Leviticus 20:10
in Leviticus 20If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must surely be put to death.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
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.
KJV
And the man that committeth adultery with another man’s wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.
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This verse in Leviticus 20
Commentary
5 notes on this verseA woman accused of adultery was brought by the Scribes and Pharisees to the Lord Jesus with the malicious intent, that, if He was to acquit her, He might seem to annul the Law, if He condemned her, that He might seem to have changed the purpose of His coming, since He came to remit the sins of all men. To the same purport He said above, "I judge no man."
This site's exposition
every one that curseth his father
on Leviticus 20:9-10
Two of the ten commandments get their penalty here, the fifth and the seventh. Jesus cites the law on cursing a parent in the argument over corban at Matthew 15:4 and Mark 7:10, where the wording matches Exodus 21:17 as closely as it matches this verse. Verse 10 names the adulterer and the adulteress together and sentences both, which is worth holding beside John 8:3, where only the woman is brought.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife,....
It is a presumptuous contempt of an ordinance of God, and a violation of his covenant, Prov. ii. It is an irreparable wrong to the injured husband, and debauches the mind and conscience of both the offenders as much as any thing. It is a sin which headstrong and unbridled lusts hurry men violently to, and therefore it needs such a powerful restraint as this.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Committeth adultery - To what has been said in the note on See Exo 20:14 (note), we may add, that the word adultery comes from the Latin adulterium, which is compounded of ad, to or with, and alter, another, or, according to Minshieu, of ad alterius forum, he that approaches to another man’s bed.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
ואיש AND THE MAN [THAT COMMITTETH ADULERY SHALL SURELY BE PUT TO DEATH] — a man, thus excluding a minor (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 10 8).
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 6 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
15 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאִ֗ישׁ | veish | and a man | H376 → | 1663 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֤ר | ʾasher | who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יִנְאַף֙ | yinaf | he will commit adultery | H5003 → | 31 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֵ֣שֶׁת | ʾeshet | a wife of | H802 → | 781 times |
| אִ֔ישׁ | ʾish | a man | H376 → | 1663 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| יִנְאַ֖ף | yinaf | he will commit adultery | H5003 → | 31 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֵ֣שֶׁת | ʾeshet | [the] wife of | H802 → | 781 times |
| רֵעֵ֑הוּ | reehu | neighbor his | H7453 → | 188 times |
| מֽוֹת־ | mot- | certainly <to die> | H4191 → | 839 times |
| יוּמַ֥ת | yumat | he will be put to death | H4191 → | 839 times |
| הַנֹּאֵ֖ף | hanoef | the adulterer | H5003 → | 31 times |
| וְהַנֹּאָֽפֶת׃ | vehanoafet | and the adulteress | H5003 → | 31 times |
וְאִ֗ישׁand a man
veishH376 →1663 times
אֲשֶׁ֤רwho
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יִנְאַף֙he will commit adultery
yinafH5003 →31 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אֵ֣שֶׁתa wife of
ʾeshetH802 →781 times
אִ֔ישׁa man
ʾishH376 →1663 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwho
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
יִנְאַ֖ףhe will commit adultery
yinafH5003 →31 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אֵ֣שֶׁת[the] wife of
ʾeshetH802 →781 times
רֵעֵ֑הוּneighbor his
reehuH7453 →188 times
מֽוֹת־certainly <to die>
mot-H4191 →839 times
יוּמַ֥תhe will be put to death
yumatH4191 →839 times
הַנֹּאֵ֖ףthe adulterer
hanoefH5003 →31 times
וְהַנֹּאָֽפֶת׃and the adulteress
vehanoafetH5003 →31 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Exodus 20:14You shall not commit adultery.
it leads to
- Hebrews 13:4
Marriage should be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Deuteronomy 5:18
You shall not commit adultery.
- Matthew 5:27–28
You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Romans 7:2–3
For instance, a married woman is bound by law to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is released from the law of marriage.
- Romans 13:9
The commandments “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” and any other commandments, are summed up in this one decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
- Hebrews 13:4
Through
Deuteronomy 5:18You shall not commit adultery.
it leads to
- Exodus 20:14
You shall not commit adultery.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Luke 18:20
You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and mother.’”
- Exodus 20:14
Through
Leviticus 18:20You must not lie carnally with your neighbor’s wife and thus defile yourself with her.
it leads to
- 1 Corinthians 6:9
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual…
- 1 Corinthians 6:9
About Leviticus
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Ambrose of Milan, Letter XXVI; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.