Leviticus 19: Be Holy

“Speak to the whole Israelite community and say to them: You shall be holy, for I, your God am holy” (Verse 2). דַּבֵּר אֶל־כָּל־עֲדַת בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם קְדֹשִׁים תִּהְיוּ כִּי קָדוֹשׁ אֲנִי ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם׃In chapter 18, God relayed his mishpatim and chukim and then listed some examples. In this chapter, God takes a different tact. The list of laws are not introduced by legal categories, but with a call to lead a holy life. The concept of holiness was not very prevalent in the Torah until the book of Exodus. The first mention of holiness is way back in the first story of creation. “And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy—having ceased on it from all the work of creation that God had done” (Genesis 2:3). וַיְבָרֶךְ אֱלֹהִים אֶת־יוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי וַיְקַדֵּשׁ אֹתוֹ כִּי בוֹ שָׁבַת מִכָּל־מְלַאכְתּוֹ אֲשֶׁר־בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים לַעֲשׂוֹת׃ It is no surprise then that the very first law in this chapter talks about shabbat. “You shall each revere your mother and your father, and keep My sabbaths: I am HaShem your God” (verse 3). אִישׁ אִמּוֹ וְאָבִיו תִּירָאוּ וְאֶת־שַׁבְּתֹתַי תִּשְׁמֹרוּ אֲנִי ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶםThe next mention of holiness is when Moshe sees the burning bush. God tells Moshe to remove his shoes for the ground is holy. During the discussion of the first Passover, God commands the people to make the holiday holy—similar to Shabbat in Genesis. From the opening of Genesis until the exodus, only days and land are given the distinction of holiness. It is not until the giving of the Ten Commandments that God uses the word for holiness to refer to the nation. God uses some form of holiness to refer to the people four times during chapter 19 of Exodus. The highlight is the pronouncement that “you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6). וְאַתֶּם תִּהְיוּ־לִי מַמְלֶכֶת כֹּהֲנִים וְגוֹי קָדוֹשׁ׃ Mentions of holiness explode following the Ten Commandments and during the building of the Mishkan. Chapter 19 of Leviticus offers something unique, though. At no point before chapter 19 does God tell the people that they should be holy because God is holy. This chapter is the means to achieve the pronouncement of Exodus 19:6. The laws are not simply arbitrary pronouncements or even civil enactments as described in the previous chapter. The laws are meant to model the type of special holy life that God leads. The Midrash Sifra Kedoshim 2, Sotah 14a) teaches that the command “Be holy” means to imitate God’s actions — just as God clothes the naked, visits the sick, comforts mourners, and buries the dead, so must you do the same. Through these acts of kindness, a person aligns their behavior with divine attributes, transforming holiness from an abstract spiritual idea into lived ethical action. Holiness, therefore, is not separation alone but active moral imitation of God’s compassion, turning everyday acts into expressions of godliness. It also provides dual motivations for the people. They can choose to follow the laws from a strict legal motivation or they can follow the laws from a holistic desire to be holy like God.