Leviticus 19:18 tells God’s people to stop seeking revenge and to hold no grudges against their fellow members of the community, and instead to love their neighbor as they love themselves. God spoke these words to Moses, who passed them on to the people of Israel as part of the law given at Mount Sinai.
“‘You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people; but you shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.
Leviticus 19:18 (WEB)
What Leviticus 19:18 Means
The verse begins with two prohibitions. The first is against taking vengeance, which means paying back a wrong someone did to you by harming them in return. The second is against bearing a grudge, which is quieter but just as corrosive: nursing resentment, keeping a mental record of offenses, and letting that record shape how you treat someone. The verse addresses both the action and the attitude that feeds it.
The positive command is to love your neighbor as yourself. Here “love” is less a feeling than a commitment to seek another person’s good, the same care you naturally show your own body and needs. The verse ends with “I am the LORD,” a reminder that this standard rests on God’s authority and character rather than on how the neighbor happens to behave.
The verse does not promise that loving people will feel easy, that wrongs will be forgotten on their own, or that the offender will always respond well. It describes how God’s people are to conduct themselves, and it trusts that a community shaped by this command will be healthier for it.
The Context of Leviticus 19:18
Leviticus is one of the five books of the Torah, traditionally attributed to Moses. It was written for the Israelites after their deliverance from Egypt, as they were being shaped into a people set apart for God. Chapter 19 is often called a “holiness code” because it lists many practical ways the people are to reflect God’s holiness in ordinary life, from caring for the poor to honest business dealings.
The verses just before this one focus on justice in courts and honest speech about neighbors, and the verses after it turn to other laws about separation and purity. Read in that setting, verse 18 is the emotional and relational heart of the passage. Justice, honesty and fair judgment all fail if people carry hatred and revenge in their hearts, so the command to love is placed right where it can shape how the people live with one another.
Key Phrases in Leviticus 19:18
Romans 12:19
Don’t seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.”
(WEB)
Paul echoes the prohibition on vengeance and places it in God’s hands. Read alongside Leviticus 19:18, it shows that refusing to repay evil is not weakness but trust that God sees and judges justly.
Matthew 5:44
But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you…
(WEB)
Jesus takes the command to love further, extending it even to enemies. This verse shows how the principle of loving the neighbor reaches its fullest expression in the teaching of Christ.
A Short Prayer From Leviticus 19:18
Lord, you know the hurts I have carried and the people I have kept at a distance because of them. Loosen my grip on the grudges I hold and the urge to repay what was done to me. Help me see my neighbor as someone you love, and give me the honesty and patience to treat them as I would want to be treated. Shape my heart by your holiness, and let my daily choices reflect your character. Amen.
