Leviticus 18:4

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Leviticus 18:4 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “Mine ordinances shall ye do, and my statutes shall ye keep, to walk therein: I am Jehovah your God.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

Mine ordinances shall ye do, and my statutes shall ye keep, to walk therein: I am Jehovah your God.
Leviticus 18:4 — American Standard Version

Context — Leviticus 18

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
4Mine ordinances shall ye do, and my statutes shall ye keep, to walk therein: I am Jehovah your God.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“Ye shall do my judgments, etc.] Which are just and right, and according to the rules of justice and equity; these are things, as Jarchi observes, which are said in the law with judgment, or are laws framed with the highest reason, even by the judgment of God himself, whose judgment is always according to truth: Aben Ezra thinks, these are the judicial laws in (<022101>Exodus 21:1-23:33); but though they may include them, they have more particular respect to the following laws: and keep mine ordinances, to walk therein: which he had ordained and appointed of his own will and pleasure, which Jarchi calls the decree of the king, or which he decreed and determined as a king, having absolute…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“My judgments - Though you do not see the particular reason of some of them, and though they be contrary to the laws and usages of the other nations. Leviticus 18:5”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“18:4-5 regulations . . . decrees: The Bible anticipated that the courts would need to interpret the laws that God had provided to apply them to different circumstances. Such interpretations became case laws; the body of these court decisions was called mishpatim in Hebrew (cp. “decrees” in 10:11). • Paul alludes to these verses in Rom 10:5 and Gal 3:12, where he contrasts the “way of faith” with the “way of law.””
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“Lev 18:26, Lev 19:37, Lev 20:22; Deu 4:1, Deu 4:2, Deu 6:1; Psa 105:45, Psa 119:4; Eze 20:19, Eze 36:27; Eze 37:24; Luk 1:6; Joh 15:14 Leviticus 18:5”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification