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26 ye shall not make to you an idol, and a graven image (nor a carved image), neither ye shall raise up titles, that is, altars for idolatry, neither ye shall set (up) a noble stone in your land, that ye worship it; for I am your Lord God.

Keep ye my sabbaths, and dread ye at my saintuary (and honour my sanctuary); I am the Lord.

If ye go in my behests, and keep my commandments, and do those,

I shall give to you rain in their times, and the earth shall bring forth his fruit, and [the] trees shall be filled with apples; (I shall give you rain at the proper time, and the land shall bring forth its harvest, and the trees shall be filled with fruit;)

the threshing of ripe corns shall take (you until) the vintage, and the vintage shall occupy (you until) the seed time, and ye shall eat your bread in fullness, and ye shall dwell in your land without dread (and ye shall live in your land without any fear).

I shall give peace in your coasts; ye shall sleep, and none shall be that shall make you afeared; I shall do away evil beasts from you, and a sword shall not pass by your terms.

Ye shall pursue your enemies, and they shall fall before you;

five of your men shall pursue an hundred aliens, and an hundred of you shall pursue ten thousand; your enemies shall fall by sword in your sight (your enemies shall fall by the sword before you).

I shall behold you, and I shall make you to increase; ye shall be multiplied; and I shall make steadfast my covenant with you;

10 ye shall eat the eldest of (the) eld things, and (then) ye shall cast away the eld things, when [the] new things shall come above (when the new things shall come forth);

11 I shall set my tabernacle in the midst of you, and my soul shall not cast you away;

12 I shall go among you, and I shall be your God, and ye shall be a people to me (and ye shall be my people).

13 I am your Lord God, that led you out of the land of Egyptians, that ye should not serve them (any more), and I have broken the chains off your nolls, that ye should go upright. (I am the Lord your God, who led you out of the land of the Egyptians, so that ye would no longer serve them, and I have broken the chains from off your necks, so that ye could walk upright.)

14 That if ye hear not me, neither do all my behests, (But if ye will not listen to me, nor do all my commands,)

15 and if ye forsake my laws, and despise my dooms, that ye do not those things that be ordained of me, and that ye bring follily my covenant to nought, (and if ye forsake my laws, and despise my judgements, so that ye do not do those things that be ordained by me, but ye foolishly break my covenant,)

16 also I shall do these things to you; I shall visit you swiftly in neediness, and in burning, which shall torment your eyes, and waste your lives; in vain ye shall sow seed, that shall be devoured of enemies; (then I shall do these things to you; I shall swiftly visit you with want, or with need, and with burning, which shall torment your eyes, and shall waste your lives; ye shall sow your seed in vain, for it shall be devoured by your enemies;)

17 I shall set my face against you, and ye shall fall before your enemies, and ye shall be subjects to them that hate you (and ye shall be made subject to them who hate you); (and) ye shall flee, while no man pursueth you.

18 But if neither so ye obey to me (And if ye shall still not obey me), I shall increase your chastising sevenfold for your sins;

19 and I shall all-break the pride of your hardness, and I shall give to you heaven above as iron, and the earth as brass; (and I shall break in pieces all of your hard-headed pride; and I shall make the heavens above you like iron, and the earth beneath you like bronze;)

20 your travail shall be wasted in vain, neither the earth shall bring forth fruit, neither [the] trees shall give apples. (all your labour shall be in vain, the land shall not bring forth any harvest, nor shall the trees give forth any fruit.)

21 If ye go contrary to me, neither will hear me (and will not listen to me), I shall increase your wounds, either vengeances, till into sevenfold for your sins;

22 I shall send out into you cruel beasts of the field (I shall send cruel wild beasts among you), that shall waste you, and your beasts, and shall bring all things to fewness, and your (by)ways shall be forsaken.

23 That if neither so ye will receive doctrine, either chastising, but go contrary to me, (And if ye will still not receive chastising, or discipline, but continue to go contrary to me,)

24 also I shall go adversary against you, and I shall smite you seven times for your sins; (then I shall also be your adversary/then I shall also go contrary to you, and I shall strike you seven times for your sins;)

25 and I shall bring in on you the sword, venger of my bond of peace (the avenger of my covenant); and when ye flee into [your] cities, I shall send pestilence in[to] the midst of you, and ye shall be betaken in(to) the hands of [your] enemies,

26 after that I have broken the staff of your bread, so that ten women shall bake their loaves in one oven, and (they shall) yield, or deliver, those loaves at weight; and ye shall eat (them), and (yet) ye shall not be fulfilled.

27 But if neither by these things ye will hear me, but go against me, (And if, in spite of all these things, ye still will not listen to me, but continue to go against me,)

28 and I shall go against you in contrary strong vengeance, and I shall chastise you by seven vengeances for your sins, (then I also shall be contrary, and go against you with strong vengeance, and I shall chastise you seven times for your sins,)

29 so that ye (shall) eat the flesh of your sons, and of your daughters;

30 I shall destroy your high things, and I shall break your simulacra (I shall destroy your high places, or your hill shrines, and I shall break your idols); ye shall fall betwixt the fallings of your idols, and my soul shall have you abominable,

31 in so much that I shall turn your cities into wilderness, and make your saintuaries forsaken, neither I shall receive more the sweetest odour; (in so much that I shall turn your cities into wilderness, and make your sanctuaries forsaken, nor shall I receive from you any more the sweetest aroma;)

32 and I shall destroy your land, and your enemies shall be astonished thereon, when they shall be dwellers thereof; (and I shall destroy your land, and your enemies, when they become its inhabitants, shall be astonished at what hath happened there;)

33 forsooth I shall scatter you into folks, or into heathen men, and I shall draw out of the sheath the sword after you (yea, I shall scatter you among the heathen, and I shall draw the sword out of its sheath, and come after you), and your land shall be forsaken, and your cities shall be cast down.

34 Then his sabbaths shall please the earth, in all the days of his wilderness; when ye be in the land of (your) enemies, it shall keep sabbath, (Then the land shall enjoy its sabbaths, in all the days of its wilderness; while ye be in the land of your enemies, it shall keep the sabbaths, that is, the land shall take rest,)

35 and it shall rest in the sabbaths of his wilderness, for it rested not in your sabbaths, when ye dwelled therein. (yea, it shall rest on its sabbaths in its time of wilderness, for it did not rest on your sabbaths, when ye still lived there.)

36 And I shall give dread in their hearts, that shall abide of you, in the countries of your enemies; the sound of a leaf flying shall make them afeared, and so they shall flee it as a sword; they shall fall, while none pursueth, (And I shall put fear in the hearts of those who be left of you, in the countries of your enemies; the sound of a leaf flying in the wind shall make them afraid, and they shall flee it like a sword; they shall fall, when no one pursueth them,)

37 and all they shall fall upon their brethren, as men fleeing battles (out of fear); no man of you shall be hardy to against-stand (your) enemies; (and they all shall fall upon their brothers, like men fearfully fleeing from battle; not one of you shall be hardy to stand against your enemies;)

38 ye shall perish among heathen men, and the land of (your) enemies shall waste you.

39 That if some of these Jews dwell (And those Jews who shall still remain), they shall fail in their wickednesses, in the land of their enemies; and they shall be tormented for the sins of their fathers, and for their own sins,

40 till they acknowledge their wickednesses, and have mind of their evils (and remember their evil-doing), by which they trespassed against me, and went contrary to me.

41 Therefore and I shall go against them (And so I shall go against them), and I shall bring them into the land of their enemies, till the uncircumcised soul of them be ashamed; then they shall pray for (the forgiveness of) their wickedness,

42 and I shall have mind of my bond of peace, that I covenanted with Jacob, Isaac, and with Abraham; also I shall be mindful of the land, (and I shall remember my covenant, which I made with Jacob, and Isaac, and Abraham; and I shall remember the land,)

43 which, when it is left of them, shall please to itself in his sabbaths, and shall suffer wilderness for them; forsooth they shall pray for their sins, for they casted away my dooms, and despised my laws; (which, when it is rid of them, shall enjoy its sabbaths, and shall become a wilderness without them; and they shall pray for the forgiveness of their sins, for they threw away my judgements, and despised my laws;)

44 nevertheless, yea, when they were in the land of (their) enemies, I casted not them away utterly (I did not utterly throw them away), neither I despised them, so that they were wasted, and that I made void my covenant with them; for I am the Lord God of them.

45 And I shall have mind of my former bond of peace (And I shall remember my covenant with their ancestors), when I led them out of the land of Egypt, in the sight of heathen men, that I should be their God; I am the Lord God.

46 These be the behests, and dooms, and laws, which the Lord gave betwixt himself and the sons of Israel, in the hill of Sinai, by the hand of Moses. (These be the commands, and judgements, and laws, which the Lord gave between himself and the Israelites, on Mount Sinai, through Moses.)

Reward for Obedience

26 “‘Do not make idols(A) or set up an image(B) or a sacred stone(C) for yourselves, and do not place a carved stone(D) in your land to bow down before it. I am the Lord your God.

“‘Observe my Sabbaths(E) and have reverence for my sanctuary.(F) I am the Lord.

“‘If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey(G) my commands, I will send you rain(H) in its season,(I) and the ground will yield its crops and the trees their fruit.(J) Your threshing will continue until grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting, and you will eat all the food you want(K) and live in safety in your land.(L)

“‘I will grant peace in the land,(M) and you will lie down(N) and no one will make you afraid.(O) I will remove wild beasts(P) from the land, and the sword will not pass through your country. You will pursue your enemies,(Q) and they will fall by the sword before you. Five(R) of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand, and your enemies will fall by the sword before you.(S)

“‘I will look on you with favor and make you fruitful and increase your numbers,(T) and I will keep my covenant(U) with you. 10 You will still be eating last year’s harvest when you will have to move it out to make room for the new.(V) 11 I will put my dwelling place[a](W) among you, and I will not abhor you.(X) 12 I will walk(Y) among you and be your God,(Z) and you will be my people.(AA) 13 I am the Lord your God,(AB) who brought you out of Egypt(AC) so that you would no longer be slaves to the Egyptians; I broke the bars of your yoke(AD) and enabled you to walk with heads held high.

Punishment for Disobedience

14 “‘But if you will not listen to me and carry out all these commands,(AE) 15 and if you reject my decrees and abhor my laws(AF) and fail to carry out all my commands and so violate my covenant,(AG) 16 then I will do this to you: I will bring on you sudden terror, wasting diseases and fever(AH) that will destroy your sight and sap your strength.(AI) You will plant seed in vain, because your enemies will eat it.(AJ) 17 I will set my face(AK) against you so that you will be defeated(AL) by your enemies;(AM) those who hate you will rule over you,(AN) and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you.(AO)

18 “‘If after all this you will not listen to me,(AP) I will punish(AQ) you for your sins seven times over.(AR) 19 I will break down your stubborn pride(AS) and make the sky above you like iron and the ground beneath you like bronze.(AT) 20 Your strength will be spent in vain,(AU) because your soil will not yield its crops, nor will the trees of your land yield their fruit.(AV)

21 “‘If you remain hostile(AW) toward me and refuse to listen to me, I will multiply your afflictions seven times over,(AX) as your sins deserve. 22 I will send wild animals(AY) against you, and they will rob you of your children, destroy your cattle and make you so few(AZ) in number that your roads will be deserted.(BA)

23 “‘If in spite of these things you do not accept my correction(BB) but continue to be hostile toward me, 24 I myself will be hostile(BC) toward you and will afflict you for your sins seven times over. 25 And I will bring the sword(BD) on you to avenge(BE) the breaking of the covenant. When you withdraw into your cities, I will send a plague(BF) among you, and you will be given into enemy hands. 26 When I cut off your supply of bread,(BG) ten women will be able to bake your bread in one oven, and they will dole out the bread by weight. You will eat, but you will not be satisfied.

27 “‘If in spite of this you still do not listen to me(BH) but continue to be hostile toward me, 28 then in my anger(BI) I will be hostile(BJ) toward you, and I myself will punish you for your sins seven times over.(BK) 29 You will eat(BL) the flesh of your sons and the flesh of your daughters.(BM) 30 I will destroy your high places,(BN) cut down your incense altars(BO) and pile your dead bodies[b] on the lifeless forms of your idols,(BP) and I will abhor(BQ) you. 31 I will turn your cities into ruins(BR) and lay waste(BS) your sanctuaries,(BT) and I will take no delight in the pleasing aroma of your offerings.(BU) 32 I myself will lay waste the land,(BV) so that your enemies who live there will be appalled.(BW) 33 I will scatter(BX) you among the nations(BY) and will draw out my sword(BZ) and pursue you. Your land will be laid waste,(CA) and your cities will lie in ruins.(CB) 34 Then the land will enjoy its sabbath years all the time that it lies desolate(CC) and you are in the country of your enemies;(CD) then the land will rest and enjoy its sabbaths. 35 All the time that it lies desolate, the land will have the rest(CE) it did not have during the sabbaths you lived in it.

36 “‘As for those of you who are left, I will make their hearts so fearful in the lands of their enemies that the sound of a windblown leaf(CF) will put them to flight.(CG) They will run as though fleeing from the sword, and they will fall, even though no one is pursuing them.(CH) 37 They will stumble over one another(CI) as though fleeing from the sword, even though no one is pursuing them. So you will not be able to stand before your enemies.(CJ) 38 You will perish(CK) among the nations; the land of your enemies will devour you.(CL) 39 Those of you who are left will waste away in the lands of their enemies because of their sins; also because of their ancestors’(CM) sins they will waste away.(CN)

40 “‘But if they will confess(CO) their sins(CP) and the sins of their ancestors(CQ)—their unfaithfulness and their hostility toward me, 41 which made me hostile(CR) toward them so that I sent them into the land of their enemies—then when their uncircumcised hearts(CS) are humbled(CT) and they pay(CU) for their sin, 42 I will remember my covenant with Jacob(CV) and my covenant with Isaac(CW) and my covenant with Abraham,(CX) and I will remember the land. 43 For the land will be deserted(CY) by them and will enjoy its sabbaths while it lies desolate without them. They will pay for their sins because they rejected(CZ) my laws and abhorred my decrees.(DA) 44 Yet in spite of this, when they are in the land of their enemies,(DB) I will not reject them or abhor(DC) them so as to destroy them completely,(DD) breaking my covenant(DE) with them. I am the Lord their God. 45 But for their sake I will remember(DF) the covenant with their ancestors whom I brought out of Egypt(DG) in the sight of the nations to be their God. I am the Lord.’”

46 These are the decrees, the laws and the regulations that the Lord established at Mount Sinai(DH) between himself and the Israelites through Moses.(DI)

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 26:11 Or my tabernacle
  2. Leviticus 26:30 Or your funeral offerings