Leviticus 19:20 (DBY)

Passage

And if a man lie with a woman for copulation, and she is a bondwoman betrothed to a husband, but not at all ransomed, nor hath freedom been given to her, there shall be a chastisement: they shall not be put to death, for she was not free.

Nearby Context

Leviticus 19:18 Thou shalt not avenge thyself, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am Jehovah.

Leviticus 19:19 My statutes shall ye observe. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with another sort; thou shalt not sow thy field with seed of two sorts; and a garment woven of two materials shall not come upon thee.

Leviticus 19:20 And if a man lie with a woman for copulation, and she is a bondwoman betrothed to a husband, but not at all ransomed, nor hath freedom been given to her, there shall be a chastisement: they shall not be put to death, for she was not free.

Leviticus 19:21 And he shall bring his trespass-offering to Jehovah, unto the entrance of the tent of meeting, a ram for a trespass-offering.

Leviticus 19:22 And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the trespass-offering before Jehovah for his sin which he hath done; and the sin which he hath done shall be forgiven him.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "woman", "copulation", "bondwoman", "betrothed", "husband", "ransomed", "hath", and "freedom". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "woman" and "copulation", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "My statutes shall ye observe Thou shalt..." into verse 21's "And he shall bring his trespass-offering to...", so "woman" and "copulation" belong inside that flow. In Leviticus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "woman" and "copulation" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.