Leviticus 20:7

Lev 20:7 Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I [am] the LORD your God.

Ver. 7. For I am the Lord your God.] And God that is holy should be sanctified in righteousness. {Isa 5:16}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy--The minute specification of the incestuous and unnatural crimes here enumerated shows their sad prevalence amongst the idolatrous nations around, and the extreme proneness of the Israelites to follow the customs of their neighbors. It is to be understood, that, whenever mention is made that the offender was "to be put to death" without describing the mode, stoning is meant. The only instance of another form of capital punishment occurs in Lev 20:14, that of being burnt with fire; and yet it is probable that even here death was first inflicted by stoning, and the body of the criminal afterwards consumed by fire (Jos 7:15).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

(7, 8) Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy.—Rather, Ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy, as the same phrase is rendered in the Authorised Version in Lev_11:44. Though it is immaterial which of the two renderings is adopted, it is important that it should be the same in both passages, since the phrase is exactly the same in the original. It is only by keeping the Divine ordinances that the Israelites will attain to that state of holiness which will not only arm them to resist the abominable rites and idolatrous practices denounced in the foregoing verses, but which will enable them to reflect the holiness of their Lord.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

7. Almost verbally identical with Lev_11:44 a.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Sanctify yourselves therefore,.... By abstaining from such impious and idolatrous practices, and separating themselves from all that gave into them, as well as by observing the holy commandments of the Lord; otherwise internal sanctification is not the work of man, but of the Lord himself, as in Lev 20:8,

and be ye holy; or a separate people from all others in worship and conversation:

for I am the Lord your God; who is a holy God, and therefore it became them to be holy, in imitation of him, Lev 19:2.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

7. Sanctify yourselves — An important part of sanctification, which lies within the gracious ability of men, is to refrain from acts of impurity. See

1Th_4:3. But until the soul is cleansed by the Sanctifier this abstinence will cost a struggle. This is the difference between a justified soul and one entirely sanctified. “The impress of consecration to a holy God is to be stamped on the life of the Israelites in ordinances extending to all important relations and conditions; in every important affair of life the Israelite has to accomplish something demanded by God.” — Oehler.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Vers. 7, 8. A positive command, Sanctify yourselves therefore, and he ye holy: for I am the Lord your God, is introduced early in the list of penalties to show what is the main purpose of the latter. The only way in which the nation can recover holiness lost by the sins of its members, is by the punishment of the latter, or by their purification by means of sacrifice, according to the nature of the offense.

Vers. 7, 8. Sanctity demand, inducement, promise.

Once "again" (verse 2) Moses utters the Divine will in this great matter of holiness. (see Lev_11:44 Lev_19:2) We have

I GOD"S IMPERATIVE DEMAND OF SANCTITY. "Sanctify yourselves." "Ye shall keep my statutes, and do them." The Creator of the universe, the Author of our being, the Father and Sustainer of our spirits, has sovereign right to speak to us in such decisive tones. He demands of us that we shall be "holy," i.e.,

(1) that we shall expel from heart and life all those sinful habits by which men have defiled themselves: thus shall we "be severed from other people" (verse 26), whose spirit and life are hateful; and

(2) that we shall approach him, honour him, and pay him the tribute he asks of us, and also act righteously and blamelessly toward our fellows, "keeping his statutes and doing them.

II THE HIGH INDUCEMENT HE PRESENTS TO US. "Be ye holy: for I am the Lord your God." We may gird ourselves to good and great things, animated by different motives; of these some may be higher, others lower. God summons us to be holy for the highest reason of all, viz. because we shall thus resemble him. "Be ye holy; for I am holy". (1Pe_1:16) Other reasons abound: holiness

(1) is the best thing in itself;

(2) saves us from many and great spiritual evils;

(3) delivers us from dark and awful penalties;

(4) allies us to the noblest created beings, etc.; but the best and loftiest of all considerations is that

(5) it makes us like God, the Holy One, himself. His spirit is our spirit; his principles, our principles; his life, our life. We are "the children of our Father who is in heaven.

III HIS PROMISED HELP. "I am the Lord which sanctify you." The action of God upon our souls has been treated, both by the foolish and by the wicked, as a reason for human impassiveness. Foolish men have said, "God is working for us and in us, therefore it would be irreverent for us to attempt to do anything; we should only interfere." Wicked men have said, "God works for us, therefore we may safely live in comfortable unconcern and guilt while we wait his time of deliverance." The "children of wisdom" have said, "God is ready to work with us, therefore let us strive with all our energies, for, with his help, we shall not strive in vain." This is the apostle"s argument: "Work out your own salvation,... for it is God which worketh in you," etc. (Php_2:12, 13) All our endeavours might be unavailing; we might contend against the strong current of sin and be baffled and borne along its stream, but if God himself is sanctifying us, we shall prevail. Let us go forth unto the struggle, for we shall assuredly succeed. God sanctifies us in such wise that he acts with us while he acts in us and for us. He sanctifies us by

(1) the truth of his Word: (Joh_17:17) this we are to consult; by

(2) the privileges of the sanctuary: (Eze_37:28) of these we are to avail ourselves; by

(3) his providential discipline: (Heb_12:10) to this we are to submit; by

(4) the indwelling of his Holy Spirit: (Rom_15:16) for this we are earnestly to pray and expectantly to wait. C.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

For the Israelites were to sanctify themselves, i.e., to keep themselves pure from all idolatrous abominations, to be holy because Jehovah was holy (Lev 11:44; Lev 19:2), and to keep the statutes of their God who sanctified them (Exo 31:13).

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

והתקדשתם SANCTIFY YOURSELVES — This implies keeping aloof from all idolatry (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 10 2).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.