8 and ye have kept My statutes and have done them; I `am' Jehovah, sanctifying you.
`And thou, speak unto the sons of Israel, saying, Only, My sabbaths ye do keep, for it `is' a sign between Me and you, to your generations, to know that I, Jehovah, am sanctifying you;
and thou hast sanctified him, for the bread of thy God he is bringing near; he is holy to thee; for holy `am' I, Jehovah, sanctifying you.
`My judgments ye do, and My statutes ye keep, to walk in them; I `am' Jehovah your God; and ye have kept My statutes and My judgments which man doth and liveth in them; I `am' Jehovah.
and ye have observed all my statutes, and all my judgments, and have done them; I `am' Jehovah.'
`Whoever therefore may loose one of these commands -- the least -- and may teach men so, least he shall be called in the reign of the heavens, but whoever may do and may teach `them', he shall be called great in the reign of the heavens.
`Therefore, every one who doth hear of me these words, and doth do them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house upon the rock;
if these things ye have known, happy are ye, if ye may do them;
and of Him ye -- ye are in Christ Jesus, who became to us from God wisdom, righteousness also, and sanctification, and redemption,
And we -- we ought to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, beloved by the Lord, that God did choose you from the beginning to salvation, in sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth,
and become ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves,
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Leviticus 20
Commentary on Leviticus 20 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 20
The laws which before were made are in this chapter repeated and penalties annexed to them, that those who would not be deterred from sin by the fear of God might be deterred from it by the fear of punishment. If we will not avoid such and such practices because the law has made them sin (and it is most acceptable when we go on that principle of religion), surely we shall avoid them when the law has made them death, from a principle of self-preservation. In this chapter we have,
Lev 20:1-9
Moses is here directed to say that again to the children of Israel which he had in effect said before, v. 2. We are sure it was no vain repetition, but very necessary, that they might give the more earnest heed to the things that were spoken, and might believe them to be of great consequence, being so often inculcated. God speaketh once, yea, twice, and what he orders to be said again we must be willing to hear again, because for us it is safe, Phil. 3:1.
Lev 20:10-21
Sins against the seventh commandment are here ordered to be severely punished. These are sins which, of all others, fools are most apt to make a mock at; but God would teach those the heinousness of the guilt by the extremity of the punishment that would not otherwise be taught it.
Lev 20:22-27
The last verse is a particular law, which comes in after the general conclusion, as if omitted in its proper place: it is for the putting of those to death that dealt with familiar spirits, v. 27. It would be an affront to God and to his lively oracles, a scandal to the country, and a temptation to ignorant bad people, to consult them, if such were known and suffered to live among them. Those that are in league with the devil have in effect made a covenant with death and an agreement with hell, and so shall their doom be.
The rest of these verses repeat and inculcate what had been said before; for to that unthinking forgetful people it was requisite that there should be line upon line, and that general rules, with their reasons, should be frequently insisted on, for the enforcement of particular laws, and making them more effectual. Three things we are here reminded of:-