Leviticus 20

Molech and Forbidden Practices

1The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2“You shall say to the Israelites: Any one of the Israelites or of the resident aliens living in Israel who gives any of his offspring to Molech shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone that person with stones. 3I myself will set my face against that person and cut him off from among his people, because he has given some of his offspring to Molech, making my sanctuary unclean and profaning my holy name. 4If the people of the land hide their eyes from that person when he gives his offspring to Molech and do not put him to death, 5then I will set my face against that person and his family and cut him off, together with all who prostitute themselves after him by prostituting themselves after Molech, from among their people. 6The person who turns to mediums and spiritists, prostituting themselves after them, I will set my face against that person and cut that person off from among the people.

Be Holy

7Make yourselves holy and be holy, for I am the LORD your God. 8Keep my statutes and do them. I am the LORD who makes you holy. 9Anyone who curses father or mother shall surely be put to death. That person has cursed father or mother; their blood is upon them.

Penalties for Forbidden Sexual Relations

10If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife, if he commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. 11If a man lies with his father’s wife, he has uncovered his father’s nakedness. Both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. 12If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death. They have committed a perversion; their blood is upon them. 13If a man lies with a male as one lies with a woman, both of them have done a detestable thing. They shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. 14If a man takes a woman and her mother, it is depravity. He and they shall be burned with fire, so that there may be no depravity among you. 15If a man has sexual relations with an animal, he shall surely be put to death, and you shall kill the animal. 16If a woman approaches any animal to mate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal. They shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

17If a man takes his sister, his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter, and he sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace. They shall be cut off in the sight of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness; he shall bear his guilt. 18If a man lies with a woman during her menstrual period and uncovers her nakedness, he has exposed her source and she has uncovered the source of her blood. Both of them shall be cut off from among their people. 19You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister or your father’s sister, for one who does so has exposed a close relative. They shall bear their guilt. 20If a man lies with his uncle’s wife, he has uncovered his uncle’s nakedness. They shall bear their sin; they shall die childless. 21If a man takes his brother’s wife, it is impurity. He has uncovered his brother’s nakedness; they shall be childless.

You Shall Be Set Apart

22You shall keep all my statutes and all my ordinances and do them, so that the land into which I am bringing you to dwell does not vomit you out. 23You shall not walk in the statutes of the nation that I am driving out before you, because they did all these things, and I abhorred them. 24But I have said to you, ‘You shall possess their land, and I will give it to you to possess, a land flowing with milk and honey.’ I am the LORD your God, who has separated you from the peoples. 25Therefore you shall distinguish between the clean animal and the unclean, and between the unclean bird and the clean. You shall not make yourselves detestable by animal or bird or anything that swarms on the ground, which I have separated from you as unclean. 26You shall be holy to me, for I the LORD am holy, and I have separated you from the peoples so that you may be mine. 27A man or woman who is a medium or spiritist shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones; their blood is upon them.”