Leviticus 20

v1-9: “God sanctified [Israel] by special privileges, laws, and favours, which set them apart from all other nations and honoured them as God’s people.” He gave to them “his word and ceremonies so that they would increase in holiness, and he gave his Holy Spirit to instruct them, and so they must be holy.” One of the blessings of gospel is that God has sanctified us, and this “is a good reason why we should sanctify ourselves” by living holy lives.

v10-21: By telling the Israelites that “sins against the seventh commandment are… to be severely punished,” God is teaching them about the seriousness of these sins. For God’s will for His people is that “every one of us should know how to control their own body in sanctification and honour.”

v22-27: God’s people have “the Lord for their God.” We are “his concern, his choice, his treasure.” So, it must be “our constant concern” to “preserve… our own souls, by preserving their purity, and never [doing] anything to make them offensive to God and to our own consciences.” This will involve distinguishing “between different things, not to live without restraints, as if we may say and do anything we want.” No, we are “to speak and act carefully.”