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Leviticus 18

YHWH sets boundaries for Israel’s conduct and warns that defilement brings judgment on people and the land they inhabit.

YHWH tells Moses to address Israel as the people prepare to enter Canaan. They must follow his commands rather than the customs of Egypt or Canaan. The laws forbid sexual relations within close family ties and set further boundaries on sexual conduct. They also prohibit sacrificing children to Molech. The closing warnings describe these acts as defiling both people and land, and place native-born Israelites and resident foreigners under the same requirements.

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2“Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘I am the LORD your God.
3You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived. You shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. You shall not follow their statutes.
4You shall do my ordinances. You shall keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the LORD your God.
5You shall therefore keep my statutes and my ordinances, which if a man does, he shall live in them. I am the LORD.
6“‘None of you shall approach any close relatives, to uncover their nakedness: I am the LORD.
7“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father, nor the nakedness of your mother: she is your mother. You shall not uncover her nakedness.
8“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s wife. It is your father’s nakedness.
9“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father, or the daughter of your mother, whether born at home or born abroad.
12“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister. She is your father’s near kinswoman.
15“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife. You shall not uncover her nakedness.
16“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife. It is your brother’s nakedness.
17“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter. You shall not take her son’s daughter, or her daughter’s daughter, to uncover her nakedness. They are near kinswomen. It is wickedness.
18“‘You shall not take a wife in addition to her sister, to be a rival, to uncover her nakedness, while her sister is still alive.
19“‘You shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is impure by her uncleanness.
20“‘You shall not lie carnally with your neighbor’s wife, and defile yourself with her.
21“‘You shall not give any of your children as a sacrifice to Molech. You shall not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.
22“‘You shall not lie with a man as with a woman. That is detestable.
23“‘You shall not lie with any animal to defile yourself with it. No woman may give herself to an animal, to lie down with it: it is a perversion.
24“‘Don’t defile yourselves in any of these things; for in all these the nations which I am casting out before you were defiled.
25The land was defiled. Therefore I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out her inhabitants.
26You therefore shall keep my statutes and my ordinances, and shall not do any of these abominations; neither the native-born, nor the stranger who lives as a foreigner among you
27(for the men of the land that were before you had done all these abominations, and the land became defiled),
28that the land not vomit you out also, when you defile it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you.
29“‘For whoever shall do any of these abominations, even the souls that do them shall be cut off from among their people.
30Therefore you shall keep my requirements, that you do not practice any of these abominable customs which were practiced before you, and that you do not defile yourselves with them. I am the LORD your God.’”
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Leviticus 18:22This prohibition places sexual intercourse between men among the acts YHWH forbids Israel and identifies as defiling.
Leviticus 18:5The promise of life through keeping God’s ordinances frames the commands that follow under his authority.
Leviticus 18:21The ban on sacrificing children to Molech connects the protection of children with the honor of God’s name.
Where this chapter reaches

Romans quotes the statement about life through doing God’s commands, and Ezekiel repeats that language while recounting Israel’s disobedience. Jeremiah shares the condemnation of child sacrifice, while Deuteronomy repeats prohibitions concerning sexual conduct and warns that disobedience can cost Israel its place in the land.

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Notice

After reading the whole chapter

What does the repeated declaration “I am the LORD your God” establish about the commands that follow?

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How does the warning that the land could expel Israel shape your reading of these laws?

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Questions people ask about Leviticus 18

What does “uncover their nakedness” mean in Leviticus 18?

The phrase functions here as a way of speaking about sexual relations. Verses 6–18 use it to forbid intercourse within specified family relationships, including relationships through marriage. The repeated references to another relative’s nakedness show how these acts violate family bonds as well as the stated sexual boundaries.

What does Leviticus 18:22 prohibit?

Verse 22 prohibits a man from having sexual intercourse with another man as with a woman. It appears among commands governing sexual conduct and is included in the closing warnings about defilement. The verse addresses an act; it does not discuss modern categories of sexual orientation or limit its prohibition to ritual settings.

Why does Leviticus 18 say the land vomited out its inhabitants?

The image portrays the land expelling inhabitants because their conduct has defiled it. Verse 25 identifies this as God’s punishment of iniquity. Israel receives the same warning: possession of the land does not exempt the people from judgment. If they practice these acts, they too face expulsion.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).