Heb “And the priest…shall pour on the left hand of the priest.” As the Rabbis observe, the repetition of “priest” as the expressed subject of both verbs in this verse may suggest that two priests were involved in this ritual (see m. Nega’im 14:8, referred to by J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:852), but the seemingly unnecessary repetition of “priest” in several verses throughout the chapter argues against this (see esp. vv. 3, 14, 18, 20, 24, and 26 ). Moreover, in this case, “priest” may be repeated to avoid confusing the priest’s hand with that of the one being cleansed (cf. v. 14 ).


Heb “his right finger from the oil.”


Heb “on his hand.”


Heb “and the remainder in the oil.”


Heb “do [or “make”] the sin offering.”


Heb “And after[ward] he [i.e., the offerer] shall slaughter.” The LXX adds “the priest” as the subject of the verb (as do several English versions, e.g., NAB, NIV, NCV, NLT), but the offerer is normally the one who does the actually slaughtering of the sacrificial animal (cf. the notes on Lev 1:5 a, 6a, and 9a).


Heb “cause to go up.”


Heb “and his hand does not reach”; NAB, NRSV “and cannot afford so much (afford these NIV).”


See the notes on v. 10 above.


Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168 with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14; cf. Lev 1:14 and esp. 5:7-10 ).


Heb “which his hand reaches”; NRSV “such as (which NIV) he can afford.”


Heb “and one shall be a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.” The versions struggle with whether or not “one” should or should not have the definite article in its two occurrences in this verse (KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB all have the English definite article with both). The MT has the first without and the second with the article.


Heb “to the doorway of”; KJV, ASV “unto the door of.”


Heb “and the priest shall wave them.” In the present translation “priest” is not repeated a second time in the verse for stylistic reasons. With regard to the “waving” of the “wave offering,” see the note on v. 12 above.


Heb “and the priest shall put [literally ‘give’] on the lobe of the ear of the one being cleansed, the right one.”


The term for “big toe” ( בֹּהֶן , bohen ) is the same as that for “thumb.” It refers to the larger appendage on either the hand or the foot.


Heb “And from the oil the priest shall pour out on the left hand of the priest.” Regarding the repetition of “priest” in this verse see the note on v. 15 above.


Heb “and the priest shall sprinkle with his right finger from the oil which is on his left hand.”


Heb “on the hand.”


Heb “give.”


Heb “the one from the turtledoves.”


Heb “from which his hand reaches.” The repetition of virtually the same expression at the beginning of v. 31 in the MT is probably due to dittography (cf. the LXX and Syriac). However, the MT may be retained if it is understood as “one of the turtledoves or young pigeons that are within his means – whichever he can afford” (see J. Milgrom’s translation in Leviticus [AB], 1:828, contra his commentary, 862; cf. REB).


Heb “and the one a burnt offering on the grain offering.”


Heb “This is the law of who in him [is] a diseased infection.”


Heb “who his hand does not reach in his purification”; NASB “whose means are limited for his cleansing”; NIV “who cannot afford the regular offerings for his cleansing.”


Heb “which I am giving” (so NAB, NIV).


Heb “in the house of the land of your possession” (KJV and ASV both similar).


Heb “who to him the house.”


Heb “And the priest shall command and they shall clear the house.” The second verb (“and they shall clear”) states the thrust of the priest’s command, which suggests the translation “ that they clear” (cf. also vv. 4 a and 5a above), and for the impersonal passive rendering of the active verb (“that the house be cleared”) see the note on v. 4 above.


Heb “to see the infection”; KJV “to see the plague”; NASB “to look at the mark (mildew NCV).”


Heb “all which [is] in the house.”


Heb “and after thus.”


Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).


For “yellowish green and reddish” see Lev 13:49 . The Hebrew term translated “eruptions” occurs only here and its meaning is uncertain. For a detailed summary of the issues and views see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:870. The suggestions include, among others: (1) “depressions” from Hebrew שׁקע (“sink”) or קער as the root of the Hebrew term for “bowl” (LXX, Targums, NAB, NASB, NIV; see also B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 90), (2) “streaks” (ASV, NJPS), (3) and “eruptions” as a loan-word from Egyptian sqr r rwtj (“eruption; rash”); cf. Milgrom, 870; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 198-99. The latter view is taken here.


The Hebrew term קִיר ( qir ,“wall”) refers to the surface of the wall in this case, which normally consisted of a coating of plaster made of limestone and sand (see HALOT 1099 s.v. קִיר 1.a; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:871; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 199).


Heb “and he shall shut up the house seven days.”


Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “If the mark has indeed spread.”


Heb “and the priest shall command and they shall pull out the stones which in them is the infection, and they shall cast them.” The second and third verbs (“they shall pull out” and “they shall throw”) state the thrust of the priest’s command, which suggests the translation “ that they pull out…and throw” (cf. also vv. 4 a, 5a, and 36a above), and for the impersonal passive rendering of the active verb (“be pulled and thrown”) see the note on v. 4 above.


Or, according to the plurality of the verb in Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Targums, “Then the house shall be scraped” (cf. NAB, NLT, and the note on v. 40 ).


Heb “from house all around.”


Heb “dust” (so KJV) or “rubble”; NIV “the material”; NLT “the scrapings.”


Heb “which they have scraped off.” The MT term קִיר ( qir , “wall” from קָצָה , qatsah , “to cut off”; BDB 892), the original Greek does not have this clause, Smr has הקיצו (with uncertain meaning), and the BHS editors and HALOT 1123-24 s.v. I קצע hif.a suggest emending the verb to הִקְצִעוּ ( hiqtsi ’ u , see the same verb at the beginning of this verse; cf. some Greek mss , Syriac, and the Targums). The emendation seems reasonable and is accepted by many commentators, but the root קָצָה ( qatsah , “to cut off”) does occur in the Bible ( 2 Kgs 10:32 ; Hab 2:10 ) and in postbiblical Hebrew (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 179, notes 41c and 43d; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:873; cf. also קָצַץ , qatsats , “to cut off”).


Heb “and bring into under the stones.”


Heb “after he has pulled out the stones, and after scraping (variant form of the Hiphil infinitive construct, GKC 531) the house, and after being replastered (Niphal infinitive construct).”


Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “If he sees that the mark has indeed spread.”


Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Tg. Ps.-J. have the plural verb, perhaps suggesting a passive translation, “The house…shall be torn down” (cf. NAB, NIV, TEV, NLT, and see the note on v. 4 b above).


Once again, Smr, LXX, and Syriac have the plural verb, perhaps to be rendered passive, “shall be brought.”


Heb “the one who comes into.”


Heb “he,” referring to the priest (see v. 38 ). The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “And if the priest entering [infinitive absolute] enters [finite verb]” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113. p .


Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “and the mark has not indeed spread.”


The pronoun “he” refers to the priest mentioned in the previous verse.


Regarding these ritual materials, see the note on v. 4 above.


Regarding the Piel of חָטָא ( khata ’, cf. v. 52 ) meaning to “decontaminate” or “perform a decontamination,” see the notes on Lev 8:15 and 9:15 . sn In Lev 8:15 , for example, the “sin offering” is used to “decontaminate” the burnt offering altar. As argued above (see the note on v. 7 above), these ritual materials and the procedures performed with them do not constitute a “sin offering” (contrast vv. 19 and 31 above). In fact, no sin offering was required for the purification of a house.


See the note on v. 5 above.


Heb “to from outside to the city.”


Heb “and for the scall”; NASB “a scale”; NIV “any infectious skin disease.” Cf. Lev 13:29-37 .


Heb “to teach in the day of the unclean and in the day of the clean.”


Heb “This is the law of the disease.” Some English versions specify this as “skin disease” (e.g., NIV, NLT), but then have to add “and (+ infectious NLT) mildew” (so NIV) because a house would not be infected with a skin disease. sn For an explanation of the term “disease” see Lev 13:2 .


Heb “Man man.” The reduplication is a way of saying “any man” (cf. Lev 17:3; 22:18 , etc.; see the distributive repetition of the noun in GKC 395-96 §123. c ).


The term “discharge” actually means “to flow,” whether referring to a full flow as at a spring of water ( Ps 78:20 and parallels) or in reference to the promised land as “a land flowing with milk and honey” ( Exod 3:8 and parallels).


Heb “man, man when there is a discharge from his flesh.” The repetition of the word “man” is distributive, meaning “any [or “every”] man” (GKC 395-96 §123. c ). It is well-recognized that the term “flesh” (i.e., “body”) in this chapter refers regularly and euphemistically to the male and female genital members or areas of the body ( HALOT 164 s.v. בָּשָׂר 5.b; see also, e.g., B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 93). The euphemism has been retained in this translation since it is, in fact, intended in the Hebrew text. Some English versions partially remove the euphemism (e.g., NAB “from his private parts”; NRSV “from his member”) while some remove it completely (e.g., NLT “a genital discharge”; TEV “from his penis”; CEV “with an infected penis”).


The LXX has “this the law of his uncleanness…” (cf. v. 32 and compare, e.g., 13:59; 14:2, 56 ).


Heb “it is his uncleanness,” but the last clause recapitulates the effect of the first clause in this verse, both of which introduce the regulations for such uncleanness in the following verses. In other words, whether his discharge flows from his penis or is blocked in it, he is still unclean and must proceed according to the following regulations (vv. 4 ff).


Heb “All the bed which the man with a discharge sits on it shall be unclean”; cf. NLT “Any bedding.”


Heb “and all the vessel which he sits on it shall be unclean”; NASB “everything on which he sits.”


Heb “And a man who touches in his bed”; NLT “touch the man’s bedding.”


Heb “he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until the evening” (cf. also vv. 6-8, 10-11 , etc.).


Heb “And the one who touches in the flesh.” In this instance, “flesh” (or “body”) probably refers literally to any part of the body, not the genitals specifically (see the discussion in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:914).


Heb “And if the man with a discharge spits in the clean one.”


The Hebrew term for “means of riding” is a cognate noun from the verb “ride” later in this verse. It refers to anything on which one may ride without the feet touching the ground including, for example, a saddle, a (saddle) blanket, or a seat on a chariot (see, e.g., J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:916).


Heb “which shall be under him.” The verb is perhaps a future perfect, “which shall have been.”


Heb “them”; the referent (the previously mentioned items which were under the unclean person) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “And all who the man with the discharge touches in him and his hands he has not rinsed in water.”


The Hebrew term כְּלִי ( kÿli ) can mean “vessel” (v. 12 a) or “utensil, implement, article” (v. 12 b). An article of clay would refer to a vessel or container of some sort, while one made of wood would refer to some kind of tool or instrument.


For the expression “fresh water” see the note on Lev 14:5 above.


Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168 with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14; cf. Lev 1:14 and esp. 5:7-10 ).


The MT has the Qal form of the verb בּוֹא ( bo ’) “to come” here, but the LXX (followed generally by the Syriac and Tg. Ps.-J. ) reflects the Hiphil form of the same verb, “to bring” as in v. 29 below. In v. 29 , however, there is no additional clause “and give them to the priest,” so the Hiphil is necessary in that context while it is not necessary here in v. 14 .


Heb “and the priest shall make them one a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.” See the note on Lev 1:3 regarding the “burnt offering.”


Heb “And the priest.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.


Heb “from”; see the note on 4:26 .


Heb “And a man when a lying of seed goes out from him”; KJV, ASV “any man’s seed of copulation”; NIV, NRSV, TEV, NLT “an emission of semen.”


Heb “and he shall bathe all his flesh in water.”


Heb “And a woman who a man lies with her a lying of seed.”


See the note on Lev 15:2 above.


Heb “blood shall be her discharge in her flesh.” The term “flesh” here refers euphemistically to the female sexual area (cf. the note on v. 2 above).


See the note on Lev 12:2 and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 1:925-27.


Heb “and if on the bed it ( הוּא , hu ’) is or on the vessel which she sits on it, when he touches it….” The translation and meaning of this verse is a subject of much debate in the commentaries (see the summary in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:938-40). It is difficult to determine what הוּא refers to, whether it means “he” referring to the one who does the touching, “it” for the furniture or the seat in v. 22 , “she” referring to the woman herself (see Smr היא rather than הוא ), or perhaps anything that was lying on the furniture or the bed of vv. 21-22 . The latter view is taken here (cf. J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 202).


The MT accent suggest that “when he touches it” goes with the preceding line, but it seems to be better to take it as an introduction to what follows (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 202).


Heb “and if a man indeed lies with her and her menstrual impurity is on him.”


Heb “And a woman when the flow of her blood flows.”


Heb “in not the time of her menstruation or when it flows on her menstruation.”


See the note on v. 5 above.


Heb “And if…” Although this clause is parallel to v. 13 above, it begins with וְאִם ( vÿ ’ im , “and if”) here rather than וְכִי ( vÿkhi , “and when/if”) there.


Heb “And the priest shall make the one a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.”


Heb “And you shall.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV, NRSV).


Heb “and they.” Here the Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) indicates a negative purpose (“lest,” so NAB, NASB).


Heb “and who a lying of seed goes out from him.”


Heb “to become unclean in it.”


Heb “and the one with a discharge, his discharge to the male and the female.”


Heb “and for a man.”


Heb “in their drawing near to the faces of the Lord .” The rendering here relies on the use of this expression for the very “presence” of God in Exod 33:14-15 and in the Lev 9:24-10:2 passage, where the Nadab and Abihu catastrophe referred to here is narrated.


Heb “into the holy place from house to the veil-canopy.” In this instance, the Hebrew term “the holy place” refers to “the most holy place” (lit. “holy of holies”), since it is the area “inside the veil-canopy” (cf. Exod 26:33-34 ). The Hebrew term פָּרֹכֶת ( parokhet ) is usually translated “veil” or “curtain,” but it seems to have stretched not only in front of but also over the top of the ark of the covenant which stood behind and under it inside the most holy place, and thus formed more of a canopy than simply a curtain (see R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 3:687-89).


Heb “to the faces of the atonement plate.” The exact meaning of the Hebrew term כַּפֹּרֶת ( kapporet ) here rendered “atonement plate” is much debated. The traditional “ mercy seat” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV) does not suit the cognate relationship between this term and the Piel verb כִּפֶּר ( kipper , “to make atonement, to make expiation”). The translation of the word should also reflect the fact that the most important atonement procedures on the Day of Atonement were performed in relation to it. Since the Lord would “appear in the cloud over the atonement plate,” and since it was so closely associated with the ark of the covenant (the ark being his “footstool”; cf. 1 Chr 28:2 and Ps 132:7-8 ), one could take it to be the place of his throne at which he accepts atonement. See J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:1014; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 234-35; and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:691, 699. Cf. NIV “the atonement cover”; NCV “the lid on the Ark”; NLT “the Ark’s cover – the place of atonement.”


Heb “with a bull, a son of the herd.”


Heb “shall be on his flesh.” As in many instances in , the term “flesh” or “body” here is euphemistic for the male genitals (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1017, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 222; cf. the note on Lev 15:2 ), which the priest must be careful not to expose during such ritual procedures (see Exod 20:26 with 28:42-43 ).


Heb “and in a turban of linen he shall wrap.” sn The turban consisted of wound up linen (cf. Exod 28:4, 37, 39; 29:6; 39:31 ; Lev 16:4 ). It is usually thought to be a “turban,” but it might be only a “turban-like headband” wound around the forehead area ( HALOT 624 s.v. מִצְנֶפֶת ).


Heb “and he shall bathe….”


Heb “And he shall take.”


Heb “he-goats of goats”; CEV “two goats, both of them males.”


Heb “the two he-goats,” referred to as “two he-goats of goats” in v. 5 .


Heb “and Aaron shall give lots on the two he-goats.” See the note on Lev 8:8 for the priestly casting of lots in Israel and the explanation in B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 102, on Lev 16:8-9 . J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:1019-20, suggests, however, that the expression here signifies that, the lots having been cast, the priest was to literally “place” ( Heb “give”) the one marked “for the Lord ” on the head of the goat to be sacrificed and the one marked “for Azazel” on the head of the one to be released in the wilderness in order to avoid confusing them later in the ritual sequence.


The meaning of the Hebrew term עֲזָאזֵל (’ aza ’ zel , four times in the OT, all of them in this chapter; vv. 8, 10 [2 times], and 26) is much debated. There are three or perhaps four major views (see the summaries and literature cited in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1020-21; B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 102; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 237-38; D. P. Wright, The Disposal of Impurity [SBLDS], 21-25; M. V. Van Pelt and W. C. Kaiser, NIDOTTE 3:362-63; and M. S. Moore, NIDOTTE 4:421-22). (1) Some derive the term from a combination of the Hebrew word עֵז (’ ez , “goat”; i.e., the word for “goats” in v. 5 ) and אָזַל (’ azal , “to go away”), meaning “the goat that departs” or “scapegoat” (cf., e.g., the LXX and KJV, NASB, NIV, NLT). This meaning suits the ritual practice of sending the so-called “scapegoat” away into the wilderness (vv. 10, 21-22, 26 ). Similarly, some derive the term from Arabic ’ azala (“to banish, remove”), meaning “entire removal” as an abstract concept (see BDB 736 s.v. עֲזָאזֵל ). (2) Some see the term as a description of the wilderness area to which the goat was dispatched, deriving it somehow from Arabic ’ azazu (“rough ground”) or perhaps עָזָז , (’ azaz, “to be strong, fierce”). (3) The most common view among scholars today is that it is the proper name of a particular demon (perhaps even the Devil himself) associated with the wilderness desert regions. Levine has proposed that it may perhaps derive from a reduplication of the ז ( zayin ) in עֵז combined with אֵל (’ el , “mighty”), meaning “mighty goat.” The final consonantal form of עֲזָאזֵל would have resulted from the inversion of the א ( aleph ) with the second ז . He makes the point that the close association between עֵז and שְׂעִירִים ( shÿ ’ irim ), which seems to refer to “goat-demons” of the desert in Lev 17:7 (cf. Isa 13:21 , etc.), should not be ignored in the derivation of Azazel, although the term ultimately became the name of “the demonic ruler of the wilderness.” The latter view is supported by the parallel between the one goat “for ( לְ , lamed preposition) the Lord ” and the one “for ( לְ ) Azazel” here in v. 8 . The rendering as a proper name has been tentatively accepted here (cf. ASV, NAB, NRSV, TEV, CEV). Perhaps a play on words between the proper name and the term for “goat” has occurred so that the etymology has become obscure. Even if a demon or the demonic realm is the source for the name, however, there is no intention here of appeasing the demons. The goal is to remove the impurity and iniquity from the community in order to avoid offending the Lord and the repercussions of such (see esp. vv. 21-22 and cf. Lev 15:31 ).


Heb “which the lot has gone up on it for the Lord .”


The LXX has “he shall stand it” (cf. v. 7 ).


Heb “to make atonement on it to send it away to Azazel toward the wilderness.”


Heb “and he shall take the fullness of the censer, coals of fire, from on the altar from to the faces of the Lord .”


Heb “and the fullness of the hollow of his two hands, finely ground fragrant incense.”


Heb “and he shall bring from house to the veil-canopy.”


The text here has only “above the testimony,” but this is surely a shortened form of “above the ark of the testimony” (see Exod 25:22 etc.; cf. Lev 16:2 ). The term “testimony” in this expression refers to the ark as the container of the two stone tablets with the Ten Commandments written on them (see Exod 25:16 with Deut 10:1, 5 , etc.).


Heb “and he will not die,” but it is clear that the purpose for the incense cloud was to protect the priest from death in the presence of the Lord (cf. vv. 1-2 above).


Heb “on the faces of the atonement plate toward the east.” Some have taken this to mean that the ark was stationed just behind the veil-canopy on the eastern side of the most holy place. Thus, the high priest would need to enter and walk toward the west end of the most holy place and then turn eastward in order to face the ark and sprinkle the blood in an eastward direction. The rendering here, however, requires that the ark was stationed on the western end, or perhaps in the middle of the area, so that as the priest entered he was already facing the ark and would sprinkle the blood on the eastern face of the atonement plate, in a westward direction (see, e.g., J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 239 versus J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1032).


Heb “and he shall bring its blood into from house to the veil-canopy.”


Heb “And.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have resultative or even inferential force here.


Heb “to all their sins.”


Heb “And all man shall not be in the tent of meeting.” The term for “a man, human being” ( אָדָם , ’ adam ; see the note on Lev 1:2 ) refers to any person among “mankind,” male or female.


Heb “And.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) indicates the sequence of events here.


Heb “And he shall take.”


Heb “and he shall purify it and he shall consecrate it.”


Heb “And he shall finish from atoning the holy place.” In this case, the “holy place” etc. are direct objects of the verb “to atone” (cf. v. 33 a below). In this case, therefore, the basic meaning of the verb (i.e., “to purge” or “wipe clean”) comes to the forefront. When the prepositions עַל (’ al ) or בֲּעַד ( ba ’ ad ) occur with the verb כִּפֶּר ( kipper ) the purging is almost always being done “for” or “on behalf of” priests or people (see the note on Lev 1:4 as well as R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:698, the literature cited there, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 110, for more details).


Heb “transgressions to all their sins.”


Heb “and he shall give them.”


The meaning of the Hebrew term עִתִּי (’ itti ) is uncertain. It is apparently related to עֵת (’ et , “time”), and could perhaps mean either that he has been properly “appointed” (i.e., designated) for the task (e.g., NIV and NRSV) or “ready” (e.g., NASB and NEB).


The Hebrew term rendered “inaccessible” derives from a root meaning “to cut off” (cf. NAB “an isolated region”). Another possible translation would be “infertile land” (see HALOT 187 s.v. * גָּזֵּר and cf. NRSV “a barren region”; NLT “a desolate land.”


Heb “and he [the man (standing) ready, v. 21 ] shall send the goat away.”


Heb “And Aaron shall enter.”


Heb “And he shall make atonement.”


Heb “on behalf of himself and on behalf of the people.” After “on behalf of himself” the LXX adds the expected “and on behalf of his household” (cf. vv. 6, 11, and 17 ).


Heb “And the fat of the sin offering he is to offer up.”


For “Azazel” see the note on v. 8 above.


Heb “he shall bring into from outside to the camp.”


Heb “they shall burn with fire”; KJV “burn in the fire.” Because “to burn with fire” is redundant in contemporary English the present translation simply has “must be burned up.”


Heb “And it [feminine] shall be for you a perpetual statute.” Verse 34 begins with the same clause except for the missing demonstrative pronoun “this” here in v. 29 . The LXX has “this” in both places and it suits the sense of the passage, although both the verb and the pronoun are sometimes missing in this clause elsewhere in the book (see, e.g., Lev 3:17 ).


Heb “you shall humble your souls.” The verb “to humble” here refers to various forms of self-denial, including but not limited to fasting (cf. Ps 35:13 and Isa 58:3, 10 ). The Mishnah ( m. Yoma 8:1) lists abstentions from food and drink, bathing, using oil as an unguent to moisten the skin, wearing leather sandals, and sexual intercourse (cf. 2 Sam 12:16-17, 20 ; see the remarks in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1054; B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 109; and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 242).


Heb “and all work you shall not do.”


Heb “the native and the sojourner who sojourns.”


The phrase “from all your sins” could go with the previous clause as the verse is rendered here (see, e.g., B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 109, and J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1011), or it could go with the following clause (i.e., “you shall be clean from all your sins before the Lord ”; see the MT accents as well as J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 221, and recent English versions, e.g., NASB, NIV, NRSV).


See the note on v. 29 above.


Compare v. 29 a above.


Heb “And the priest whom he shall anointed him and whom he shall fill his hand to act as priest under his father.” Imperfect active verbs are often used as passives (see, e.g., v. 27 above and the note on Lev 14:4 ).


Heb “to atone” (also later in this verse); see the note on “purifying the holy place” in 16:20 .


Heb “the sanctuary of the holy place.” Although this is the only place this expression occurs in the OT, it clearly refers to the innermost shrine behind the veil-canopy, where the ark of the covenant was located.


Heb “and the tent of meeting and the alter he shall atone.” The repetition of the verb כִּפֶּר ( kipper , “to atone”) at the beginning and end of the sequence appears to be strange, but the MT accents suggest that only “the Most Holy Place” goes with the verb at the beginning of the verse. Of course, the purging of “the Most Holy Place” has been the main emphasis of this chapter from the start (see vv. 2-3 and 11-17 ).


At this point in the verse the verb כִּפֶּר ( kipper , “to make atonement”) takes its object with the preposition עַל (’ al , “for”; literally, “upon”; contrast the first part of the verse and cf. the notes on Lev 1:4 and 16:20 above).


Heb “And this shall be for you to a statute of eternity” (cf. v. 29 a above). cf. NASB “a permanent statute”; NIV “a lasting ordinance.”


Heb “from”; see note on 4:26 .


Heb “one [feminine] in the year.”


The MT of Lev 16:34 b reads literally, “and he did just as the Lord had commanded Moses.” This has been retained here in spite of the fact that it suggests that Aaron immediately performed the rituals outlined in (see, e.g., J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 224 and 243; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:1059; note that Aaron was the one to whom Moses was to speak the regulations in this chapter, v. 2 ). The problem is that the chapter presents these procedures as regulations for “the tenth day of the seventh month” and calls for their fulfillment at that time ( Lev 16:29 ; cf. Lev 23:26-32 and the remarks in P. J. Budd, Leviticus [NCBC], 237), not during the current (first) month ( Exod 40:2 ; note also that they left Sinai in the second month, long before the next seventh month, Num 10:11 ). The LXX translates, “once in the year it shall be done as the Lord commanded Moses,” attaching “once in the year” to this clause rather than the former one, and rendering the verb as passive, “it shall be done” (cf. NAB, NIV, etc.). We have already observed the passive use of active verbs in this context (see the note on v. 32 above). The RSV (cf. also the NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT) translates, “And Moses did as the Lord commanded him,” ignoring the fact that the name Moses in the Hebrew text has the direct object indicator. Passive verbs, however, regularly take subjects with direct object indicators (see, e.g., v. 27 above). The NIV renders it “And it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses,” following the LXX passive translation. The NASB translates, “And just as the Lord had commanded Moses, so he did,” transposing the introductory verb to the end of the sentence and supplying “so” in order to make it fit the context.


The complex wording of vv. 3-4 requires stating “blood guilt” at the beginning of v. 3 even though it is not mentioned until the middle of v. 4 . The Hebrew text has simply “blood,” but in this case it refers to the illegitimate shedding of animal blood, similar to the shedding of the blood of an innocent human being ( Deut 19:10 , etc.). In order for it to be legitimate the animal must be slaughtered at the tabernacle and its blood handled by the priests in the prescribed way (see, e.g., Lev 1:5; 3:2, 17; 4:5-7; 7:26-27 , etc.; cf. vv. 10-16 below for more details).


Heb “Man man.” The reduplication is way of saying “any man” (cf. Lev 15:2; 22:18 , etc.). See the note on Lev 15:2 .


The original LXX adds “or the sojourners who sojourn in your midst” (cf. Lev 16:29 , etc., and note esp. 17:8, 10, and 13 below).


Heb “or who slaughters from outside to the camp.”


Smr and LXX add after “tent of meeting” the following: “to make it a burnt offering or a peace offering to the Lord for your acceptance as a soothing aroma, and slaughters it outside, and at the doorway of the tent of meeting has not brought it.”


Smr includes the suffix “it,” which is needed in any case in the translation to conform to English style.


Heb “So that which.”


Heb “on the faces of the field.”


For the translation “splash” see the note on Lev 1:5 .


The LXX adds “all around” (i.e., Hebrew סָבִיב [ saviv , “all around”]), which is normal for this overall construction (see, e.g., Lev 1:5; 3:8 , etc.).


Heb “sacrifice.” This has been translated as “offer” for stylistic reasons to avoid the redundancy of “sacrifice their sacrifices.”


On “goat demons” of the desert regions see the note on Lev 16:8 .


Heb “which they are committing harlotry after them.”


Heb “for your generations.”


Heb “Man, man.” The repetition of the word “man” is distributive, meaning “any [or “every”] man” (GKC 395-96 §123. c ; cf. Lev 15:2 ).


Heb “and.” Here the Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) has an alternative sense (“or”).


Heb “from the sojourner who sojourns.”


The LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate have “your” (plural) rather than “their.”


Heb “causes to go up.”


Heb “to make it,” meaning “to make the sacrifice.”


For remarks on the “cut off” penalty see the note on v. 4 above.


Heb “And man, man.” The repetition of the word “man” is distributive, meaning “any (or every) man” (GKC 395-96 §123. c ; cf. Lev 15:2 ).


Heb “I will give my faces against [literally “in”] the soul/person/life [ נֶפֶשׁ , nefesh , feminine] who eats the blood and I will cut it [i.e., that נֶפֶשׁ , nefesh ] off from the midst of its people.” The uses of נֶפֶשׁ in this and the following verse are most significant for the use of animal blood in Israel’s sacrificial system. Unfortunately, it is a most difficult word to translate accurately and consistently, and this presents a major problem for the rendering of these verses (see, e.g., G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 244-45). No matter which translation of נֶפֶשׁ one uses here, it is important to see that both man and animal have נֶפֶשׁ and that this נֶפֶשׁ is identified with the blood. See the further remarks on v. 11 below. On the “cutting off” penalty see the note on v. 4 above. In this instance, God takes it on himself to “cut off” the person (i.e., extirpation).


Heb “the life of the flesh.” Here “flesh” stands for “every living thing,” that is, all creatures (cf. NIV, NRSV, NLT “every creature”; CEV “every living creature.”


Heb “for the soul/life ( נֶפֶשׁ , nefesh ) of the flesh, it is in the blood” (cf. the note of v. 10 above and v. 14 below). Although most modern English versions begin a new sentence in v. 11 , “For the life of the flesh is in the blood” (see, e.g., NJPS, NASB, NIV, NRSV), the כִּי ( ki , “for, because”) at the beginning of the verse suggests continuation from v. 10 , as the rendering here indicates (see, e.g., NEB, NLT; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 261; and G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 239). sn This verse is a well-known crux interpretum for blood atonement in the Bible. The close association between the blood and “the soul/life [ נֶפֶשׁ ] of the flesh [ בָּשָׂר , basar ]” (v. 11 a) begins in Gen 9:2-5 (if not Gen 4:10-11 ), where the Lord grants man the eating of meat (i.e., the “flesh” of animals) but also issues a warning: “But flesh [ בָּשָׂר ] with its soul/life [ נֶפֶשׁ ], [which is] its blood, you shall not eat” (cf. G. J. Wenham, Genesis [WBC], 1:151 and 193). Unfortunately, the difficulty in translating נֶפֶשׁ consistently (see the note on v. 10 above) obscures the close connection between the (human) “person” in v. 10 and “the life” (of animals, 2 times) and “your (human) lives” in v. 11 , all of which are renderings of נֶפֶשׁ . The basic logic of the passage is that (a) no נֶפֶשׁ should eat the blood when he eats the בָּשָׂר of an animal (v. 10 ) because (b) the נֶפֶשׁ of בָּשָׂר is identified with the blood that flows through and permeates it (v. 11 a), and (c) the Lord himself has assigned (i.e., limited the use of) animal blood, that is, animal נֶפֶשׁ , to be the instrument or price of making atonement for the נֶפֶשׁ of people (v. 11 b). See the detailed remarks and literature cited in R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:693-95, 697-98.


Heb “And I myself have given it to you.”


Heb “for the blood, it by ( בְּ , bet preposition, “in”] the life makes atonement.” The interpretation of the preposition is pivotal here. Some scholars have argued that it is a bet of exchange; that is, “the blood makes atonement in exchange for the life [of the slaughtered animal]” (see R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:694-95, 697 for analysis and criticism of this view). It is more likely that, as in the previous clause (“your lives”), “life/soul” ( נֶפֶשׁ , nefesh ) here refers to the person who makes the offering, not the animal offered. The blood of the animal makes atonement for the person who offers it either “by means of” (instrumental bet ) the “life/soul” of the animal, which it symbolizes or embodies (the meaning of the translation given here); or perhaps the blood of the animal functions as “the price” ( bet of price) for ransoming the “life/soul” of the person.


Heb “all/any person from you shall not eat blood.”


Heb “and the sojourner, the one sojourning in your midst, shall not eat blood.”


A few medieval Hebrew mss , Smr, and Tg. Ps.-J. have “from the house of Israel” as in vv. 3, 8, and 10 , but the LXX agrees with the MT.


The LXX, Syriac, Vulgate, and certain mss of Smr have “your” (plural) rather than “their” (cf. v. 10 above).


Heb “[wild] game of animal.”


That is, it must be a clean animal, not an unclean animal (cf. ).


Heb “for the life/soul ( נֶפֶשׁ , nefesh) of all flesh, its blood in its life/soul ( נֶפֶשׁ ) it is.” The LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate leave out “in its life/soul,” which would naturally yield “for the life of all flesh, its blood it is” (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 261, 263). The present translation is something of an oversimplification, but the meaning is basically the same in any case. Cf. NRSV “For the life of every creature – its blood is its life.”


Heb “of all flesh” (also later in this verse). See the note on “every living thing” in v. 11 .


Heb “And any soul” ( נֶפֶשׁ , nefesh ).


Heb “carcass,” referring to the carcass of an animal that has died on its own, not the carcass of an animal slaughtered for sacrifice or killed by wild beasts. This has been clarified in the translation by supplying the phrase “of natural causes”; cf. NAB “that died of itself”; TEV “that has died a natural death.”


Heb “in the native or in the sojourner.”


The words “his clothes” are not in the Hebrew text, but are repeated in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and he shall bear his iniquity.” The rendering “bear the punishment for the iniquity” reflects the use of the word “iniquity” to refer to the punishment for iniquity. This is sometimes referred to as the consequential use of the term (cf. Lev 5:17; 7:18; 10:17 ; etc.). sn For the interpretation of this verse reflected in the present translation, see the remarks on Lev 5:1 in J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:292-97.


Heb “As the work [or “deed”] of the land of Egypt, which you were dwelling in it, you must not do.”


Heb “and as the work [or “deed”] of the land of Canaan which I am bringing you to there, you must not do.” The participle “I am bringing” is inceptive; the Lord is “about to” bring them into the land of Canaan, as opposed to their having dwelt previously in the land of Egypt (see the first part of the verse).


Heb “and you shall not walk.”


Heb “My regulations you shall do”; KJV, NASB “my judgments”; NRSV “My ordinances”; NIV, TEV “my laws.” sn The Hebrew term translated “regulation” ( מִשְׁפָּט , mishpat ) refers to the set of regulations about to be set forth in the following chapters (cf. Lev 19:37; 20:22; 25:18; 26:46 ). Note especially the thematic and formulaic relationships between the introduction here in Lev 18:1-5 and the paraenesis in Lev 20:22-26 , both of which refer explicitly to the corrupt nations and the need to separate from them by keeping the Lord ’s regulations.


Heb “and my statutes you shall keep [or “watch; guard”] to walk in them.”


Heb “And you shall keep.”


Heb “which the man shall do them and shall live in them.” The term for “a man, human being; mankind” ( אָדָם , ’ adam ; see the note on Lev 1:2 ) in this case refers to any person among “mankind,” male or female. The expression וָחַי ( vakhay , “and shall live”) looks like the adjective “living” so it is written וְחָיָה ( vÿkhayah ) in Smr, but the MT form is simply the same verb written as a double ayin verb (see HALOT 309 s.v. חיה qal and GKC 218 §76. i ; cf. Lev 25:35 ).


Heb “Man, man shall not draw near to any flesh ( שְׁאֵר , shÿ ’ er ) of his body/flesh ( בָּשָׂר , basar ).” The repetition of the word “man” is distributive, meaning “any (or “every”) man” (GKC 395-96 §123. c ; cf. Lev 15:2 ). The two words for “flesh” are combined to refer to emphasize the physical familial relatedness (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 282, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 119).


Heb “to uncover [her] nakedness” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV), which is clearly euphemistic for sexual intercourse (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 282, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 119). This expression occurs a number of times in the following context and is generally translated “have sexual intercourse with [someone],” although in the case of the father mentioned in the following verse the expression may be connected to the shame or disgrace that would belong to the father whose wife’s sexuality is violated by his son. See the note on the word “mother” in v. 7 .


The verbal negative here is the same as that used in the Ten Commandments ( Exod 20:4-5, 7, 13-17 ). It suggests permanent prohibition rather than a simple negative command and could, therefore, be rendered “must not” here and throughout the following section as it is in vv. 3-4 above.


Heb “The nakedness of your father and [i.e., even] the nakedness of your mother you shall not uncover.” sn Commentators suggest that the point of referring to the father’s nakedness is that the mother’s sexuality belongs to the father and is forbidden to the son on that account (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 120, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 294). The expression may, however, derive from the shame of nakedness when exposed. If one exposes his mother’s nakedness to himself it is like openly exposing the father’s nakedness (cf. Gen 9:22-23 with the background of Gen 2:25 and 3:7, 21 ). The same essential construction is used in v. 10 where the latter explanation makes more sense than the former.


Heb “the nakedness of your father she is.” See the note on v. 7 above. This law refers to another wife of the man’s father, who is not that man’s mother. The laws in the Pentateuch sometimes assume the possibility that a man may have more than one wife (cf., e.g., Deut 21:15-17 ).


Heb “the daughter of your father or the daughter of your mother.”


Heb “born of house or born of outside.” CEV interprets as “whether you grew up together or not” (cf. also TEV, NLT).


Several medieval Hebrew mss , Smr, LXX, and Syriac have “her nakedness” rather than “their nakedness,” thus agreeing with singular “sister” at the beginning of the verse. tn For a smooth English translation “either of” was added.


Heb “The nakedness of the daughter of your father’s wife born of your father, she is your sister; you must not uncover her nakedness.” That is, a half sister, the daughter of the man’s father by another wife, who is not the man’s mother, is to be considered a true sister. Therefore, the man must not have sexual intercourse with her.


A few medieval Hebrew mss , the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate all read “because she is the flesh of your father,” like the MT of v. 13 .


Heb “you must not draw near to his wife.” In the context this refers to approaching one’s aunt to have sexual intercourse with her, so this has been specified in the translation for clarity.


As in v. 12 (see the note there), some mss and versions have “because she is your aunt.”


Heb “You must not uncover the nakedness of both a woman and her daughter; the daughter of her son and the daughter of her daughter you must not take to uncover her nakedness.” Translating “her” as “them” provides consistency in the English. In this kind of context, “take” means to “take in marriage” (cf. also v. 18 ). The LXX and Syriac have “their nakedness,” referring to the nakedness of the woman’s granddaughters, rather than the nakedness of the woman herself.


Heb “they are her flesh.” The LXX reads “your” here (followed by NRSV). If the LXX reading were followed by the present translation, the result would be “They are closely related to you.”


The term rendered “lewdness” almost always carries a connotation of cunning, evil device, and divisiveness (cf. HALOT 272 s.v. I זִמָּה 2, “infamy”), and is closely associated with sexual and religious infidelity (cf., e.g., Lev 19:29; 20:14 ; Job 31:11 ; Jer 13:27 ; Ezek 16:27; 22:9 ). Recent English versions differ on how they handle this: NAB “would be shameful”; CEV “would make you unclean”; NIV “wickedness”; NLT “horrible wickedness”; NRSV “depravity”; TEV “incest.”


Or “as a concubine”; Heb “And a woman to her sister you shall not take to be a second wife [or “to be a concubine”].” According to HALOT 1059 s.v. III צרר , the infinitive “to be a second wife” ( לִצְרֹר , litsror ) is a denominative verb from II צָרָה A (“concubine; second wife”), which, in turn, derives from II צר “to treat with hostility” (cf. J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 283, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 122).


Heb “on her in her life.”


Heb “in the menstruation of her impurity”; NIV “during the uncleanness of her monthly period.”


Heb “And to the wife of your fellow citizen you shall not give your layer for seed.” The meaning of “your layer” ( שְׁכָבְתְּךָ , shÿkhavtÿkha ) is uncertain (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 122, “you shall not place your layer of semen”; but cf. also J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 283, and the literature cited there for the rendering, “you shall not give your penis for seed”).


Heb “And from your seed you shall not give to cause to pass over to Molech.” Smr (cf. also the LXX) has “to cause to serve” rather than “to cause to pass over.” For detailed remarks on Molech and Molech worship see N. H. Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers (NCBC), 87-88; P. J. Budd, Leviticus (NCBC), 259-60; and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 333-37, and the literature cited there. It could refer to either human sacrifice or a devotion of children to some sort of service of Molech, perhaps of a sexual sort (cf. Lev 20:2-5 ; 2 Kgs 23:10 , etc.). The inclusion of this prohibition against Molech worship here may be due to some sexual connection of this kind, or perhaps simply to the lexical link between זֶרַע ( zera ’) meaning “seed, semen” in v. 20 but “offspring” in v. 21 .


Heb “and you shall not profane.” Regarding “profane,” see the note on Lev 10:10 above.


Heb “And with a male you shall not lay [as the] lyings of a woman” (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 123). The specific reference here is to homosexual intercourse between males.


The Hebrew term תּוֹעֵבָה ( to ’ evah , rendered “detestable act”) refers to the repugnant practices of foreigners, whether from the viewpoint of other peoples toward the Hebrews (e.g., Gen 43:32; 46:34 ; Exod 8:26 ) or of the Lord toward other peoples (see esp. Lev 18:26-27, 29-30 ). It can also designate, as here, detestable acts that might be perpetrated by the native peoples (it is used again in reference to homosexuality in Lev 20:13 ; cf. also its use for unclean food, Deut 14:3 ; idol worship, Isa 41:24 ; remarriage to a former wife who has been married to someone else in between, Deut 24:4 ).


See the note on v. 20 above.


Heb “to copulate with it” (cf. Lev 20:16 ).


The Hebrew term תֶּבֶל ( tevel , “perversion”) derives from the verb “to mix; to confuse” and therefore refers to illegitimate mixtures of species or violation of the natural order of things.


Heb “which I am sending away (Piel participle of שָׁלַח [ shalakh , “to send”]) from your faces.” The rendering here takes the participle as anticipatory of the coming conquest events.


Heb “And.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have resultative or even inferential force here.


Heb “and I have visited its [punishment for] iniquity on it.” See the note on Lev 17:16 above.


Heb “And you shall keep, you.” The latter emphatic personal pronoun “you” is left out of a few medieval Hebrew mss , Smr, the LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate.


Heb “the native and the sojourner”; NIV “The native-born and the aliens”; NAB “whether natives or resident aliens.”


Heb “for all these abominations the men of the land who were before you have done.”


Heb “And the land will not vomit you out in your defiling it.”


The MT reads the singular “nation” and is followed by ASV, NASB, NRSV; the LXX, Syriac, and Targum have the plural “nations” (cf. v. 24 ).


Heb “to not do from the statutes of the detestable acts.”


Heb “and you will not.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.


Heb “A man his mother and his father you [plural] shall fear.” The LXX, Syriac, Vulgate, and certain Targum mss reverse the order, “his father and his mother.” The term “fear” is subject to misunderstanding by the modern reader, so “respect” has been used in the translation. Cf. NAB, NRSV “revere”; NASB “reverence.”


Heb “for your acceptance”; cf. NIV, NLT “it will be accepted on your behalf.”


Heb “from the following day” ( HALOT 572 s.v. מָחֳרָת 2.b).


Heb “shall be burned with fire”; KJV “shall be burnt in the fire.” Because “to burn with fire” is redundant in contemporary English the present translation simply has “must be burned up.”


Heb “And if being eaten [infinitive absolute] it is eaten [finite verb].” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113. p .


Or “desecrated,” or “defiled,” or “forbidden.” For this difficult term see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:422, on Lev 7:18 .


See the note on Lev 17:16 above.


Heb “the holiness of the Lord .”


Heb “And in your harvesting the harvest.”


Heb “you shall not complete the corner of your field to harvest.”


Heb “And you shall not deal severely with your vineyard.”


Heb “you shall not deal falsely a man with his fellow citizen.”


Heb “And you shall not swear to the falsehood.”


Heb “and you shall not profane”; NAB “thus profaning.”


Heb “You shall not oppress your neighbor and you shall not rob.”


Heb “hold back with you”; perhaps “hold back for yourself” (cf. NRSV “keep for yourself”).


Heb “You shall not curse a deaf [person] and before a blind [person] you shall not put a stumbling block.”


Heb “And you shall fear.” Many English versions (e.g., KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV) regard the Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) as adversative in force here (“but”).


Smr has the singular rather than the plural “you” of the MT, which brings this verb form into line with the ones surrounding it.


Heb “You shall not do injustice in judgment” (NASB similar); cf. NIV “do not pervert justice.”


Heb “You shall not lift up faces of poor [people] and you shall not honor faces of great.”


Heb “In righteousness you shall judge your fellow citizen.”


The term רָכִיל ( rakhil ) is traditionally rendered “slanderer” here (so NASB, NIV, NRSV; see also J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 304, 316), but the exact meaning is uncertain (see the discussion in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 129). It is sometimes related to I רָכַל (“to go about as a trader [or “merchant”]”; BDB 940 s.v. רָכַל ), and taken to refer to cutthroat business dealings, but there may be a II רָכַל , the meaning of which is dubious ( HALOT 1237 s.v. II * רכל ). Some would render it “to go about as a spy.”


Heb “You shall not stand on the blood of your neighbor.” This part of the verse is also difficult to interpret. The rendering here suggests that one will not allow a neighbor to be victimized, whether in court (cf. v. 15 ) or in any other situation (see the discussion in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 129).


Heb “and you will not lift up on him sin.” The meaning of the line is somewhat obscure. It means either (1) that one should rebuke one’s neighbor when he sins lest one also becomes guilty, which is the way it is rendered here (see NIV, NRSV, NEB, JB; see also B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 129-30, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 303, and the discussion on pp. 316-17), or (2) one may rebuke one’s neighbor without incurring sin just as long as he does not hate him in his heart (see the first part of the verse; cf. NASB, NAB).


Heb “and you shall not retain [anger?].” This line seems to refer to the retaining or maintaining of some vengeful feelings toward someone. Compare the combination of the same terms for taking vengeance and maintaining wrath against enemies in Nahum 1:2 (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 305).


Heb “Your animals, you shall not cross-breed two different kinds.”


Heb “you shall not cause to go up on you.”


Heb “And a man when he lies with a woman the lying of seed.”


Heb “on his sin which he has sinned.”


Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him.”


Heb “from his sin.”


Heb “tree of food”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV “trees for food.”


Heb “you shall circumcise its fruit [as] its foreskin,” taking the fruit to be that which is to be removed and, therefore, forbidden. Since the fruit is uncircumcised it is forbidden (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 306, and esp. B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 131-32).


Heb “it shall be to you uncircumcised.”


See B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 132, where the translation reads “set aside for jubilation”; a special celebration before the Lord .


Heb “to add to you its produce.” The rendering here assumes that the point of this clause is simply that finally being allowed to eat the fruit in the fifth year adds the fruit of the tree to their harvest. Some take the verb to be from אָסַף (’ asaf , “to gather”) rather than יָסַף ( yasaf , “to add; to increase”), rendering the verse, “to gather to you the produce” (E. S. Gerstenberger, Leviticus [OTL], 260, and see the versions referenced in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 306). Others take it to mean that by following the regulations given previously they will honor the Lord so that the Lord will cause the trees to increase the amount of fruit they would normally produce (Hartley, 303, 306; cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).


Heb “You shall not eat on the blood.” See the extensive remarks in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 319-20, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 132-33. The LXX has “on the mountains,” suggesting that this is a prohibition against illegitimate places and occasions of worship, not the eating of blood.


Heb “You shall not practice divination and you shall not practice soothsaying”; cf. NRSV “practice augury or witchcraft.” For suggestions regarding the practices involved see B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 133, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 320.


Heb “and you [singular] shall not ruin the corner of your [singular] beard.” Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Tg. Ps.-J. have the plural pronouns (i.e., “you” and “your” plural) rather than the singular of the MT.


Heb “And slash for the soul you shall not give.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ ( nefesh , “soul, person, life”) can sometimes refer to a “dead person” (cf. Lev 21:1, 5; 22:5 ). See J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 306, 320-21.


Heb “and a writing of incision you shall not give in you.”


Heb “to make her practice harlotry.” Some recent English versions regard this as religious or temple prostitution (cf. TEV, CEV).


Heb “and the land become full of lewdness.” Regarding the term “lewdness,” see the note on Lev 18:17 above.


Heb “And when a sojourner sojourns.”


Heb “and.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.


That is, liquid capacity ( HALOT 640 s.v. מְשׂוּרָה ). Cf. ASV, NIV, NRSV, TEV “quantity”; NAB, NASB “capacity.”


Heb “balances of righteousness,” and so throughout this sentence.


Heb “And you shall keep all my statutes and all my regulations and you shall do them.” This appears to be a kind of verbal hendiadys, where the first verb is a modifier of the action of the second verb (see GKC 386 §120. d , although שָׁמַר [ shamar , “to keep”] is not cited there; cf. Lev 22:31 ).


Heb “or from the sojourner who sojourns”; NAB “an alien residing in Israel.”


Heb “his seed” (so KJV, ASV); likewise in vv. 3-4 .


Regarding Molech and Molech worship see the note on Lev 18:21 .


This is not the most frequently-used Hebrew verb for stoning (see instead סָקַל , saqal ), but a word that refers to the action of throwing, slinging, or pelting someone with stones ( רָגָם , ragam ; see HALOT 1187 s.v. רגם qal.a, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 136).


Heb “And I, I shall give my faces.”


Heb “for the sake of defiling my sanctuary and to profane my holy name.”


Heb “And if shutting [infinitive absolute] they shut [finite verb].” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113. p .


Heb “from that man” (so ASV); NASB “disregard that man.”


The adjective “spiritual” has been supplied in the translation to clarify that this is not a reference to literal prostitution, but figuratively compares idolatry to prostitution.


Heb “to commit harlotry after Molech.” The translation employs “worshiping” here for clarity (cf. NAB, NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT). On the “cut off” penalty see the note on Lev 7:20 .


See the note on the phrase “familiar spirits” in Lev 19:31 above.


Heb “And you shall keep my statutes and you shall do them.” This appears to be a kind of verbal hendiadys, where the first verb is a modifier of the action of the second verb (see GKC 386 §120. d , although שָׁמַר [ shamar , “to keep”] is not cited there; cf. Lev 22:31 , etc.).


Heb “If a man a man who.”


Heb “makes light of his father and his mother.” Almost all English versions render this as some variation of “curses his father or mother.”


Heb “And a man who.” The syntax here and at the beginning of the following verses elliptically mirrors that of v. 9 , which justifies the rendering as a conditional clause.


The reading of the LXX minuscule mss has been followed here (see the BHS footnote a-a). The MT has a dittography, repeating “a man who commits adultery with the wife of” (see the explanation in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 328). The duplication found in the MT is reflected in some English versions, e.g., KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV.


See the note on v. 9 above.


The Hebrew term תֶּבֶל ( tevel , “perversion”) derives from the verb “to mix; to confuse” (cf. KJV, ASV “they have wrought confusion”).


Heb “[as the] lyings of a woman.” The specific reference here is to homosexual intercourse between males.


Heb “And a man who takes a woman and her mother.” The Hebrew verb “to take” in this context means “to engage in sexual intercourse.”


Regarding “lewdness,” see the note on Lev 18:17 above.


Heb “in fire they shall burn him and them.” The active plural verb sometimes requires a passive translation (GKC 460 §144. f , g ), esp. when no active plural subject has been expressed in the context. The present translation specifies “burned to death” because the traditional rendering “burnt with fire” (KJV, ASV; NASB “burned with fire”) could be understood to mean “branded” or otherwise burned, but not fatally.


See the note on Lev 18:20 above.


Heb “takes.” The verb “to take” in this context means “to engage in sexual intercourse,” though some English versions translate it as “marry” (e.g., NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV).


Regarding the “cut off” penalty, see the note on Lev 7:20 .


See the note on Lev 17:16 above.


Heb “and the two of them.”


Heb “his flesh.”


Heb “takes.” The verb “to take” in this context means “to engage in sexual intercourse.”


Heb “And you shall keep all my statutes and all my regulations and you shall do them.” This appears to be a kind of verbal hendiadys, where the first verb is a modifier of the action of the second verb (see GKC 386 §120. d , although שָׁמַר [ shamar , “to keep”] is not cited there; cf. Lev 22:31 , etc.).


Heb “and.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.


One medieval Hebrew ms , Smr, and all the major ancient versions have the plural “nations.” Some English versions retain the singular (e.g., KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV); others have the plural “nations” (e.g., NAB, NIV) and still others translate as “people” (e.g., TEV, NLT).


Here and with the same phrase in v. 26 , the LXX adds “all,” resulting in the reading “all the peoples.”


Heb “And you shall distinguish.” The verb is the same as “set apart” at the end of the previous verse. The fact that God had “set them apart” from the other peoples roundabout them called for them to “distinguish between” the clean and the unclean, etc.


The word “creatures” has been supplied in the translation to make it clear that the following relative clause modifies the animal, bird, or creeping thing mentioned earlier, and not the ground itself.


The MT has “to defile,” but Smr, LXX, and Syriac have “to uncleanness.”


Smr, LXX, Syriac, and some Targum mss have the relative pronoun אֲשֶׁר (’ asher , “who, which”), rather than the MT’s כִּי ( ki , “for, because, that”).


See the note on the phrase “familiar spirit” in Lev 19:31 above.


This is not the most frequently-used Hebrew verb for stoning, but a word that refers to the action of throwing, slinging, or pelting someone with stones (see the note on v. 2 above). Smr and LXX have “you [plural] shall pelt them with stones.” sn At first glance Lev 20:27 appears to be out of place but, on closer examination, one could argue that it constitutes the back side of an envelope around the case laws in 20:9-21 , with Lev 20:6 forming the front of the envelope (note also that execution of mediums and spiritists by stoning in v. 27 is not explicitly stated in v. 6 ). This creates a chiastic structure: prohibition against mediums and spiritists (vv. 6 and 27 ), variations of the holiness formula (vv. 7 and 25-26 ), and exhortations to obey the Lord ’s statutes (and judgments; vv. 8 and 22-24 ). Again, in the middle are the case laws (vv. 9-21 ).


The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ ( nefesh , “soul, person, life”) can sometimes refer to a “dead person” (cf. Lev 19:28 above and the literature cited there).


Heb “no one,” but “priest” has been used in the translation to clarify that these restrictions are limited to the priests, not to the Israelites in general (note the introductory formula, “say to the priests, the sons of Aaron”).


The MT has “in his peoples,” but Smr, LXX, Syriac, Targum, and Tg. Ps.-J. have “in his people,” referring to the Israelites as a whole.


Heb “except for his flesh, the one near to him.”


Cf. v. 2 a.


Heb “He shall not defile himself a husband in his peoples, to profane himself.” The meaning of the line is disputed, but it appears to prohibit a priest from burying any relative by marriage (as opposed to the blood relatives of vv. 2-3 ), including his wife (compare B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 142-43 with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 343, 348).


Heb “they”; the referent (priests, see the beginning of v. 1 ) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and in their body they shall not [cut] slash[es]” (cf. Lev 19:28 ). The context connects these sorts of mutilations with mourning rites (cf. Lev 19:27-28 above).


Smr and all early versions have the plural adjective “holy” rather than the MT singular noun “holiness.”


Heb “A wife harlot and profaned they shall not take.” The structure of the verse (e.g., “wife” at the beginning of the two main clauses) suggests that “harlot and profaned” constitutes a hendiadys, meaning “a wife defiled by harlotry” (see the explanation in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 143, as opposed to that in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 343, 348; cf. v. 14 below). Cf. NASB “a woman who is profaned by harlotry.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the priest) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The pronoun “he” in this clause refers to the priest, not the former husband of the divorced woman.


The three previous second person references in this verse are all singular, but this reference is plural. By adding “all” this grammatical distinction is preserved in the translation.


See the note on “burned to death” in 20:14 .


The adjective “high” has been supplied in the translation for clarity, as in many English versions.


Heb “and he has filled his hand.” For this expression see the note on Lev 8:33 .


Regarding these signs of mourning see the note on Lev 10:6 . His head had been anointed (v. 10 a) so it must not be unkempt (v. 10 b), and his garments were special priestly garments (v. 10 a) so he must not tear them (v. 10 b). In the translation “garments” has been employed rather than “clothes” to suggest that the special priestly garments are referred to here; cf. NRSV “nor tear his vestments.”


Although the MT has “persons” (plural), the LXX and Syriac have the singular “person” corresponding to the singular adjectival participle “dead” (cf. also Num 6:6 ).


Heb “And he, a wife in her virginity he shall take.”


Heb “take.” In context this means “take as wife,” i.e., “marry.”


The MT has literally, “from his peoples,” but Smr, LXX, Syriac, Targum, and Tg. Ps.-J. have “from his people,” referring to the Israelites as a whole.


The MT has literally, “in his peoples,” but Smr, LXX, Syriac, Targum, and Tg. Ps.-J. have “in his people,” referring to the Israelites as a whole.


Heb “to their generations.”


Heb “who in him is a flaw”; cf. KJV, ASV “any blemish”; NASB, NIV “a defect.” The rendering “physical flaw” is used to refer to any birth defect or physical injury of the kind described in the following verses (cf. the same Hebrew word also in Lev 24:19-20 ). The same term is used for “flawed” animals, which must not be offered to the Lord in Lev 22:20-25 .


The particle כִּי ( ki ) in this context is asseverative, indicating absolutely certainty (GKC 498 §159. ee ).


Lexically, the Hebrew term חָרֻם ( kharum ) seems to refer to a split nose or perhaps any number of other facial defects ( HALOT 354 s.v. II חרם qal; cf. G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 292, n. 7); cf. KJV, ASV “a flat nose”; NASB “a disfigured face.” The NJPS translation is “a limb too short” as a balance to the following term which means “extended, raised,” and apparently refers to “a limb too long” (see the explanation in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 146).


Heb “who there is in him a broken leg or a broken arm,” or perhaps “broken foot or broken hand.” The Hebrew term רֶגֶל ( regel ) is commonly rendered “foot,” but it can also refer to the “leg,” and the Hebrew יָד ( yad ) is most often translated “hand,” but can also refer to the “[fore]arm” (as opposed to כַּף , kaf , “palm of the hand” or “hand”). See HALOT 386 s.v. יָד and 1184 s.v. רֶגֶל respectively (cf. the NJPS translation). In this context, these terms probably apply to any part of the limb that was broken, including hand and the foot. B. A. Levine ( Leviticus [JPSTC], 146) points out that such injuries often did not heal properly in antiquity because they were not properly set and, therefore, remained a “physical flaw” permanently.


Heb “thin”; cf. NAB “weakly.” This could refer to either an exceptionally small (i.e., dwarfed) man (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 146) or perhaps one with a “withered limb” (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 342, 344).


The term rendered “spot” derives from a root meaning “mixed” or “confused” (cf. NAB “walleyed”). It apparently refers to any kind of marked flaw in the eye that can be seen by others. Smr, Syriac, Tg. Onq. , and Tg. Ps.-J. have plural “his eyes.”


The exact meaning and medical reference of the terms rendered “festering eruption” and “feverish rash” is unknown, but see the translations and remarks in B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 146; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 342, 344, 349-50; and R. K. Harrison, NIDOTTE 1:890 and 2:461.


Or “shall approach” (see HALOT 670 s.v. נגשׁ ).


Heb “And.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.


Heb “And.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) introduces a concluding statement for all the preceding material.


The words “these things” are not in the Hebrew text, but have been supplied in the translation for clarity.


Heb “holy things,” which means the “holy offerings” in this context, as the following verses show. The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “from the holy things of the sons of Israel, and they shall not profane my holy name, which they are consecrating to me.” The latter (relative) clause applies to the “the holy things of the sons of Israel” (the first clause), not the Lord ’s name (i.e., the immediately preceding clause). The clause order in the translation has been rearranged to indicate this.


Heb “To your generations.”


The Piel (v. 2 ) and Hiphil (v. 3 ) forms of the verb קָדַשׁ ( qadash ) appear to be interchangeable in this context. Both mean “to consecrate” ( Heb “make holy [or “sacred”]”).


Heb “and his impurity [is] on him”; NIV “is ceremonially unclean”; NAB, NRSV “while he is in a state of uncleanness.”


Heb “Man man.” The reduplication is a way of saying “any man” (cf. Lev 15:2; 17:3 , etc.), but with a negative command it means “No man” (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 147).


Heb “And the one.”


Heb “in all unclean of a person/soul”; for the Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ ( nefesh ) meaning “a [dead] person,” see the note on Lev 19:28 .


Heb “or a man who goes out from him a lying of seed.”


Heb “which there shall be uncleanness to him.”


The Hebrew term for “person” here is אָדָם ( adam , “human being”), which could either a male or a female person.


Heb “to all his impurity.” The phrase refers to the impurity of the person whom the man touches to become unclean (see the previous clause). To clarify this, the translation uses “that person’s” rather than “his.”


Heb “a carcass,” referring to the carcass of an animal that has died on its own, not the carcass of an animal slaughtered for sacrifice or killed by wild beasts. This has been clarified in the translation by supplying the phrase “of natural causes”; cf. NAB “that has died of itself”; TEV “that has died a natural death.”


Heb “and they will not lift up on it sin.” The pronoun “it” (masculine) apparently refers to any item of food that belongs to the category of “holy offerings” (see above).


Heb “and die in it.”


Heb “No stranger” (so KJV, ASV), which refers here to anyone other than the Aaronic priests. Some English versions reverse the negation and state positively: NIV “No one outside a priest’s family”; NRSV “Only a member of a priestly family”; CEV “Only you priests and your families.”


Heb “A resident [ תּוֹשָׁב ( toshav ) from יָשַׁב ( yashav , “to dwell, to reside”)] of a priest.” The meaning of the term is uncertain. It could refer to a “guest” (NIV) or perhaps “bound servant” (NRSV; see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 149). In the translation “lodger” was used instead of “boarder” precisely because a boarder would be provided meals with his lodging, the very issue at stake here.


Heb “and a priest, if he buys a person, the property of his silver.”


Heb “he”; the referent (the person whom the priest has purchased) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “eat it”; the referent (the holy offerings) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “his”; the referent (the priest) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and the [slave] born of his house, they shall eat in his food.” The LXX, Syriac, Tg. Onq. , Tg. Ps.-J. , and some mss of Smr have plural “ones born,” which matches the following plural “they” pronoun and the plural form of the verb.


Heb “And a daughter of a priest, if she is to a man, a stranger” (cf. the note on v. 10 above).


Heb “she in the contribution of the holy offerings shall not eat.” For “contribution [offering]” see the note on Lev 7:14 and the literature cited there. Cf. NCV “the holy offerings”; TEV, NLT “the sacred offerings.”


Heb “to”; the words “live in” have been supplied in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and seed there is not to her and she returns to the house of her father as her youth.” The mention of having “no children” appears to imply that her children, if she had any, should support her; this is made explicit by NLT’s “and has no children to support her.”


Heb “And a man, if he eats a holy thing in error” (see the Lev 4:2 not on “straying,” which is the term rendered “by mistake” here).


Contextually, “They” could refer either to the people (v. 14 a; cf. NRSV “No one”) or the priests (v. 14 b; cf. NIV “The priests”), but the latter seems more likely (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 356, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 150). The priests were responsible to see that the portions of the offerings that were to be consumed by the priests as prebends did not become accessible to the people. Mistakes in this matter (cf. v. 14 ) would bring “guilt” on the people, requiring punishment (v. 16 ).


The Hebrew verb הֵרִים ( herim , rendered “contribute” here) is commonly used for setting aside portions of an offering (see, e.g., Lev 4:8-10 and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 4:335-36).


Heb “the holy offerings of the sons of Israel which they contribute to the Lord .” The subject “they” here refers to the Israelites (“the sons of Israel”) which is the most immediate antecedent. To make this clear, the present translation has “the holy offerings which the Israelites contribute to the Lord .”


Heb “iniquity of guilt”; NASB “cause them to bear punishment for guilt.” The Hebrew word עָוֹן (’ avon , “iniquity”) can designate either acts of iniquity or the penalty (i.e., punishment) for such acts.


Heb “Man, man.” The reduplication is a way of saying “any man” (cf. Lev 15:2; 17:3 , etc.; see the distributive repetition of the noun in GKC 395-96 §123. c ).


Heb “and from the foreigner [singular] in Israel.” Some medieval Hebrew mss , Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate add “who resides” after “foreigner”: “the foreigner who resides in Israel” (cf., e.g., Lev 20:2 above).


Heb “for your acceptance.” See Lev 1:3-4 above and the notes there.


Heb “all which in it [is] a flaw.” Note that the same term is used for physical flaws of people in Lev 21:17-24 . Cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV “blemish”; NASB, NIV, TEV “defect”; NLT “with physical defects.”


Heb “not for acceptance shall it be for you”; NIV “it will not be accepted on your behalf” (NRSV and NLT both similar).


The meaning of the expression לְפַלֵּא־נֶדֶר ( lÿfalle ’ -neder ) rendered here “for a special votive offering” is much debated. Some take it as an expression for fulfilling a vow, “to fulfill a vow” (e.g., HALOT 927-28 s.v. פלא piel and NASB; cf. NAB, NRSV “in fulfillment of a vow”) or, alternatively, “to make a vow” or “for making a vow” ( HALOT 928 s.v. פלא piel [II פלא ]). Perhaps it refers to the making a special vow, from the verb פָלַא ( pala ’, “to be wonderful, to be remarkable”); cf. J. Milgrom, Numbers (JPSTC), 44. B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 151 and 193, suggests that this is a special term for “setting aside a votive offering” (related to פָלָה [ palah , “to set aside”]). In general, the point of the expression seems to be that this sacrifice arises as a special gift to God out of special circumstances in the life of the worshiper.


Heb “for acceptance”; NAB “if it is to find acceptance.”


Heb “all/any flaw shall not be in it.”


Or perhaps “a wart” (cf. NIV; HALOT 383 s.v. יַבֶּלֶת , but see the remarks in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 358).


Heb “And an ox.”


Heb “and stunted” (see HALOT 1102 s.v. I קלט ).


Heb “And from the hand of a son of a foreigner.”


Heb “for their being ruined [is] in them, flaw is in them”; NRSV “are mutilated, with a blemish in them”; NIV “are deformed and have defects.” The MT term מָשְׁחָתָם ( moshkhatam , “their being ruined”) is a Muqtal form (= Hophal participle) from שָׁחַת ( shakhat , “to ruin”). Smr has plural בהם משׁחתים (“deformities in them”; cf. the LXX translation). The Qumran Leviticus scroll (11QpaleoLev) has תימ הם […], in which case the restored participle would appear to be the same as Smr, but there is no בְּ ( bet ) preposition before the pronoun, yielding “they are deformed” (see D. N. Freedman and K. A. Mathews, The Paleo-Hebrew Leviticus Scroll , 41 and the remarks in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 358).


The words “the care of” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied. Although many modern English versions render “with its mother” (e.g., NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT), the literal phrase “under its mother” refers to the young animal nursing from its mother. Cf. KJV, ASV “it shall be seven days under the dam,” which would probably be misunderstood.


Heb “for an offering of a gift.”


Heb “And an ox or a sheep, it and its son, you shall not slaughter.”


Heb “in one day.”


Heb “for your acceptance” (see the notes on Lev 1:3-4 and 22:19 above).


Heb “On that day”; NIV, NCV “that same day.”


Heb “from it.”


Heb “And you shall keep my commandments and you shall do them.” This appears to be a kind of verbal hendiadys, where the first verb is a modifier of the action of the second verb (see GKC 386 §120. d , although שָׁמַר [ shamar , “to keep”] is not cited there; cf. Lev 20:8 , etc.).


Heb “to be to you for God.”


Heb “these are them, my appointed times.” sn The term מוֹעֵד ( mo ’ ed , rendered “appointed time” here) can refer to either a time or place of meeting. See the note on “tent of meeting” ( אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד , ’ ohel mo ’ ed ) in Lev 1:1 .


This is a superlative expression, emphasizing the full and all inclusive rest of the Sabbath and certain festival times throughout the chapter (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 155). Cf. ASV “a sabbath of solemn rest.”


Heb “between the two evenings,” perhaps designating the time between the setting of the sun and the true darkness of night. Cf. KJV, ASV “at even”; NAB “at the evening twilight.” sn See B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 156, for a full discussion of the issues raised in this verse. The rabbinic tradition places the slaughter of Passover offerings between approximately 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. , not precisely at twilight. Moreover, the term פֶּסַח ( pesakh ) may mean “protective offering” rather than “Passover offering,” although they amount to about the same thing in the historical context of the exodus from Egypt (see Exod 11-12 ).


Heb “to this month.”


Heb “work of service”; KJV “servile work”; NASB “laborious work”; TEV “daily work.”


Heb “and you harvest its harvest.”


Heb “the sheaf of the first of your harvest.”


Heb “for your acceptance.”


Heb “And you shall make in the day of your waving the sheaf.”


Heb “a flawless lamb, a son of its year”; KJV “of the first year”; NLT “a year-old male lamb.”


Heb “wine, one fourth of the hin.” A pre-exilic hin is about 3.6 liters (= ca. 1 quart), so one fourth of a hin would be about one cup.


Heb “until the bone of this day.”


Heb “for your generations.”


Heb “seven Sabbaths, they shall be complete.” The disjunctive accent under “Sabbaths” precludes the translation “seven complete Sabbaths” (as NASB, NIV; cf. NAB, NRSV, NLT). The text is somewhat awkward, which may explain why the LXX tradition is confused here, either adding “you shall count” again at the end of the verse, or leaving out “they shall be,” or keeping “they shall be” and adding “to you.”


Heb “and.” In the translation “then” is supplied to clarify the sequence.


Smr, LXX, Syriac, Tg. Onq. , and Tg. Ps.-J. insert the word חַלּוֹת ( khallot , “loaves”; cf. Lev 2:4 and the note there). Even though “loaves” is not explicit in the MT, the number “two” suggests that these are discrete units, not just a measure of flour, so “loaves” should be assumed even in the MT.


Heb “with leaven.” The noun “leaven” is traditional in English versions (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV), but “yeast” is more commonly used today.


Heb “And you shall present on the bread.”


Heb “seven flawless lambs, sons of a year.”


Heb “and one bull, a son of a herd.”


Smr and LXX add “flawless.”


Heb “and their grain offering.”


Heb “And you shall make.”


Heb “a he-goat of goats.”


Smr and LXX have the Hebrew article on “lambs.” The syntax of this verse is difficult. The object of the verb (two lambs) is far removed from the verb itself (shall wave) in the MT, and the preposition עַל (’ al , “upon”), rendered “along with” in this verse, is also added to the far removed subject (literally, “upon [the] two lambs”; see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 159). It is clear, however, that the two lambs and the loaves (along with their associated grain and drink offerings) constituted the “wave offering,” which served as the prebend “for the priest.” Burnt and sin offerings (vv. 18-19 a) were not included in this (see Lev 7:11-14, 28-36 ).


Heb “And you shall proclaim [an assembly] in the bone of this day; a holy assembly it shall be to you” (see the remarks in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 160, and the remarks on the LXX rendering in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 367).


Heb “And when you harvest the harvest.”


Heb “you shall not complete the corner of your field in your harvest.”


Heb “a memorial of loud blasts.” Although the term for “horn” does not occur here, allowing for the possibility that vocal “shouts” of acclamation are envisioned (see P. J. Budd, Leviticus [NCBC], 325), the “blast” of the shofar (a trumpet made from a ram’s “horn”) is most likely what is intended. On this occasion, the loud blasts on the horn announced the coming of the new year on the first day of the seventh month (see the explanations in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 387, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 160).


Heb “and.” The Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) can be considered to have adversative force here (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV).


Heb “Surely the tenth day” or perhaps “Precisely the tenth day.” The Hebrew adverbial particle אַךְ (’ akh ) is left untranslated by most recent English versions; cf. however NASB “On exactly the tenth day.”


Heb “you shall humble your souls.” See the note on Lev 16:29 above.


Heb “in the bone of this day.”


Heb “on you [plural]”; cf. NASB, NRSV “on your behalf.”


The particular כִּי ( ki ) is taken in an asseverative sense here (“Indeed,” see the NJPS translation).


Heb “it [i.e., that person; literally “soul,” feminine] shall be cut off from its peoples [plural]”; NLT “from the community.”


Heb “And any person.”


See HALOT 3 s.v. I אבד hif. Cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “destroy”; CEV “wipe out.”


Heb “its people” (“its” is feminine to agree with “person,” literally “soul,” which is feminine in Hebrew; cf. v. 29 ).


Heb “for your generations.”


Heb “you shall rest your Sabbath.”


The rendering “booths” (cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV) is probably better than the traditional “tabernacles” in light of the meaning of the term סֻכָּה ( sukkah , “hut, booth”), but “booths” are frequently associated with trade shows and craft fairs in contemporary American English. The nature of the celebration during this feast (see the following verses) as a commemoration of the wanderings of the Israelites after they left Egypt suggests that a translation like “temporary shelters” is more appropriate.


Heb “work of service”; KJV “servile work”; NASB “laborious work”; TEV “daily work.”


The Hebrew term עֲצֶרֶת (’ atseret ) “solemn assembly [day]” derives from a root associated with restraint or closure. It could refer either to the last day as “closing assembly” day of the festival (e.g., NIV) or a special day of restraint expressed in a “solemn assembly” (e.g., NRSV); cf. NLT “a solemn closing assembly.”


The LXX has “[their] burnt offerings, and their sacrifices, and their drink offerings.”


Heb “a matter of a day in its day”; NAB “as prescribed for each day”; NRSV, NLT “each on its proper day.”


Heb “from to separation.” See BDB 94 s.v. בַּד 1.e for an explanation of this phrase. This phrase is repeated in front of each of the four items in this verse in the Hebrew text, but these have not been translated into English for stylistic reasons. Cf. KJV, NASB “besides”; NRSV “apart from.”


Heb “Surely on the fifteenth day.” The Hebrew adverbial particle אַךְ (’ akh ) is left untranslated by most recent English versions; however, cf. NASB “On exactly the fifteenth day.”


Heb “fruit of majestic trees,” but the following terms and verses define what is meant by this expression. For extensive remarks on the celebration of this festival in history and tradition see B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 163; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 389-90; and P. J. Budd, Leviticus (NCBC), 328-29.


Heb “in the huts” (again at the end of this verse and in v. 43 ), perhaps referring to temporary shelters (i.e., huts) made of the foliage referred to in v. 40 (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 389).


Heb “and let them take.” The simple vav ( ו ) on the imperfect/jussive form of the verb לָקַח ( laqakh , “to take”) following the imperative (“Command”) indicates a purpose clause (“to bring…”).


Heb “to cause to ascend a lamp continually.”


The Hebrew term פָּרֹכֶת ( parokhet ) is usually translated “veil” or “curtain,” but it seems to have stretched not only in front of but also over the top of the ark of the covenant which stood behind and under it inside the most holy place (see R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 3:687-89).


Several medieval Hebrew mss , Smr, and the LXX add “and his sons.”


Alternatively, “pure [gold] lampstand,” based on Exod 25:31 , etc., where the term for “gold” actually appears (see NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT, and the remarks in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 395, etc.). However, in Lev 24:4 the adjective “pure” is feminine, corresponding to “lampstand,” not an assumed noun “gold” (contrast Exod 25:31 ), and the “table” in v. 6 was overlaid with gold, but was not made of pure gold. Therefore, it is probably better to translate “[ceremonially] pure lampstand” (v. 4 ) and “[ceremonially] pure table” (v. 6 ); see NEB; cf. KJV, ASV; B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 164-65; and G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 307.


Heb “and bake it twelve loaves”; KJV, NAB, NASB “cakes.”


The words “of flour” are supplied in the translation for clarity. sn See the note on Lev 5:11 .


Heb “six of the row.”


This is not just any “incense” ( קְטֹרֶת , qÿtoret ; R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 3:913-16), but specifically “frankincense” ( לְבֹנָה , lÿvonah ; R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:756-57).


Heb “on [ עַל , ’ al ] the row,” probably used distributively, “on each row” (J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 395-96). Perhaps the frankincense was placed “with” or “along side of” each row, not actually on the bread itself, and was actually burned as incense to the Lord (cf. NIV “Along [Alongside CEV] each row”; NRSV “with each row”; NLT “near each row”; B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 165). This particular preposition can have such a meaning.


Heb “In the day of the Sabbath, in the day of the Sabbath.” The repetition is distributive. A few medieval Hebrew mss , the LXX, and the Syriac delete the second occurrence of the expression.


Heb “he”; the referent (Aaron) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


The word “portion” is supplied in the translation here for clarity, to specify what “this” refers to.


Or “a perpetual regulation”; NRSV “a perpetual due.”


Heb “And.”


Heb “the Israelite man,” but Smr has no article, and the point is that there was a conflict between the man of mixed background and a man of full Israelite descent.


The verb rendered “misused” means literally “to bore through, to pierce” ( HALOT 719 s.v. נקב qal); it is from נָקַב ( naqav ), not קָבַב ( qavav ; see the participial form in v. 16 a). Its exact meaning here is uncertain. The two verbs together may form a hendiadys, “he pronounced by cursing blasphemously” (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 166), the idea being one of the following: (1) he pronounced the name “Yahweh” in a way or with words that amounted to “some sort of verbal aggression against Yahweh himself” (E. S. Gerstenberger, Leviticus [OTL], 362), (2) he pronounced a curse against the man using the name “Yahweh” (N. H. Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers [NCBC], 110; G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 311), or (3) he pronounced the name “Yahweh” and thereby blasphemed, since the “Name” was never to be pronounced (a standard Jewish explanation). In one way or another, the offense surely violated Exod 20:7 , one of the ten commandments, and the same verb for cursing is used explicitly in Exod 22:28 (27 HT) prohibition against “cursing” God. For a full discussion of these and related options for interpreting this verse see P. J. Budd, Leviticus (NCBC), 335-36; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 408-9; and Levine, 166.


The words “until they were able” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied.


The Hebrew here is awkward. A literal reading would be something like the following: “And they placed him in custody to give a clear decision [ HALOT 976 s.v. פרשׁ qal] for themselves on the mouth of the Lord .” In any case, they were apparently waiting for a direct word from the Lord regarding this matter (see vv. 13 ff).


The words “to death” are supplied in the translation as a clarification; they are clearly implied from v. 16 .


Heb “And if a man strikes any soul [ נֶפֶשׁ , nefesh ] of mankind.” The idiom seems to derive from the idea of striking a fatal blow to the very “life” (literally, “soul”) of a human being, not just landing a blow on their body ( HALOT 698 s.v. נכה hif.2). On the difficult of the meaning and significance of the term נֶפֶשׁ see the notes on Lev 17:10-11 .


Heb “And one who strikes a soul of an animal.”


Heb “soul under soul.” Cf. KJV “beast for beast”; NCV “must give…another animal to take its place.”


Heb “gives a flaw in”; KJV, ASV “cause a blemish in.”


Or “neighbor” (so NAB, NASB, NIV); TEV, NLT “another person.”


Heb “in the man [ אָדָם , ’ adam ].”


Heb “just as he inflicts an injury…it must be inflicted on him.” The referent (“that same injury”) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “and,” but here the Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) is adversative, contrasting the consequences of beating an animal to death with those of beating a person to death.


Heb “a regulation of one”; KJV, ASV “one manner of law”; NASB “one standard.”


Heb “the land shall rest a Sabbath.”


Heb “its produce,” but the feminine pronoun “its” probably refers to the “land” (a feminine noun in Hebrew; cf. v. 2 ), not the “field” or the “vineyard,” both of which are normally masculine nouns (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 170).


Heb “and in the seventh year a Sabbath of complete rest shall be to the land.” The expression “a Sabbath of complete rest” is superlative, emphasizing the full and all inclusive rest of the seventh year of the sabbatical cycle. Cf. ASV “a sabbath of solemn rest”; NAB “a complete rest.”


Heb “and.” Here the Hebrew conjunction ו ( vav , “and”) has an alternative sense (“or”).


Heb “consecrated, devoted, forbidden” ( נָזִיר , nazir ). The same term is used for the “consecration” of the “Nazirite” (and his hair, Num 6:2, 18 , etc.), a designation which, in turn, derives from the very same root.


The word “produce” is not in the Hebrew text but is implied; cf. NASB “the sabbath products.”


A “resident who stays” would be a foreign person who was probably residing as another kind of laborer in the household of a landowner (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 170-71). See v. 35 below.


The words “for you” are implied.


Heb “And you shall count off for yourself.”


Heb “seven years seven times.”


Heb “and they shall be for you, the days of the seven Sabbaths of years, forty-nine years.”


Heb “the year of the fifty years,” or perhaps “the year, fifty years” (GKC 435 §134. o , note 2).


Cf. KJV, ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV “liberty”; TEV, CEV “freedom.” The characteristics of this “release” are detailed in the following verses. For substantial summaries and bibliography on the biblical and ancient Near Eastern material regarding such a “release” see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 427-34, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 270-74.


Heb “A jubilee that shall be to you.” Although there has been some significant debate about the original meaning of the Hebrew word translated “jubilee” ( יוֹבֵל , yovel ; see the summary in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 434), the term most likely means “ram” and can refer also to a “ram’s horn.” The fiftieth year would, therefore, be called the “jubilee” because of the associated sounding of the “ram’s horn” (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 172, and the literature cited there).


Heb “you [plural] shall return, a man.”


Heb “you shall not sow and you shall not…and you shall not….” sn See v. 5 above and the notes there.


That is, the produce of the land (fem.; cf. v. 7 above).


Heb “sell a sale.”


Or “to one of your countrymen” (NIV); NASB “to your friend.”


The Hebrew infinitive absolute קָנֹה ( qanoh , “buying”) substitutes for the finite verb here in sequence with the previous finite verb “sell” at the beginning of the verse (see GKC 345 §113. z ).


Heb “do not oppress a man his brother.” Here “brother” does not refer only to a sibling, but to a fellow Israelite.


Heb “in the number of years after.”


The words “that are left” are not in the Hebrew text, but are implied. sn The purchaser is actually buying only the crops that the land will produce until the next jubilee, since the land will revert to the original owner at that time. The purchaser, therefore, is not actually buying the land itself.


Heb “To the mouth of the many years.”


Heb “to the mouth of the few years.”


Heb “a number of produce”; the words “years of” are implied. As an alternative this could be translated “a number of harvests” (cf. NRSV, NLT).


Heb “And you shall not oppress a man his fellow citizen.”


Heb “And you shall keep and do them.” This appears to be a kind of verbal hendiadys, where the first verb is a modifier of the action of the second verb (see GKC 386 §120. d , although שָׁמַר [ shamar , “to keep”] is not cited there; cf. Lev 20:8 , etc.).


Heb “and you shall dwell on the land to security.”


Heb “eat to satisfaction”; KJV, ASV “ye shall eat your fill.”


Heb “and it [i.e., the land] shall make the produce.” The Hebrew term וְעָשָׂת ( vÿ ’ asat , “and it shall make”) is probably an older third feminine singular form of the verb (GKC 210 §75. m ). Smr has the normal form.


Smr and LXX have “its produce” (cf. 25:3, 7 , etc.) rather than “the produce.”


Heb “the produce,” referring to “the produce” of the sixth year of v. 21 . The words “sixth year” are supplied for clarity.


Heb “until the ninth year, until bringing [in] its produce.”


The term rendered “without reclaim” means that the land has been bought for the full price and is, therefore, not subject to reclaim under any circumstances. This was not to be done with land in ancient Israel (contrast the final full sale of houses in v. 30 ; see the evidence cited in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 174).


That is, the Israelites were strangers and residents who were attached to the Lord ’s household. They did not own the land. Note the parallel to the “priest’s lodger” in Lev 22:10 .


Heb “And in all the land of your property.”


Heb “right of redemption you shall give to the land”; NAB “you must permit the land to be redeemed.”


Heb “the sale of his brother.”


Heb “and his hand reaches.”


Heb “and he finds as sufficiency of its redemption.”


Heb “and he shall calculate its years of sale.”


Heb “and return the excess.”


Heb “And if his hand has not found sufficiency of returning.” Although some versions take this to mean that he has not made enough to regain the land (e.g., NASB, NRSV; see also B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 176), the combination of terms in Hebrew corresponds to the portion of v. 27 that refers specifically to refunding the money (cf. v. 27 ; see NIV and G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 315).


Heb “his sale.”


Heb “will be in the hand of.” This refers to the temporary control of the one who purchased its produce until the next year of jubilee, at which time it would revert to the original owner.


Heb “it shall go out” (so KJV, ASV; see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 176).


Heb “he”; the referent (the original owner of the land) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


Heb “a house of a residence of a walled city.”


Heb “shall be.”


Heb “of its sale.”


Heb “days its right of redemption shall be” (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 176).


Heb “until fulfilling to it a complete year.’


Heb “the house which [is] in the city which to it [is] a wall.” The Kethib has לֹא ( lo ’, “no, not”) rather than לוֹ ( lo , “to it”) which is the Qere .


See the note on v. 23 above.


Heb “And the houses of the villages.”


Heb “which there is not to them a wall.”


Heb “on the field.”


Heb “And.”


Heb “the houses of the cities of their property.”


Heb “And which he shall redeem from the Levites shall go out, sale of house and city, his property in the jubilee.” Although the end of this verse is clear, the first part is notoriously difficult. There are five main views. (1) The first clause of the verse actually attaches to the previous verse, and refers to the fact that their houses retain a perpetual right of redemption (v. 32 b), “which any of the Levites may exercise” (v. 33 a; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 418, 421). (2) It refers to property that one Levite sells to another Levite, which is then redeemed by still another Levite (v. 33 a). In such cases, the property reverts to the original Levite owner in the jubilee year (v. 33 b; G. J. Wenham, Leviticus [NICOT], 321). (3) It refers to houses in a city that had come to be declared as a Levitical city but had original non-Levitical owners. Once the city was declared to belong to the Levites, however, an owner could only sell his house to a Levite, and he could only redeem it back from a Levite up until the time of the first jubilee after the city was declared to be a Levitical city. In this case the first part of the verse would be translated, “Such property as may be redeemed from the Levites” (NRSV, NJPS). At the first jubilee, however, all such houses became the property of the Levites (v. 33 b; P. J. Budd, Leviticus [NCBC], 353). (4) It refers to property “which is appropriated from the Levites” (not “ redeemed from the Levites,” v. 33 a) by those who have bought it or taken it as security for debts owed to them by Levites who had fallen on bad times. Again, such property reverts back to the original Levite owners at the jubilee (B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 177). (5) It simply refers to the fact that a Levite has the option of redeeming his house (i.e., the prefix form of the verb is taken to be subjunctive, “may or might redeem”), which he had to sell because he had fallen into debt or perhaps even become destitute. Even if he never gained the resources to do so, however, it would still revert to him in the jubilee year. The present translation is intended to reflect this latter view.


It is not clear to whom this refers. It is probably broader than “sibling” (cf. NRSV “any of your kin”; NLT “any of your Israelite relatives”) but some English versions take it to mean “fellow Israelite” (so TEV; cf. NAB, NIV “countrymen”) and others are ambiguous (cf. CEV “any of your people”).


Heb “and his hand slips with you.”


Heb “strengthen”; NASB “sustain.”


The form וָחַי ( vakhay , “and shall live”) looks like the adjective “living,” but the MT form is simply the same verb written as a double ayin verb (see HALOT 309 s.v. חיה qal, and GKC 218 §76. i ; cf. Lev 18:5 ).


Heb “a foreigner and resident,” which is probably to be combined (see B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 170-71).


The meaning of the terms rendered “interest” and “profit” is much debated (see the summaries in P. J. Budd, Leviticus [NCBC], 354-55 and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 178). Verse 37 , however, suggests that the first refers to a percentage of money and the second percentage of produce (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 421).