Leviticus 20:9

9 Therefore he that curseth his father, either mother, die he by death; if a man curseth his father and mother, his blood be on him. (He who curseth his father, or his mother, shall be put to death; if a man curseth his father, or his mother, his blood be on him.)

Leviticus 20:9 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 20:9

For everyone that curseth his father or his mother
Here begins the account of the penalties annexed to the several laws in the preceding chapter; and that respecting the fear and honour of parents being the first, ( Leviticus 19:3 ) , is here begun with:

shall surely be put to death;
the Targum of Jonathan adds,

``by casting of stones,''

stoning being the punishment of such transgressors:

he hath cursed his father or his mother:
to do either is his sin, and a capital crime it is:

his blood [shall be] upon him:
he shall be guilty of death, be condemned unto it, and punished with it, namely, by stoning; for, as Jarchi observes, wherever it is, "his blood [shall be] on him", or "their blood shall be on them", it is to be understood of stoning.

Leviticus 20:9 In-Context

7 Be ye hallowed, and be ye holy, for I am holy, your Lord God (the Lord your God).
8 Keep ye my behests, and do ye those, for I am the Lord that halloweth you. (Obey ye my commands, and do ye them, for I am the Lord who maketh you holy.)
9 Therefore he that curseth his father, either mother, die he by death; if a man curseth his father and mother, his blood be on him. (He who curseth his father, or his mother, shall be put to death; if a man curseth his father, or his mother, his blood be on him.)
10 If a man doeth lechery with another man's wife, and doeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, both the adulterer and the adulteress die they by death. (If a man doeth lechery with another man's wife, yea, if he doeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall be put to death.)
11 If a man sleepeth with his step-dame, and showeth his father's shame, both they die by death; their blood be on them. (If a man sleepeth with his step-mother, and uncovereth her nakedness, which is for his father alone, they both shall be put to death; their blood be on them.)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.