Leviticus 11

The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, and said to them,

1And the LORD spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them,

NoteAaron was Moses' brother and head of the priests. Teaching people to tell clean from unclean was priestly work, so the instructions are addressed to both men.

2"Tell the Israelites: Out of all the animals on the earth, these are the ones you may eat.

2Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.

3Among the animals, you may eat any that has a hoof split completely in two and that chews the cud.

3Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat.

Note"Chews the cud" describes animals like cattle, sheep and goats, which bring swallowed food back up and chew it a second time. A "split hoof" is one divided into two toes, as on a cow or goat, rather than a solid hoof like a horse's or a padded foot.

4But of the animals that only chew the cud, or that only have a split hoof, you must not eat these: the camel, because it chews the cud but does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you.

4Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.

Note"Unclean" here does not mean dirty, unhealthy or wicked. It is a status word: a person or thing that is unclean cannot take part in worship or touch holy things until the condition passes or is dealt with. It is usually temporary and often catching by contact.

5And the rock badger, because it chews the cud but does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you.

5And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.

NoteThe rock badger is the hyrax, a stocky animal about the size of a rabbit that lives in rocky outcrops in Israel and the Sinai. It is not related to badgers, and the older King James word "coney" meant rabbit.

6And the hare, because it chews the cud but does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you.

6And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.

NoteThe hare does not chew the cud in the modern zoological sense, and neither does the hyrax; both work their jaws in a way that looks like it. The list sorts animals by what an ordinary person could see them doing, not by internal anatomy.

7And the pig, because even though it has a hoof split completely in two, it does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you.

7And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.

8You must not eat the meat of these animals, and you must not touch their dead bodies; they are unclean for you.

8Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.

9Of everything that lives in the water, in the seas and in the rivers, you may eat whatever has fins and scales.

9These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat.

NoteFins-and-scales is a single test applied to all water creatures. It admits most ordinary fish and rules out shellfish, shrimp, squid, eels, catfish and anything else lacking either feature.

10But everything in the seas and in the rivers that does not have fins and scales, among all the creatures that move in the water and every living thing in the water, is to be detestable to you.

10And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you:

Note"Detestable" translates a Hebrew word (sheqets) used almost only in these food rules. It is a classification label meaning "to be kept away from and not eaten," rather than a description of how the creature tastes or looks.

11They are to be detestable to you. You must not eat their meat, and you must treat their dead bodies as detestable.

11They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination.

12Anything in the water that has no fins and no scales is to be detestable to you.

12Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you.

13These are the birds you are to treat as detestable. They must not be eaten; they are detestable: the eagle, the bearded vulture, the black vulture,

13And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,

NoteThe Hebrew names in this bird list are among the least certain words in the Bible; several occur nowhere else, and no ancient source explains them. Translations differ widely, and any English name given here is a best guess. What is clear is that the birds are mostly hunters and scavengers that feed on flesh or carrion.

14the kite, and every kind of falcon,

14And the vulture, and the kite after his kind;

15every kind of raven,

15Every raven after his kind;

16the ostrich, the screech owl, the gull, and every kind of hawk,

16And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,

17the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl,

17And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,

18the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey,

18And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,

19the stork, every kind of heron, the hoopoe, and the bat.

19And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.

20Every winged insect that walks on all four legs is to be detestable to you.

20All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you.

Note"Walks on all four legs" is a set phrase meaning "goes about on legs like an animal" rather than a count of limbs; the creatures in view are insects. "Winged insect" translates a phrase that literally reads "swarming thing that flies."

21But of all the winged insects that walk on all four legs, you may eat these: the ones that have jointed legs above their feet, for hopping on the ground.

21Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;

NoteThe distinguishing feature is the pair of long jumping legs bent above the foot, as on a locust or grasshopper.

22These are the ones you may eat: every kind of locust, every kind of bald locust, every kind of cricket, and every kind of grasshopper.

22Even these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the grasshopper after his kind.

NoteLocusts were ordinary food across the ancient Near East, dried, roasted or salted, and are still eaten in parts of the region. The four Hebrew names are all kinds of locust or grasshopper, but which kinds cannot now be identified.

23But all other winged insects that have four feet are to be detestable to you.

23But all other flying creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.

24These creatures will make you unclean. Anyone who touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening,

24And for these ye shall be unclean: whosoever toucheth the carcase of them shall be unclean until the even.

NoteIn Israelite reckoning a day ran from sunset to sunset, so "unclean until evening" means the condition lasts through the rest of that day and ends at nightfall.

25and anyone who picks up any part of their dead bodies must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean until evening.

25And whosoever beareth ought of the carcase of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.

NotePicking up a carcass is treated as worse than merely brushing against one: it requires washing the clothes as well as waiting for sunset.

26The dead bodies of every animal that has a hoof but is not split completely in two, and that does not chew the cud, are unclean for you. Anyone who touches them will be unclean.

26The carcases of every beast which divideth the hoof, and is not clovenfooted, nor cheweth the cud, are unclean unto you: every one that toucheth them shall be unclean.

27And among all the animals that walk on four legs, those that walk on their paws are unclean for you. Anyone who touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening,

27And whatsoever goeth upon his paws, among all manner of beasts that go on all four, those are unclean unto you: whoso toucheth their carcase shall be unclean until the even.

Note"Those that walk on their paws" means animals with padded feet rather than hooves, dogs, cats, lions, bears and the like.

28and anyone who picks up their dead bodies must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean until evening. They are unclean for you.

28And he that beareth the carcase of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: they are unclean unto you.

29These also are unclean for you among the small creatures that move along the ground: the weasel, the mouse, every kind of large lizard,

29These also shall be unclean unto you among the creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise after his kind,

NoteAs with the bird list, most of these Hebrew names are uncertain, and translators disagree about which lizards, rodents and small burrowing animals are meant.

30the gecko, the monitor lizard, the common lizard, the skink, and the chameleon.

30And the ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole.

31These are the ones that are unclean for you among all the creatures that move along the ground. Anyone who touches them when they are dead will be unclean until evening.

31These are unclean to you among all that creep: whosoever doth touch them, when they be dead, shall be unclean until the even.

32When one of them dies and falls on something, that thing becomes unclean. Whether it is an article of wood, or clothing, or leather, or sackcloth, whatever it is that work is done with, it must be put into water, and it will be unclean until evening. Then it will be clean.

32And upon whatsoever any of them, when they are dead, doth fall, it shall be unclean; whether it be any vessel of wood, or raiment, or skin, or sack, whatsoever vessel it be, wherein any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the even; so it shall be cleansed.

NoteSackcloth is coarse cloth woven from goat or camel hair, used for grain sacks and rough garments. "Put into water" means the object is rinsed or soaked; the waiting until sunset is part of the procedure, not a sign that the rinsing failed.

33If one of them falls into a clay pot, everything inside it becomes unclean, and you must break the pot.

33And every earthen vessel, whereinto any of them falleth, whatsoever is in it shall be unclean; and ye shall break it.

NoteOrdinary pottery of the period was unglazed and porous, so it soaked up whatever it held and could not be rinsed clean. A clay pot is therefore destroyed rather than washed, while wood, cloth and leather in the previous verse can be rinsed and kept.

34Any food that may be eaten becomes unclean if water from such a pot comes on it, and any drink that may be drunk from such a pot becomes unclean.

34Of all meat which may be eaten, that on which such water cometh shall be unclean: and all drink that may be drunk in every such vessel shall be unclean.

35Anything that any part of their dead bodies falls on becomes unclean. Whether it is an oven or a stove for pots, it must be broken to pieces. They are unclean, and they will stay unclean for you.

35And every thing whereupon any part of their carcase falleth shall be unclean; whether it be oven, or ranges for pots, they shall be broken down: for they are unclean, and shall be unclean unto you.

NoteThe oven was a clay dome or barrel used for baking; the "stove for pots" was a clay stand or pair of supports that held a cooking pot over the fire. Both were made of the same porous fired clay as the pot in the previous verse, and both were cheap enough to smash and replace.

36Even so, a spring or a cistern that holds plenty of water stays clean. But whatever touches one of their dead bodies will be unclean.

36Nevertheless a fountain or pit, wherein there is plenty of water, shall be clean: but that which toucheth their carcase shall be unclean.

NoteA cistern is a pit cut into rock and plastered, used to collect and store rainwater. Springs and cisterns were a household's whole water supply, and this exception keeps a single dead animal from putting a village's water out of use.

37If any part of their dead bodies falls on seed that is meant for planting, the seed is clean.

37And if any part of their carcase fall upon any sowing seed which is to be sown, it shall be clean.

NoteDry seed set aside for the next sowing is exempt, so a farmer does not lose his seed grain.

38But if water has been put on the seed, and any part of their dead bodies falls on it, it is unclean for you.

38But if any water be put upon the seed, and any part of their carcase fall thereon, it shall be unclean unto you.

NoteWater is the carrier throughout this section: dry things generally escape, wetted things do not. Once the seed has been dampened it can pick up uncleanness like any other moistened food.

39If an animal that you may eat dies, anyone who touches its dead body will be unclean until evening.

39And if any beast, of which ye may eat, die; he that toucheth the carcase thereof shall be unclean until the even.

NoteThis covers an animal from the permitted list that dies on its own rather than being slaughtered. Its meat is not forbidden outright here, but handling the carcass still makes a person unclean until evening.

40Anyone who eats from its dead body must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean until evening. Anyone who carries its dead body must also wash his clothes, and he will be unclean until evening.

40And he that eateth of the carcase of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: he also that beareth the carcase of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.

41Every creature that moves along the ground is detestable; it must not be eaten.

41And every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth shall be an abomination; it shall not be eaten.

Note"Creature that moves along the ground" translates a Hebrew word for swarming things, small creatures that appear in numbers close to the ground, covering insects, rodents, lizards and snakes together in one category.

42You must not eat any creature that moves along the ground, whether it crawls on its belly, or walks on four legs, or has many feet, because they are detestable.

42Whatsoever goeth upon the belly, and whatsoever goeth upon all four, or whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not eat; for they are an abomination.

43Do not make yourselves detestable with any creature that crawls, and do not make yourselves unclean with them, so that you become defiled by them.

43Ye shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creepeth, neither shall ye make yourselves unclean with them, that ye should be defiled thereby.

44For I am the LORD your God. So set yourselves apart, and be holy, because I am holy. Do not defile yourselves with any creature that moves along the ground.

44For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

Note"Holy" in Hebrew means set apart, reserved for a particular use, rather than morally good; "set yourselves apart" and "be holy" translate two forms of the same root.

45For I am the LORD who brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. So be holy, because I am holy.

45For I am the LORD that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.

46This is the law about the animals, the birds, every living thing that moves in the water, and every creature that moves along the ground,

46This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature that moveth in the waters, and of every creature that creepeth upon the earth:

47so that you can tell the difference between the unclean and the clean, and between the animals that may be eaten and the animals that may not be eaten."

47To make a difference between the unclean and the clean, and between the beast that may be eaten and the beast that may not be eaten.