Leviticus 19:13-23

13 1"You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. 2The wages of a hired servant shall not remain with you all night until the morning.
14 3You shall not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall 4fear your God: I am the LORD.
15 5"You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor.
16 6You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not 7stand up against the life[a] of your neighbor: I am the LORD.
17 8"You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but 9you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you 10incur sin because of him.
18 11You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but 12you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.

You Shall Keep My Statutes

19 13"You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your cattle breed with a different kind. 14You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor shall you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material.
20 "If a man lies sexually with a woman who is a slave, assigned to another man and not yet ransomed or given her freedom, a distinction shall be made. They shall not be put to death, because she was not free;
21 but 15he shall bring his compensation to the LORD, to the entrance of the tent of meeting, a ram for a guilt offering.
22 And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering before the LORD for his sin that he has committed, and he shall be forgiven for the sin that he has committed.
23 "When you come into the land and plant any kind of tree for food, then you shall regard its fruit as forbidden.[b] Three years it shall be forbidden to you; it must not be eaten.

Leviticus 19:13-23 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO LEVITICUS 19

This chapter contains various laws, ceremonial and moral, tending to the sanctification of men, in imitation of the holy God, Le 19:1,2; as concerning the reverence of parents, and observing the sabbaths, Le 19:3; against idolatry, Le 19:4; about offering and eating of peace offerings, Le 19:5-8; concerning harvest and gleaning of fields and vineyards, Le 19:9,10; respecting the breach of several of the commandments of the law, as the eighth, ninth, and third, particularly, Le 19:11-13; and others relating to the ill usage of the deaf and blind, and having respect to persons rich or poor in judgment, and acting the part of a tale bearer among people, Le 19:14-16; and bearing hatred and ill will to any of their neighbours, Le 19:17,18; and others forbidding mixtures in the generation of cattle, sowing fields, and wearing apparel, Le 19:19; and concerning the punishment of a man that lay with a bondmaid, and the offering he should bring for his atonement, Le 19:20-22; then follow certain laws concerning fruit trees, when the fruit of them should be eaten, Le 19:23-25; and concerning eating with blood, using enchantments, and observing times, and managing the hair of the head and beard, and avoiding to make any marks, prints, and cuttings in the flesh for the dead, Le 19:26-28; a caution not to prostitute a daughter to whoredom, and to observe the sabbath, and reverence the sanctuary of God, and pay no regard to wizards and familiar spirits, Le 19:29-31; to show reverence to ancient persons, and not to vex and distress strangers, Le 19:32-34; and to do no injustice in weight and measure, Le 19:35,36; all which instructions are to be carefully observed, and put in execution, Le 19:37.

Cross References 15

  • 1. Leviticus 6:2, 3
  • 2. Deuteronomy 24:14, 15; Malachi 3:5; [James 5:4]
  • 3. Deuteronomy 27:18
  • 4. ver. 32; Leviticus 25:17; Ecclesiastes 5:7; Ecclesiastes 12:13; 1 Peter 2:17
  • 5. Exodus 23:2, 3; Deuteronomy 1:17; Deuteronomy 16:19; Deuteronomy 27:19; Psalms 82:2; Proverbs 24:23; James 2:9; [2 Chronicles 19:6, 7]
  • 6. Proverbs 11:13; Proverbs 20:19
  • 7. Exodus 23:1, 7; [Matthew 26:60, 61]; See 1 Kings 21:10-13; Acts 6:11-13
  • 8. 1 John 2:9, 11; 1 John 3:15
  • 9. Proverbs 27:5, 6; Matthew 18:15; Luke 17:3; Galatians 6:1; Ephesians 5:11
  • 10. [Leviticus 22:16; Romans 1:32; 1 Timothy 5:22; 2 John 11]
  • 11. Proverbs 20:22; Romans 12:17, 19; Hebrews 10:30
  • 12. Matthew 5:43; Cited Matthew 19:19; Matthew 22:39; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27; Romans 13:9; Galatians 5:14; James 2:8
  • 13. See Leviticus 18:4, 5
  • 14. Deuteronomy 22:9-11
  • 15. Leviticus 5:15; Leviticus 6:6, 7

Footnotes 2

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.