Leviticus 19

And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

1The LORD spoke to Moses. He gave Moses a message.

2Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the LORD your God am holy.

2"Tell all the people of Israel this. Be holy, which means set apart for God. I am the LORD your God, and I am holy.

3Ye shall fear every man his mother, and his father, and keep my sabbaths: I am the LORD your God.

3Each of you must respect your mother and your father. Keep my Sabbaths, the rest days I gave you. I am the LORD your God.

4Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am the LORD your God.

4Do not turn to idols, statues that people treat as gods. Do not melt metal to make gods for yourselves. I am the LORD your God.

5And if ye offer a sacrifice of peace offerings unto the LORD, ye shall offer it at your own will.

5You may bring the LORD a peace offering, an animal gift shared as a meal. Offer it the right way, so God will accept it.

6It shall be eaten the same day ye offer it, and on the morrow: and if ought remain until the third day, it shall be burnt in the fire.

6Eat it on the day you offer it, or the next day. Burn up anything still left on the third day.

7And if it be eaten at all on the third day, it is abominable; it shall not be accepted.

7If anyone eats it on the third day, the meat is spoiled. God will not accept that offering.

8Therefore every one that eateth it shall bear his iniquity, because he hath profaned the hallowed thing of the LORD: and that soul shall be cut off from among his people.

8Whoever eats it carries the blame. He treated a holy gift as if it were ordinary. That person must be cut off from his people.

9And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not wholly reap the corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleanings of thy harvest.

9When you gather the crops in your fields, do not cut all the way to the edges. Do not go back for what you dropped.

10And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.

10Do not strip your grapevines bare. Do not pick up the grapes that fall. Leave them for poor people and for strangers from other lands. I am the LORD your God.

11Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another.

11Do not steal. Do not cheat. Do not lie to one another.

12And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.

12Do not use my name to promise something that is not true. That treats the name of your God as worthless. I am the LORD.

13Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.

13Do not cheat your neighbor, and do not rob him. Pay a worker his money the same day. Do not keep it overnight.

14Thou shalt not curse the deaf, nor put a stumblingblock before the blind, but shalt fear thy God: I am the LORD.

14Do not say cruel words to a deaf person. Do not put something in a blind person's path to trip him. Respect your God. I am the LORD.

15Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment: thou shalt not respect the person of the poor, nor honor the person of the mighty: but in righteousness shalt thou judge thy neighbour.

15Be fair when you decide who is right. Do not take someone's side just because he is poor. Do not take someone's side just because he is powerful. Judge your neighbor fairly.

16Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people: neither shalt thou stand against the blood of thy neighbour: I am the LORD.

16Do not go around telling stories that hurt people. Do not do anything that puts your neighbor's life in danger. I am the LORD.

17Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.

17Do not hold hate for your brother in your heart. If he does wrong, speak to him about it plainly. That way you do not share the blame for his sin.

NoteThe KJV says "not suffer sin upon him." In 1611, "suffer" meant allow. The verse means to speak up rather than let the wrong sit there.

18Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.

18Do not pay someone back for hurting you. Do not stay angry at your own people. Love your neighbor as much as you love yourself. I am the LORD.

19Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and woollen come upon thee.

19Keep my rules. Do not breed two different kinds of animals together. Do not plant two kinds of seed in one field. Do not wear cloth woven from linen and wool together.

20And whosoever lieth carnally with a woman, that is a bondmaid, betrothed to an husband, and not at all redeemed, nor freedom given her; she shall be scourged; they shall not be put to death, because she was not free.

20A slave woman may be promised in marriage to a man. She has not been bought free or set free yet. If another man sleeps with her, there must be punishment. But they are not put to death, because she was not free.

21And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, even a ram for a trespass offering.

21The man must bring a ram to the LORD. He brings it to the door of the tent where God meets his people. It is his guilt offering.

22And the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the LORD for his sin which he hath done: and the sin which he hath done shall be forgiven him.

22The priest, the man who serves God at the tent, will offer the ram for him. It covers the wrong the man did. Then his sin is forgiven.

23And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as uncircumcised: three years shall it be as uncircumcised unto you: it shall not be eaten of.

23When you come into the land, you will plant trees for food. For three years do not eat their fruit. Treat that fruit as off-limits.

NoteThe KJV calls the young fruit "uncircumcised." That was an old way of saying it was off-limits and not to be used.

24But in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy to praise the LORD withal.

24In the fourth year, all the fruit belongs to God. It is a gift given to praise the LORD.

25And in the fifth year shall ye eat of the fruit thereof, that it may yield unto you the increase thereof: I am the LORD your God.

25In the fifth year you may eat the fruit yourselves. Then your trees will give you even more. I am the LORD your God.

26Ye shall not eat any thing with the blood: neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times.

26Do not eat meat with the blood still in it. Do not use magic. Do not try to read signs to tell the future.

27Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard.

27Do not cut off the hair at the sides of your head. Do not trim the edges of your beard.

28Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.

28Do not cut your skin because someone has died. Do not mark your body with tattoos. I am the LORD.

29Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness.

29Do not shame your daughter by making her sell her body for money. If you do, the whole land will fill up with that sin and other evil.

30Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the LORD.

30Keep my Sabbaths, the rest days I gave you. Treat my holy tent with deep respect. I am the LORD.

31Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the LORD your God.

31Do not go to people who say they speak with the dead. Do not look for people who do magic. They will make you unclean. I am the LORD your God.

32Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the LORD.

32Stand up when a gray-haired person comes near you. Show honor to old people. Respect your God. I am the LORD.

Note"Hoary head" in the KJV means a head of gray or white hair. It stands for an older person.

33And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him.

33A stranger from another land may come and live in your country. Do not treat him badly.

34But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

34Treat him just like one of your own people. Love him as you love yourself. Remember, you were strangers in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.

35Ye shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in meteyard, in weight, or in measure.

35Be honest when you measure things. Do not cheat with length, weight, or amount.

36Just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin, shall ye have: I am the LORD your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt.

36Use honest scales and honest weights. Use honest baskets for grain and honest jars for liquid. I am the LORD your God. I brought you out of Egypt.

NoteAn ephah was a basket-sized measure for dry things like grain. A hin was a jar-sized measure for liquids like oil or wine.

37Therefore shall ye observe all my statutes, and all my judgments, and do them: I am the LORD.

37So keep all my rules and all my laws, and live by them. I am the LORD."