Leviticus 19

1 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

And the Lord said to Moses,

2 “Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and tell them, ‘You shall be holy; for I, Yahweh your God, am holy.

Say to all the people of Israel, You are to 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 Yahweh your God.

Let every man give honour to his mother and to his father and keep my Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God.

4 “‘Don’t turn to idols, nor make molten gods for yourselves. I am Yahweh your God.

Do not go after false gods, and do not make metal images of gods for yourselves: I am the Lord your God.

5 “‘When you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to Yahweh, you shall offer it so that you may be accepted.

And when you give a peace offering to the Lord, do it in the way which is pleasing to the Lord.

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.

Let it be used for food on the same day on which it is offered, or on the day after; and whatever is over on the third day is to be burned with fire.

7 If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination. It will not be accepted;

If any of it is used for food on the third day, it is a disgusting thing and will not be pleasing to the Lord.

8 but everyone who eats it shall bear his iniquity, because he has profaned the holy thing of Yahweh, and that soul shall be cut off from his people.

And as for anyone who takes it for food, his sin will be on him, for he has put shame on the holy thing of the Lord: he will be cut off from his people.

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.

And when you get in the grain from your land, do not let all the grain be cut from the edges of the field, or take up what has been dropped on the earth after the getting in of the grain.

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 Yahweh your God.

And do not take all the grapes from your vine-garden, or the fruit dropped on the earth; let the poor man, and the man from another country, have these: I am the Lord your God.

11 “‘You shall not steal. “‘You shall not lie. “‘You shall not deceive one another.

Do not take anyone's property or be false in act or word to another.

12 “‘You shall not swear by my name falsely, and profane the name of your God. I am Yahweh.

And do not take an oath in my name falsely, putting shame on 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.

Do not be cruel to your neighbour or take what is his; do not keep back a servant's payment from him all night till 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 Yahweh.

Do not put a curse on those who have no hearing, or put a cause of falling in the way of the blind, but keep the fear of your God before you: 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.

Do no wrong in your judging: do not give thought to the position of the poor, or honour to the position of the great; but be a judge to your neighbour in righteousness.

16 “‘You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people. “‘You shall not endanger the life of your neighbor. I am Yahweh.

Do not go about saying untrue things among your people, or take away the life of your neighbour by false witness: 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.

Let there be no hate in your heart for your brother; but you may make a protest to your neighbour, so that he may be stopped from doing evil.

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 Yahweh.

Do not make attempts to get equal with one who has done you wrong, or keep hard feelings against the children of your people, but have love for your neighbour as for yourself: I am the Lord.

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.

Keep my laws. Do not let your cattle have offspring by those of a different sort; do not put mixed seed into your field; do not put on a robe made of two sorts of cloth.

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.

If any man has sex relations with a servant-woman who has given her word to be married to a man, and has not been made free for a price or in any other way, the thing will be looked into; but they will not be put to death because she was not a free woman.

21 He shall bring his trespass offering to Yahweh, to the door of the Tent of Meeting, even a ram for a trespass offering.

Let him take his offering for wrongdoing to the Lord, to the door of the Tent of meeting; let him give a male sheep as an offering for wrongdoing.

22 The priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before Yahweh for his sin which he has committed; and the sin which he has committed shall be forgiven him.

And the priest will take away his sin before the Lord with the sheep which is offered for his wrongdoing, and he will have forgiveness for the sin which he has done.

23 “‘When you come into the land, and have planted all kinds of trees for food, then you shall count their fruit as forbidden. For three years it shall be forbidden to you. It shall not be eaten.

And when you have come into the land, and have put in all sorts of fruit-trees, their fruit will be as if they had not had circumcision, and for three years their fruit may not be used for food.

24 But in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, for giving praise to Yahweh.

And in the fourth year all the fruit will be holy as a praise-offering to the Lord.

25 In the fifth year you shall eat its fruit, that it may yield its increase to you. I am Yahweh your God.

But in the fifth year you may take the fruit and the increase of it for your food: 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.

Nothing may be used for food with its blood in it; you may not make use of strange arts, or go in search of signs and wonders.

27 “‘You shall not cut the hair on the sides of your head or clip off the edge of your beard.

The ends of the hair round your face and on your chin may not be cut off.

28 “‘You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you. I am Yahweh.

You may not make cuts in your flesh in respect for the dead, or have marks printed on your bodies: 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.

Do not make your daughter common by letting her become a loose woman, for fear that the land may become full of shame.

30 “‘You shall keep my Sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary; I am Yahweh.

Keep my Sabbaths and have respect for my holy place: 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 Yahweh your God.

Do not go after those who make use of spirits, or wonder-workers; do not go in their ways or become unclean through 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 Yahweh.

Get up from your seats before the white-haired, and give honour to the old, and let the fear of your God be before you: I am the Lord.

33 “‘If a stranger lives as a foreigner with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong.

And if a man from another country is living in your land with you, do not make life hard for him;

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 Yahweh your God.

Let him be to you as one of your countrymen and have love for him as for yourself; for you were living in a strange land, 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.

Do not make false decisions in questions of yard-sticks and weights and measures.

36 You shall have just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin. I am Yahweh your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.

Have true scales, true weights and measures for all things: I am the Lord your God, who took you out of the land of Egypt;

37 “‘You shall observe all my statutes and all my ordinances, and do them. I am Yahweh.’”

You are to keep all my rules and my decisions and do them: I am the Lord.