Imamat 19:1--20:27
Konteks19:1 The Lord spoke to Moses: 19:2 “Speak to the whole congregation of the Israelites and tell them, ‘You must be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy. 19:3 Each of you must respect his mother and his father, 1 and you must keep my Sabbaths. I am the Lord your God. 19:4 Do not turn to idols, 2 and you must not make for yourselves gods of cast metal. I am the Lord your God.
19:5 “‘When you sacrifice a peace offering sacrifice to the Lord, you must sacrifice it so that it is accepted for you. 3 19:6 It must be eaten on the day of your sacrifice and on the following day, 4 but what is left over until the third day must be burned up. 5 19:7 If, however, it is eaten 6 on the third day, it is spoiled, 7 it will not be accepted, 19:8 and the one who eats it will bear his punishment for iniquity 8 because he has profaned 9 what is holy to the Lord. 10 That person will be cut off from his people. 11
19:9 “‘When you gather in the harvest 12 of your land, you must not completely harvest the corner of your field, 13 and you must not gather up the gleanings of your harvest. 19:10 You must not pick your vineyard bare, 14 and you must not gather up the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You must leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the Lord your God.
19:11 “‘You must not steal, you must not tell lies, and you must not deal falsely with your fellow citizen. 15 19:12 You must not swear falsely 16 in my name, so that you do not profane 17 the name of your God. I am the Lord. 19:13 You must not oppress your neighbor or commit robbery against him. 18 You must not withhold 19 the wages of the hired laborer overnight until morning. 19:14 You must not curse a deaf person or put a stumbling block in front of a blind person. 20 You must fear 21 your God; I am the Lord.
19:15 “‘You 22 must not deal unjustly in judgment: 23 you must neither show partiality to the poor nor honor the rich. 24 You must judge your fellow citizen fairly. 25 19:16 You must not go about as a slanderer among your people. 26 You must not stand idly by when your neighbor’s life is at stake. 27 I am the Lord. 19:17 You must not hate your brother in your heart. You must surely reprove your fellow citizen so that you do not incur sin on account of him. 28 19:18 You must not take vengeance or bear a grudge 29 against the children of your people, but you must love your neighbor as yourself. 30 I am the Lord. 19:19 You must keep my statutes. You must not allow two different kinds of your animals to breed, 31 you must not sow your field with two different kinds of seed, and you must not wear 32 a garment made of two different kinds of fabric. 33
19:20 “‘When a man has sexual intercourse with a woman, 34 although she is a slave woman designated for another man and she has not yet been ransomed, or freedom has not been granted to her, there will be an obligation to pay compensation. 35 They must not be put to death, because she was not free. 19:21 He must bring his guilt offering to the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, a guilt offering ram, 36 19:22 and the priest is to make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering before the Lord for his sin that he has committed, 37 and he will be forgiven 38 of his sin 39 that he has committed.
19:23 “‘When you enter the land and plant any fruit tree, 40 you must consider its fruit to be forbidden. 41 Three years it will be forbidden to you; 42 it must not be eaten. 19:24 In the fourth year all its fruit will be holy, praise offerings 43 to the Lord. 19:25 Then in the fifth year you may eat its fruit to add its produce to your harvest. 44 I am the Lord your God.
19:26 “‘You must not eat anything with the blood still in it. 45 You must not practice either divination or soothsaying. 46 19:27 You must not round off the corners of the hair on your head or ruin the corners of your beard. 47 19:28 You must not slash your body for a dead person 48 or incise a tattoo on yourself. 49 I am the Lord. 19:29 Do not profane your daughter by making her a prostitute, 50 so that the land does not practice prostitution and become full of lewdness. 51
19:30 “‘You must keep my Sabbaths and fear my sanctuary. I am the Lord. 19:31 Do not turn to the spirits of the dead and do not seek familiar spirits 52 to become unclean by them. I am the Lord your God. 19:32 You must stand up in the presence of the aged, honor the presence of an elder, and fear your God. I am the Lord. 19:33 When a foreigner resides 53 with you in your land, you must not oppress him. 19:34 The foreigner who resides with you must be to you like a native citizen among you; so 54 you must love him as yourself, because you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God. 19:35 You must not do injustice in the regulation of measures, whether of length, weight, or volume. 55 19:36 You must have honest balances, 56 honest weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin. 57 I am the Lord your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt. 19:37 You must be sure to obey all my statutes and regulations. 58 I am the Lord.’”
20:1 The Lord spoke to Moses: 20:2 “You are to say to the Israelites, ‘Any man from the Israelites or from the foreigners who reside in Israel 59 who gives any of his children 60 to Molech 61 must be put to death; the people of the land must pelt him with stones. 62 20:3 I myself will set my face 63 against that man and cut him off from the midst of his people, 64 because he has given some of his children to Molech and thereby defiled my sanctuary and profaned my holy name. 65 20:4 If, however, the people of the land shut their eyes 66 to that man 67 when he gives some of his children to Molech so that they do not put him to death, 20:5 I myself will set my face against that man and his clan. I will cut off from the midst of their people both him and all who follow after him in spiritual prostitution, 68 to commit prostitution by worshiping Molech. 69
20:6 “‘The person who turns to the spirits of the dead and familiar spirits 71 to commit prostitution by going after them, I will set my face 72 against that person and cut him off from the midst of his people.
20:7 “‘You must sanctify yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God. 20:8 You must be sure to obey my statutes. 73 I am the Lord who sanctifies you.
20:9 “‘If anyone 75 curses his father and mother 76 he must be put to death. He has cursed his father and mother; his blood guilt is on himself. 77 20:10 If a man 78 commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, 79 both the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death. 20:11 If a man has sexual intercourse with his father’s wife, he has exposed his father’s nakedness. 80 Both of them must be put to death; their blood guilt is on themselves. 81 20:12 If a man has sexual intercourse with his daughter-in-law, both of them must be put to death. They have committed perversion; 82 their blood guilt is on themselves. 20:13 If a man has sexual intercourse with a male as one has sexual intercourse with a woman, 83 the two of them have committed an abomination. They must be put to death; their blood guilt is on themselves. 20:14 If a man has sexual intercourse with both a woman and her mother, 84 it is lewdness. 85 Both he and they must be burned to death, 86 so there is no lewdness in your midst. 20:15 If a man has sexual intercourse 87 with any animal, he must be put to death, and you must kill the animal. 20:16 If a woman approaches any animal to have sexual intercourse with it, 88 you must kill the woman, and the animal must be put to death; their blood guilt is on themselves.
20:17 “‘If a man has sexual intercourse with 89 his sister, whether the daughter of his father or his mother, so that he sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace. They must be cut off in the sight of the children of their people. 90 He has exposed his sister’s nakedness; he will bear his punishment for iniquity. 91 20:18 If a man has sexual intercourse with a menstruating woman and uncovers her nakedness, he has laid bare her fountain of blood and she has exposed the fountain of her blood, so both of them 92 must be cut off from the midst of their people. 20:19 You must not expose the nakedness of your mother’s sister and your father’s sister, for such a person has laid bare his own close relative. 93 They must bear their punishment for iniquity. 94 20:20 If a man has sexual intercourse with his aunt, he has exposed his uncle’s nakedness; they must bear responsibility for their sin, they will die childless. 20:21 If a man has sexual intercourse with 95 his brother’s wife, it is indecency. He has exposed his brother’s nakedness; 96 they will be childless.
20:22 “‘You must be sure to obey all my statutes and regulations, 97 so that 98 the land to which I am about to bring you to take up residence there does not vomit you out. 20:23 You must not walk in the statutes of the nation 99 which I am about to drive out before you, because they have done all these things and I am filled with disgust against them. 20:24 So I have said to you: You yourselves will possess their land and I myself will give it to you for a possession, a land flowing with milk and honey. I am the Lord your God who has set you apart from the other peoples. 100 20:25 Therefore you must distinguish 101 between the clean animal and the unclean, and between the unclean bird and the clean, and you must not make yourselves detestable by means of an animal or bird or anything that creeps on the ground – creatures 102 I have distinguished for you as unclean. 103 20:26 You must be holy to me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the other peoples to be mine.
20:27 “‘A man or woman who 104 has in them a spirit of the dead or a familiar spirit 105 must be put to death. They must pelt them with stones; 106 their blood guilt is on themselves.’”
[19:3] 1 tn Heb “A man his mother and his father you [plural] shall fear.” The LXX, Syriac, Vulgate, and certain Targum
[19:4] 2 sn Regarding the difficult etymology and meaning of the term for “idols” (אֱלִילִים, ’elilim), see B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 126; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 304; N. H. Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers (NBC), 89; and Judith M. Hadley, NIDOTTE 1:411. It appears to be a diminutive play on words with אֵל (’el, “god; God”) and, perhaps at the same time, recalls a common Semitic word for “worthless; weak; powerless; nothingness.” Snaith suggests a rendering of “worthless godlings.”
[19:5] 3 tn Heb “for your acceptance”; cf. NIV, NLT “it will be accepted on your behalf.”
[19:6] 4 tn Heb “from the following day” (HALOT 572 s.v. מָחֳרָת 2.b).
[19:6] 5 tn Heb “shall be burned with fire”; KJV “shall be burnt in the fire.” Because “to burn with fire” is redundant in contemporary English the present translation simply has “must be burned up.”
[19:7] 6 tn Heb “And if being eaten [infinitive absolute] it is eaten [finite verb].” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113.p.
[19:7] 7 tn Or “desecrated,” or “defiled,” or “forbidden.” For this difficult term see J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:422, on Lev 7:18.
[19:8] 8 tn See the note on Lev 17:16 above.
[19:8] 9 sn Regarding “profaned,” see the note on Lev 10:10 above.
[19:8] 10 tn Heb “the holiness of the
[19:8] 11 sn On the “cut off” penalty see the note on Lev 7:20.
[19:9] 12 tn Heb “And in your harvesting the harvest.”
[19:9] 13 tn Heb “you shall not complete the corner of your field to harvest.”
[19:10] 14 tn Heb “And you shall not deal severely with your vineyard.”
[19:11] 15 tn Heb “you shall not deal falsely a man with his fellow citizen.”
[19:12] 16 tn Heb “And you shall not swear to the falsehood.”
[19:12] 17 tn Heb “and you shall not profane”; NAB “thus profaning.”
[19:13] 18 tn Heb “You shall not oppress your neighbor and you shall not rob.”
[19:13] 19 tn Heb “hold back with you”; perhaps “hold back for yourself” (cf. NRSV “keep for yourself”).
[19:14] 20 tn Heb “You shall not curse a deaf [person] and before a blind [person] you shall not put a stumbling block.”
[19:14] 21 tn Heb “And you shall fear.” Many English versions (e.g., KJV, ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV) regard the Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) as adversative in force here (“but”).
[19:15] 22 tc Smr has the singular rather than the plural “you” of the MT, which brings this verb form into line with the ones surrounding it.
[19:15] 23 tn Heb “You shall not do injustice in judgment” (NASB similar); cf. NIV “do not pervert justice.”
[19:15] 24 tn Heb “You shall not lift up faces of poor [people] and you shall not honor faces of great.”
[19:15] 25 tn Heb “In righteousness you shall judge your fellow citizen.”
[19:16] 26 tn The term רָכִיל (rakhil) is traditionally rendered “slanderer” here (so NASB, NIV, NRSV; see also J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 304, 316), but the exact meaning is uncertain (see the discussion in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 129). It is sometimes related to I רָכַל (“to go about as a trader [or “merchant”]”; BDB 940 s.v. רָכַל), and taken to refer to cutthroat business dealings, but there may be a II רָכַל, the meaning of which is dubious (HALOT 1237 s.v. II *רכל). Some would render it “to go about as a spy.”
[19:16] 27 tn Heb “You shall not stand on the blood of your neighbor.” This part of the verse is also difficult to interpret. The rendering here suggests that one will not allow a neighbor to be victimized, whether in court (cf. v. 15) or in any other situation (see the discussion in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 129).
[19:17] 28 tn Heb “and you will not lift up on him sin.” The meaning of the line is somewhat obscure. It means either (1) that one should rebuke one’s neighbor when he sins lest one also becomes guilty, which is the way it is rendered here (see NIV, NRSV, NEB, JB; see also B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 129-30, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 303, and the discussion on pp. 316-17), or (2) one may rebuke one’s neighbor without incurring sin just as long as he does not hate him in his heart (see the first part of the verse; cf. NASB, NAB).
[19:18] 29 tn Heb “and you shall not retain [anger?].” This line seems to refer to the retaining or maintaining of some vengeful feelings toward someone. Compare the combination of the same terms for taking vengeance and maintaining wrath against enemies in Nahum 1:2 (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 305).
[19:18] 30 sn Some scholars make a distinction between the verb אָהַב (’ahav, “to love”) with the direct object and the more unusual construction with the preposition לְ (lamed) as it is here and in Lev 19:34 and 2 Chr 19:2 only. If there is a distinction, the construction here probably calls for direct and helpful action toward one’s neighbor (see the discussion in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 305, and esp. 317-18). Such love stands in contrast to taking vengeance or bearing a grudge against someone and, in NT terms, amounts to fulfilling the so-called “golden rule” (Matt 7:12).
[19:19] 31 tn Heb “Your animals, you shall not cross-breed two different kinds.”
[19:19] 32 tn Heb “you shall not cause to go up on you.”
[19:19] 33 sn Cf. Deut 22:11 where the Hebrew term translated “two different kinds” (כִּלְאַיִם, kil’ayim) refers to a mixture of linen and wool woven together in a garment.
[19:20] 34 tn Heb “And a man when he lies with a woman the lying of seed.”
[19:20] 35 sn That is, the woman had previously been assigned for marriage to another man but the marriage deal had not yet been consummated. In the meantime, the woman has lost her virginity and has, therefore, lost part of her value to the master in the sale to the man for whom she had been designated. Compensation was, therefore, required (see the explanation in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 130-31).
[19:21] 36 sn On the guilt offering see the note on Lev 5:15 above.
[19:22] 37 tn Heb “on his sin which he has sinned.”
[19:22] 38 tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him.”
[19:22] 39 tn Heb “from his sin.”
[19:23] 40 tn Heb “tree of food”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV “trees for food.”
[19:23] 41 tn Heb “you shall circumcise its fruit [as] its foreskin,” taking the fruit to be that which is to be removed and, therefore, forbidden. Since the fruit is uncircumcised it is forbidden (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 306, and esp. B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 131-32).
[19:23] 42 tn Heb “it shall be to you uncircumcised.”
[19:24] 43 tn See B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 132, where the translation reads “set aside for jubilation”; a special celebration before the
[19:25] 44 tn Heb “to add to you its produce.” The rendering here assumes that the point of this clause is simply that finally being allowed to eat the fruit in the fifth year adds the fruit of the tree to their harvest. Some take the verb to be from אָסַף (’asaf, “to gather”) rather than יָסַף (yasaf, “to add; to increase”), rendering the verse, “to gather to you the produce” (E. S. Gerstenberger, Leviticus [OTL], 260, and see the versions referenced in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 306). Others take it to mean that by following the regulations given previously they will honor the
[19:26] 45 tn Heb “You shall not eat on the blood.” See the extensive remarks in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 319-20, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 132-33. The LXX has “on the mountains,” suggesting that this is a prohibition against illegitimate places and occasions of worship, not the eating of blood.
[19:26] 46 tn Heb “You shall not practice divination and you shall not practice soothsaying”; cf. NRSV “practice augury or witchcraft.” For suggestions regarding the practices involved see B. A. Levine, Leviticus (JPSTC), 133, and J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 320.
[19:27] 47 tc Heb “and you [singular] shall not ruin the corner of your [singular] beard.” Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Tg. Ps.-J. have the plural pronouns (i.e., “you” and “your” plural) rather than the singular of the MT.
[19:28] 48 tn Heb “And slash for the soul you shall not give.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul, person, life”) can sometimes refer to a “dead person” (cf. Lev 21:1, 5; 22:5). See J. E. Hartley, Leviticus (WBC), 306, 320-21.
[19:28] 49 tn Heb “and a writing of incision you shall not give in you.”
[19:29] 50 tn Heb “to make her practice harlotry.” Some recent English versions regard this as religious or temple prostitution (cf. TEV, CEV).
[19:29] 51 tn Heb “and the land become full of lewdness.” Regarding the term “lewdness,” see the note on Lev 18:17 above.
[19:31] 52 sn The prohibition here concerns those who would seek special knowledge through the spirits of the dead, whether the dead in general or dead relatives in particular (i.e., familiar spirits; see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 321, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 134). Cf. Lev 20:6 below.
[19:33] 53 tn Heb “And when a sojourner sojourns.”
[19:34] 54 tn Heb “and.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.
[19:35] 55 tn That is, liquid capacity (HALOT 640 s.v. מְשׂוּרָה). Cf. ASV, NIV, NRSV, TEV “quantity”; NAB, NASB “capacity.”
[19:36] 56 tn Heb “balances of righteousness,” and so throughout this sentence.
[19:36] 57 sn An ephah is a dry measure which measures about four gallons, or perhaps one third of a bushel, while a hin is a liquid measure of about 3.6 liters (= approximately 1 quart).
[19:37] 58 tn Heb “And you shall keep all my statutes and all my regulations and you shall do them.” This appears to be a kind of verbal hendiadys, where the first verb is a modifier of the action of the second verb (see GKC 386 §120.d, although שָׁמַר [shamar, “to keep”] is not cited there; cf. Lev 22:31).
[20:2] 59 tn Heb “or from the sojourner who sojourns”; NAB “an alien residing in Israel.”
[20:2] 60 tn Heb “his seed” (so KJV, ASV); likewise in vv. 3-4.
[20:2] 61 tn Regarding Molech and Molech worship see the note on Lev 18:21.
[20:2] 62 tn This is not the most frequently-used Hebrew verb for stoning (see instead סָקַל, saqal), but a word that refers to the action of throwing, slinging, or pelting someone with stones (רָגָם, ragam; see HALOT 1187 s.v. רגם qal.a, and B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 136).
[20:3] 63 tn Heb “And I, I shall give my faces.”
[20:3] 64 sn On the “cut off” penalty see the notes on Lev 7:20 and 17:4.
[20:3] 65 tn Heb “for the sake of defiling my sanctuary and to profane my holy name.”
[20:4] 66 tn Heb “And if shutting [infinitive absolute] they shut [finite verb].” For the infinitive absolute used to highlight contrast rather than emphasis see GKC 343 §113.p.
[20:4] 67 tn Heb “from that man” (so ASV); NASB “disregard that man.”
[20:5] 68 tn The adjective “spiritual” has been supplied in the translation to clarify that this is not a reference to literal prostitution, but figuratively compares idolatry to prostitution.
[20:5] 69 tn Heb “to commit harlotry after Molech.” The translation employs “worshiping” here for clarity (cf. NAB, NCV, TEV, CEV, NLT). On the “cut off” penalty see the note on Lev 7:20.
[20:6] 70 sn For structure and coherence in Lev 20:6-27 see the note on v. 27 below.
[20:6] 71 tn See the note on the phrase “familiar spirits” in Lev 19:31 above.
[20:6] 72 tn Heb “I will give my faces.”
[20:8] 73 tn Heb “And you shall keep my statutes and you shall do them.” This appears to be a kind of verbal hendiadys, where the first verb is a modifier of the action of the second verb (see GKC 386 §120.d, although שָׁמַר [shamar, “to keep”] is not cited there; cf. Lev 22:31, etc.).
[20:9] 74 sn Compare the regulations in Lev 18:6-23.
[20:9] 75 tn Heb “If a man a man who.”
[20:9] 76 tn Heb “makes light of his father and his mother.” Almost all English versions render this as some variation of “curses his father or mother.”
[20:9] 77 tn Heb “his blood [plural] is in him.” Cf. NAB “he has forfeited his life”; TEV “is responsible for his own death.”
[20:9] sn The rendering “blood guilt” refers to the fact that the shedding of blood brings guilt on those who shed it illegitimately (even the blood of animals shed illegitimately, Lev 17:4; cf. the background of Gen 4:10-11). If the community performs a legitimate execution, however, the blood guilt rests on the person who has been legitimately executed (see the remarks and literature cited in J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 328).
[20:10] 78 tn Heb “And a man who.” The syntax here and at the beginning of the following verses elliptically mirrors that of v. 9, which justifies the rendering as a conditional clause.
[20:10] 79 tc The reading of the LXX minuscule
[20:11] 80 sn See the note on Lev 18:7 above.
[20:11] 81 tn See the note on v. 9 above.
[20:12] 82 tn The Hebrew term תֶּבֶל (tevel, “perversion”) derives from the verb “to mix; to confuse” (cf. KJV, ASV “they have wrought confusion”).
[20:13] 83 tn Heb “[as the] lyings of a woman.” The specific reference here is to homosexual intercourse between males.
[20:14] 84 tn Heb “And a man who takes a woman and her mother.” The Hebrew verb “to take” in this context means “to engage in sexual intercourse.”
[20:14] 85 tn Regarding “lewdness,” see the note on Lev 18:17 above.
[20:14] 86 tn Heb “in fire they shall burn him and them.” The active plural verb sometimes requires a passive translation (GKC 460 §144.f, g), esp. when no active plural subject has been expressed in the context. The present translation specifies “burned to death” because the traditional rendering “burnt with fire” (KJV, ASV; NASB “burned with fire”) could be understood to mean “branded” or otherwise burned, but not fatally.
[20:15] 87 tn See the note on Lev 18:20 above.
[20:16] 88 tn Heb “to copulate with it” (cf. Lev 20:16).
[20:17] 89 tn Heb “takes.” The verb “to take” in this context means “to engage in sexual intercourse,” though some English versions translate it as “marry” (e.g., NIV, NCV, TEV, CEV).
[20:17] 90 tn Regarding the “cut off” penalty, see the note on Lev 7:20.
[20:17] 91 tn See the note on Lev 17:16 above.
[20:18] 92 tn Heb “and the two of them.”
[20:19] 93 tn Heb “his flesh.”
[20:19] 94 tn See the note on Lev 17:16 above.
[20:21] 95 tn Heb “takes.” The verb “to take” in this context means “to engage in sexual intercourse.”
[20:21] 96 sn See the note on Lev 18:7 above.
[20:22] 97 tn Heb “And you shall keep all my statutes and all my regulations and you shall do them.” This appears to be a kind of verbal hendiadys, where the first verb is a modifier of the action of the second verb (see GKC 386 §120.d, although שָׁמַר [shamar, “to keep”] is not cited there; cf. Lev 22:31, etc.).
[20:22] 98 tn Heb “and.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.
[20:23] 99 tc One medieval Hebrew
[20:24] 100 tc Here and with the same phrase in v. 26, the LXX adds “all,” resulting in the reading “all the peoples.”
[20:25] 101 tn Heb “And you shall distinguish.” The verb is the same as “set apart” at the end of the previous verse. The fact that God had “set them apart” from the other peoples roundabout them called for them to “distinguish between” the clean and the unclean, etc.
[20:25] 102 tn The word “creatures” has been supplied in the translation to make it clear that the following relative clause modifies the animal, bird, or creeping thing mentioned earlier, and not the ground itself.
[20:25] 103 tc The MT has “to defile,” but Smr, LXX, and Syriac have “to uncleanness.”
[20:27] 104 tc Smr, LXX, Syriac, and some Targum
[20:27] 105 tn See the note on the phrase “familiar spirit” in Lev 19:31 above.
[20:27] 106 tn This is not the most frequently-used Hebrew verb for stoning, but a word that refers to the action of throwing, slinging, or pelting someone with stones (see the note on v. 2 above). Smr and LXX have “you [plural] shall pelt them with stones.”
[20:27] sn At first glance Lev 20:27 appears to be out of place but, on closer examination, one could argue that it constitutes the back side of an envelope around the case laws in 20:9-21, with Lev 20:6 forming the front of the envelope (note also that execution of mediums and spiritists by stoning in v. 27 is not explicitly stated in v. 6). This creates a chiastic structure: prohibition against mediums and spiritists (vv. 6 and 27), variations of the holiness formula (vv. 7 and 25-26), and exhortations to obey the
