And ye shall not walk in the manners of the nation, which I cast out before you: for they committed all these things, and therefore I abhorred them.

LEVITICUS 20:23KJV
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Leviticus 20:23 (KJV)

What does Leviticus 20:23 mean?

Leviticus 20:23 warns the Israelites not to follow the customs and practices of the nations that God is driving out before them, because those nations did things that God found detestable. The verse explains that God rejected those nations specifically because of their behaviors.

In this verse, God is speaking to the people of Israel through Moses as they prepare to enter the land of Canaan. The context is a set of laws and instructions about how the Israelites are to live differently from the surrounding peoples. The verse emphasizes that the Israelites are to avoid adopting the ways of the previous inhabitants, whose actions led to their removal from the land.

The Hebrew behind Leviticus 20:23

  • "walk" (יָלַךְ, yalak): This word often means to live or conduct oneself, not just physically walking. Here, it refers to adopting a way of life or following certain customs.
  • "manners" (חֻקָּה, chuqqah): This word means statutes, customs, or prescribed practices. It highlights that God is talking about specific cultural or religious behaviors, not just general habits.
  • "abhorred" (קָץ, quts): This word means to loathe or detest. It shows the strong negative reaction God has toward the practices of those nations, underlining why the Israelites are to avoid them.

Why Leviticus 20:23 matters

  • Leviticus 20:23 clarifies that the reason for driving out the other nations was not arbitrary, but because of their specific actions that God found unacceptable.
  • The verse helps explain why Israel is called to be distinct: their identity is tied to following God’s ways, not simply being different for its own sake.
  • This verse connects to the larger theme in Leviticus of holiness and separation, showing that God’s instructions are meant to protect the community from destructive influences.

Where else these words appear

“abhorred” Hebrew H6973 · used in 9 verses

  • Genesis 27:46 And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?
  • Numbers 21:5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.
  • Proverbs 3:11 My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction:

“manners” Hebrew H2708 · used in 100 verses

  • Genesis 26:5 Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.
  • Numbers 9:3 In the fourteenth day of this month, at even, ye shall keep it in his appointed season: according to all the rites of it, and according to all the ceremonies thereof, shall ye keep it.
  • 2 Kings 23:3 And the king stood by a pillar, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant.