forgiven.^z

²³“ ‘When you enter the land and plant any kind of fruit tree, regard its fruit as forbidden.^b For three years you are to consider it forbidden^c; it must not be eaten. ²⁴In the fourth year all its fruit will be holy,^a an offering of praise to the Lord. ²⁵But in the fifth year you may eat its fruit. In this way your harvest will be increased. I am the Lord your God.

²⁶“ ‘Do not eat any meat with the blood still in it.^b

“ ‘Do not practice divination^c or seek omens.^d

²⁷“ ‘Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard.^e

²⁸“ ‘Do not cut^f your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.

²⁹“ ‘Do not degrade your daughter by making her a prostitute,^g or the land will turn to prostitution and be filled with wickedness.^h

³⁰“ ‘Observe my Sabbathsⁱ and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the Lord.^j

³¹“ ‘Do not turn to mediums^k or seek out spiritists,^l for you will be defiled by them. I am the Lord your God.

³²“ ‘Stand up in the presence of the aged, show respect^m for the elderlyⁿ and revere your God.^o I am the Lord.^p

³³“ ‘When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. ³⁴The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born.^q Love them as yourself,^r for you were foreigners^s in Egypt.^t I am the Lord your God.

³⁵“ ‘Do not use dishonest standards when measuring length, weight or quantity.^{u 36}Use honest scales^v and honest weights, an honest ephah^dw and an honest hin.^ex I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt.^y

³⁷“ ‘Keep all my decrees^z and all my laws^a and follow them. I am the Lord.’ ”