Leviticus 11:1-27

Modern English Version

Clean and Unclean Foods^(A)

11 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them: ² Speak to the children of Israel, saying: These are the living things which you shall eat among all the animals that are on the earth. ³ Whatever animal has a parted hoof (that is, split-hoofed), and chews the cud among the animals, that one you shall eat.

⁴ Nevertheless these you shall not eat of those that chew the cud or of those that have a divided hoof: The camel, because it chews the cud but does not have a divided hoof, is unclean to you; ⁵ the rock badger, because it chews the cud but does not have a divided hoof, is unclean to you; ⁶ the hare, because it chews the cud but does not have a divided hoof, is unclean to you; ⁷ the pig, though it does have a divided hoof (that is, split-hoofed), yet it does not chew the cud, is unclean to you; ⁸ you shall not eat of their flesh, and their carcasses you must not touch; they are unclean to you.

⁹ These you shall eat of all that are in the waters: Whatever has fins and scales in the waters, in the seas and in the rivers, these you shall eat; ¹⁰ all that do not have fins and scales in the seas and in the rivers, from all that move in the waters and from any living thing that is in the waters, they are detestable to you; ¹¹ they shall be detestable to you. You shall not eat of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses. ¹² Whatever has no fins or scales in the waters is detestable to you.

¹³ These you shall detest among the birds; they shall not be eaten; they are detestable: the griffon vulture, the bearded vulture, and the black vulture, ¹⁴ the kite, and buzzard of any kind, ¹⁵ the raven of any kind, ¹⁶ and the eagle owl, the short-eared and long-eared owls, and the hawk of any kind, ¹⁷ and the little owl, the cormorant, and the screech owl, ¹⁸ and the white owl, the scops owl, and the osprey, ¹⁹ and the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.

²⁰ All flying insects that walk, moving on all fours, shall be detestable to you. ²¹ Yet these you may eat of every flying insect that creeps on all fours: those that have jointed legs above their feet with which to hop on the ground. ²² Even of these you may eat: the locust of any kind, the bald locust of any kind, the cricket of any kind, and the grasshopper of any kind. ²³ But all other flying insects that have four feet shall be detestable to you.

²⁴ And by these you shall be unclean. Whoever touches the carcass of these shall be unclean until the evening.

Unclean Animals

²⁵ Whoever carries any of the carcasses of these shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. ²⁶ The carcass of every animal that divides the hoof but is not completely split-hoofed nor chews the cud is unclean to you. Everyone who touches them shall be unclean. ²⁷ Whatever animal that walks on its paws, among all manner of animals that go on all fours, those are unclean to you. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening.