Leviticus 11:13-44
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
13 Of the birds,[a] these you shall loathe; they shall not be eaten, they are loathsome: the griffon vulture, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, 14 the kite, the various species of falcons, 15 the various species of crows, 16 the eagle owl, the kestrel, the long-eared owl, the various species of hawks, 17 the little owl, the cormorant, the screech owl, 18 the barn owl, the horned owl, the osprey, 19 the stork, the various species of herons, the hoopoe, and the bat.
20 The various winged insects that walk on all fours are loathsome for you. 21 But of the various winged insects that walk on all fours you may eat those that have legs jointed above their feet for leaping on the ground; 22 hence of these you may eat the following: the various kinds of locusts, the various kinds of bald locusts, the various kinds of crickets, and the various kinds of grasshoppers.(A) 23 All other winged insects that have four legs are loathsome for you.
24 You become unclean by the following—anyone who touches their carcasses shall be unclean until evening,(B) 25 and anyone who carries any part of their carcasses shall wash his garments and be unclean until evening— 26 by all hoofed animals that are not cloven-footed or do not chew the cud; they are unclean for you; anyone who touches them becomes unclean. 27 Also by the various quadrupeds that walk on paws; they are unclean for you; anyone who touches their carcasses shall be unclean until evening, 28 and anyone who carries their carcasses shall wash his garments and be unclean until evening. They are unclean for you.
29 Of the creatures that swarm on the ground, the following are unclean for you: the rat, the mouse, the various kinds of lizards, 30 the gecko, the spotted lizard, the agama, the skink, and the chameleon. 31 Among the various swarming creatures, these are unclean for you. Everyone who touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until evening. 32 Everything on which one of them falls when dead becomes unclean, including any article of wood, cloth, leather or goat hair—any article of which use can be made. It must be immersed in water and remain unclean until evening, when it again becomes clean. 33 Should any of these creatures fall into a clay vessel, everything in it becomes unclean, and the vessel itself you must break. 34 Any food that can be eaten which makes contact with water, and any liquid that may be drunk, in any such vessel become unclean. 35 Any object on which any part of their carcasses falls becomes unclean; if it is an oven or stove, this must be broken to pieces; they are unclean and shall always be unclean to you. 36 However, a spring or a cistern for collecting water remains clean; but whoever touches such an animal’s carcass becomes unclean. 37 If any part of their carcasses falls on any sort of grain that is to be sown, it remains clean; 38 but if the grain has become moistened, it becomes unclean to you when any part of their carcasses falls on it.
39 [b](C)When one of the animals that you could otherwise eat dies of itself, anyone who touches its carcass shall be unclean until evening; 40 and anyone who eats any part of its carcass shall wash his garments and be unclean until evening;(D) so also, anyone who carries its carcass shall wash his garments and be unclean until evening.
41 All the creatures that swarm on the ground are loathsome and shall not be eaten. 42 Whether it crawls on its belly, goes on all fours, or has many legs—any creature that swarms on the earth—you shall not eat them; they are loathsome. 43 Do not make yourselves loathsome by any swarming creature nor defile yourselves with them and so become unclean by them.(E) 44 For I, the Lord, am your God. You shall make and keep yourselves holy,[c] because I am holy.(F) You shall not make yourselves unclean, then, by any swarming creature that crawls on the ground.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 11:13–23, 30 Birds: the term is broader, including all animals that fly (including bats, v. 19, and flying insects, vv. 20–23). The identification of the various Hebrew names for these birds and reptiles is in many cases uncertain.
- 11:39–40 These animals create uncleanness, but are not prohibited as food (cf. 17:15–16). Priests who have a higher degree of holiness than other Israelites may not eat these animals (22:8; cf. Ez 44:31). Cf. Ex 22:30; Dt 14:21.
- 11:44–45 Keep yourselves holy…you shall be holy: a similar idea is expressed in 20:25–26. There, distinguishing between the animals is compared to God’s distinguishing between the peoples and choosing Israel.
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