Leviticus 18

1 The Lord told Moses,

And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

2 “Tell the Israelites: I am the Lord your God.

Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, I am the LORD your God.

3 Don't follow the ways of Egypt where you used to live, and don't follow the ways of Canaan where I'm going to take you. Don't adopt their practices.

After the doings of the land of Egypt, wherein you dwelled, shall you not do: and after the doings of the land of Canaan, where I bring you, shall you not do: neither shall you walk in their ordinances.

4 Do what I tell you and keep my rules. I am the Lord your God.

You shall do my judgments, and keep my ordinances, to walk therein: I am the LORD your God.

5 If you keep my rules and do what I tell you, you will live. I am the Lord.

You shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD.

6 Don't have sex with a close relative.

None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness: I am the LORD.

7 Don't shame your father by having sex with your mother. She is your mother; don't have sex with her.

The nakedness of your father, or the nakedness of your mother, shall you not uncover: she is your mother; you shall not uncover her nakedness.

8 Don't have sex with any of your father's wives and shame your father.

The nakedness of your father’s wife shall you not uncover: it is your father’s nakedness.

9 Don't have sex with your sister, whether she's your father's daughter or your mother's daughter, or whether she was born in the same house as you or somewhere else.

The nakedness of your sister, the daughter of your father, or daughter of your mother, whether she be born at home, or born abroad, even their nakedness you shall not uncover.

10 Don't have sex with your granddaughter, your son's daughter or your daughter's daughter, because that would be shameful thing for you.

The nakedness of your son’s daughter, or of your daughter’s daughter, even their nakedness you shall not uncover: for theirs is your own nakedness.

11 Don't have sex with the daughter of any of your father's wives and your father, she is your sister.

The nakedness of your father’s wife’s daughter, begotten of your father, she is your sister, you shall not uncover her nakedness.

12 Don't have sex with your father's sister. She is a close relative of your father.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s sister: she is your father’s near kinswoman.

13 Don't have sex with your mother's sister. She is a close relative of your mother.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother’s sister: for she is your mother’s near kinswoman.

14 Don't bring shame on your uncle by having sex with his wife. She is your aunt.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your father’s brother, you shall not approach to his wife: she is your aunt.

15 Don't have sex with your daughter-in-law. She is your son's wife. Don't have sex with her.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your daughter in law: she is your son’s wife; you shall not uncover her nakedness.

16 Don't have sex with your brother's wife and bring shame on your brother.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of your brother’s wife: it is your brother’s nakedness.

17 Don't have sex with both a woman and her daughter. Don't have sex with her son's daughter or her daughter's daughter. They are her close relatives. That is something I loathe.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter, neither shall you take her son’s daughter, or her daughter’s daughter, to uncover her nakedness; for they are her near kinswomen: it is wickedness.

18 Don't marry your wife's sister and have sex with her while your wife is still alive. They will be hostile wives to one other.

Neither shall you take a wife to her sister, to vex her, to uncover her nakedness, beside the other in her life time.

19 Don't have sex with a woman during the time she is unclean because of her period.

Also you shall not approach to a woman to uncover her nakedness, as long as she is put apart for her uncleanness.

20 Don't commit any sex act with any other man's wife. This would pollute you and make you unclean.

Moreover you shall not lie carnally with your neighbor’s wife, to defile yourself with her.

21 Don't give any of your children as a human sacrifice to Molech, for you must not disgrace the character of your God. I am the Lord.

And you shall not let any of your seed pass through the fire to Molech, neither shall you profane the name of your God: I am the LORD.

22 Don't have sex with a man as with a woman. That is something disgusting.

You shall not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination.

23 Don't have sex with any animal. This would pollute you and make you unclean.

Neither shall you lie with any beast to defile yourself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion.

24 A woman must not give herself to an animal to have sex with it. That is something disgusting. Don't pollute yourselves and make yourselves unclean by doing anything like this. That's the reason I'm expelling these nations from the land—they polluted themselves because of all these practices.

Defile not you yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you:

25 Even the land has become polluted, so I am punishing it for the sins committed by the people who live there, and the land will vomit them out.

And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof on it, and the land itself vomits out her inhabitants.

26 You, however, must do what I tell you and keep my rules. You must not do any of these disgusting acts, whether an Israelite or a foreigner living among you.

You shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations; neither any of your own nation, nor any stranger that sojourns among you:

27 The people who lived in the land before you practiced all these disgusting things, and the land became polluted.

(For all these abominations have the men of the land done, which were before you, and the land is defiled; )

28 If you pollute the land, it will vomit you out just like it did the nations before you.

That the land spew not you out also, when you defile it, as it spewed out the nations that were before you.

29 Consequently anyone who does any of these disgusting things must be expelled from their people.

For whoever shall commit any of these abominations, even the souls that commit them shall be cut off from among their people.

30 You must accept my demand that you don't follow any of these disgusting practices done before you arrived. Don't pollute yourselves and make yourselves unclean. I am the Lord your God.”

Therefore shall you keep my ordinance, that you commit not any one of these abominable customs, which were committed before you, and that you defile not yourselves therein: I am the LORD your God.