Leviticus 20 5

Leviticus 20:5 kjv

Then I will set my face against that man, and against his family, and will cut him off, and all that go a whoring after him, to commit whoredom with Molech, from among their people.

Leviticus 20:5 nkjv

then I will set My face against that man and against his family; and I will cut him off from his people, and all who prostitute themselves with him to commit harlotry with Molech.

Leviticus 20:5 niv

I myself will set my face against him and his family and will cut them off from their people together with all who follow him in prostituting themselves to Molek.

Leviticus 20:5 esv

then I will set my face against that man and against his clan and will cut them off from among their people, him and all who follow him in whoring after Molech.

Leviticus 20:5 nlt

I myself will turn against them and their families and will cut them off from the community. This will happen to all who commit spiritual prostitution by worshiping Molech.

Leviticus 20 verses

Leviticus 20 5 Meaning

Leviticus 20:5 pronounces a severe divine judgment against anyone who offers their children to Molech, or who, by participating in such detestable idolatry, effectively becomes unfaithful to the covenant with God. This judgment extends beyond the individual to their entire family line, emphasizing God's direct, determined opposition and His resolve to permanently remove them from the covenant community. It underscores the utter abomination of child sacrifice in God's sight.

Leviticus 20 5 Context

This verse is part of a series of specific laws outlining penalties for grievous sins within the Israelite covenant community. Chapter 20 of Leviticus elaborates on the ethical and moral requirements first introduced in chapter 18, detailing capital offenses that would defile the land and jeopardize Israel's holy status as God's chosen people.

The historical context is critical: Israel was being brought into the Promised Land, a region where child sacrifice was a prevalent and horrifying practice among the Canaanites. By prohibiting such an act under the gravest of penalties—divine excommunication of the individual and their entire lineage—God was starkly contrasting Israelite worship and morality with the detestable practices of surrounding nations. The focus on "Molech" points to a specific Ammonite deity associated with these rites. The "cutting off" emphasizes the seriousness of violating the covenant, particularly through such an egregious act of idolatry that involved the sacredness of human life. It was a direct polemic against the worldview that sought favor from pagan gods through ultimate human sacrifice, declaring such an act as the absolute antithesis of true worship and holiness.

Leviticus 20 5 Word analysis

• "I will set my face": Hebrew wĕnāttatî 'et-pānay (literally, "and I will give My face"). This is a strong idiomatic expression, indicating direct, deliberate, and unyielding divine opposition and judgment. It implies God's personal involvement in executing the judgment, rather than delegating it to human agents or natural consequences alone. This direct intervention highlights the profound severity of the offense.

• "against that man": Refers specifically to the individual who dedicates their child to Molech, as described in Leviticus 20:2-4. The punishment begins with the individual initiator.

• "and his clan": Hebrew wĕ'et-mišpahatōw (and his family/clan). This specifies that the divine judgment extends beyond the individual to their wider family unit. In ancient Israelite society, family and clan held collective responsibility and identity. This signifies the profound contamination and disruption caused by such sin, impacting the lineage and heritage. It suggests that such a heinous sin taints not just the perpetrator but those directly connected, either through complicity or communal association.

• "and will cut him off": Hebrew wĕhikiratî 'ōtōw (and I will cut him off). The verb kārat is foundational to covenant theology. Here, it denotes removal from the covenant community. While it often implies physical death at God's hand, it definitively means expulsion from all privileges, blessings, and identity as a member of Israel. It represents spiritual excommunication, a severing of connection with God's people and promises.

• "from among their people": Hebrew miqqerev ‘ammām (from the midst of their people). This further clarifies the meaning of "cut off," emphasizing the removal from the community of Israel. It is an act of purification, cleansing the holy nation of defiling elements. It means loss of tribal rights, inheritance, and ultimately, identity within the chosen people.

• "along with all who follow him": Hebrew wĕ’ēt kol-’ašer hû'-zōneh. This phrase encompasses all individuals who align themselves with, endorse, or participate in the idolatry of Molech. It underscores shared guilt and corporate accountability for the widespread corruption.

• "in prostituting themselves": Hebrew zōneh (feminine participle, acting like a verb for "who go whoring" or "prostituting"). This is a powerful and common biblical metaphor for spiritual unfaithfulness to God, equating idolatry with marital infidelity. It emphasizes the deep betrayal involved in turning away from the exclusive worship of the one true God, Israel's divine husband.

• "to Molech": Hebrew la-mōleḵ. A specific Canaanite deity requiring human (especially child) sacrifice. The explicit naming of Molech signifies a highly abhorrent and specified act of pagan worship, representing the ultimate violation of the first commandment and a complete antithesis to God’s nature and His reverence for human life, especially innocent children.

• Words-group by words-group analysis:

  • "I will set my face against that man and his clan": This phrase highlights divine sovereignty and the scope of God’s judgment. It shows that God does not overlook hidden sins, nor does He only punish the individual perpetrator. The sin is seen as polluting the extended family, warranting a sweeping divine response. It is a terrifying expression of God’s righteous anger and unwavering commitment to His holy standards.
  • "and will cut him off from among their people": This refers to the profound covenantal consequence. It implies the severing of relationship and removal from all benefits associated with being part of God's covenant nation. It suggests not only physical expulsion or death but also an erasure from the national memory and identity of Israel, emphasizing the enduring nature of divine rejection.
  • "along with all who follow him in prostituting themselves to Molech": This emphasizes complicity and the communal nature of judgment when a grievous sin is embraced or condoned. It targets not only direct participants but also those who, through their support or participation, partake in this spiritual adultery against God, making them equally liable for removal from the holy community.

Leviticus 20 5 Bonus section

The "cutting off" penalty (karet) in Leviticus often functions beyond mere execution. It embodies a form of covenant anathematization, leading to an obliteration from the genealogical records and the collective memory of the covenant community. While it might involve premature death, its essence lies in the denial of a future and lineage within the Abrahamic promises. The explicit extension of judgment to the "clan" (mishpachah) reinforces the corporate responsibility inherent in ancient Near Eastern legal and social structures, demonstrating that such heinous sin contaminated the broader family unit and jeopardized the covenant standing of all associated. This principle underscores that God holds individuals and, at times, their interconnected familial and societal units, accountable for collective spiritual deviations and moral failures. This verse is a powerful declaration that God is not only the arbiter of personal holiness but also the guardian of the nation's spiritual purity, vehemently opposing pagan religious practices that directly assault His nature and commandments.

Leviticus 20 5 Commentary

Leviticus 20:5 reveals God’s unyielding determination to maintain the holiness of His people and the purity of their worship. The personal declaration, "I will set my face against," signifies God's direct, resolute, and unwavering intervention in judging such profound sin. Unlike community-imposed death penalties for certain sins, this pronouncement highlights God's own action in severing the individual and their entire clan from the covenant. Child sacrifice to Molech represented the ultimate rebellion: a denial of God's sovereignty, a desecration of human life created in His image, and a defilement of His holy name (Lv 18:21). The "cutting off" is the severest form of divine covenant curse, resulting in removal from Israel's privileges, heritage, and identity as God's chosen people. It also encompasses all who, by associating or participating, become "prostitutes" to Molech, metaphorically betraying their covenant relationship with Yahweh. This comprehensive judgment illustrates God's absolute intolerance for anything that competes with His sole authority or mocks the sanctity of life He bestows, acting as a crucial boundary for Israel's unique existence.