Leviticus 19 Footnotes

19:9 “Gleanings” refers to that which falls to the ground during reaping. It was the practice in ancient Israel to cut the stalks of grain with one hand while catching what was reaped with the other. Whatever the reaper failed to catch in his other hand fell to the ground and was known as “gleanings” (Ru 2:3,7).

19:13 The term “neighbor” (Hb rea‘) can also refer to a non-Israelite (see Gn 38:12,20, “friend”; Ex 11:2); that extended meaning is intended here.

19:27 Tearing out the hair of one’s beard, as well as of the head, was a custom associated with mourning over the dead (see 21:5; Dt 14:1; Is 15:2; 22:12; Jr 16:6; Am 8:10).

19:33 The “alien” (Hb ger) in the Bible was most often a foreign merchant, craftsman, or mercenary soldier. This term never refers to the prior inhabitants of the land. Generous actions to foreigners were motivated by the memory of the Israelite sojourn in Egypt (Ex 23:9; Dt 5:14-15).