It should be noted that intercourse with a stepmother or daughter-in-law are put, by the punishment inflicted upon them, on the same level with adultery and unnatural crimes ( Leviticus 20:10 , Leviticus 20:13 , Leviticus 20:15 , Leviticus 20:16 ). read more
Leviticus 20:10. The adulterer and adulteress shall surely be put to death Adultery, however lightly it may be accounted of by men who are lost to all sense of virtue and honour, has not only under the Mosaic economy, but by several other civilized nations; been reckoned a capital wickedness. By the ancient laws of Solon the husband was authorized to kill the adulterer and adulteress, if he found them in the fact; or if he did not choose to proceed to that severity, he might put out their... read more
Penalties for wrongdoing (20:1-27)The law now sets out penalties for the more serious offences outlined in Chapters 18 and 19. People who offered their children to the gods were to be stoned to death (20:1-5; for Molech see note on 18:21). Those who looked for guidance through witchcraft were guilty of rebellion against God and were to be punished by being cut off from the life of the community. A person who consulted the spirits of the dead was to be killed (6-9,27).Most of the perverse sexual... read more
father's wife. See Leviticus 18:8 . read more
"And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbor's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. And the man that lieth with his father's wife hath uncovered his father's nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them. And if a man lie with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death: they have wrought confusion; their blood shall be upon them. And if... read more
Leviticus 20:10. The man that committeth adultery— The Hebrew word may signify all kinds of uncleanness; yet here it does, and must, properly, signify adultery; a crime held so detestable by all nations, that there were few in ancient times that did not reckon it capital. Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans held it alike enormous. Is it not strange, that in our laws we punish a petty robbery with death; and suffer adultery to go wholly unpunished? read more
Leviticus 20:11. Their blood shall be upon them— Compare Deuteronomy 19:10. The plain meaning of the phrase is, their blood shall be chargeable upon themselves: the punishment of them shall acquit the land from guilt; see Matthew 27:25. read more
4. Punishments for serious crimes ch. 20The preceding two chapters specify correct behavior. This one sets forth the punishments for disobedience. Chapters 18-19 already discussed most of the subjects dealt with in this chapter."The difference between the laws in this chapter and previous ones lies in their form. Those in chs. 18-19 are apodictic in form; that is, they forbid or command certain types of behavior but they rarely indicate what the consequences of disregarding these rules would... read more
Cursing parents was also punishable by stoning.Stoning ". . . was the usual punishment appointed in the law for cases in which death was inflicted . . ." [Note: Keil and Delitzsch, 2:426.] Several sexual sins described here drew this penalty. The law banned the marital unions alluded to in Leviticus 20:14; Leviticus 20:17; Leviticus 20:21. Consequently these verses may be referring to common law marriages in which people lived together as husband and wife without a wedding ceremony. [Note:... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - Leviticus 20:10
The Hebrew punishment for adultery is more severe than that of most other nations. Death is again pronounced as the penalty of both adulterer and adulteress in Deuteronomy 22:22 . The crime is that of a man with a married woman, whether the man be married or not; it is not that of a married man with an unmarried woman, which, in a country where polygamy was allowed, could not be regarded in the same light. read more