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Sunday, July 20th, 2025
the Week of Proper 11 / Ordinary 16
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Read the Bible

New Century Version

Leviticus 20:16

If a woman approaches an animal and has sexual relations with it, you must kill the woman and the animal. They must be put to death. They have brought it on themselves.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Bestiality;   Punishment;   Sanitation;   Sodomy;   The Topic Concordance - Execution;   Sexual Activities;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Fornication;   Marriage;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Immorality, Sexual;   Kill, Killing;   Marriage;   Punishment;   Sexuality, Human;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Punishments;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Bastard;   Bestiality;   Capital Punishment;   Crimes and Punishments;   Leviticus;   Pentateuch;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Canon of the Old Testament;   Congregation, Assembly;   Crimes and Punishments;   Deuteronomy;   Hexateuch;   Holiness;   Law;   Leviticus;   Priests and Levites;   Sanctification, Sanctify;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Stoning;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Punishments;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Peculiarities of the Law of Moses;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Bastard;   Crime;   Genesis;   Leviticus;   Punishments;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Capital Punishment;   Incest;   Leviticus;   Marriage Laws;  

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
If a woman approach to any animal, and lie down thereto, you shall kill the woman, and the animal: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be on them.
King James Version
And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
Lexham English Bible
As for a woman who approaches any animal to copulate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall surely be put to death—their blood is on them.
New English Translation
If a woman approaches any animal to have sexual intercourse with it, you must kill the woman, and the animal must be put to death; their blood guilt is on themselves.
Amplified Bible
'If a woman approaches any animal to mate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall most certainly be put to death; their blood is on them.
New American Standard Bible
'If there is a woman who approaches any animal to mate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they must be put to death. They have brought their own deaths upon themselves.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And if a woman come to any beast, and lye therewith, then thou shalt kill the woman and the beast: they shall die the death, their blood shalbe vpon them.
Legacy Standard Bible
If there is a woman who approaches any animal to mate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltiness is upon them.
Complete Jewish Bible
If a woman approaches an animal and has sexual relations with it, you are to kill the woman and the animal; their blood will be on them.
Darby Translation
And if a woman approach unto any beast to gender therewith, thou shalt kill the woman and the beast: they shall certainly be put to death; their blood is upon them.
Easy-to-Read Version
If a woman has sexual relations with an animal, you must kill the woman and the animal. They must be put to death. They are responsible for their own death.
English Standard Version
If a woman approaches any animal and lies with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.
George Lamsa Translation
And if a woman approaches any beast and lies with it, you shall kill the woman and the beast; they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
Good News Translation
If a woman tries to have sexual relations with an animal, she and the animal shall be put to death. They are responsible for their own death.
Christian Standard Bible®
If a woman approaches any animal and mates with it, you are to kill the woman and the animal. They must be put to death; their death is their own fault.
Literal Translation
And if a woman draws near to any animal to lie with it, you shall even put to death the woman and the animal; dying they shall die; their blood shall be on them.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
If a woman medle with a beest, so yt she haue to do wt it, thou shalt put her to death, and the beest also, they shall dye the death: their bloude be vpon them.
American Standard Version
And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
Bible in Basic English
And if a woman goes near a beast and has sex relations with it, you will put an end to the woman and the beast: their blood will be on them.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
If a woman go vnto any beast, and lye downe thereto, thou shalt kyll the woman and the beast also: let them dye, their blood be vpon them.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
King James Version (1611)
And if a woman approch vnto any beast, and lie downe thereto, thou shalt kill the woman and the beast: they shall surely be put to death, their blood shalbe vpon them.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And whatever woman shall approach any beast, so as to have connexion with it, ye shall kill the woman and the beast: let them die the death, they are guilty.
English Revised Version
And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
Berean Standard Bible
If a woman approaches any animal to mate with it, you must kill both the woman and the animal. They must surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
A womman that liggith vndur ony beeste, be slayn togidere with it; the blood `of hem be on hem.
Young's Literal Translation
`And a woman who draweth near unto any beast to lie with it -- thou hast even slain the woman and the beast; they are certainly put to death; their blood [is] on them.
Update Bible Version
And if a woman has sex with an animal, you shall kill the woman, and the animal: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be on them.
Webster's Bible Translation
And if a woman shall approach to any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman and the beast; they shall surely be put to death; their blood [shall be] upon them.
World English Bible
If a woman approach to any animal, and lie down thereto, you shall kill the woman, and the animal: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be on them.
New King James Version
If a woman approaches any animal and mates with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood is upon them.
New Living Translation
"If a woman presents herself to a male animal to have intercourse with it, she and the animal must both be put to death. You must kill both, for they are guilty of a capital offense.
New Life Bible
If a woman goes near any animal to have sex with it, you must kill the woman and the animal. They must be put to death. They will suffer for their own sin.
New Revised Standard
If a woman approaches any animal and has sexual relations with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall be put to death, their blood is upon them.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, a woman, who approacheth unto any beast, to couch down thereto, then shalt thou slay the woman and the beast, - they shall surely be put to death, - their blood, shall be upon themselves.
Douay-Rheims Bible
The woman that shall lie under any beast, shall be killed together with the same. Their blood be upon them.
Revised Standard Version
If a woman approaches any beast and lies with it, you shall kill the woman and the beast; they shall be put to death, their blood is upon them.
THE MESSAGE
"If a woman has sex with an animal, you must kill both the woman and the animal. They must be put to death. And they are responsible for their deaths.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
'If there is a woman who approaches any animal to mate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltiness is upon them.

Contextual Overview

10 "‘If a man has sexual relations with his neighbor's wife, both the man and the woman are guilty of adultery and must be put to death. 11 If a man has sexual relations with his father's wife, he has shamed his father, and both the man and his father's wife must be put to death. They have brought it on themselves. 12 "‘If a man has sexual relations with his daughter-in-law, both of them must be put to death. What they have done is not natural. They have brought their own deaths on themselves. 13 "‘If a man has sexual relations with another man as a man does with a woman, these two men have done a hateful sin. They must be put to death. They have brought it on themselves. 14 "‘If a man has sexual relations with both a woman and her mother, this is evil. The people must burn that man and the two women in fire so that your people will not be evil. 15 "‘If a man has sexual relations with an animal, he must be put to death. You must also kill the animal. 16 If a woman approaches an animal and has sexual relations with it, you must kill the woman and the animal. They must be put to death. They have brought it on themselves. 17 "‘It is shameful for a brother to marry his sister, the daughter of either his father or his mother, and to have sexual relations with her. In front of everyone they must both be cut off from their people. The man has shamed his sister, and he is guilty of sin. 18 "‘If a man has sexual relations with a woman during her monthly period, both the woman and the man must be cut off from their people. They sinned because they showed the source of her blood. 19 "‘Do not have sexual relations with your mother's sister or your father's sister, because that would shame a close relative. Both of you are guilty of this sin.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

And if a woman: We are assured by Herodotus - in Euterp that the abominations here referred to existed among the Egyptians, and even formed part of their superstitious religious system, and we have reason to believe that they were not uncommon among the Canaanites. - See note on Leviticus 18:24, Leviticus 18:25. Need we wonder then, that God should have made laws of this nature, and appointed the punishment of death for these crimes? This one observation will account for many of those strange prohibitions which we find in the Mosaic law.

and the beast: Exodus 19:13, Exodus 21:28, Exodus 21:32, Hebrews 12:20

Reciprocal: Exodus 22:19 - General Leviticus 17:4 - be cut off Leviticus 18:23 - any beast Leviticus 20:9 - his blood Leviticus 24:15 - bear his sin 2 Samuel 1:16 - Thy blood

Cross-References

Genesis 20:3
But one night God spoke to Abimelech in a dream and said, "You will die. The woman you took is married."
Genesis 20:5
Abraham himself told me, ‘This woman is my sister,' and she also said, ‘He is my brother.' I am innocent. I did not know I was doing anything wrong."
Genesis 20:6
Then God said to Abimelech in the dream, "Yes, I know you did not realize what you were doing. So I did not allow you to sin against me and touch her.
Genesis 20:8
So early the next morning, Abimelech called all his officers and told them everything that had happened in the dream. They were very afraid.
Genesis 20:9
Then Abimelech called Abraham to him and said, "What have you done to us? What wrong did I do against you? Why did you bring this trouble to my kingdom? You should not have done these things to me.
Genesis 24:65
and asked the servant, "Who is that man walking in the field to meet us?" The servant answered, "That is my master." So Rebekah covered her face with her veil.
Genesis 26:11
So Abimelech warned everyone, "Anyone who touches this man or his wife will be put to death."
Proverbs 12:1
Anyone who loves learning accepts correction, but a person who hates being corrected is stupid.
Proverbs 25:12
A wise warning to someone who will listen is as valuable as gold earrings or fine gold jewelry.
Proverbs 27:5
It is better to correct someone openly than to have love and not show it.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And if a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto,.... In order that the beast may lie with her, and solicit it to commit such an action with her, see Leviticus 18:23;

thou shall kill the woman and the beast: the woman by stoning, and the beast with clubs, as the Targum of Jonathan; and this for the same reasons as before, as well as to prevent monstrous births:

they shall surely be put to death; both the one and the other, and not spared:

their blood [shall be] upon them; they are guilty of a capital crime, a crime which deserves death; this must be understood of the man that lies with a beast, and of the woman; for as for the beast itself, as it is not capable of sinning, so not of guilt, in a proper sense.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Leviticus 20:16. If a woman approach unto any beast — We have the authority of one of the most eminent historians in the world, Herodotus, to say that this was a crime not unknown in Egypt; yea, that a case of this nature actually took place while he was there. Εγενετο δ' εν τῳ νο μῳ τουτῳ επ' εμευ τουτο το τερας, Γυναικι Τραγος εμισγετο αναφανδον. Τουτο ες επιδειξιν ανθρωπων απικετο. - Herod. in Euterp., p. 108. Edit. Gale, Lond. 1679.

"In this district, within my own recollection, this portentous business took place: a goat coupled so publicly with a woman that every person knew it," c. After this, need we wonder that God should have made laws of this nature, when it appears these abominations were not only practised among the Egyptians, but were parts of a superstitious religious system? This one observation will account for many of those strange prohibitions which we find in the Mosaic law others, the reasons of which are not so plain, we should see the propriety of equally, had we ampler historic records of the customs that existed in that country.


 
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