Leviticus 16:31 kjv
It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever.
Leviticus 16:31 nkjv
It is a sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever.
Leviticus 16:31 niv
It is a day of sabbath rest, and you must deny yourselves; it is a lasting ordinance.
Leviticus 16:31 esv
It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever.
Leviticus 16:31 nlt
It will be a Sabbath day of complete rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. This is a permanent law for you.
Leviticus 16 31 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 16:29 | "And it shall be a statute forever for you: in the seventh month...you shall afflict your souls..." | Direct command for Day of Atonement. |
| Lev 23:27 | "On the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement; it shall be for you a holy convocation. You shall afflict your souls..." | Reiteration of the Day of Atonement command and its practices. |
| Lev 23:32 | "It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you shall keep your sabbath." | Specifies the timing of the affliction and its sabbath nature. |
| Num 29:7 | "On the tenth day of this seventh month you shall have a holy convocation and afflict your souls. You shall do no work." | Reinforces the Day of Atonement's sacredness and prohibition of work. |
| Ps 35:13 | "But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth; I afflicted my soul with fasting..." | Illustrates "afflicting the soul" with fasting. |
| Isa 58:3 | "'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and you do not see? Why have we afflicted our souls, and you take no knowledge?' Behold, in the day of your fast you find your own pleasure..." | Challenges superficial "afflicting souls" vs. true repentance. |
| Isa 58:5 | "Is it such a fast as I have chosen, a day for a person to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a reed...?" | Questions outward rituals without internal sincerity. |
| Joel 2:12-13 | "Even now, declares the LORD, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning... Rend your hearts and not your garments." | Emphasizes inner repentance, the essence of soul affliction. |
| Jonah 3:5-7 | The people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth... and cried out mightily to God. | Corporate fasting and repentance leading to mercy. |
| Dan 10:3 | "I ate no choice food, no meat or wine entered my mouth, and I anointed myself no less, until three full weeks were completed." | Example of personal fasting and self-denial. |
| Zech 7:5 | "When you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these seventy years, was it actually for Me that you fasted?" | Calls for sincerity in fasting and religious observance. |
| Exod 31:15 | "For six days work is to be done, but on the seventh day is a sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the LORD..." | Example of "sabbath of solemn rest" for weekly sabbath. |
| Lev 25:4 | "But in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land..." | Application of "sabbath of solemn rest" to the land in a Jubilee year. |
| Exod 12:14 | "This day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; you shall keep it as an everlasting ordinance." | Example of a "statute forever" (Passover). |
| Heb 9:8-10 | "By this the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the holy places is not yet opened as long as the first tabernacle is still standing... These are regulations for the body..." | Highlights the temporary nature of Old Covenant rituals. |
| Heb 9:22 | "Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins." | Underscores the necessity of blood for atonement, fulfilled by Christ. |
| Heb 9:24-28 | "For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands... but into heaven itself... he appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." | Christ's singular, final sacrifice fulfilling all Old Testament atonement. |
| Heb 10:1-4 | "For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices... make perfect..." | Explains the insufficiency of annual sacrifices to truly perfect. |
| Heb 10:10-14 | "By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all... one sacrifice he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified." | Christ's finished work replacing the need for ongoing animal sacrifices. |
| Col 2:16-17 | "Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come..." | Declares OT festivals, including Atonement, as shadows fulfilled in Christ. |
| Rom 3:25 | "Whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith..." | Christ as the propitiation, fulfilling the atonement. |
| 1 Pet 1:15-16 | "But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy.'" | The ethical outcome of true atonement: a call to holiness. |
Leviticus 16 verses
Leviticus 16 31 Meaning
Leviticus 16:31 sets forth the specific observance for the Day of Atonement, instructing the Israelites that this day shall be a special sabbath, known as a sabbath of solemn rest, implying absolute cessation from all labor. On this day, they are commanded to "afflict their souls," which primarily refers to fasting and acts of humble self-denial. This command, including both the sacred rest and the self-affliction, is declared to be a permanent statute for all future generations. It underscores the day's profound importance as a time of national and individual purification before the Creator.
Leviticus 16 31 Context
Leviticus 16 is entirely dedicated to the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), outlining its intricate rituals and significance. This chapter details the procedures for the High Priest, Aaron, to enter the Most Holy Place once a year to make atonement for himself, his household, and the entire nation of Israel. The elaborate sacrifices of bulls and goats, the burning of incense, and the symbolic sending away of the scapegoat (Azazel) are central to purging sin and uncleanness from the Tabernacle and the people. Verse 31 directly follows the High Priest's specific duties for the day, transitioning to the communal responsibilities. It ensures that the profound purification accomplished through the High Priest’s actions is met with corresponding internal and external obedience by the community, emphasizing the solemnity and the perpetual nature of this annual observance within the Mosaic covenant. The day served as the spiritual climax of the Israelite calendar, essential for maintaining covenant purity and the divine presence among them.
Leviticus 16 31 Word analysis
- It shall be: Introduces a declaration or command. Signifies a divine mandate for what follows.
- a sabbath: (Hebrew: Shabbat, שַׁבָּת) – Implies a cessation from labor and a sacred rest. More than just a weekly day of rest, it indicates a special holy observance.
- of solemn rest: (Hebrew: Shabbaton, שַׁבָּתוֹן) – This term acts as an intensifier of Shabbat. It signifies a "grand sabbath," a sabbath of absolute cessation or extraordinary sacredness. It indicates a full cessation from all occupational activities, beyond what was typically required for a regular sabbath, often linked to the holy days.
- for you: (Hebrew: lachem, לָכֶם) – Emphasizes the direct obligation and benefit to the collective Israelite community, distinguishing it as a specific requirement for the covenant people.
- and you shall afflict: (Hebrew: ve-innitem, וְעִנּיתֶם) – From the root anah (עָנָה), meaning to humble, to bow down, to deal severely with, to cause to suffer, to deny oneself. In the context of the Day of Atonement, it most prominently means to fast, abstain from food and drink, signifying humility, repentance, and self-denial before God. It implies more than mere physical discomfort, encompassing deep spiritual introspection and self-abasement.
- your souls: (Hebrew: napshoteichem, נַפְשׁוֹתֵיכֶם) – Plural of nephesh (נֶפֶשׁ), which encompasses the entire person: life, inner being, appetites, mind, will, and emotions. "Afflicting the soul" means self-denial of the physical needs and desires tied to the very essence of one's being, aimed at spiritual purification and reconciliation. It's not just an external act but a call for an inner transformation of attitude and heart.
- it is: Connects the observance to its enduring status.
- a statute: (Hebrew: chukah, חֻקָּה) – Denotes a prescribed ordinance, a fixed custom, or an unchangeable law established by divine decree. It indicates the divine origin and mandatory nature of the command, emphasizing its binding authority.
- forever: (Hebrew: olam, עוֹלָם) – Implies perpetuity, everlasting, for all generations, throughout time. It marks this commandment as perpetually binding upon Israel under the Old Covenant, signifying its ongoing relevance for the community's relationship with God across historical periods until the coming of the Messiah.
- "a sabbath of solemn rest": This phrase highlights the profound sanctity and absolute cessation of activity demanded by the Day of Atonement. It signifies a unique and ultimate rest, dedicating the entire day to God and spiritual matters, transcending the nature of the weekly Sabbath in its solemnity and purpose of communal cleansing.
- "you shall afflict your souls": This grouping underlines the central human response required for atonement. It's a dual injunction for spiritual discipline and humility, encompassing fasting, mourning, confession, and turning away from sin, symbolizing the Israelite’s alignment with the divine work of purification performed by the High Priest.
- "it is a statute forever": This concluding phrase solidifies the perpetual and unchanging nature of the Day of Atonement’s observance under the Mosaic Law. It signifies the lasting significance of communal atonement and individual repentance as an annual requirement for the covenant community throughout their generations.
Leviticus 16 31 Bonus section
- The pairing of "sabbath of solemn rest" and "afflict your souls" indicates a holistic approach to worship and repentance. It demands both external rest from worldly pursuits and internal discipline of self-denial, showing that true spiritual devotion encompasses both cessation and submission.
- The Day of Atonement served as a national catharsis, addressing both individual sins and collective defilement. The requirement for every individual to afflict their soul meant personal accountability within the communal purification process, emphasizing that forgiveness involves both divine initiative and human response.
- While "afflict your souls" is widely interpreted as fasting, some rabbinic traditions also included abstention from washing, anointing, wearing leather shoes, and marital relations, all practices designed to deny worldly comfort and promote focus on repentance and introspection.
Leviticus 16 31 Commentary
Leviticus 16:31 distills the people's responsibility for the annual Day of Atonement: observe it as a Shabbat Shabbaton (a sabbath of complete cessation and sacred rest), and afflict your souls (through fasting and humble self-denial). This directive immediately follows the detailed ritual of atonement performed by the High Priest. The sabbath of solemn rest ensured that the entire nation, not just the High Priest, fully consecrated the day to divine matters, reflecting the magnitude of reconciliation occurring. The affliction of souls was the people’s personal participation in this process, embodying penitence, seeking forgiveness, and acknowledging their need for divine mercy. It was not merely ritualistic fasting but a call for deep inner humility and contriteness, understanding the gravity of sin and the holiness of God. The designation statute forever underscored its unyielding place within the Old Covenant, necessary year after year, until Christ's singular and perfect sacrifice made these annual shadow observances eternally complete.