Deuteronomy 14
Complete Jewish Bible
14 (iv) “You are the people of Adonai your God. You are not to gash yourselves or shave the hair above your foreheads in mourning for the dead, 2 because you are a people set apart as holy for Adonai your God. Adonai your God has chosen you to be his own unique treasure out of all the peoples on the face of the earth.
3 “You are not to eat anything disgusting. 4 The animals which you may eat are: ox, sheep, goat, 5 deer, gazelle, roebuck, ibex, antelope, oryx and mountain sheep. 6 Any animal that has a separate hoof that is completely divided and also chews the cud, these animals you may eat. 7 But you are not to eat those that only chew the cud or only have a divided hoof. For example, the camel, the hare and the coney are unclean for you because they chew the cud but don’t have a separate hoof; 8 while the pig is unclean for you because, although it has a separate hoof, it doesn’t chew the cud. You are not to eat meat from these or touch their carcasses.
9 “Of all that lives in the water, you may eat these: anything in the water that has fins and scales, these you may eat. 10 But whatever lacks fins and scales you are not to eat; it is unclean for you.
11 “You may eat any clean bird; 12 but these you are not to eat: eagles, vultures, ospreys, 13 kites, any kind of buzzard, 14 any kind of raven, 15 ostriches, screech-owls, seagulls, any kind of hawk, 16 little owls, great owls, horned owls, 17 pelicans, barn owls, cormorants, 18 storks, any kind of heron, hoopoes and bats.
19 “All winged swarming creatures are unclean for you; they are not to be eaten; 20 but all clean flying creatures you may eat.
21 “You are not to eat any animal that dies naturally; although you may let a stranger staying with you eat it, or sell it to a foreigner; because you are a holy people for Adonai your God.
“You are not to boil a young animal in its mother’s milk.
(v) 22 “Every year you must take one tenth of everything your seed produces in the field, 23 and eat it in the presence of Adonai your God. In the place where he chooses to have his name live you will eat the tenth of your grain, new wine and olive oil, and the firstborn of your cattle and sheep, so that you will learn to fear Adonai your God always. 24 But if the distance is too great for you, so that you are unable to transport it, because the place where Adonai chooses to put his name is too far away from you; then, when Adonai your God prospers you, 25 you are to convert it into money, take the money with you, go to the place which Adonai your God will choose, 26 and exchange the money for anything you want — cattle, sheep, wine, other intoxicating liquor, or anything you please — and you are to eat there in the presence of Adonai your God, and enjoy yourselves, you and your household.
27 “But don’t neglect the Levi staying with you, because he has no share or inheritance like yours. 28 At the end of every three years you are to take all the tenths of your produce from that year and store it in your towns. 29 Then the Levi, because he has no share or inheritance like yours, along with the foreigner, the orphan and the widow living in your towns, will come, eat and be satisfied — so that Adonai your God will bless you in everything your hands produce.
Deuteronomy 14
New King James Version
Improper Mourning
14 “You are (A)the children of the Lord your God; (B)you shall not cut yourselves nor [a]shave the front of your head for the dead. 2 (C)For you are a holy people to the Lord your God, and the Lord has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.
Clean and Unclean Meat(D)
3 (E)“You shall not eat any [b]detestable thing. 4 (F)These are the animals which you may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat, 5 the deer, the gazelle, the roe deer, the wild goat, the [c]mountain goat, the antelope, and the mountain sheep. 6 And you may eat every animal with cloven hooves, having the hoof split into two parts, and that chews the cud, among the animals. 7 Nevertheless, of those that chew the cud or have cloven hooves, you shall not eat, such as these: the camel, the hare, and the rock hyrax; for they chew the cud but do not have cloven hooves; they are unclean for you. 8 Also the swine is unclean for you, because it has cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud; you shall not eat their flesh (G)or touch their dead carcasses.
9 (H)“These you may eat of all that are in the waters: you may eat all that have fins and scales. 10 And whatever does not have fins and scales you shall not eat; it is unclean for you.
11 “All clean birds you may eat. 12 (I)But these you shall not eat: the eagle, the vulture, the buzzard, 13 the red kite, the falcon, and the kite after their kinds; 14 every raven after its kind; 15 the ostrich, the short-eared owl, the sea gull, and the hawk after their kinds; 16 the little owl, the screech owl, the white owl, 17 the jackdaw, the carrion vulture, the fisher owl, 18 the stork, the heron after its kind, and the hoopoe and the bat.
19 “Also (J)every [d]creeping thing that flies is unclean for you; (K)they shall not be eaten.
20 “You may eat all clean birds.
21 (L)“You shall not eat anything that dies of itself; you may give it to the alien who is within your gates, that he may eat it, or you may sell it to a foreigner; (M)for you are a holy people to the Lord your God.
“(N)You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.
Tithing Principles
22 (O)“You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year. 23 (P)And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of (Q)the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always. 24 But if the journey is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry the tithe, or (R)if the place where the Lord your God chooses to put His name is too far from you, when the Lord your God has blessed you, 25 then you shall exchange it for money, take the money in your hand, and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses. 26 And you shall spend that money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen or sheep, for wine or similar drink, for whatever your heart desires; you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall (S)rejoice, you and your household. 27 You shall not [e]forsake the (T)Levite who is within your gates, for he has no part nor inheritance with you.
28 (U)“At the end of every third year you shall bring out the (V)tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your gates. 29 And the Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, may come and eat and be satisfied, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.
Footnotes
- Deuteronomy 14:1 make any baldness between your eyes
- Deuteronomy 14:3 abominable
- Deuteronomy 14:5 Or addax
- Deuteronomy 14:19 swarming
- Deuteronomy 14:27 neglect
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
