Leviticus 26:17 (GNV)

Passage

And I will set my face against you, and ye shall fal before your enemies, and they that hate you, shall raigne ouer you, and yee shall flee when none pursueth you.

Nearby Context

Leviticus 26:15 And if ye shall despise mine ordinances, either if your soule abhorre my lawes, so that yee will not do all my commandements, but breake my couenant,

Leviticus 26:16 Then wil I also do this vnto you, I wil appoint ouer you fearefulnes, a consumption, and the burning ague to consume the eyes, and make the heart heauie, and you shall sowe your seede in vaine: for your enemies shall eate it:

Leviticus 26:17 And I will set my face against you, and ye shall fal before your enemies, and they that hate you, shall raigne ouer you, and yee shall flee when none pursueth you.

Leviticus 26:18 And if ye wil not for these things obey me, then wil I punish you seuen times more, according to your sinnes,

Leviticus 26:19 And I wil breake the pride of your power, and I will make your heauen as yron, and your earth as brasse:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "face", "against", "shall", "before", "enemies", "hate", and "raigne". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "face" and "against", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "Then wil I also do this vnto..." into verse 18's "And if ye wil not for these...", so "face" and "against" 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 "face" and "against" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.