Leviticus 20:6

Leviticus 20:6

And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.

a. NLT: “I will also turn against those who commit spiritual prostitution by putting their trust in mediums or in those who consult the spirits of the dead. I will cut them off from the community.

b. NIV: “ ‘I will set my face against anyone who turns to mediums and spiritists to prostitute themselves by following them, and I will cut them off from their people.

c. Amplified Bible: The person who turns to those who have familiar spirits and to wizards, [being unfaithful to Israel’s Maker Who is her Husband, and thus] playing the harlot after them, I will set My face against that person and will cut him off from among his people [that he may not be included in the atonement made for them].

d. Septuagint: And the soul that shall follow those who have in them divining spirits, or enchanters, so as to go a whoring after them; I will set my face against that soul, and will destroy it from among its people.

e. Stone Edition Chumash: And the person who shall turn to the sorcery of the Ovos and the Yid’onim to stray afterthem—I shall concentrate My attention upon that person and cut him off from among his people.

1. “And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits…”

a. [And the] soul [5315 * nephesh] [Strong: from 5314; properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental):--any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, X dead(-ly), desire, X (dis-)contented, X fish, ghost, + greedy, he, heart(-y), (hath, X jeopardy of) life (X in jeopardy), lust, man, me, mind, mortally, one, own, person, pleasure, (her-, him-, my-, thy-)self, them (your)-selves, + slay, soul, + tablet, they, thing, (X she) will, X would have it.]

b. that [Strong: 834 'aher ash-er' a primitive relative pronoun (of every gender and number); who, which, what, that; also (as an adverb and a conjunction) when, where, how, because, in order that, etc.:--X after, X alike, as (soon as), because, X every, for, + forasmuch, + from whence, + how(-soever), X if, (so) that ((thing) which, wherein), X though, + until, + whatsoever, when, where (+ -as, -in, -of, -on, -soever, -with), which, whilst, + whither(- soever), who(-m, -soever, -se). As it is indeclinable, it is often accompanied by the personal pronoun expletively, used to show the connection.]

c. turneth [Strong: 6437 pânâh, paw-naw'; a primitive root; to turn; by implication, to face, i.e. appear, look, etc.:—appear, at (even-) tide, behold, cast out, come on, × corner, dawning, empty, go away, lie, look, mark, pass away, prepare, regard, (have) respect (to), (re-) turn (aside, away, back, face, self), × right (early).]

c. after [413 * ‘el] [Strong: a primitive particle; properly, denoting motion towards, but occasionally used of a quiescent position, i.e. near, with or among; often in general, to:--about, according to ,after, against, among, as for, at, because(-fore, -side), both...and, by, concerning, for, from, X hath, in(- to), near, (out) of, over, through, to(-ward), under, unto, upon, whether, with(-in).]

d. such as have familiar spirits [178 * ‘owb] [Strong: from the same as 1 (apparently through the idea of prattling a father's name); properly, a mumble, i.e. a water skin (from its hollow sound); hence a necromancer (ventriloquist, as from a jar):--bottle, familiar spirit.] [Gesenius: a soothsayer who evokes the manes of the dead by incantations and magical songs, in order to give answers as to future or doubtful things; a python or soothsaying demon; How then could it be that the same Hebrew word could express a bottle, and a ventriloquist? Apparently, the magician, when possessed with a demon, being as it were, a bottle or a vessel, and sheath of the python.]

2. “…and after wizards, to go a whoring after them…”

a. and [Strong: 413 ʼêl, ale; (but only used in the shortened constructive form אֶל ʼel ); a primitive particle; properly, denoting motion towards, but occasionally used of a quiescent position, i.e. near, with or among; often in general, to:—about, according to, after, against, among, as for, at, because(-fore, -side), both...and, by, concerning, for, from, × hath, in(-to), near, (out) of, over, through, to(-ward), under, unto, upon, whether, with(-in).]

b. after [310 * ‘achar] [Strong: from 309; properly, the hind part; generally used as an adverb or conjunction, after (in various senses):--after (that, -ward), again, at, away from, back (from, -side), behind, beside, by, follow (after, -ing), forasmuch, from, hereafter, hinder end, + out (over) live, + persecute, posterity, pursuing, remnant, seeing, since, thence(-forth), when, with.]

c. wizards [3049 * yidd’oniy] [Strong:  from 3045; properly, a knowing one; specifically, a conjurer; (by impl) a ghost:--wizard.]

d. [to go] a whoring [2181 * zanah] [Strong:  a primitive root (highly-fed and therefore wanton); to commit adultery (usually of the female, and less often of simple fornication, rarely of involuntary ravishment); figuratively, to commit idolatry (the Jewish people being regarded as the spouse of Jehovah):--(cause to) commit fornication, X continually, X great, (be and, play the) harlot, (cause to be, play the) whore, (commit, fall to) whoredom, (cause to) go a-whoring, whorish.]

e. after them [Strong: 310 ʼachar, akh-ar'; from H309; properly, the hind part; generally used as an adverb or conjunction, after (in various senses):—after (that, -ward), again, at, away from, back (from, -side), behind, beside, by, follow (after, -ing), forasmuch, from, hereafter, hinder end, + out (over) live, + persecute, posterity, pursuing, remnant, seeing, since, thence(-forth), when, with.]

3. “…I will even set my face against that soul…”

a. I will even set [5414 * Nathan] [Strong: a primitive root; to give, used with greatest latitude of application (put, make, etc.):--add, apply, appoint, ascribe, assign, X avenge, X be ((healed)), bestow, bring (forth, hither), cast, cause, charge, come, commit, consider, count, + cry, deliver (up), direct, distribute, do, X doubtless, X without fail, fasten, frame, X get, give (forth, over, up), grant, hang (up), X have, X indeed, lay (unto charge, up), (give) leave, lend, let (out), + lie, lift up, make, + O that, occupy, offer, ordain, pay, perform, place, pour, print, X pull , put (forth), recompense, render, requite, restore, send (out), set (forth), shew, shoot forth (up), + sing, + slander, strike, (sub-)mit, suffer, X surely, X take, thrust, trade, turn, utter, + weep, + willingly, + withdraw, + would (to) God, yield.]

b. my face [6440 * paniym] [Strong: plural (but always as singular) of an unused noun (paneh {paw-neh'}; from 6437); the face (as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications (literally and figuratively); also (with prepositional prefix) as a preposition (before, etc.):--+ accept, a-(be- )fore(-time), against, anger, X as (long as), at, + battle, + because (of), + beseech, countenance, edge, + employ, endure, + enquire, face, favour, fear of, for, forefront(-part), form(-er time, -ward), from, front, heaviness, X him(-self), + honourable, + impudent, + in, it, look(-eth) (- s), X me, + meet, X more than, mouth, of, off, (of) old (time), X on, open, + out of, over against, the partial, person, + please, presence, propect, was purposed, by reason of, + regard, right forth, + serve, X shewbread, sight, state, straight, + street, X thee, X them(-selves), through (+ - out), till, time(-s) past, (un-)to(-ward), + upon, upside (+ down), with(- in, + -stand), X ye, X you.]

c. [against] that [Strong: 1931 huw' hoo of which the feminine (beyond the Pentateuch) is hiyw {he}; a primitive word, the third person pronoun singular, he (she or it); only expressed when emphatic or without a verb; also (intensively) self, or (especially with the article) the same; sometimes (as demonstrative) this or that; occasionally (instead of copula) as or are:--he, as for her, him(-self), it, the same, she (herself), such, that (...it), these, they, this, those, which (is), who.

d. soul [5315 * nephesh] [Strong: from 5314; properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental):--any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, X dead(-ly), desire, X (dis-)contented, X fish, ghost, + greedy, he, heart(-y), (hath, X jeopardy of) life (X in jeopardy), lust, man, me, mind, mortally, one, own, person, pleasure, (her-, him-, my-, thy-)self, them (your)-selves, + slay, soul, + tablet, they, thing, (X she) will, X would have it.]

4. “…and will cut...off from among his people.”

a. cut him off [3772 * karath] [Strong:  a primitive root; to cut (off, down or asunder); by implication, to destroy or consume; specifically, to covenant (i.e. make an alliance or bargain, originally by cutting flesh and passing between the pieces):--be chewed, be con-(feder-)ate, covenant, cut (down, off), destroy, fail, feller, be freed, hew (down), make a league ((covenant)), X lose, perish, X utterly, X want.

1). This is the same Hebrew word used when describing cutting a covenant. Note the use of it in the following verses.

a). Genesis 15:18 In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:

b). Genesis 21:27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and both of them made a covenant.

c). Genesis 21:32 Thus they made a covenant at Beersheba: then Abimelech rose up, and Phichol the chief captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.

2). Notice the same Hebrew word is used to describe the circumcision of Moses and Zipporah’s son.

a). Exodus 4:25  Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.

3). Then here in Leviticus 20:6 it is used to describe the killing by God of those in covenant with God but who violate the covenant by participating  in witchcraft and fellowshipping with devils. In all covenants there are parameters, that is, what the boundaries of the covenant are, what each participant is bound by, the responsibilities of each participant, what happens when one fails to fulfill the covenant. All these are to be decided when the covenant is made. Depending on the parameters each covenant is different, some have positives and negative vows to them while some have only positive. The Mosaic Covenant had both.

a). Unger’s Bible Dictionary, p.224. “Covenants were not only concluded with an oath, but after an ancient custom, confirmed by slaughtering and cutting a victim into two halfs, between which the parties passed, to intimate that if either of them broke the covenant it would fare with him as with the slain and divided beast.”

4). In this passage we see a negative, and what is fascinating to me is the same Hebrew word is used, illustrating both sides of the covenant.

b. him [Strong: 853 'eth ayth apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).]

c. from among [7130 * qereb] [Strong:  from 7126; properly, the nearest part, i.e. the center, whether literal, figurative or adverbial (especially with preposition):--X among, X before, bowels, X unto charge, + eat (up), X heart, X him, X in, inward (X -ly, part, -s, thought), midst, + out of, purtenance, X therein, X through, X within self.]

d. his people [5971 * ‘am] [Strong: from 6004; a people (as a congregated unit); specifically, a tribe (as those of Israel); hence (collectively) troops or attendants; figuratively, a flock:--folk, men, nation, people.]