Leviticus 19 Chapter Introduction

Structure and Formatting

This chapter contains various laws about how to live a holy life. The structure of this chapter is as follows:1. Basic rules about holiness ([19:1–8](../19/01.md))2. Laws about treating others fairly ([19:9–18](../19/09.md))3. Various other laws ([19:19–37](../19/19.md)) 1. Laws about mixing things ([19:19](../19/19.md)) 2. Laws about sexual purity ([19:20–22](../19/20.md)) 3. Laws about food and worship ([19:23–31](../19/23.md)) 4. Laws about respecting others ([19:32–37](../19/32.md))

Religious and Cultural Concepts in This Chapter

Holiness in daily life

This chapter shows that being holy means: - Being fair in business - Helping poor people - Respecting parents and elderly people - Being honest in court - Using correct measurements - Not spreading rumors

Treatment of others

The chapter gives rules about: - Leaving food for poor people to gather - Paying workers on time - Being fair to everyone in court - Not hating others secretly - Loving neighbors - Respecting the elderly

Proper worship

The chapter includes rules about: - Keeping the Sabbath - Not worshiping idols - Proper sacrifices - Not consulting fortune-tellers - Not following pagan practices

Translation Issues in This Chapter

Metaphors and figures of speech

The chapter uses several word pictures that might be hard to translate: - “Turn to idols” means “start worshiping idols” - “Hate in your heart” means “continue to hate” - “The land will practice prostitution” means “the people will become unfaithful” - “Carry his iniquity” means “be responsible for his sin”

Special terms for measurements

The chapter mentions specific measurements that might need explanation: - “Ephah”, a measurement for dry things like grain - “Hin”, a measurement for liquidsYour language might need to use general terms like “measure” or explain these in a note.

Double negatives and emphasis

Some commands use special ways to make them stronger: - “Not do injustice” means “always judge fairly” - “Keep and do” means the same thing, repeated for emphasis - “Poor and great” means “anyone, regardless of wealth”(See: holy, righteous, and justice)