Leviticus 18

1 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

Then the LORD said to Moses,

2 “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, 'I am Yahweh your God.

“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: I am the LORD your God.

3 You must not do the things that the people do in Egypt, where you lived previously. You must not do the things that the people do in Canaan, the land to which I am taking you. Do not follow their customs.

You must not follow the practices of the land of Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not follow the practices of the land of Canaan, into which I am bringing you. You must not walk in their customs.

4 My laws are what you must do, and my commandments are what you must keep, so that you walk in them, because I am Yahweh your God.

You are to practice My judgments and keep My statutes by walking in them. I am the LORD your God.

5 Therefore you must keep my decrees and my laws. If a person obeys them, he will live because of them. I am Yahweh.

Keep My statutes and My judgments, for the man who does these things will live by them. I am the LORD.

6 No one must sleep with any close relative to uncover his nakedness. I am Yahweh.

None of you are to approach any close relative to have sexual relations. I am the LORD.

7 Do not dishonor your father by sleeping with your mother. She is your mother! You must not dishonor her.

You must not expose the nakedness of your father by having sexual relations with your mother. She is your mother; you must not have sexual relations with her.

8 Do not sleep with any of your father's wives; you must not dishonor your father like that.

You must not have sexual relations with your father’s wife; it would dishonor your father.

9 Do not sleep with any sister of yours, whether she is the daughter of your father or the daughter of your mother, whether she was raised at your home or distant from you. You must not sleep with your sisters.

You must not have sexual relations with your sister, either your father’s daughter or your mother’s daughter, whether she was born in the same home or elsewhere.

10 Do not sleep with your son's daughter or with your daughter's daughter. That would be your own shame.

You must not have sexual relations with your son’s daughter or your daughter’s daughter, for that would shame your family.

11 Do not sleep with your father's wife's daughter, who was born of your father. She is your sister, and you must not sleep with her.

You must not have sexual relations with the daughter of your father’s wife, born to your father; she is your sister.

12 Do not sleep with your father's sister. She is a close relative to your father.

You must not have sexual relations with your father’s sister; she is your father’s close relative.

13 Do not sleep with your mother's sister. She is a close relative to your mother.

You must not have sexual relations with your mother’s sister, for she is your mother’s close relative.

14 Do not dishonor the brother of your father by sleeping with his wife. Do not go near her for that purpose; she is your aunt.

You must not dishonor your father’s brother by approaching his wife to have sexual relations with her; she is your aunt.

15 Do not sleep with your daughter-in-law. She is your son's wife; do not sleep with her.

You must not have sexual relations with your daughter-in-law. She is your son’s wife; you are not to have sexual relations with her.

16 Do not sleep with your brother's wife; do not dishonor him in this way.

You must not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife; that would shame your brother.

17 Do not sleep with a woman and her daughter, or with her son's daughter or her daughter's daughter. They are close relatives to her, and sleeping with them would be wicked.

You must not have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter. You are not to marry her son’s daughter or her daughter’s daughter and have sexual relations with her. They are close relatives; it is depraved.

18 You must not marry your wife's sister as a second wife and sleep with her while your first wife is alive.

You must not take your wife’s sister as a rival wife and have sexual relations with her while your wife is still alive.

19 Do not sleep with a woman during her menstruation. She is unclean during that time.

You must not approach a woman to have sexual relations with her during her menstrual period.

20 Do not sleep with your neighbor's wife and defile yourself with her in this way.

You must not lie carnally with your neighbor’s wife and thus defile yourself with her.

21 You must not give any of your children to put them into the fire, so that you sacrifice them to Molech, because you must not profane the name of your God. I am Yahweh.

You must not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molech, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.

22 Do not sleep with other men as with a woman. This would be wicked.

You must not lie with a man as with a woman; that is an abomination.

23 Do not sleep with any animal and defile yourself with it. No woman must consider sleeping with any animal. This would be perversion.

You must not lie carnally with any animal, thus defiling yourself with it; a woman must not stand before an animal to mate with it; that is a perversion.

24 Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, for in all these ways the nations are defiled, the nations that I will drive out from before you.

Do not defile yourselves by any of these practices, for by all these things the nations I am driving out before you have defiled themselves.

25 The land became defiled, so I punished their sin, and the land vomited out its inhabitants.

Even the land has become defiled, so I am punishing it for its sin, and the land will vomit out its inhabitants.

26 You, therefore, must keep my commandments and decrees, and you must not do any of these detestable things, neither the native-born Israelite nor the foreigner who lives among you.

But you are to keep My statutes and ordinances, and you must not commit any of these abominations—neither your native-born nor the foreigner who lives among you.

27 For this is the wickedness that the people in the land have committed, those who lived here before you, and now the land is defiled.

For the men who were in the land before you committed all these abominations, and the land has become defiled.

28 Therefore be careful so that the land does not vomit you up also after you have defiled it, as it vomited out the people who were before you.

So if you defile the land, it will vomit you out as it spewed out the nations before you.

29 Whoever does any of these detestable things, the persons who do such things will be cut off from among their people.

Therefore anyone who commits any of these abominations must be cut off from among his people.

30 Therefore you must keep my command not to practice any of these detestable customs which were practiced here before you, so that you do not defile yourselves by them. I am Yahweh your God.'”

You must keep My charge not to practice any of the abominable customs that were practiced before you, so that you do not defile yourselves by them. I am the LORD your God.”