Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, because I am the LORD your God.
Parallel translations
- WEB “‘Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am Yahweh your God.
- KJV Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your God.
- NKJV Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God.
- NASB You shall consecrate yourselves therefore and be holy, for I am the Lord your God.
- NLT So set yourselves apart to be holy, for I am the Lord your God.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Israel is called to consecrate themselves and be holy, because Yahweh is their God. Holiness flows from belonging to a holy God.
Overview
This central summons gathers the surrounding laws into a positive vocation: be holy. Consecration means setting oneself apart for God's exclusive purposes. The ground is relational rather than merely legal, 'for I am Yahweh your God,' echoed in the New Testament call to be holy as He is holy (1 Pet. 1:15-16).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Lev 11:44For I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, because I am holy. You must not defile yourselves by any creature that crawls along the ground.
- Lev 19:2“Speak to the whole congregation of Israel and tell them: Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.
- 1 Pet 1:15–16But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do,
- Eph 1:4For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love
- Col 3:12Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
- 1 Th 4:7For God has not called us to impurity, but to holiness.
- 1 Th 4:3For it is God’s will that you should be holy: You must abstain from sexual immorality;
- Heb 12:14Pursue peace with everyone, as well as holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.
- Phil 2:12–13Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 20:7 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.