Chapter 18 of Leviticus provides a litany of unlawful sexual activity. The vile and the vulgar are outlined in detail. The embarrassing as well as the bizarre are included. God’s graphic delineation precedes a call to purity. No one is left guessing what pleases the Lord Yahweh.

Israel was told again and again not to defile herself with carnal perversions. Incest and same-sex relations were strictly forbidden, along with many other disallowed promiscuities. Nobody could plead ignorance. Remain pure and God would bless them dearly. Defiling themselves with sexual impurity was to be “vomited out of the land” to use Moses’ colorful imagery.

God has always called His children to lives of purity and self-control. He expects no less of us today. Revisionists would wish a condensed version of God’s demands with all of the self-serving desires omitted. We take heart in the truth that God never asks us to give up anything that is good for us. And He never tells us to do anything that would harm us. Hallelujah!