Leviticus 26:31 (YLT)

Passage

and I have made your cities a waste, and have made desolate your sanctuaries, and I smell not at your sweet fragrances;

Nearby Context

Leviticus 26:29 `And ye have eaten the flesh of your sons; even flesh of your daughters ye do eat.

Leviticus 26:30 And I have destroyed your high places, and cut down your images, and have put your carcases on the carcases of your idols, and My soul hath loathed you;

Leviticus 26:31 and I have made your cities a waste, and have made desolate your sanctuaries, and I smell not at your sweet fragrances;

Leviticus 26:32 and I have made desolate the land, and your enemies, who are dwelling in it, have been astonished at it.

Leviticus 26:33 And you I scatter among nations, and have drawn out after you a sword, and your land hath been a desolation, and your cities are a waste.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "cities", "waste", "desolate", "sanctuaries", "smell", "sweet", and "fragrances". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "cities" and "waste", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 30's "And I have destroyed your high places..." into verse 32's "and I have made desolate the land...", so "cities" and "waste" 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 "cities" and "waste" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.