Leviticus 24:10-16 Meaning: When God's Name Is Cursed
10The son of an Israelite woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel; and the son of the Israelite woman and a man of Israel strove together in the camp.
11The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name, and cursed; and they brought him to Moses. His mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.
12They put him in custody until Yahweh’s will should be declared to them.
13Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
14“Bring him who cursed out of the camp; and let all who heard him lay their hands on his head, and let all the congregation stone him.
15You shall speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘Whoever curses his God shall bear his sin.
16He who blasphemes Yahweh’s name, he shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall certainly stone him. The foreigner as well as the native-born shall be put to death when he blasphemes the Name.
10And the son of an Israelitish woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel: and this son of the Israelitish woman and a man of Israel strove together in the camp;
11And the Israelitish woman’s son blasphemed the name of the Lord, and cursed. And they brought him unto Moses: (and his mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan:)
12And they put him in ward, that the mind of the Lord might be shewed them.
13And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
14Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lay their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him.
15And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Whosoever curseth his God shall bear his sin.
16And he that blasphemeth the name of the Lord, he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the Lord, shall be put to death.
10And the son of an Israelitish woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel; and the son of the Israelitish woman and a man of Israel strove together in the camp:
11and the son of the Israelitish woman blasphemed the Name, and cursed; and they brought him unto Moses. And his mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.
12And they put him in ward, that it might be declared unto them at the mouth of Jehovah.
13And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying,
14Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lay their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him.
15And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Whosoever curseth his God shall bear his sin.
16And he that blasphemeth the name of Jehovah, he shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the sojourner, as the home-born, when he blasphemeth the name of Jehovah, shall be put to death.
10And a son of an Israelitish woman goeth out (and he is son of an Egyptian man), in the midst of the sons of Israel, and strive in the camp do the son of the Israelitish woman and a man of Israel,
11and the son of the Israelitish woman execrateth the Name, and revileth; and they bring him in unto Moses; and his mother's name is Shelomith daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan;
12and he causeth him to rest in charge--to explain to them by the mouth of Jehovah.
13And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses, saying,
14`Bring out the reviler unto the outside of the camp; and all those hearing have laid their hands on his head, and all the company have stoned him.
15`And unto the sons of Israel thou dost speak, saying, When any man revileth his God--then he hath borne his sin;
16and he who is execrating the name of Jehovah is certainly put to death; all the company do certainly cast stones at him; as a sojourner so a native, in his execrating the Name, is put to death.
10And the son of an Israelitish woman — but withal the son of an Egyptian, — went out among the children of Israel; and this son of the Israelitess and a man of Israel strove together in the camp;
11and the Israelitish woman's son blasphemed the Name, and cursed; and they brought him to Moses. And his mother's name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.
12And they confined him, that they might decide at the mouth of Jehovah.
13And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,
14Lead the reviler outside the camp; and all that heard [him] shall lay their hands upon his head, and the whole assembly shall stone him.
15And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Every one when he revileth his God shall bear his sin.
16And he that blasphemeth the name of Jehovah shall certainly be put to death; all the assembly shall certainly stone him; as well the stranger as he that is home-born, when he blasphemeth the Name, shall be put to death.
Meaning in one sentence
Why does Leviticus 24 record the stoning of a half-Israelite blasphemer?
Context
This passage drops into the middle of Leviticus like a story the writer could not leave out. The Israelites are still camped near Sinai, surrounded by a mixed crowd that came out of Egypt with them (Exodus 12:38). A man whose mother was an Israelite and father an Egyptian gets into a fight with an Israelite. In the heat of the quarrel, he curses the Name, Yahweh's personal, covenant name. The people do not know what to do. So they put him in custody and wait for God to speak. What follows is the first clear law about blasphemy in Israel. God tells Moses the man must be taken outside the camp and stoned by the whole congregation. The law applies equally to the native-born and the foreigner living among them. The incident turns a private rage into a public lesson about the weight of God's holiness.
Key Words
Two Hebrew verbs drive this passage. The man blasphemed the Name, the word is naqab, which means to pierce or puncture. It is the same verb used when God told Moses He would appoint (literally, pierce) Joshua as leader (Numbers 27:18). But here it is twisted: instead of setting apart someone for honor, the man punctures God's name with contempt. He treats it as something that can be stabbed and deflated.
The second verb, qalal, means to treat something as light, trifling, or of little weight. It is the opposite of giving honor. When the man cursed, he was saying God does not matter much. The two verbs together show that blasphemy is not just using a bad word. It is a deliberate attack on God's reputation, an attempt to make the holy seem worthless.
Also worth noticing: the witnesses were told to lay their hands on the man's head before the stoning. That verb, samakh, means to lean on or rest weight upon. It is the same gesture used when someone brought a sacrifice to the altar (Leviticus 1:4). Here the witnesses transferred the guilt of hearing the crime back onto the offender. They were saying, in effect, we hold him responsible, not ourselves.
How Christians Read This Verse
Many Christian readers have seen this passage as a concrete application of the third commandment: you shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God (Exodus 20:7). Calvin wrote that God was teaching His people that the honor of His name must be defended by the whole community, not left to each person's conscience. The Cambridge Bible notes that the man's mixed parentage is not an accident; it shows the danger of alliances that dilute loyalty to Israel's God. Other commentators, like Matthew Henry, point out the patience of Moses and the leaders in waiting for divine direction rather than acting on emotion. Across traditions, the passage has served as a solemn reminder that reverence for God's name is not optional, and that the community shares responsibility for upholding it.
A common misunderstanding
Some readers think the punishment in this passage was only for Israelites, or that it was an overreaction to a moment of anger. In fact, the law explicitly includes the foreigner: "the foreigner as well as the native-born shall be put to death when he blasphemes the Name" (v. 16). What looks like severity is actually God's insistence that His holiness is not relative to someone's background. Anyone who identifies with the covenant community, even temporarily, is accountable to honor the Name.
Living This Out
This passage asks a direct question: what do your words reveal about what you really think of God? Not just in moments of rage, but in casual jokes, in complaints, in the way you speak about faith when you are frustrated. The story does not let us separate private temper from public reverence. The whole congregation had to act because the whole congregation was affected.
This week, pay attention to the difference between honest lament, which Scripture honors, and words that treat God as small. When anger rises, it may help to pause and let the weight of God's name stop your tongue. The same mouth that curses can learn to bless, but only if we remember who we are speaking about.
Main takeaway: God's name carries real weight; to curse it is to attack His honor, and the whole community is called to take that seriously.
For Families
For ages 5, 8
God's name is special. When we talk about God, we use kind and careful words, because He loves us and we love Him.
For ages 9, 12
In this story, a man got so angry that he said terrible things about God's name. The people didn't know what to do, so they asked God. God said that using His name as a curse was very serious, and the whole community had to show that it mattered. It's a reminder that God's name is not like other names, it stands for who He is, and we should always speak it with respect.
Questions People Ask
Why was the blasphemer taken outside the camp to be executed?
In ancient Israel, the camp was where God's presence dwelled among His people. Taking the offender outside symbolized removing the defilement from the community. It also prevented the camp from being ritually polluted by death. The same practice was used for other serious offenses (see Numbers 15:35-36).
What does it mean to blaspheme the Name?
In this passage, blaspheming the Name means attacking the personal name Yahweh (the LORD). The Hebrew verbs suggest piercing or treating it as light. It is more than breaking a rule; it is a deliberate act of dishonor against God's revealed character and authority.
Why does the narrative mention the man's mixed Egyptian-Israelite ancestry?
The detail highlights a tension that likely sparked the quarrel. Some commentators suggest the man was trying to pitch his tent among his mother's tribe but was rejected because his father was Egyptian. The narrative shows that belonging to God's people requires not just physical descent but also loyalty to His covenant.
Does this law apply to foreigners who lived in Israel?
Yes, the passage explicitly says the same penalty applies to the foreigner (ger) and the native-born (v. 16). Once someone joined the camp and placed themselves under Israel's laws and God's protection, they were accountable to honor the Name. This reinforced that God's holiness was not a tribal matter.
How does this relate to the third commandment in Exodus 20:7?
The third commandment warns against misusing God's name but does not specify a human penalty. This incident fills in the practical consequence for flagrant, public blasphemy. It shows that the community had a duty to uphold the Name's honor, not just leave it to God to punish.
For pastors & researchers
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