26 " 'Do not eat any meat with the blood still in it. " 'Do not practice divination or seek omens. 27 " 'Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard. 28 " 'Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord. 29 " 'Do not degrade your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the land will turn to prostitution and be filled with wickedness.
30 " 'Observe my Sabbaths and have reverence for my sanctuary. I am the Lord. 31 " 'Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the Lord your God.
26 Ye shall not eat any thing with the blood: neither shall ye use enchantment, nor observe times. 27 Ye shall not round the corners of your heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. 28 Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord. 29 Do not prostitute
30 Ye shall keep my sabbaths, and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord. 31 Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God.
26 "You shall not eat any flesh with the blood in it. You shall not interpret omens or tell fortunes. 27 You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard. 28 You shall not make any cuts on your body for the dead or tattoo yourselves: I am the Lord. 29 "Do not profane your daughter by making her a prostitute, lest the land fall into prostitution and the land become full of depravity.
30 You shall keep my Sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord. 31 "Do not turn to mediums or necromancers; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God.
26 "Don't eat meat with blood in it. "Don't practice divination or sorcery. 27 "Don't cut the hair on the sides of your head or trim your beard. 28 "Don't gash your bodies on behalf of the dead. "Don't tattoo yourselves. I am God. 29 "Don't violate your daughter by making her a whore - the whole country would soon become a brothel, filled with sordid sex.
30 "Keep my Sabbaths and revere my Sanctuary: I am God. 31 "Don't dabble in the occult or traffic with mediums; you'll pollute your souls. I am God, your God.
26 'You shall not eat anything with the blood, nor shall you practice divination or soothsaying. 27 You shall not shave around the sides of your head, nor shall you disfigure the edges of your beard. 28 You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the Lord. 29 'Do not prostitute your daughter, to cause her to be a harlot, lest the land fall into harlotry, and the land become full of wickedness.
30 'You shall keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary: I am the Lord. 31 'Give no regard to mediums and familiar spirits; do not seek after them, to be defiled by them: I am the Lord your God.
26 "Do not eat meat that has not been drained of its blood. "Do not practice fortune-telling or witchcraft. 27 "Do not trim off the hair on your temples or trim your beards. 28 "Do not cut your bodies for the dead, and do not mark your skin with tattoos. I am the Lord . 29 "Do not defile your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the land will be filled with prostitution and wickedness.
30 "Keep my Sabbath days of rest, and show reverence toward my sanctuary. I am the Lord . 31 "Do not defile yourselves by turning to mediums or to those who consult the spirits of the dead. I am the Lord your God.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Leviticus 19:26-31
Chapter Contents
laws.
There are some ceremonial precepts in this chapter, but most of these precepts are binding on us, for they are explanations of the ten commandments. It is required that Israel be a holy people, because the God of Israel is a holy God, verse 35. We must make conscience of obeying God's precepts. We are not to pick and choose our duty, but must aim at standing complete in all the will of God. And the nearer our lives and tempers are to the precepts of God's law, the happier shall we be, and the happier shall we make all around us, and the better shall we adorn the gospel.