Leviticus 20:27

27 A man or a woman who is^[a] a medium or a spiritist^[b] must be put to death. They are to be stoned; their blood is on their own hands."^[c]

Leviticus 20:27 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 20:27

A man also or a woman that hath a familiar spirit
Or the spirit of Python or divination, see ( Leviticus 19:31 ) ; such as the damsel had in ( Acts 16:16 ) ; a woman is here particularly mentioned, though before included in the above law; because, as Aben Ezra says, such sort of practices were more frequently committed by women; to which Maimonides

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FOOTNOTES:

F12 adds another reason, because men have a natural clemency towards the female sex, and are not easily prevailed upon to put them to death; therefore the law says, "thou shall not suffer a witch to live", ( Exodus 22:18 ) ; or that is a wizard;
a knowing one, who pretends to a great deal of knowledge of things; as of lost or stolen goods, and even knowledge of things future, and imposes upon persons, and cheats them of their money they give for information: such shall surely be put to death:
and not spared through favour and affection: the death they are to be put to follows: they shall stone them with stones;
until they are dead; of the manner of stoning, (See Gill on Acts 7:58); their blood [shall be] upon them:
they are worthy of death, and they shall suffer it: this phrase following upon the former, the Jews ^F13 gather from hence, that, wherever it is used, it is to be understood of stoning; (See Gill on Leviticus 20:9).
F12 Moreh Nevochim, par. 3. c. 37.
F13 Torat Cohanim in Yalcut in loc.

Leviticus 20:27 In-Context

25 Therefore you must distinguish the clean animal from the unclean one, and the unclean bird from the clean one. You are not to make yourselves detestable by any land animal, bird, or whatever crawls on the ground; I have set these apart as unclean for you.

26 You are to be holy to Me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be Mine.

27 A man or a woman who is a medium or a spiritist must be put to death. They are to be stoned; their blood is on their own hands."

Footnotes

• [a]. Lit is in them
• [b]. Lv 19:31; 20:6
• [c]. Lit on them