Genesis 9:3
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you, and just as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.(A)
Read full chapter
Romans 14:14
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who considers it unclean.(A)
Read full chapter
Deuteronomy 12:15
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
15 “Yet whenever you desire you may slaughter and eat meat within any of your towns, according to the blessing that the Lord your God has given you; the unclean and the clean may eat of it, as they would of gazelle or deer.(A)
Read full chapter
1 Timothy 4:3-5
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
3 They forbid marriage and abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth.(A) 4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, provided it is received with thanksgiving,(B) 5 for it is sanctified by God’s word and by prayer.
Read full chapter
Colossians 2:21-22
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? 22 All these regulations refer to things that perish with use; they are simply human commands and teachings.(A)
Read full chapter
Colossians 2:16
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
16 Therefore, do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food or[a] drink or of observing festivals, new moons, or Sabbaths.(A)
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 2.16 Other ancient authorities read and
1 Corinthians 10:31
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
31 So, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.(A)
Read full chapter
1 Corinthians 10:25-26
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
25 Eat whatever is sold in the meat market without raising any question on the ground of conscience, 26 for “the earth and its fullness are the Lord’s.”(A)
Read full chapter
1 Corinthians 10:23
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Do All to the Glory of God
23 “All things are permitted,” but not all things are beneficial. “All things are permitted,” but not all things build up.
Read full chapter
Romans 14:3
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
3 Those who eat must not despise those who abstain, and those who abstain must not pass judgment on those who eat, for God has welcomed them.
Read full chapter
Acts 10:12-15
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
12 In it were all kinds of four-footed creatures and reptiles and birds of the air. 13 Then he heard a voice saying, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat.” 14 But Peter said, “By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything that is profane or unclean.”(A) 15 The voice said to him again, a second time, “What God has made clean, you must not call profane.”(B)
Read full chapter
Psalm 104:14-15
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
14 You cause the grass to grow for the cattle
and plants for people to cultivate,
to bring forth food from the earth(A)
15 and wine to gladden the human heart,
oil to make the face shine
and bread to strengthen the human heart.(B)
Deuteronomy 14:3-21
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Clean and Unclean Foods
3 “You shall not eat any abhorrent thing. 4 These are the animals you may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat,(A) 5 the deer, the gazelle, the roebuck, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope, and the mountain sheep. 6 Any animal that divides the hoof and has the hoof cleft in two and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat. 7 Yet of those that chew the cud or have the hoof cleft you shall not eat these: the camel, the hare, and the rock badger because they chew the cud but do not divide the hoof; they are unclean for you. 8 And the pig, because it divides the hoof but does not chew the cud, is unclean for you. You shall not eat their meat, and you shall not touch their carcasses.(B)
9 “Of all that live in water you may eat these: whatever has fins and scales you may eat.(C) 10 And whatever does not have fins and scales you shall not eat; it is unclean for you.
11 “You may eat any clean birds. 12 But these are the ones that you shall not eat: the eagle, the vulture, the osprey,(D) 13 the buzzard, the kite of any kind; 14 every raven of any kind; 15 the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind; 16 the little owl and the great owl, the water hen 17 and the desert owl,[a] the carrion vulture and the cormorant, 18 the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.[b] 19 And all winged insects are unclean for you; they shall not be eaten.(E) 20 You may eat any clean winged creature.
21 “You shall not eat anything that dies of itself; you may give it to aliens residing in your towns for them to eat, or you may sell it to a foreigner. For you are a people holy to the Lord your God.
“You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.(F)
Read full chapter
Leviticus 22:8
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
8 That which died or was torn by wild animals he shall not eat, becoming unclean by it: I am the Lord.(A)
Read full chapter
Leviticus 11
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Clean and Unclean Foods
11 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, 2 “Speak to the Israelites:
“From among all the land animals, these are the creatures that you may eat.(A) 3 Any animal that has divided hoofs and is cleft-footed and chews the cud—such you may eat. 4 But among those that chew the cud or have divided hoofs, you shall not eat the following: the camel, for even though it chews the cud, it does not have divided hoofs; it is unclean for you. 5 The rock badger, for even though it chews the cud, it does not have divided hoofs; it is unclean for you. 6 The hare, for even though it chews the cud, it does not have divided hoofs; it is unclean for you. 7 The pig, for even though it has divided hoofs and is cleft-footed, it does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you.(B) 8 Of their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch; they are unclean for you.(C)
9 “These you may eat, of all that are in the waters. Everything in the waters that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the streams—such you may eat.(D) 10 But anything in the seas or the streams that does not have fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and among all the other living creatures that are in the waters—they are detestable to you,(E) 11 and detestable they shall remain. Of their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall regard as detestable. 12 Everything in the waters that does not have fins and scales is detestable to you.
13 “These you shall regard as detestable among the birds. They shall not be eaten; they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the osprey, 14 the buzzard, the kite of any kind; 15 every raven of any kind; 16 the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind; 17 the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, 18 the water hen, the desert owl,[a] the carrion vulture, 19 the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.[b]
20 “All winged insects that walk upon all fours are detestable to you. 21 But among the winged insects that walk on all fours you may eat those that have jointed legs above their feet, with which to leap on the ground. 22 Of them you may eat: locusts of every kind, bald locusts of every kind, crickets of every kind, and grasshoppers of every kind.(F) 23 But all other winged insects that have four feet are detestable to you.
Unclean Animals
24 “By these you shall become unclean; whoever touches the carcass of any of them shall be unclean until the evening, 25 and whoever carries any part of the carcass of any of them shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.(G) 26 Every animal that has divided hoofs but is not cleft-footed or does not chew the cud is unclean for you; everyone who touches one of them shall be unclean. 27 All that walk on their paws, among the animals that walk on all fours, are unclean for you; whoever touches the carcass of any of them shall be unclean until the evening, 28 and the one who carries the carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; they are unclean for you.
29 “These are unclean for you among the creatures that swarm upon the earth: the weasel, the mouse, lizards of every kind,(H) 30 the gecko, the land crocodile, the lizard, the sand lizard, and the chameleon. 31 These are unclean for you among all that swarm; whoever touches one of them when they are dead shall be unclean until the evening. 32 And anything upon which any of them falls when they are dead shall be unclean, whether an article of wood or cloth or leather or sackcloth, any article that is used for any purpose; it shall be dipped in water, and it shall be unclean until the evening, and then it shall be clean.(I) 33 And if any of them falls into any clay vessel, all that is in it shall be unclean, and you shall break the vessel.(J) 34 Any food that could be eaten shall be unclean if water from any such vessel comes upon it, and any liquid that could be drunk shall be unclean if it was in any such vessel. 35 Everything on which any part of the carcass falls shall be unclean; whether an oven or stove, it shall be broken in pieces; they are unclean and shall remain unclean for you. 36 But a spring or a cistern holding water shall be clean, while whatever touches the carcass in it shall be unclean. 37 If any part of their carcass falls upon any seed set aside for sowing, it is clean, 38 but if water is put on the seed and any part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean for you.
39 “If an animal of which you may eat dies, anyone who touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening. 40 Those who eat of its carcass shall wash their clothes and be unclean until the evening, and those who carry the carcass shall wash their clothes and be unclean until the evening.(K)
41 “All creatures that swarm upon the earth are detestable; they shall not be eaten.(L) 42 Whatever moves on its belly and whatever moves on all fours or whatever has many feet, all the creatures that swarm upon the earth you shall not eat, for they are detestable. 43 You shall not make yourselves detestable with any creature that swarms; you shall not defile yourselves with them and so become unclean.(M) 44 For I am the Lord your God; sanctify yourselves, therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming creature that moves on the earth.(N) 45 For I am the Lord who brought you up from the land of Egypt, to be your God; you shall be holy, for I am holy.(O)
46 “This is the law pertaining to land animal and bird and every living creature that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms upon the earth, 47 to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean and between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that may not be eaten.”(P)
Read full chapter
Genesis 1:29-30
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
29 God said, “See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food.(A) 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the air and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.(B)
Read full chapter
Romans 14:20
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
20 Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong to make someone stumble by what you eat;
Read full chapter
Romans 14:17
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
17 For the kingdom of God is not food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.(A)
Read full chapterNew Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.