Leviticus 18:3

Bible in Basic English (1941)

You may not do those things which were done in the land of Egypt where you were living; and you may not do those things which are done in the land of Canaan where I am taking you, or be guided in your behaviour by their rules.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

כְּמַעֲשֵׂ֧ה אֶֽרֶץ־מִצְרַ֛יִם אֲשֶׁ֥ר יְשַׁבְתֶּם־בָּ֖הּ לֹ֣א תַעֲשׂ֑וּ וּכְמַעֲשֵׂ֣ה אֶֽרֶץ־כְּנַ֡עַן אֲשֶׁ֣ר אֲנִי֩ מֵבִ֨יא אֶתְכֶ֥ם שָׁ֙מָּה֙ לֹ֣א תַעֲשׂ֔וּ וּבְחֻקֹּתֵיהֶ֖ם לֹ֥א תֵלֵֽכוּ׃

Transliteration

Like kəmaʿăśēh ʾerets-Mitsrayim ʾăšer yəšabtem-bāh lōʾ taʿăśû and like ûkəmaʿăśēh ʾerets-Kənaʿan ʾăšer ʾănî mēbîʾ ʾetkem šāmmāh lōʾ taʿăśû and in ûbəḥuqqōtêhem lōʾ tēlēkû

Grammar Details

• *kəmaʿăśēh*: preposition + noun, masculine singular construct - like the practice/doings of
• *ʾerets*: noun, feminine singular construct - land of
• *Mitsrayim*: proper noun - Egypt
• *ʾăšer*: relative particle - which/that
• *yəšabtem*: Qal perfect, 2nd masculine plural - you dwelled/lived
• *bāh*: preposition + 3rd feminine singular suffix - in it
• *lōʾ*: negative particle - not
• *taʿăśû*: Qal imperfect, 2nd masculine plural - you shall do
• *ûkəmaʿăśēh*: waw conjunction + preposition + noun, masculine singular construct - and like the practice of
• *Kənaʿan*: proper noun - Canaan
• *mēbîʾ*: Hiphil participle, masculine singular - bringing
• *ʾetkem*: direct object marker + 2nd masculine plural suffix - you
• *šāmmāh*: adverb - there/thither
• *ûbəḥuqqōtêhem*: waw conjunction + preposition + noun, feminine plural construct + 3rd masculine plural suffix - and in their statutes
• *tēlēkû*: Qal imperfect, 2nd masculine plural - you shall walk/follow

Word Meanings

• *maʿăśēh*: practice/deed/work/custom
• *yəšabtem*: you dwelled/you lived/you resided
• *taʿăśû*: you shall do/you shall practice/you shall perform
• *mēbîʾ*: bringing/leading/causing to enter
• *ḥuqqōt*: statutes/ordinances/customs/practices
• *tēlēkû*: you shall walk/you shall follow/you shall conduct yourselves

Referenced Verses

• Exod 23:24 : 24 Do not go down on your faces and give worship to their gods, or do as they do; but overcome them completely, and let their pillars be broken down.
• Lev 20:23 : 23 And do not keep the rules of the nations which I am driving out before you; for they did all these things, and for that reason my soul was turned against them.
• Ezek 20:7-8 : 7 And I said to them, Let every man among you put away the disgusting things to which his eyes are turned, and do not make yourselves unclean with the images of Egypt; I am the Lord your God. 8 But they would not be controlled by me, and did not give ear to me; they did not put away the disgusting things to which their eyes were turned, or give up the images of Egypt: then I said I would let loose my passion on them to give full effect to my wrath against them in the land of Egypt.
• Ezek 23:8 : 8 And she has not given up her loose ways from the time when she was in Egypt; for when she was young they were her lovers, and by them her young breasts were crushed, and they let loose on her their unclean desire.
• Deut 12:30-31 : 30 After their destruction take care that you do not go in their ways, and that you do not give thought to their gods, saying, How did these nations give worship to their gods? I will do as they did. 31 Do not so to the Lord your God: for everything which is disgusting to the Lord and hated by him they have done in honour of their gods: even burning their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.
• Ps 106:35 : 35 But they were joined to the nations, learning their works.
• Jer 10:2-3 : 2 This is what the Lord has said: Do not go in the way of the nations; have no fear of the signs of heaven, for the nations go in fear of them. 3 For that which is feared by the people is foolish: it is the work of the hands of the workman; for a tree is cut down by him out of the woods with his axe.
• Rom 12:2 : 2 And let not your behaviour be like that of this world, but be changed and made new in mind, so that by experience you may have knowledge of the good and pleasing and complete purpose of God.
• Eph 5:7-9 : 7 Have no part with such men; 8 For you at one time were dark, but now are light in the Lord: let your behaviour be that of children of light 9 (Because the fruit of the light is in all righteousness and in everything which is good and true), 10 Testing by experience what is well-pleasing to the Lord; 11 And have no company with the works of the dark, which give no fruit, but make their true quality clear;
• 1 Pet 4:2-4 : 2 So that you may give the rest of your lives in the flesh, not to the desires of men, but to the purpose of God. 3 Because for long enough, in times past, we have been living after the way of the Gentiles, given up to the desires of the flesh, to drinking and feasting and loose behaviour and unclean worship of images; 4 And they are wondering that you no longer go with them in this violent wasting of life, and are saying evil things of you:
• Deut 12:4 : 4 Do not so to the Lord your God.
• Lev 18:24-30 : 24 Do not make yourself unclean in any of these ways; for so have those nations whom I am driving out from before you made themselves unclean: 25 And the land itself has become unclean; so that I have sent on it the reward of its wrongdoing, and the land itself puts out those who are living in it. 26 So then keep my rules and my decisions, and do not do any of these disgusting things, those of you who are Israelites by birth, or any others who are living with you: 27 (For all these disgusting things were done by the men of this country who were there before you, and the land has been made unclean by them;) 28 So that the land may not put you out from it, when you make it unclean, as it put out the nations which were there before you. 29 For all those who do any of these disgusting things will be cut off from among their people. 30 So then, keep my orders, so that you may not do any of these disgusting things which were done before you, or make yourselves unclean through them: I am the Lord your God.