Leviticus 18
1 Yahweh also said to Moses/me,
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 “Speak to the Israeli people and tell them [that I, Yahweh, say this] this: I am Yahweh, your God.
Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, I am the LORD your God.
3 [So you must do what I want you to do]; you must not do the things that the people in Egypt, where you lived previously, do; and you must not do what is done by the people in Canaan, the land to which I am taking you. Do not imitate their behavior.
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 statutes.
4 You must obey all of my laws [DOU], because it is I, Yahweh your God, [who am commanding those laws].
My judgments shall ye do, and my statutes shall ye keep, to walk therein: I am the LORD your God.
5 If you obey all my laws and decrees, you will continue to remain alive [for a long time]. I, Yahweh, [am the one who is promising that to you]. [These are some of my laws]:
Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD.
6 “Do not have sex with any of your close relatives. It is I, Yahweh, [who am commanding that].
None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover [their] nakedness: I am the LORD.
7 “Do not disgrace your father by having sex with your mother [DOU].
The nakedness of thy father, even the nakedness of thy mother, shalt thou not uncover: she is thy mother; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
8 “Do not have sex with any of your father’s [other] wives, because that would disgrace your father.
The nakedness of thy father’s wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father’s nakedness.
9 “Do not have sex with your sister or your stepsister; it does not matter whether she was born in your house or somewhere else.
The nakedness of thy sister, the daughter of thy father, or the daughter of thy mother, whether born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness thou shalt not uncover.
10 “Do not have sex with your granddaughter, because that would disgrace you.
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 “Do not have sex with your half-sister, because she is your sister.
The nakedness of thy father’s wife’s daughter, begotten of thy father, she is thy sister, thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
12 “Do not have sex with your father’s sister, because she is your father’s close relative.
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father’s sister: she is thy father’s near kinswoman.
13 “Do not have sex with your mother’s sister, because she is your mother’s close relative.
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy mother’s sister: for she is thy mother’s near kinswoman.
14 “Do not disgrace your (uncle/father’s brother) by having sex with his wife, because she is your aunt.
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy father’s brother, thou shalt not approach to his wife: she is thine aunt.
15 “Do not have sex with [DOU] your daughter-in-law, because she is your son’s wife.
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy daughter in law: she is thy son’s wife; thou shalt not uncover her nakedness.
16 “Do not have sex with your brother’s wife, because that would disgrace your brother.
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of thy brother’s wife: it is thy brother’s nakedness.
17 “Do not have sex with the daughter or granddaughter of any woman whom you have previously had sex with; they are [her] (OR, [your]) close relatives. Having sex with any of them would be a wicked thing to do.
Thou shalt not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter; thou shalt not take her son’s daughter, or her daughter’s daughter, to uncover her nakedness; they are near kinswomen: it is wickedness.
18 “While your wife is still living, do not marry your wife’s sister and have sex with her.
And thou shalt not take a woman to her sister, to be a rival [to her], to uncover her nakedness, beside the other in her life time.
19 “Do not have sex with any woman while she is having her monthly menstrual period.
And thou shalt not approach unto a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is impure by her uncleanness.
20 “Do not (defile yourself/make yourself unacceptable to me) by having sex with someone else’s wife.
And thou shalt not lie carnally with thy neighbour’s wife, to defile thyself with her.
21 “Do not give any of your children to be burned to be a sacrifice to the god Molech, because that would show that you do not revere me [MTY], Yahweh, your God.
And thou shalt not give any of thy seed to make them pass through [the fire] to Molech, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.
22 “No man should have sex with another man; that is detestable.
Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.
23 “No one, man or woman, should (defile himself/cause himself to become unacceptable to me) by having sex with an animal; that is a perverse act.
And thou shalt not lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast, to lie down thereto: it is confusion.
24 “Do not (defile yourselves/cause yourselves to become unacceptable to me) in any of those ways, because doing those things is how the people of the nations that I expelled as you advanced became (unacceptable to me/defiled).
Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out from before you:
25 They even caused the land to become defiled, so I punished them for their sins, and [it was as though] the land vomited out the people who lived there.
And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land vomiteth out her inhabitants.
26 You must all obey my laws and decrees. That includes you people who were born here and the foreigners who live among you.
Ye therefore shall keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not do any of these abominations; neither the homeborn, nor the stranger that sojourneth among you:
27 All those detestable things were done by the people who lived in this land before you came here, and they caused the land to become defiled.
(for all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled; )
28 So if you defile the land, I will get rid of [MET] you like I got rid of the people of those nations that were here before you came.
that the land vomit not you out also, when ye defile it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you.
29 “You must not allow people who do any of those detestable things to associate with you who are my people.
For whosoever shall do any of these abominations, even the souls that do them shall be cut off from among their people.
30 Obey everything that I command you to do, and do not defile yourselves by practicing any of the detestable customs that were practiced [by the people who were there] before you came. I, Yahweh your God, [am the one who is commanding these things].”
Therefore shall ye keep my charge, that ye do not any of these abominable customs, which were done before you, and that ye defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God.
