Leviticus 20

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

“Moreover, you shall tell the children of Israel, ‘Anyone of the children of Israel, or of the strangers who live as foreigners 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.

I also will set my face against that person, and will cut him off from among his people, because he has given of his offspring to Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name.

If the people of the land all hide their eyes from that person when he gives of his offspring to Molech, and don’t put him to death,

then I will set my face against that man and against his family, and will cut him off, and all who play the prostitute after him to play the prostitute with Molech, from among their people.

“‘The person that turns to those who are mediums and wizards, to play the prostitute after them, I will even set my face against that person, and will cut him off from among his people.

“‘Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am the LORD your God.

You shall keep my statutes, and do them. I am the LORD who sanctifies you.

“‘For everyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. He has cursed his father or his mother. His blood shall be upon himself.

“‘The man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, even he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.

“‘The man who lies with his father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness. Both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon themselves.

“‘If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death. They have committed a perversion. Their blood shall be upon themselves.

“‘If a man lies with a male, as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon themselves.

“‘If a man takes a wife and her mother, it is wickedness. They shall be burned with fire, both he and they, that there may be no wickedness among you.

“‘If a man lies with an animal, he shall surely be put to death; and you shall kill the animal.

“‘If a woman approaches any animal and lies with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them.

“‘If a man takes his sister—his father’s daughter, or his mother’s daughter—and sees her nakedness, and she sees his nakedness, it is a shameful thing. They shall be cut off in the sight of the children of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness. He shall bear his iniquity.

“‘If a man lies with a woman having her monthly period, and uncovers her nakedness, he has made her fountain naked, and she has uncovered the fountain of her blood. Both of them shall be cut off from among their people.

“‘You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister, nor of your father’s sister, for he has made his close relative naked. They shall bear their iniquity.

If a man lies with his uncle’s wife, he has uncovered his uncle’s nakedness. They shall bear their sin. They shall die childless.

“‘If a man takes his brother’s wife, it is an impurity. He has uncovered his brother’s nakedness. They shall be childless.

“‘You shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and do them, that the land where I am bringing you to dwell may not vomit you out.

You shall not walk in the customs of the nation which I am casting out before you; for they did all these things, and therefore I abhorred them.

But I have said to you, “You shall inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the LORD your God, who has separated you from the peoples.

“‘You shall therefore make a distinction between the clean animal and the unclean, and between the unclean fowl and the clean. You shall not make yourselves abominable by animal, or by bird, or by anything with which the ground teems, which I have separated from you as unclean for you.

You shall be holy to me, for I, the LORD, am holy, and have set you apart from the peoples, that you should be mine.

“‘A man or a woman that is a medium or is a wizard shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones. Their blood shall be upon themselves.’”

Chapter overviewAI-generated

Overview. This chapter outlines a series of capital offenses and serious defilements that threaten the holiness and integrity of the covenant community, emphasizing the need for strict separation from idolatrous and immoral practices associated with the surrounding nations, particularly those involving child sacrifice, sexual immorality, and occultism.

Flow.

Begins with the prohibition against giving offspring to Molech, underscoring both communal responsibility and divine judgment on those who profane God’s name and sanctuary (vv. 1–6).
Proceeds through a catalog of sexual sins—including incest, adultery, homosexual acts, bestiality, and forbidden marriages—each met with severe penalties to preserve ritual and moral purity (vv. 9–21).
Calls for holiness through obedience, warning that disobedience will result in divine expulsion from the land, just as the prior inhabitants were judged (vv. 22–26).
Concludes with the death penalty for consultation of mediums and wizards, reinforcing the demand for exclusive devotion to God (v. 27).

Connections. Following chapter 19, which calls for holy living in relationships, worship, and justice, chapter 20 reinforces these demands by specifying the consequences for violating core covenant boundaries, particularly through idolatry and sexual sin. Where chapter 19 emphasizes positive holiness, chapter 20 underscores the seriousness of transgression with legal sanctions. This intensification prepares for chapter 21, which details the specific holiness required of priests, showing that greater consecration demands even stricter separation from defilement.

What it teaches. The chapter teaches that the presence of God in the midst of His people necessitates a holy society, where idolatry, sexual immorality, and occult practices are treated as covenant-breaking sins that defile both individuals and the community. God’s people are set apart not only by redemption but also by law, and the land itself responds to moral corruption by expelling the unclean (WCF 19.5; LC 95). The repeated emphasis on divine judgment (“I will set my face against,” “cut off”) underscores God’s sovereignty over life and covenant loyalty, while the call to holiness is grounded in God’s own character: “I am the LORD your God, who has separated you from the peoples” (cf. HC LD 35, Q&A 92–93).

Apply. Where loyalty to God is compromised by hidden compromise or conformity to the world’s patterns, His presence is resisted and His holiness profaned.

AI-generated. Not a substitute for Scripture, your pastor, or the confessions.