Leviticus 18
1 Yahweh also said to Moses/me,
And Yahweh spake unto Moses, saying:
2 “Speak to the Israeli people and tell them [that I, Yahweh, say this] this: I am Yahweh, your God.
Speak unto the sons of Israel, and thou shalt say unto them, —I—Yahweh, am your God: —
3 [So you must do what I want you to do]; you must not do the things that the people in Egypt, where you lived previously, do; and you must not do what is done by the people in Canaan, the land to which I am taking you. Do not imitate their behavior.
After the doings of the land of Egypt wherein ye dwelt, shall ye not do, —And after the doings of the land of Canaan whither, I, am bringing you in, shall ye not do, And, in their statutes, shall ye not walk:
4 You must obey all of my laws [DOU], because it is I, Yahweh your God, [who am commanding those laws].
My regulations, shall ye do, And, my statutes, shall ye observe to walk therein, —I—Yahweh, am your God.
5 If you obey all my laws and decrees, you will continue to remain alive [for a long time]. I, Yahweh, [am the one who is promising that to you]. [These are some of my laws]:
Therefore shall ye observe my statutes, and my regulations, Which if the son of earth shall do them, Then shall he live in them, —I, am Yahweh.
6 “Do not have sex with any of your close relatives. It is I, Yahweh, [who am commanding that].
No person whatsoever, unto any of the near kin of his own flesh, shall approach to uncover the parts of shame, —I, am Yahweh.
7 “Do not disgrace your father by having sex with your mother [DOU].
The shame of thy father, even the shame of thy mother, shalt thou not uncover, —thy mother, she is, thou shalt not uncover her shame.
8 “Do not have sex with any of your father’s [other] wives, because that would disgrace your father.
The shame of thy father’s wife, shalt thou not uncover, —thy father’s shame, it is.
9 “Do not have sex with your sister or your stepsister; it does not matter whether she was born in your house or somewhere else.
The shame of thy sister daughter of thy father or daughter of thy mother, born at home or born abroad, thou shalt not uncover their shame.
10 “Do not have sex with your granddaughter, because that would disgrace you.
The shame of the daughter of thy son or the daughter of thy daughter, thou shalt not uncover their shame, —for, thine own shame, they are.
11 “Do not have sex with your half-sister, because she is your sister.
The shame of the daughter of thy father’s wife, born to thy father, she being, thy sister, thou shalt not uncover her shame.
12 “Do not have sex with your father’s sister, because she is your father’s close relative.
The shame of thy father’s sister, shalt thou not uncover, —thy father’s near of kin, she is.
13 “Do not have sex with your mother’s sister, because she is your mother’s close relative.
The shame of thy mother’s sister, shalt thou not uncover, —for, thy mother’s near of kin, she is.
14 “Do not disgrace your (uncle/father’s brother) by having sex with his wife, because she is your aunt.
The shame of thy father’s brother, shalt thou not uncover unto his wife, shalt thou not approach, thine aunt, she is.
15 “Do not have sex with [DOU] your daughter-in-law, because she is your son’s wife.
The shame of thy daughter-in-law, shalt thou not uncover, —thy son’s wife, she is, thou shalt not uncover her shame.
16 “Do not have sex with your brother’s wife, because that would disgrace your brother.
The shame of thy brother’s wife, shalt thou not uncover, —the shame of thy brother, it is.
17 “Do not have sex with the daughter or granddaughter of any woman whom you have previously had sex with; they are [her] (OR, [your]) close relatives. Having sex with any of them would be a wicked thing to do.
The shame of a woman, and of her daughter, shalt thou not uncover, —neither the daughter of her son nor the daughter of her daughter, shalt thou take, to uncover her shame, near of kin, they are, wickedness, it is.
18 “While your wife is still living, do not marry your wife’s sister and have sex with her.
And, a woman unto her sister, shalt thou not take, —to cause rivalry, by uncovering her shame besides her own while she is living.
19 “Do not have sex with any woman while she is having her monthly menstrual period.
And unto a woman during her removal for uncleanness, shalt thou not approach, to uncover her shame.
20 “Do not (defile yourself/make yourself unacceptable to me) by having sex with someone else’s wife.
And of the wife of thy neighbour, shalt thou not have carnal knowledge, —to commit uncleanness with her.
21 “Do not give any of your children to be burned to be a sacrifice to the god Molech, because that would show that you do not revere me [MTY], Yahweh, your God.
And none of thy seed, shalt thou deliver up, to cause to pass through to Molech, —that thou profane not the name of thy God, I, am Yahweh.
22 “No man should have sex with another man; that is detestable.
And, with mankind, shalt thou not lie as with womankind, —an abomination, it is.
23 “No one, man or woman, should (defile himself/cause himself to become unacceptable to me) by having sex with an animal; that is a perverse act.
And of no beast, shalt thou have carnal knowledge to commit uncleanness therewith, —neither shall a woman present herself to a beast to couch down thereto, —confusion, it is.
24 “Do not (defile yourselves/cause yourselves to become unacceptable to me) in any of those ways, because doing those things is how the people of the nations that I expelled as you advanced became (unacceptable to me/defiled).
Do not make yourselves unclean in any of these things, —For in all these things, have the nations made themselves unclean, whom, I, am sending out from before you.
25 They even caused the land to become defiled, so I punished them for their sins, and [it was as though] the land vomited out the people who lived there.
Therefore hath the land become unclean, and I have visited the iniquity thereof upon it, —and the land hath vomited her inhabitants.
26 You must all obey my laws and decrees. That includes you people who were born here and the foreigners who live among you.
Ye, therefore, shall observe my statutes and my regulations, and have nothing to do with any of these abominations, —whether the home-born, or the sojourner that sojourneth in your midst;
27 All those detestable things were done by the people who lived in this land before you came here, and they caused the land to become defiled.
For all these abominations, have the men of the land done, who were before you; And so the land hath become unclean:
28 So if you defile the land, I will get rid of [MET] you like I got rid of the people of those nations that were here before you came.
So shall the land not vomit you, through your making it unclean, —as it vomited the nation which was before you.
29 “You must not allow people who do any of those detestable things to associate with you who are my people.
For whosoever shall have anything to do with any of these abominations, the persons who have, shall be cut off, out of the midst of their people.
30 Obey everything that I command you to do, and do not defile yourselves by practicing any of the detestable customs that were practiced [by the people who were there] before you came. I, Yahweh your God, [am the one who is commanding these things].”
Therefore shall ye keep my charge, So that ye may have nothing to do with any of the abominable statutes with which they have had to do before you, So shall ye not make yourselves unclean thereby, —I—Yahweh, am your God.
