What is the meaning of Leviticus 18:6? None of you This opening phrase sweeps every Israelite into the command. No tribe, family, or individual stands outside its scope. Just as Exodus 19:5 reminds the whole nation, “although the whole earth is Mine, you will be My treasured possession”, so here every person is addressed. The Lord’s standards are not reserved for leaders or priests alone; they apply to each heart and household. Numbers 15:29-30 echoes the same inclusiveness in matters of obedience, whether sins are unintentional or defiantly willful. are to approach “Approach” pictures the first step toward wrongdoing—moving closer both physically and in intent. God cuts off the sin at its earliest stage. Joseph modeled this when he “fled and ran outside” from Potiphar’s wife (Genesis 39:12). Paul urges believers to take the same posture: “Flee from sexual immorality” (1 Corinthians 6:18) and “Make no provision for the flesh” (Romans 13:14). The call is proactive: do not test boundaries; keep distance. any close relative Family is God’s primary sphere for nurture, not exploitation. The verses that follow (Leviticus 18:7-18) spell out mothers, fathers, siblings, grandparents, in-laws, and more—covering every imaginable loophole. Similar safeguards reappear in Deuteronomy 27:20-23, where curses are pronounced on those who violate family sanctity. When Corinth tolerated a man living with his father’s wife, Paul cried, “Shouldn’t you have been filled with grief and removed from your fellowship the man who did this?” (1 Corinthians 5:2). God’s design keeps intimacy within one-man-one-woman marriage and shelters relatives from sexual harm. to have sexual relations Scripture treats sexual intimacy as covenantal, reserved for marriage (Genesis 2:24; Hebrews 13:4). Anything outside that covenant—especially incest—distorts the picture of Christ and the church (Ephesians 5:31-32) and brings “defilement” (Leviticus 18:24-25). Paul presses believers to “learn to control your own body in holiness and honor” (1 Thessalonians 4:4). The Lord protects both the purity of marriage and the dignity of individuals by forbidding sex that confuses roles and generations. I am the LORD The command ends grounded in God’s own character. His name—YHWH—underscores covenant authority and relational faithfulness. Over forty times in Leviticus the Lord seals directives with this signature (e.g., 11:44-45; 19:37). Because He is holy, His people must mirror that holiness (1 Peter 1:16). Obedience, then, is not mere rule-keeping; it is worshipful response to the One who redeemed Israel from Egypt and believers from sin. summary Leviticus 18:6 establishes a clear, universal boundary: every Israelite—every believer today—is to keep sexual distance from close relatives. God stops the sin at the approach, details whom it protects, confines sexual intimacy to marriage, and seals the command with His holy name. Respecting these limits honors family, guards purity, and reflects the character of the Lord who calls His people to be set apart. |
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