Leviticus 11 · The Lantern

Clean and Unclean Animals

And the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying to them,

“Speak to the sons of Israel: These are the living things that you may eat, out of all the beasts that are on the earth.

Everything among the beasts that divides the hoof, cloven into two hooves, and brings up the cud — that you may eat.

With whom then should we live? With the just, he replies, again under a metaphor. Everything "of split hoof and chewing the cud" is clean, because the split hoof obviously is a sign of evenly balanced justice, which chews the cud of its own food of justice, the word, which enters from without through instruction.

"Every", it says, "beast that divides the hoof, and has hooves, and brings up rumination among the cattle, these you shall eat. Besides, of these you shall not eat, which bring up rumination, and do not divide the hooves, and have hooves. The camel, because it brings up rumination, and does not divide the hoof, this is unclean to you.

Hence it is properly decreed in the law that the only animals which are clean and suitable to be eaten by the people of God are those that have horns. For it is well known that those animals that chew the cud and divide the hoof are also those that have horns.

Only these you shall not eat, of those that bring up the cud or of those that divide the hoof: the camel, for it brings up the cud but does not divide the hoof — it is unclean to you;

and the rock badger, for it brings up the cud but does not divide the hoof — it is unclean to you;

and the hare, for it brings up the cud but does not divide the hoof — it is unclean to you;

and the pig, for it divides the hoof, cloven into two hooves, but does not chew the cud — it is unclean to you.

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

These you may eat, of all that are in the water: everything in the water that has fins and scales, in the seas and in the streams — those you may eat.

But everything that does not have fins and scales, in the seas and in the streams — of all the swarming things of the water, and of every living soul that is in the water — they are a detestable thing to you.

And a detestable thing they shall remain to you: of their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall detest.

Everything in the water that does not have fins and scales — it is a detestable thing to you.

And these you shall detest among the birds — they shall not be eaten; they are a detestable thing: the eagle, and the bearded vulture, and the black vulture;

and the kite, and the falcon after its kind;

every raven after its kind;

and the ostrich, and the nighthawk, and the seagull, and the hawk after its kind;

and the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl;

and the white owl, and the desert owl, and the carrion vulture;

and the stork, the heron after its kind, and the hoopoe, and the bat.

Every winged swarming thing that walks on all fours — it is a detestable thing to you.

Yet these you may eat, of every winged swarming thing that walks on all fours: those that have jointed legs above their feet, for hopping on the ground.

Of them you may eat these: the locust after its kind, and the bald locust after its kind, and the cricket after its kind, and the grasshopper after its kind.

But every other winged swarming thing that has four feet — it is a detestable thing to you.

And by these you become unclean — whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening,

and whoever carries any part of their carcass shall wash his garments and be unclean until the evening —

by every beast that divides the hoof but is not cloven-footed and does not bring up the cud. They are unclean to you; whoever touches them shall be unclean.

And everything that walks on its paws, among all the living things that walk on all fours — they are unclean to you; whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening.

And the one who carries their carcass shall wash his garments and be unclean until the evening. They are unclean to you.

And this is what is unclean to you among the swarming things that swarm on the earth: the mole rat, and the mouse, and the great lizard after its kind;

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

These are the unclean to you among all the swarming things; whoever touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until the evening.

And anything on which one of them falls when they are dead shall be unclean — any article of wood, or garment, or skin, or sackcloth, any article with which work is done — it shall be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the evening; then it shall be clean.

And any earthen vessel into which one of them falls — everything in it shall be unclean, and you shall break it.

Any food that might be eaten, on which such water comes, shall be unclean; and any drink that might be drunk, in any such vessel, shall be unclean.

And everything on which any part of their carcass falls shall be unclean; oven or stove shall be torn down — they are unclean, and unclean they shall remain to you.

Only a spring or a cistern collecting water shall remain clean; but whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean.

And when any part of their carcass falls on any sowing seed that is to be sown, it is clean;

but when water is put on the seed, and any part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you.

And when one of the beasts that are yours to eat dies, whoever touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening.

And whoever eats from its carcass shall wash his garments and be unclean until the evening; and whoever carries its carcass shall wash his garments and be unclean until the evening.

And every swarming thing that swarms on the earth is a detestable thing; it shall not be eaten.

Everything that goes on its belly, and everything that walks on all fours, up to everything with many feet — every swarming thing that swarms on the earth — you shall not eat them, for they are a detestable thing.

Do not make your souls detestable with any swarming thing that swarms, and do not make yourselves unclean with them, so that you become unclean by them.

For I am the LORD your God. And you shall consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy, for I am holy; and you shall not make your souls unclean with any swarming thing that moves on the earth.

Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am h…

He himself says, "Be holy, for I am holy," that is to say, choose me and keep away from what displeases me. Do what I love; love what I do. If what I order seems difficult, come back to me who ordered it, so that from where the command was given help might be offered. I who furnished the desire will not refuse support. Fast from contradiction, abstain from opposition.

Pious souls of the Lord, what the Lord admonishes us is not to be considered merely in passing, for he says, "Be holy because I am holy." Although this term properly belongs to all the Christian people, according to what blessed Peter says, "You, however, are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation," this term seems particularly to apply to all priests in a special way…

For I am the LORD, who brings you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. And you shall be holy, for I am holy.

This is the instruction of the beast, and the bird, and every living soul that moves in the water, and every soul that swarms on the earth —

to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean, and between the living thing that may be eaten and the living thing that shall not be eaten.”

Leviticus11

Clean and Unclean Animals