Leviticus 19:1-8·~1 min

Commandments for Holiness

The LORD speaks to all Israel through Moses and grounds their holiness in his own. That call is first expressed in reverence at home, in Sabbath keeping, and in refusal of idols.

T¹hen the LORD said to Moses, ²“Speak to the whole congregation of Israel and tell them: Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy. ³Each of you must respect his mother and father, and you must keep My Sabbaths. I am the LORD your God. ⁴Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves molten gods. I am the LORD your God.

Peace offerings must be presented and eaten within the appointed time. What is holy cannot be handled carelessly without guilt and exclusion.

⁵When you sacrifice a peace offering to the LORD, you shall offer it for your acceptance. ⁶It shall be eaten on the day you sacrifice it, or on the next day; but what remains on the third day must be burned up. ⁷If any of it is eaten on the third day, it is tainted and will not be accepted. ⁸Whoever eats it will bear his iniquity, for he has profaned what is holy to the LORD. That person must be cut off from his people.

Section summaryThe LORD calls the whole congregation to holiness because he is holy, then names that holiness in concrete acts of reverence: honoring parents, keeping Sabbaths, refusing idols, and handling peace offerings rightly. The section keeps moving from identity to practice, showing that what belongs to the LORD must be treated as holy.

Role in the chapterThis opening section gives the chapter its governing claim and first examples. It sets holiness as the measure for everything that follows, joining household life, worship, and sacrifice under the character of the LORD.