Leviticus 26:21 kjv
And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.
Leviticus 26:21 nkjv
'Then, if you walk contrary to Me, and are not willing to obey Me, I will bring on you seven times more plagues, according to your sins.
Leviticus 26:21 niv
"?'If you remain hostile toward me and refuse to listen to me, I will multiply your afflictions seven times over, as your sins deserve.
Leviticus 26:21 esv
"Then if you walk contrary to me and will not listen to me, I will continue striking you, sevenfold for your sins.
Leviticus 26:21 nlt
"If even then you remain hostile toward me and refuse to obey me, I will inflict disaster on you seven times over for your sins.
Leviticus 26 21 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 26:14-16 | “But if you do not obey Me... I will punish you... | Initial covenant curses |
| Lev 26:18 | “And if in spite of this you do not obey Me... I will punish you seven times more..." | Escalating judgment starts here |
| Lev 26:23-24 | “And if by these things you are not reformed by Me, but walk contrary to Me, then I also will walk contrary to you... and I Myself will strike you seven times more..." | Further escalation of judgment and defiance |
| Deut 28:15 | “But it shall come to pass, if you do not obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments and His statutes which I command you today, that all these curses will come upon you..." | Broader context of covenant curses |
| Deut 28:59 | "...then the Lord will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary plagues—great and prolonged plagues..." | Intense, prolonged plagues |
| Deut 32:23-25 | “I will heap evils on them; My arrows I will spend on them... Outside, the sword shall bereave; and inside, terror.” | God's escalating instruments of judgment |
| Jer 2:19 | “Your own wickedness will correct you, and your backslidings will rebuke you. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing that you have forsaken the Lord your God, and the fear of Me is not in you,” says the Lord God of hosts. | Consequences of forsaking God |
| Jer 5:3 | “O Lord, are not Your eyes on the truth? You have stricken them, but they have not grieved; You have consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction.” | Israel's refusal to receive correction |
| Ezek 14:21 | "For thus says the Lord God: 'How much more when I send My four severe judgments on Jerusalem—sword and famine and wild beasts and pestilence—to cut off man and beast from it?'" | Multiplied severe judgments |
| Amos 4:6-12 | Series of 'yet you have not returned to Me' for different judgments. | God's escalating warnings and desire for repentance |
| 1 Sam 2:30 | “...for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.” | Principle of reciprocal honor/despise |
| Prov 1:24-31 | "Because I have called and you refused... then they will call on me, but I will not answer..." | Wisdom's call rejected, leading to calamity |
| Rom 2:4-6 | "...or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance? But in accordance with your hardness and impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath..." | Hardness of heart accumulates wrath |
| Rom 11:22 | "Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness." | God's dual attributes: goodness and severity |
| Heb 3:7-19 | Refusal to listen to God's voice in the wilderness, leading to judgment. | Warning against hardness of heart |
| Heb 12:5-11 | "My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; for whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives." | Divine discipline is for good |
| Gal 6:7 | "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." | Principle of sowing and reaping |
| Rev 16:9 | "And men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory." | Unrepentant heart amidst judgment |
| Judg 2:11-15 | Cycles of disobedience, oppression, and deliverance. | Recurrent pattern of sin leading to judgment |
| 2 Chr 7:14 | "...if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land." | Hope for restoration after judgment |
| Is 9:10-17 | Despite judgment, Israel still said "The bricks have fallen, but we will rebuild..." God's hand still stretched out in judgment. | Obstinate rebellion, escalating judgment |
| Hos 13:9 | “O Israel, you are destroyed, but your help is from Me.” | Destruction comes from rejecting God's help |
Leviticus 26 verses
Leviticus 26 21 Meaning
Leviticus 26:21 speaks to the direct consequence of Israel's sustained and defiant disobedience to the Lord's covenant stipulations. If they persist in a hostile and unyielding attitude towards God's commands, showing unwillingness to obey Him, the Lord declares that He will intensify His disciplinary judgments upon them. This intensification is described as "seven times more plagues," signifying a complete, thorough, and greatly magnified punitive response proportional to their sins and their rejection of His authority. It emphasizes the Lord's determination to bring His people to repentance through escalating correction.
Leviticus 26 21 Context
Leviticus chapter 26 is the culmination of the legal section of Leviticus, serving as a powerful covenant peroration, or concluding summary. It lays out the blessings for obedience (Lev 26:3-13) and the curses for disobedience (Lev 26:14-39), acting as a "two ways" teaching that was common in ancient Near Eastern treaties and wisdom literature. This verse, Leviticus 26:21, is part of the first escalation of divine judgment following Israel's continued rejection of the initial warnings (Lev 26:14-17). The structure of the curses involves successive levels of increasing severity, each stage introduced by "if in spite of this you do not obey" and often followed by "I will punish you seven times more." Historically and culturally, this mirrors ancient treaty forms where blessings and curses outlined the responsibilities and consequences for the vassal nation, emphasizing the exclusivity and authority of the suzerain – in this case, Yahweh. This also subtly stands in polemic against polytheistic beliefs which might attribute misfortune to random chance or fickle deities; Yahweh's actions are presented as just, purposeful, and directly linked to covenant faithfulness, not whims.
Leviticus 26 21 Word analysis
- Then, if: Indicates a conditional statement and a consequence; a divine response predicated on human action.
- you walk: Hebrew: תֵּלְכוּ (tel'khu) - lit. "you walk." This implies a pattern of life, a sustained conduct, not just an isolated act. It refers to the manner and direction of their lives.
- contrary: Hebrew: קֶרִי (qeri) - This is a crucial and complex word. It can mean 'hostility,' 'randomness,' 'accident,' 'chance,' 'perverseness,' 'indifference,' 'contempt.' In this context, it often refers to a defiant, contemptuous attitude where one treats God's commands as though they are irrelevant or random, living as if God's warnings are mere chance and without consequence. It is an attitude of spiritual arrogance and neglect towards the divine. It implies a "devil-may-care" or a "reckless indifference" toward God. Some translate it as "with hostility," reflecting active opposition.
- to Me: Referring to Yahweh, emphasizing that their conduct is directly against their covenant Lord.
- and are unwilling: Hebrew: וְלֹא תֹאבוּ (vəlo' to'vu) - Lit. "and you are not willing/desirous." This highlights an internal, volitional stubbornness. It's not just a lack of understanding or capacity, but a settled disposition of not wanting to obey. This is an active refusal of the heart.
- to obey Me: Hebrew: לִשְׁמֹעַ לִי (lishmoa' li) - Lit. "to hear Me." In Hebrew thought, "hearing" implies not just perceiving sound, but heeding, understanding, and actively responding with obedience. It is hearing to do.
Words-group analysis:
- walk contrary to Me: This phrase encapsulates a way of life that is fundamentally out of sync with God's will and covenant. It points to a deep-seated antagonism or defiant disregard for divine order, expressed through ongoing actions and attitudes. It's a progressive, intentional deviation.
- unwilling to obey Me: This further clarifies the nature of the "contrary" walk. It's not passive ignorance, but an active, willful refusal to submit to God's voice and authority, demonstrating an insubordinate spirit that prefers one's own way.
- I will bring on you: This highlights divine agency. The consequences are not natural happenstance, but deliberate judgments orchestrated by God. It affirms God's sovereignty and His active involvement in Israel's history based on their fidelity or infidelity.
- seven times more plagues: This signifies a powerful intensification and completeness of judgment. The number seven in Hebrew context often denotes fullness, perfection, or completion. Here, it indicates that the punishment will be perfectly fitting and intensely severe, fully accomplishing God's purpose of correction or judgment. It refers to the measure or severity, not necessarily just number.
- according to your sins: The judgments are not arbitrary but precisely tailored to the degree and nature of their disobedience. God's justice is proportional; their punishment is a just recompense for their specific transgressions and persistent rebellion. This connects divine wrath with divine righteousness.
Leviticus 26 21 Bonus section
The progressive "seven times more" structure (mentioned four times in Lev 26:18, 21, 24, 28) signifies that God's discipline intensifies in distinct stages. Each stage is meant to draw His people back, showing His patience yet His firm commitment to His holiness. This structure reveals God's desire to chasten and refine rather than immediately destroy, though ultimate destruction (exile, 26:33-39) is the final consequence if warnings are continually unheeded. The qeri attitude stands in stark contrast to walking humbly with God (Micah 6:8) and demonstrates that a posture of the heart (contempt, indifference) is as critical as external actions. God's response to qeri is to treat His people in a qeri-like manner (Lev 26:23-24), meaning He will meet their perverse defiance with severe, fitting, and overwhelming divine judgment.
Leviticus 26 21 Commentary
Leviticus 26:21 marks a critical point in the escalating cycle of covenant curses, emphasizing the Lord's unwavering resolve to address His people's deepening disobedience. The choice of the word qeri (rendered "contrary") is profound; it suggests a cavalier, defiant indifference or even contempt towards God's explicit commands, as if divine warnings are inconsequential. This internal attitude manifests in an unwillingness to listen and obey. In response, God pledges a corresponding increase in judgment, signified by "seven times more plagues." This 'sevenfold' intensification is not simply quantitative; it implies a perfectly just, exhaustive, and intensifying measure of discipline designed to break their stubborn resistance. It underscores God's commitment to His covenant, not abandoning His people in their sin but persistently bringing consequences that aim to restore relationship, even if through severe hardship. It teaches that unrepentant sin escalates divine discipline.