Leviticus 11-14
New Catholic Bible
Norms Concerning Ritual Purity[a]
Chapter 11
Clean and Unclean Animals.[b] 1 The Lord said to Moses and to Aaron, 2 “Tell the children of Israel: These are the animals that you may eat from among all the animals upon the earth. 3 You may eat any animal that has a cloven hoof and that eats its cud. 4 From among those animals that chew their cud and have cloven hoofs, you shall not eat the following: camels, for it chews its cud but does not have a divided hoof, so it will be considered to be unclean; 5 the rock badger, for it chews its cud but does not have a divided hoof, so it will be considered to be unclean; 6 the hare, for it chews its cud but does not have a divided hoof, so it will be considered to be unclean; 7 the pig, for its hoof is divided and is cloven hoofed, but it does not chew its cud, so it will be considered to be unclean. 8 You shall not eat their meat nor shall you touch their carcasses. They will be considered to be unclean.
9 “These are the animals that you may eat that live in the water: you may eat anything that has fins and scales in the seas or the rivers. 10 But all the animals that move through the water, whether seas or rivers, that do not have fins or scales will be considered to be an abomination.
11 “They will be an abomination for you. You shall not eat their meat and you shall consider their carcasses to be an abomination. 12 Everything in the water that does not have fins and scales will be an abomination for you.
13 “Among birds the following will be considered to be an abomination; they will not be eaten for they are an abomination: the eagle, the bearded vulture and the osprey, 14 the vulture and every type of falcon, 15 every type of raven, 16 the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, and every type of hawk, 17 the owl, the cormorant, the ibis, 18 the swan, the pelican, the carrion vulture, 19 the stork, every kind of heron, the hoopoe, and the bat.
20 “All winged creatures that crawl upon four legs will be considered to be an abomination for you. 21 Yet from among the insects that walk upon all fours, you may eat those that have two legs above their feet to jump upon the earth. 22 Therefore, you may eat the following: all kinds of locusts, every kind of bald locust, every kind of grasshopper, and every kind of cricket. 23 But every other flying insect that has four feet will be considered to be an abomination.
24 “By these you shall become unclean, whoever touches their carcasses shall be unclean until the evening 25 and whoever carries their carcasses must wash his clothes and shall be unclean until the evening. 26 You shall consider every animal to be unclean that has undivided hoofs and does not chew its cud. Whoever touches them shall be unclean. 27 Every animal that walks upon all fours and walks upon its paws will be unclean to you. Whoever touches their carcasses shall be considered to be unclean until the evening. 28 Whoever carries their carcasses must wash his clothes and shall be considered to be unclean until the evening. These animals will be considered to be unclean.
29 [c]“These are the animals that crawl upon the earth that will be considered to be unclean: the weasel, the mouse, every kind of tortoise, 30 the gecko, the crocodile, the lizard, the snail, and the chameleon. 31 These creeping things will be unclean for you. Whoever touches their dead bodies will be considered to be unclean until the evening. 32 Anything upon which one of these falls when it is dead will be considered to be unclean, whether it be a wooden vessel or clothing or a skin or a sack, no matter what it is made of. It is to be washed in water and will be considered to be unclean until the evening. Then it will be clean. 33 If one of them falls into an earthen vessel, whatever it contains, it will be considered to be unclean, and it will be broken. 34 Any food upon which water falls will be considered to be unclean. Any liquid that can be drunk in any vessel will be considered to be unclean. 35 Everything upon which any part of their carcass falls will be considered to be unclean. Ovens and stoves will be smashed. They are unclean, and will be held to be unclean by you. 36 But a spring or a cistern where water is stored will be clean. Whoever touches their carcasses shall be unclean. 37 If any part of their carcasses falls upon seed for sowing, it will still be clean. 38 But if water falls on the seed and part of their carcasses falls on it, it is unclean to you.
39 “If an animal dies that was intended for food, whoever touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening. 40 Whoever eats some of its carcass shall wash his clothes and shall be unclean until the evening. Whoever picks up its carcass shall wash his clothes and shall be unclean until the evening.
41 “Every creeping thing that crawls upon the earth will be an abomination. It will not be eaten. 42 Everything that goes about upon its belly, and everything that goes about upon on all four legs, and everything that has many feet, hence, any of the creeping things that crawl upon the earth, are not to be eaten, for they are an abomination. 43 You shall not make yourselves abominable with any of the creeping things that crawl, nor shall you defile yourselves because of them, lest you make yourselves unclean.
44 [d]“I am the Lord, your God. Consecrate yourselves and be holy for I am holy.[e] You will not defile yourselves with any of the creeping things that crawl upon the earth. 45 I am the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. Therefore, be holy, for I am holy.
46 “This is the law concerning animals and birds and every living creature that moves in the water and everything that crawls upon the earth, 47 so that you might know the difference between that which is unclean and that which is clean, between the animals that you can eat and those that you should not eat.”
Chapter 12
Purification after Childbirth.[f] 1 The Lord said to Moses, “Say to the children of Israel: 2 When a woman becomes pregnant and gives birth to a male child, she shall be considered to be unclean for seven days, just as when she menstruates. 3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin will be circumcised. 4 Then she shall continue for thirty-three days in the blood of her purifying. She shall not touch any holy thing nor shall she enter into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are complete. 5 But if she gives birth to a girl, she shall be unclean for two weeks as during her menstruation. She shall continue in the blood of her purifying for sixty-six days.[g]
6 “When the days of her purification for a son or a daughter are complete, she shall bring a year-old lamb as a burnt offering and a pigeon or a turtledove as a sin offering to the priest at the entrance to the meeting tent. 7 He shall offer it before the Lord and make atonement for her. She shall be cleansed from the flow of her blood. This is the law for a woman who has borne a male or female child. 8 If she cannot afford to offer a lamb, she shall offer two turtledoves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. The priest shall make atonement for her and she shall be clean.”[h]
Chapter 13
Infections of the Skin.[i] 1 The Lord said to Moses and to Aaron, 2 “When someone has a swelling or a scab or a spot on his skin, and it turns out to be leprosy, then he shall be brought to the priest Aaron or one of his sons who is a priest. 3 The priest shall examine the diseased spot on his skin. If the hair of the diseased spot has become white and the sore seems to be deeper than the surface of the skin, then the disease is leprosy. When the priest has examined it, he shall pronounce him unclean. 4 But if the spot on his skin is white and is not deeper than the skin and the hair on it has not become white, the priest shall quarantine the person with the sore for seven days. 5 On the seventh day the priest shall examine that person again. If he sees that the sore has not changed, and the sore has not spread, he shall quarantine that person for another seven days. 6 The priest shall examine that person again on the seventh day. If the sore has darkened, and the sore has not spread, then the priest shall declare that person clean. It was only a scab. He shall wash his clothes and shall be considered to be clean. 7 But if the scab spreads after the priest has examined him and declared him to be clean, then he must be examined by the priest again. 8 The priest shall examine it, and if the sore has spread, the priest shall pronounce him to be unclean for it is leprosy.
9 “When a person has a leprous sore, he shall be brought to the priest 10 and the priest shall examine him. If there is a white bump on the skin and the hair on it has turned white, and there is tender, raw flesh on the bump, 11 then it is a chronic leprosy of the skin of his body. The priest shall declare him unclean, but he shall not quarantine him for he is unclean. 12 If the leprosy breaks out upon the skin so that the leprosy covers all of the skin of the diseased person wherever the priest examined him, from head to foot, 13 then the priest shall examine the person whose flesh is covered with leprosy. He shall declare him clean when it has all turned white, for he is clean. 14 But when some raw skin appears on him, he shall be held to be unclean. 15 The priest, when he sees the raw skin, shall declare him unclean. The raw skin is unclean; it is leprosy. 16 But if the raw skin becomes white, then he shall come before the priest 17 and the priest shall examine him. If he sees that the sore has turned white, the priest shall declare the person with the sore to be clean, for he is clean.
18 “When someone has a boil on the skin that has healed, 19 and then a whitish-red bump or spot appears where the boil was, he shall show it to the priest. 20 The priest shall examine it. If he sees that it is deeper than the skin and the hair has turned white, then the priest shall declare him to be unclean. It is a leprous sore that has broken out from the boil. 21 But if the priest, upon examining it, sees that it does not have white hair and it is not deeper than the skin, but rather it is a bit darker, then the priest shall quarantine him for seven days. 22 If it spreads over the skin, then the priest shall declare him to be unclean, for the spot is leprous. 23 But if the spot stays put and does not spread, then it is a scar from the boil and the priest shall declare him to be clean.
24 “When someone has a burn, and the raw burn becomes a reddish-white spot, 25 then the priest shall examine it. If the hair of the spot has turned white and it appears to be deeper than the skin, then it is leprosy. It has broken out of the burn. The priest shall declare him unclean, for it is a leprous sore. 26 But if the priest examines it and there is no white hair on the spot and it is not deeper than the skin, but is a bit darker, then the priest shall quarantine him for seven days. 27 On the seventh day the priest shall examine him again. If it has spread over the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him to be unclean. It is a leprous sore. 28 But if the spot has remained where it was and it has not spread on the skin, but it is somewhat darker, then it is only the swelling of a burn. The priest shall declare him to be clean, because it is only the scar from a burn.
29 “When a man or a woman has a sore on the head or the beard, 30 the priest will examine the sore. If it is deeper than the skin and the hair on it is yellow and thin, then the priest shall pronounce it to be unclean. It is the scab of leprosy of the head or the beard. 31 But if the priest examines the scab and it is not deeper than the skin and there is no black hair on it, then the priest shall quarantine the person with the scab for seven days. 32 On the seventh day the priest shall examine the sore. If the scab has not spread and there is no yellow hair on it, and the scab does not appear to be deeper than the skin, 33 then the man shall be shaven, but the scab is not to be shaved. He is to be quarantined another seven days. 34 On the seventh day the priest shall examine the scab. If the scab has not spread on the skin and it does not appear to be deeper than the skin, then the priest shall declare him to be clean. He shall wash his clothes, for he is clean. 35 But if the scab spreads after his cleansing, 36 the priest shall examine him. If the scab has spread, the priest need not look for yellow hair. He is unclean. 37 But if, from his viewpoint, the scab has not grown larger and black hair has grown upon it, then the scab is clean. The priest shall declare him clean. 38 When a man or a woman has white spots on the skin of the body, 39 the priest shall examine that person. If the spots on the skin of the body are dull white, it is only a skin rash. The person is clean.
40 “When a man has lost the hair on his head and he is bald, he is clean. 41 If he has lost the hair from the front of his head, and he has a bald forehead, he is clean. 42 But if there is a white reddish sore on his bald head or his bald forehead, it is leprosy that has broken out on his bald head or his bald forehead. 43 The priest shall examine him. If the swollen sore on his bald head or his bald forehead is reddish-white, looking like leprosy on the skin, 44 then he has leprosy and he is unclean. The priest shall declare him unclean because of the sore on his head.
45 [j]“Anyone who is infected with leprosy shall wear torn clothes, his head is to be uncovered, and he is to cover his moustache. He shall cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ 46 As long as he is infected, he shall be utterly unclean. He will live alone; his dwelling shall be outside of the camp.
47 Infections in Fabrics.“When a garment has a leprous mark on it, whether it be a woolen garment or a linen garment, 48 whether it is in the weave or the knit of the wool or the linen, or if it is a skin or anything made of a skin, 49 if there is a green or red spot on the garment or the skin, whether in the weave or the knit or on anything made of skin, it is to be considered a mark of leprosy and it is to be shown to the priest. 50 The priest shall look at the spot, and shall secure that thing that is infected for seven days. 51 He shall examine the mark on the seventh day. If the spot on the garment has spread, whether it be in the weave or the knit, or on the skin or on anything that is made of skin, then the spot is an active leprosy. It is unclean. 52 He shall burn the garment, whether the spot is in the weave or the knit, whether it is made of wool or linen or is anything made of skin. It has an active leprosy, and it shall be burned in the fire. 53 But if the priest examines it and the spot has not spread on the garment, either in the weave or the knit or on anything made of skin, 54 then the priest shall order that the thing with the mark be washed,[k] and he shall secure it for seven more days. 55 The priest shall examine the thing with the spot after it has been washed. If the color of the spot has not changed, even if it has not spread, it is unclean. It shall be burned in the fire whether the bare spot is on the inside or outside. 56 If the priest examines the garment and the spot has faded after the washing, then he shall tear it out of the garment, whether it be made of skin or woven or knitted. 57 But if it reappears on the garment, whether in the weave or the knit or on anything made of skin, it is spreading. Whatever is infected shall be burned in the fire. 58 The garment, whether of weave or knit or anything made of skin, that has been washed and no longer has the spot, shall be washed a second time and it will then be clean. 59 These are the statutes concerning infections of leprosy upon garments, whether woolen or linen, woven or knitted, or on anything made of skin, on how to declare it clean or to declare it unclean.”
Chapter 14
Purification of Skin Diseases. 1 The Lord spoke to Moses saying, 2 “This is the law for the day of the cleansing of a person with leprosy, when he is brought to the priest: 3 The priest is to go outside of the camp and examine him. If the priest discovers that the sores of leprosy on the leper have been healed, 4 the priest will order that two live, clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop be brought to the person who is to be cleansed. 5 The priest shall order that one of the birds be killed over fresh water that is in a clay pot. 6 He is to take the live bird and dip the cedar wood, the scarlet yarn, the hyssop, and the live bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the fresh water. 7 He shall sprinkle the one who is to be declared cleansed seven times. He will then release the live bird in the open fields. 8 The person who is being cleansed shall wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and wash himself with water. He will then be considered to be clean. Thereafter he may come into the camp, but he shall stay outside of his tent for seven days. 9 On the seventh day he shall shave off all of his hair. He must shave the hair off his head, his beard, his eyebrows, and the rest of his hair. He shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water, and he shall then be clean.
10 “On the eighth day he shall take two male lambs without blemish and one ewe lamb, a year old, without blemish, and three-tenths of a portion of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering, and a log measure of oil. 11 The priest who will purify the man to be made clean shall present him and these things before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 12 The priest shall take one of the lambs and offer it along with the log measure of oil. This shall be a guilt offering. He shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord. 13 He shall slay the lamb in the same place that he is going to slay the sin offering and the burnt offering, in the sanctuary, for the sin offering belongs to the priest just like the guilt offering. It is most holy. 14 [l]The priest shall take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right ear lobe of the one who is being cleansed, as well as on the thumb of his right hand and the big toe of his right foot. 15 The priest shall take some oil from the log measure of oil and pour it into the palm of his own left hand. 16 The priest shall dip his right finger into the oil that is in his left hand. With his finger he shall sprinkle the oil seven times before the Lord. 17 The priest shall take the rest of the oil in his hand and put it on the right ear lobe of the one who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the big toe of his right foot, and upon the blood of the guilt offering. 18 He shall pour the rest of the oil that is in his hand upon the head of the one who is being cleansed. The priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord. 19 The priest shall then offer the sin offering and make atonement for the uncleanness of the one who is being cleansed. Afterward he shall slay the burnt offering. 20 The priest shall offer the burnt offering and the cereal offering upon the altar. The priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be clean.
21 A Poor Person’s Offerings.“If he is poor and cannot afford all this, then he shall bring one lamb for a guilt offering to be waved, to make atonement for him, and one-tenth a measure of fine flour mixed with oil for a cereal offering, and a log measure of oil, 22 and two turtledoves or two young pigeons, whichever he is able to obtain. One will be for a sin offering, and the other will be for a burnt offering. 23 He shall bring them to the priest on the eighth day of his cleansing, at the entrance to the tent of meeting before the Lord. 24 The priest shall take the lamb of the guilt offering and the log measure of oil, and the priest shall wave them as a wave offering before the Lord. 25 He shall slay the lamb of the guilt offering. The priest shall take the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right ear lobe of the one who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the big toe of his right foot. 26 The priest shall pour the oil into the palm of his own left hand. 27 The priest shall dip his right finger into the oil that is in his left hand. He shall sprinkle the oil with his finger seven times before the Lord. 28 The priest shall take the rest of the oil that is in his hand and put it on the right ear lobe of the one who is being cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the big toe of his right foot, upon the places that he put the blood of the guilt offering. 29 He shall pour the rest of the oil in his hand upon the head of the one who is being cleansed. The priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord. 30 He shall offer one of the turtledoves or one of the young pigeons, whichever he is able to obtain. 31 Whatever he has, one of them will be offered as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering together with the cereal offering. The priest shall make atonement before the Lord for the one who is being cleansed.
32 “This is the law for the person who has leprosy and who cannot afford the things that are needed for cleansing.”
33 Treatment of Skin Infections in Houses. The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 34 “When you come into the land of Canaan that I am giving to you as a possession, and I send the infection of leprosy upon a house in the land of your possession, 35 the owner of the house will come and speak to the priest saying, ‘It seems as if there is an infection in the house.’ 36 The priest shall then order that they empty out the house before he enters to examine the infection, lest all that is within the house be declared unclean. When they have finished, the priest shall go in to examine the house. 37 He shall look at the infection, and if the infection on the walls of the house is a green or red spot, and if it seems to be deeper than the surface, 38 then the priest will go out of the door of the house, and he shall close up the house for seven days. 39 On the seventh day the priest shall come back and see if the infection has spread on the walls of the house. 40 The priest shall then command that they take the stones from the place that is infected and they shall throw them outside the city into an unclean place. 41 He shall have the entire inside of the house scraped. They are to throw the plaster that they scraped off into a place outside the city, in an unclean place. 42 They shall take other stones and put them where the first stones were, and they shall take other plaster and plaster the house.
43 “If the infection in the house breaks out again, after they have taken away the stones and scraped the house and plastered it, 44 then the priest shall come and examine it. If the infection in the house has spread, then it is an active leprosy in the house and it is unclean. 45 He shall break down the house. All the stones and wood and plaster of the house will be carried outside of the city to an unclean place. 46 Furthermore, the person who enters the house while it is closed will be unclean until the evening. 47 He who lies down in the house shall wash his clothes, and he who eats in the house shall wash his clothes.
48 “But if the priest comes and examines it, and the infection in the house has not spread after it has been replastered, then the priest shall declare it to be clean, for the infection has been cured. 49 He shall obtain two birds, cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop to ritually purify the house. 50 He shall kill one of the birds over fresh water that is in a clay pot. 51 Then he shall take the cedar wood, the scarlet yarn, the hyssop, and the live bird, and he shall dip them into the blood of the slain bird and into the fresh water, and sprinkle the house seven times. 52 He shall purify the house with the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop, and the scarlet yarn. 53 Then he shall release the live bird in an open field outside of the city. Thus he shall have made atonement for the house, and it shall be clean.
54 “These are the statutes concerning all types of sores of leprosy and scabs, 55 for infections upon garments and houses, 56 for swollen spots, rashes, and bright spots, 57 to decide whether something is unclean or clean. This is the law concerning leprosy.”
Footnotes
- Leviticus 11:1 Lacking as they did a knowledge of many of the secrets of nature, the ancients imagined hidden forces that were stronger than those of human beings and could do them harm. It was from this remote past that Israel inherited many prohibitions for their daily lives (chs. 11–16).
- Leviticus 11:1 The animals forbidden were all those that were consecrated to pagan divinities or whose flesh excited repugnance. In classifying the animals that are listed, the author relies on more or less accurate observation (see also Deut 14:3ff); some of the animals are difficult to identify. The distinction between clean and unclean was abolished by Christian revelation (Mk 7:14, 23; Acts 10:9-16).
- Leviticus 11:29 The prescriptions listed are also to be regarded as hygienic measures.
- Leviticus 11:44 These verses give the deeper reason for the criteria of clean and unclean: the Lord had delivered his people from Egyptian slavery so that they might acknowledge and worship him as the only true God. Animals that crawled along the ground did not enjoy a good reputation; in fact, the serpent, which was venerated by pagans, was regarded from the outset as an instrument of evil (Gen 3).
- Leviticus 11:44 Be holy for I am holy: the central and repeated theme of Leviticus is holiness. The children of Israel are totally dedicated to God and to be like him because of what he has done for his people (see Mt 5:48).
- Leviticus 12:1 It was thought that any woman bearing a child lost some of her vital energy; she would recover it by means of rites uniting her to God, the source of all life. Even the mother of Jesus would submit to this law of Leviticus (Lk 2:22-38).
- Leviticus 12:5 This prescription shows the inferiority of women in the mind of the ancient East.
- Leviticus 12:8 Allowance is made for those too poor to provide the prescribed offering following childbirth; doves or pigeons will suffice (see Lev 1:14).
- Leviticus 13:1 These infectious diseases are the subject of detailed prescriptions that had for their purpose to safeguard the community. Leprosy, which was both repugnant and contagious, was especially feared; since it was the sign of a corruption, it rendered unclean anyone who contracted it. It was often regarded as a punishment from God (Num 12:10; 2 Chr 26:19-21). The priests, who were charged with diagnosing the sickness, had drawn up a list of primitive rites in keeping with their obligation of safeguarding the people from any blemish that might exclude them from worship (see Mk 1:44; Lk 17:14).
- Leviticus 13:45 The leper had to wear a sign of mourning, such as torn clothing and uncombed hair, so that he might be recognized and relegated to the fringes of the community. These unfortunate people were still suffering this cruel lot in gospel times (Mt 8:1-4; Mk 1:40-45; Lk 5:12-16; 17:11-19).
- Leviticus 13:54 Washed: it is not surprising that even in ancient times the treatment for disorders involved cleansing with water.
- Leviticus 14:14 Applying the blood of the guilt offering to the person’s extremities by the priest indicated cleansing of the whole person. This mirrors the total consecration of Aaron to God by Moses in Lev 8:23.
