Leviticus 18:25 · Bible study
Leviticus 18:25 Commentary: The Defiled Land Vomits Its Inhabitants
Hebrew · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
What does it mean that the land vomits out its inhabitants? Study Leviticus 18:25 with Hebrew insights, ancient context, and theological reflection.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The land’s moral condition reflects the sin of its inhabitants; God judges by expelling them like vomit.
- Key words: “defiled” (H2930 tame), “iniquity” (H5771 avon), “vomit” (H6958 qi).
- Main debate: Are the verb tenses prophetic or past? Commentators differ on whether this describes past judgment or future certainty.
- Theological theme: Corporate guilt and the land’s role in the covenant.
- Best use: A sobering warning about the consequences of persistent sin on a society.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
Even the land has become defiled, so I am punishing it for its sin, and the land will vomit out its inhabitants.
WEB World English Bible 2000
The land was defiled. Therefore I punished its iniquity, and the land vomited out her inhabitants.
KJV King James Version 1769
And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
and the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land vomiteth out her inhabitants.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and the land is defiled, and I charge its iniquity upon it, and the land vomiteth out its inhabitants:
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And the land hath become unclean; and I visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land vomiteth out its inhabitants.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And with which the land is defiled: the abominations of which I will visit, that it may vomit out its inhabitants.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Y la tierra fué contaminada; y yo visité su maldad sobre ella, y la tierra vomitó sus moradores.
E a terra foi contaminada; e eu visitei sua maldade sobre ela, e a terra vomitou seus moradores.
Le pays en a été souillé; je punirai son iniquité, et le pays vomira ses habitants.
und das Land ist dadurch verunreinigt. Und ich will ihre Missetat an ihnen heimsuchen, daß das Land seine Einwohner ausspeie.
Zodat het land onrein is, en Ik over hetzelve zijn ongerechtigheid bezoeke, en het land zijn inwoners uitspuwt.
Il paese n’è stato contaminato; ond’io punirò la sua iniquità; il paese vomiterà i suoi abitanti.
Bo splugawiła się ziemia; przetoż nawiedzę nieprawość jej na niej, i wyrzuci ziemia obywatele swoje.
и осквернилась земля, и Я воззрел на беззаконие ее, и свергнула с себя земля живущих на ней.
連地 也玷污了，所以我追討 那地的罪孽，那地 也吐出 它的居民。
And the land itself has become unclean; so that I have sent on it the reward of its wrongdoing, and the land itself puts out those who are living in it.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Leviticus 18:25
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree that this verse uses a dramatic personification: the land is pictured as a living body that becomes nauseated by the wickedness of its inhabitants and violently rejects them. Adam Clarke calls this a “very nervous prosopopoeia,” where the land possesses “a deep and refined sense of moral good and evil.” Gill expands the image: the land “loathing its inhabitants … casts them up, and never receives it again.” The Hebrew verb taqi (וַ/תָּקִא) is literal for vomiting or spewing out. The point is not that the land itself is conscious, but that the abominations of the people produce an inevitable consequence: divine judgment that sweeps them away. Keil and Delitzsch observe that the verb forms are prophetic, certain events God will bring about. Barnes ties this to the principle that Yahweh, the Holy One, demands purity from His covenant people, and that the land consecrated for them will not tolerate pollution.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Sin defiles the land and provokes divine judgment that removes the offending people.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Personification of the land | Commentators agree the land is personified rhetorically to dramatize judgment. | Some (e.g., Gill) take the image more literally as the land's actual loathing; others (e.g., Clarke) emphasize it as a figure of speech. |
| Tenses of the verbs | All agree the judgment is real and already executed on the Canaanites. | Cambridge Bible says the verbs are actually past; Keil and Delitzsch call them prophetic perfects (speaking of future as certain). |
| Relationship to natural law | The abominations are inherently wrong, not just for Israelites. | Jamieson-Fausset-Brown argue a prior moral law existed; others see the Levitical code as specific covenant law. |
| Application to modern nations | The principle that sin brings consequences is universal. | Whether and how this applies to non-covenant nations today is disputed among Christians. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Leviticus 18 stands within the Holiness Code (chapters 17, 26), a body of laws that call Israel to be distinct from surrounding nations. The Canaanites engaged in practices that God labels “abominations”: child sacrifice to Molech, homosexual acts, bestiality, incest, and adultery (vv. 6, 23). These were not merely private sins; they defiled the land itself (H2930 tame, “became unclean,” used for ritual and moral impurity). In the ancient worldview, the land was tied to the covenant and to God’s presence. Ellicott’s Commentary notes that the physical condition of the land depends on the moral conduct of man: when he disobeys, the land is parched and yields no fruit; when he obeys, she is blessed. Here the land is not a passive stage but an active participant. God “visited” the iniquity (H5771 avon, guilt and its punishment), using a verb that implies inspection resulting in judgment. The vomiting metaphor (H6958 qi) pictures the land violently rejecting its inhabitants as the stomach rejects poison. The Canaanites had filled up their sin (Genesis 15:16), and the judgment was their expulsion. This becomes a pattern for Israel: the land of Canaan is a gift, but it has conditions. The warning in verses 28, 30 echoes through the prophets and into the New Testament, where Paul speaks of creation groaning under sin (Romans 8:22). The land’s defilement is a corporate reality: whole nations can sin themselves out of God’s presence.
Textual Notes
The supplied sources note no significant textual variants for this verse. The Hebrew text is consistent across manuscripts.
Reception History
Early Christian writers (e.g., Origen) used this verse to warn that persistent sin forfeits God’s presence. Reformation commentators like Calvin and Luther saw it as proof that God judges nations for their wickedness, reinforcing the call to national repentance. In the modern era, the image of the land vomiting has been applied to environmental ethics: human sin degrades the creation itself. The verse also appears in liturgical readings during seasons of repentance, reminding believers that holiness is not only personal but communal.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Defiled Land: Sin pollutes more than the individual; it contaminates the environment and the community.
- The Divine Punishment: God visits iniquity, He sees and judges, acting as the righteous ruler.
- The Dramatic Expulsion: The land vomits, a graphic picture of judgment that is both certain and unmistakable.
Five-point outline
- The Personification of the Land: Why the Bible uses such strong imagery.
- The Corporate Nature of Sin: The Canaanites’ abominations affected the whole land.
- The Divine Response: God’s justice is not random but directly connected to human action.
- The Warning for Israel: The same standard applies to God’s covenant people.
- The Call to Holiness: The only way to remain in the land is to live according to God’s statutes.
Illustration hooks
- A house that becomes infested with toxic mold: the occupants must leave or make the house uninhabitable.
- A body that rejects a transplanted organ because it is incompatible: the land rejects what does not belong.
- A student who cheats repeatedly and is expelled from school: the academic community enforces its standards.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Can a whole nation be judged for its sins? Does this support the idea of God punishing countries today?
- Is the land actually conscious, or is this just a figure of speech?
- How does this relate to environmental stewardship? Should Christians care about the “defilement” of the earth?
Leading a Discussion
This passage uses vivid language to connect moral choices with the condition of the land. The ground that was meant to sustain life becomes a force of judgment. As you discuss this verse, reflect on how sin affects not just individuals but communities and even the physical world.
Discussion questions
- What does it mean that the land was “defiled” by the actions of the people? How does that expand your understanding of sin’s effects?
- God says He “visited its iniquity.” What does this tell you about God’s character, His awareness, patience, and justice?
- The land “vomited out” its inhabitants. If the land had a physical reaction to sin, what does that suggest about God’s original design for creation?
- Compare this warning to Leviticus 20:22-23 and Deuteronomy 9:5. How does Israel’s entry into the land fit into the same pattern?
- In what ways might Christians today be guilty of treating the earth, or our communities, as if they can absorb endless sin without consequence?
- How does this passage prepare you to understand the “new heavens and new earth” where righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:13)?
- Is there an area of your life where you need to consider how your actions affect those around you and the “land” you occupy?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Leviticus 18:28 | that the land not vomit you out also, when you defile it, as it vomited out the nation that was before you. |
| Leviticus 20:22 | “‘You shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and do them, that the land where I am bringing you to dwell may not vomit you out. |
| Leviticus 20:23 | You shall not walk in the customs of the nation which I am casting out before you; for they did all these things, and therefore I abhorred them. |
| Numbers 35:33 | “‘So you shall not pollute the land where you live; for blood pollutes the land. No atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed in it, but by the blood of him who shed it. |
| Numbers 35:34 | You shall not defile the land which you inhabit, where I dwell; for I, Yahweh, dwell among the children of Israel.’” |
| Deuteronomy 9:5 | Not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart do you go in to possess their land; but for the wickedness of these nations Yahweh your God does drive them out from before you, and that he may establish the word which Yahweh swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. |
| Deuteronomy 18:12 | For whoever does these things is an abomination to Yahweh. Because of these abominations, Yahweh your God drives them out from before you. |
| Psalms 89:32 | then I will punish their sin with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
10 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke highlights the striking personification of the land as an intelligent being that feels moral nausea at the people's abominations and physically vomits them out. He notes that this vivid image naturally came to the inspired writer, who was himself deeply affected by cataloguing such enormous sins.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes personifies the land itself, describing it as vomiting out the Canaanites because their wickedness had reached its limit. For Israel, the warning is rooted in their unique identity as Yahweh's holy people: defiling themselves with pagan practices forfeits their covenant privileges, an immediate excommunication from the community.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator notes that after the initial warning in the passage, the standpoint shifts to a reflection on past events. The verbs that follow are properly understood in the past tense, describing defilement and punishment that have already occurred.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note emphasizes that the land itself actively rejects its defiled inhabitants. God's judgment comes not as a distant decree but as the land vomiting out the wicked, making creation an agent of divine justice against sin.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill draws a vivid picture of the land itself actively rejecting its sinful inhabitants. He compares the land to a stomach that, overwhelmed by corrupt food, nauseates and forcibly expels it, never to receive it again. The land loathes and cannot bear those who defile it.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB argues that the Canaanites' punishment for their sins shows a moral law existed before the Levitical code. This law, either written on the human heart or revealed early through marriage tradition, was already known to them and binding on all nations.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch highlight that the land is personified as a living creature that violently rejects what displeases it. The Hebrew verbs are prophetic, describing certain and swift judgment. This poetic picture drives home the seriousness of defilement: the land itself will spit out its inhabitants the way it expelled the Canaanites before them.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange sees the prohibited degrees as guarding against a backward turn toward family egoism, where marriage fails to create new bonds and instead circles back on itself. For him, the law's purpose is to keep marriage a forward-looking institution, building fresh families and relationships under the theocracy.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry sees these laws as falling into two groups: those protecting the honor of the marriage bed from misuse or invasion by adultery, and the command against the most unnatural idolatry of sacrificing children to Molech. Such sins defile the land and provoke God's judgment.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley explains that the phrase "I visit" here means God is about to come in judgment, not in a friendly or caring sense. For him, the word carries the force of divine punishment rather than blessing or inspection.