Leviticus - The Old Testament

¹ Yahweh spoke to Moses and said:

² 'Say to the Israelites: "Anyone, be he Israelite or alien resident in Israel, who gives any of his children to Molech, will be put to death. The people of the country must stone him,

³ and I shall set my face against that man and outlaw him from his people; for by giving a child of his to Molech he has defiled my sanctuary and profaned my holy name.

⁴ If the people of the country choose to close their eyes to the man's action when he gives a child of his to Molech, and do not put him to death,

⁵ I myself shall turn my face against that man and his clan. I shall outlaw them from their people, both him and all those after him who prostitute themselves by following Molech.

⁶ "If anyone has recourse to the spirits of the dead or to magicians, to prostitute himself by following them, I shall set my face against him and outlaw him from his people.

⁷ "Sanctify yourselves and be holy, for I am Yahweh your God.

⁸ "You will keep my laws and put them into practice, for it is I, Yahweh, who make you holy.

⁹ Hence: "Anyone who curses father or mother will be put to death. Having cursed father or mother, the blood will be on that person's own head.

¹⁰ "The man who commits adultery with his neighbour's wife will be put to death, he and the woman.

¹¹ "The man who has intercourse with his father's wife has infringed his father's sexual prerogative. Both of them will be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

¹² "The man who has intercourse with his daughter-in-law: both of them will be put to death; they have violated nature, their blood will be on their own heads.

¹³ "The man who has intercourse with a man in the same way as with a woman: they have done a hateful thing together; they will be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

¹⁴ "The man who marries a woman and her mother: this is incest. They will be burnt alive, he and they; you will not tolerate incest.

¹⁵ "The man who has intercourse with an animal will be put to death; you will kill the animal too.

¹⁶ "The woman who approaches any animal to have intercourse with it: you will kill the woman and the animal. They will be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

¹⁷ "The man who marries his father's or his mother's daughter: if they have intercourse together, this is an outrage. They will be executed in public, for the man has had intercourse with his sister; he will bear the consequences of his guilt.

¹⁸ "The man who has intercourse with a woman during her monthly periods and exposes her nakedness: he has laid bare the source of her blood, and she has exposed the source of her blood, and both of them will be outlawed from their people.

¹⁹ "You will not have intercourse with your mother's sister or your father's sister. Whoever does so, has had intercourse with a close relation; they will bear the consequences of their guilt.

²⁰ "The man who has intercourse with the wife of his paternal uncle has infringed his uncle's sexual prerogative; they will bear the consequences of their guilt and die childless.

²¹ "The man who marries his brother's wife: this is pollution; he has infringed his brother's sexual prerogative; they will die childless.

²² "You will keep all my laws, all my decisions, and put them into practice, so that the country where I am taking you to live will not vomit you out.

²³ You will not follow the laws of the nations whom I am driving out before you; they practised all these things, which is why I detested them.

²⁴ As I have already told you, you will take possession of their soil, I myself shall give you possession of it, a country flowing with milk and honey. "Since I, Yahweh your God, have set you apart from these peoples,

²⁵ you for your part will make a distinction between clean animals and unclean ones and between unclean birds and clean ones, and will not make yourselves detestable with any animal or bird or reptile, which I have set apart from you as unclean.

²⁶ "Be consecrated to me, for I, Yahweh, am holy, and I shall set you apart from all these peoples, for you to be mine.

²⁷ "Any man or woman of yours who is a necromancer or magician will be put to death; they will be stoned to death; their blood will be on their own heads." '