Bible Strands
Leviticus 26:40
But if they will confess their iniquity and that of their fathers in the unfaithfulness that they practiced against Me, by which they have also walked in hostility toward Me—
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Moses addresses the Israelites in the wilderness, detailing the covenant consequences they will face if they abandon the law before entering the Promised Land.
The words — וְהִתְוַדּוּ (ve-hitvadu) translates as "and they will confess," directly governing עֲוֹן (aven, "iniquity") to require explicit acknowledgment of both personal and ancestral transgressions.
The thread — The text establishes confession as a covenant condition, a pattern repeated in Nehemiah 9:2 during corporate repentance and Proverbs 28:13, which ties confession to divine mercy.
Why it lands — The verse demands plain acknowledgment of covenant unfaithfulness as a necessary step, rejecting any attempt to obscure or minimize the breach.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
If they shall confess their iniquity, and the iniquity of their fathers, with their trespass which they trespassed against me, and that also they have walked contrary unto me;
Cross-references
- Proverbs 28:13 He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.
- Nehemiah 9:2 Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all the foreigners, and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.
- 1 John 1:8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
- Numbers 5:7 and must confess the sin he has committed. He must make full restitution, add a fifth to its value, and give all this to the one he has wronged.
- Hosea 5:15 Then I will return to My place until they admit their guilt and seek My face; in their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.”
- Deuteronomy 30:1 “When all these things come upon you—the blessings and curses I have set before you—and you call them to mind in all the nations to which the LORD your God has banished you,
- 1 Kings 8:33 When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and they return to You and confess Your name, praying and pleading with You in this temple,
- Leviticus 26:21 If you walk in hostility toward Me and refuse to obey Me, I will multiply your plagues seven times, according to your sins.
- Leviticus 26:24 then I will act with hostility toward you, and I will strike you sevenfold for your sins.
- Leviticus 26:27 But if in spite of all this you do not obey Me, but continue to walk in hostility toward Me,