Leviticus 18:21

19 ‘Also you shall not approach a woman to uncover her nakedness as ^along as she is in her ^bcustomary impurity.

20 ^aMoreover you shall not lie carnally with your ^bneighbor’s wife, to defile yourself with her.

21 And you shall not let any of your descendants ^apass through ^bthe fire to ^cMolech, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.

22 You shall not lie with ^aa male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

23 Nor shall you mate with any ^aanimal, to defile yourself with it. Nor shall any woman stand before an animal to mate with it. It is perversion.

24 ^a‘Do not defile yourselves with any of these things; ^bfor by all these the nations are defiled, which I am casting out before you.

25 For ^athe land is defiled; therefore I ^bvisit the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the land ^cvomits out its inhabitants.

26 ^aYou shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, and shall not commit any of these abominations, either any of your own nation or any stranger who dwells among you

27 (for all these abominations the men of the land have done, who were before you, and thus the land is defiled),

28 lest ^athe land vomit you out also when you defile it, as it vomited out the nations that were before you.

29 For whoever commits any of these abominations, the persons who commit them shall be¹ cut off from among their people.

30 ‘Therefore you shall keep My¹ ordinance, so ^athat you do not commit any of these abominable customs which were committed before you, and that you do not defile yourselves by them: ^bI am the Lord your God.’ ”

Commentaries:

Adam Clarke

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Leviticus 18:22 >>

Leviticus 18:21

Pass through the fire to Molech - The name of this idol is mentioned for the first time in this place. As the word molech or melech signifies king or governor, it is very likely that this idol represented the sun; and more particularly as the fire appears to have been so much employed in his worship. There are several opinions concerning the meaning of passing through the fire to Molech.

1.Some think that the semen humanum was offered on the fire to this idol.

2.Others think that the children were actually made a burnt-offering to him.

3.But others suppose the children were not burnt, but only passed through the fire, or between two fires, by way of consecration to him.

That some were actually burnt alive to this idol several scriptures, according to the opinion of commentators, seem strongly to intimate; see among others, Psalms 106:38; Jeremiah 7:31, and Ezekiel 23:37-39. That others were only consecrated to his service by passing between two fires the rabbins strongly assert; and if Ahaz had but one son, Hezekiah, (though it is probable he had others, see II Chronicles 28:3), he is said to have passed through the fire to Molech, II Kings 16:3, yet he succeeded his father in the kingdom, II Kings 18:1, therefore this could only be a consecration, his idolatrous father intending thereby to initiate him early into the service of this demon. See Clarke' s note on Leviticus 20:2.

Other Adam Clarke entries containing Leviticus 18:21:

Leviticus 18:3
Leviticus 20:2
Leviticus 20:2
Deuteronomy 18:10
2 Kings 16:3

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Leviticus 18:22 >>

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