Leviticus 11
Amplified Bible
Laws about Animals for Food
11 The Lord spoke again to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, 2 “Speak to the children of Israel, saying, ‘Among all the animals which are on the earth, these are the animals which you may eat.(A) 3 You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof [that is, a hoof split into two parts especially at its distal extremity] and chews the cud. 4 Nevertheless, you are not to eat these, among those which chew the cud or divide the hoof: the camel, because it chews the cud but does not divide the hoof; it is [ceremonially] unclean to you. 5 And the [a]shaphan, because it chews the cud but does not divide the hoof; it is unclean to you. 6 And the hare, because it chews the cud but does not divide the hoof; it is unclean to you. 7 And the swine, because it divides the hoof and makes a split hoof, but does not chew the cud; it is unclean to you. 8 You shall not eat their meat nor touch their carcasses; they are unclean to you.
9 ‘These you may eat, whatever is in the water: whatever has fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, these you may eat; 10 but whatever does not have fins and scales in the seas and in the rivers, of all the teeming life in the waters, and of all the living creatures that are in the waters, they are [to be considered] detestable to you.(B) 11 They shall be [b]hated things to you. You may not eat their meat; you shall detest their carcasses. 12 Everything in the water that does not have fins and scales is detestable to you.
Avoid the Unclean
13 ‘These you shall detest among the birds; they are not to be eaten, for they are [c]hated things: the eagle and the vulture and the buzzard, 14 the kite, every kind of falcon, 15 every kind of raven, 16 the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, every species of hawk, 17 the little owl and the cormorant and the great owl, 18 the white owl, the pelican, the carrion vulture, 19 the stork, all kinds of heron, the hoopoe, and the bat.
20 ‘All winged insects that walk on all fours are detestable to you; 21 yet of all winged insects that walk on all fours you may eat those which have legs above their feet with which to leap on the ground. 22 Of these you may eat: the whole species of migratory locust, of bald locust, of cricket, and of grasshopper.(C) 23 But all other winged insects which are four footed are detestable to you.
24 ‘By [contact with] these you will become unclean; whoever touches their carcasses becomes unclean until the evening (dusk), 25 and whoever picks up any of their carcasses shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. 26 Concerning all the animals which divide the hoof, but do not have a split hoof, or which do not chew the cud, they are unclean to you; whoever touches them becomes unclean. 27 Also all animals that walk on their paws, among all kinds of animals that walk on four legs, are unclean to you; whoever touches their carcasses becomes unclean until the evening, 28 and the one who picks up their carcasses shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; they are unclean to you.
29 ‘These also are unclean to you among the swarming things that crawl around on the ground [and multiply profusely]: the mole, the mouse, and any kind of great lizard, 30 the gecko, the crocodile, the lizard, the sand reptile, and the chameleon. 31 These [creatures] are unclean to you among all that swarm; whoever touches them when they are dead becomes unclean until evening. 32 Also anything on which one of them falls after dying becomes unclean, whether it is an article of wood or clothing, or a skin, or a sack—any article that is used—it must be put in water, and will be unclean until the evening; then it becomes clean. 33 As for any earthenware container into which any of these [crawling things] falls, whatever is in it becomes unclean, and you shall break the container. 34 Any of the food which may be eaten, but on which [unclean] water falls, shall become unclean, and any liquid that may be drunk in every container shall become unclean. 35 Everything that part of their carcass falls on becomes unclean; an oven, or a small stove shall be smashed; they are unclean, and shall be unclean to you. 36 Nevertheless a spring or a cistern (reservoir) collecting water shall be clean; but whoever touches one of these carcasses shall be unclean. 37 If a part of their carcass falls on any seed for sowing which is to be sown, it is clean; 38 but if water is put on the seed and a part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you.
39 ‘If one of the animals that you may eat dies [of natural causes], whoever touches its carcass becomes unclean until the evening. 40 And whoever eats some of its meat shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until evening; also whoever picks up its carcass shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the evening.
41 ‘Now everything that swarms on the ground is detestable; it is not to be eaten. 42 Whatever crawls on its belly, and whatever walks on all fours, and whatever has many feet among all things that swarm on the ground, you shall not eat; for they are detestable. 43 Do not make yourselves loathsome (impure, repulsive) by [eating] any swarming thing; you shall not make yourselves unclean by them so as to defile yourselves. 44 For I am the Lord your God; so consecrate yourselves and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm or crawls on the ground.(D) 45 For I am the Lord who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God; therefore you shall be holy, for I am holy.’”(E)
46 This is the law regarding the animal and the bird and every living thing that moves in the waters and everything that swarms on the earth, 47 to make a distinction between the [ceremonially] unclean and the [ceremonially] clean, and between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.
Footnotes
- Leviticus 11:5 A small, shy fury animal (Hyrax syriacus) found in the peninsula of the Sinai, northern Israel, and the region around the Dead Sea; kjv coney, original NASB rock badger.
- Leviticus 11:11 Lit detestable things.
- Leviticus 11:13 Lit detestable things.
Leviticus 11
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Clean and Unclean Land Animals
11 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: 2 “Tell the Israelites: You may eat(A) all these kinds of land animals.(B) 3 You may eat any animal with divided hooves and that chews the cud. 4 But among the ones that chew the cud or have divided hooves you are not to eat these:
the camel,(C) though it chews the cud,
does not have divided hooves—it is unclean for you;
5 the hyrax,[a](D) though it chews the cud,
does not have hooves—it is unclean for you;
6 the hare, though it chews the cud,
does not have hooves—it is unclean for you;
7 the pig, though it has divided hooves,
does not chew the cud—it is unclean for you.
8 Do not eat any of their meat or touch their carcasses—they are unclean for you.(E)
Clean and Unclean Aquatic Animals
9 “This is what you may eat from all that is in the water: You may eat everything in the water that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or streams. 10 But these are to be detestable to you: everything in the seas or streams that does not have fins and scales among all the swarming things and other living creatures(F) in the water. 11 They are to remain detestable to you; you must not eat any of their meat, and you must detest their carcasses. 12 Everything in the water that does not have fins and scales will be detestable to you.
Unclean Birds
13 “You are to detest these birds. They must not be eaten because they are detestable:
the eagle,[b](G) the bearded[c] vulture,
the black vulture,[d] 14 the kite,[e]
any kind of falcon,[f](H)
15 every kind of raven, 16 the ostrich,[g]
the short-eared owl,[h] the gull,[i]
any kind of hawk,(I)
17 the little[j] owl, the cormorant,[k]
the long-eared owl,[l](J)
18 the white[m] owl, the desert owl,[n](K)
the osprey,[o] 19 the stork,[p]
any kind of heron,[q]
the hoopoe, and the bat.
Clean and Unclean Flying Insects
20 “All winged insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you. 21 But you may eat these kinds of all the winged insects that walk on all fours: those that have jointed legs above their feet for hopping on the ground. 22 You may eat these:
any kind of locust,(L) katydid, cricket, and grasshopper.
23 All other winged insects that have four feet are to be detestable to you.
Purification after Touching Dead Animals
24 “These will make you unclean. Whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean(M) until evening, 25 and whoever carries any of their carcasses must wash his clothes and will be unclean until evening.(N) 26 All animals that have hooves but do not have a divided hoof and do not chew the cud are unclean for you. Whoever touches them becomes unclean. 27 All the four-footed animals(O) that walk on their paws are unclean for you. Whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean until evening, 28 and anyone who carries their carcasses must wash his clothes and will be unclean until evening. They are unclean for you.
29 “These creatures that swarm(P) on the ground are unclean for you:
the weasel,[r] the mouse,(Q)
any kind of large lizard,[s]
30 the gecko, the monitor lizard,[t]
the common lizard,[u] the skink,[v]
and the chameleon.[w]
31 These are unclean for you among all the swarming creatures. Whoever touches them when they are dead will be unclean until evening. 32 When any one of them dies and falls on anything it becomes unclean—any item of wood, clothing, leather, sackcloth,(R) or any implement used for work. It is to be rinsed with water and will remain unclean until evening; then it will be clean. 33 If any of them falls into any clay pot, everything in it will become unclean; you must break it. 34 Any edible food(S) coming into contact with that unclean water will become unclean, and any drinkable liquid in any container will become unclean. 35 Anything one of their carcasses falls on will become unclean. If it is an oven or stove, it must be smashed; it is unclean and will remain unclean for you. 36 A spring or cistern containing water will remain clean, but someone who touches a carcass in it will become unclean. 37 If one of their carcasses falls on any seed that is to be sown, it is clean; 38 but if water has been put on the seed and one of their carcasses falls on it, it is unclean for you.
39 “If one of the animals that you use for food dies,[x] anyone who touches its carcass will be unclean until evening. 40 Anyone who eats some of its carcass must wash his clothes and will be unclean until evening. Anyone who carries its carcass must wash his clothes and will be unclean until evening.
Unclean Swarming Creatures
41 “All the creatures that swarm on the earth are detestable; they must not be eaten. 42 Do not eat any of the creatures that swarm on the earth, anything that moves on its belly or walks on all fours or on many feet,[y] for they are detestable. 43 Do not become contaminated by any creature that swarms; do not become unclean or defiled by them. 44 For I am Yahweh your God,(T) so you must consecrate yourselves(U) and be holy because I am holy.(V) You must not defile yourselves by any swarming creature that crawls on the ground. 45 For I am Yahweh, who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God,(W) so you must be holy because I am holy.(X)
46 “This is the law concerning animals, birds, all living creatures that move in the water, and all creatures that swarm on the ground, 47 in order to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between the animals(Y) that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.”
Footnotes
- Leviticus 11:5 A rabbit-like animal
- Leviticus 11:13 Or griffon-vulture
- Leviticus 11:13 Or black
- Leviticus 11:13 Or the osprey, or the bearded vulture
- Leviticus 11:14 Or hawk
- Leviticus 11:14 Or buzzards, or hawks
- Leviticus 11:16 Or eagle owl
- Leviticus 11:16 Or the night hawk, or the screech owl
- Leviticus 11:16 Or long-eared owl
- Leviticus 11:17 Or tawny
- Leviticus 11:17 Or fisher owl, or pelican
- Leviticus 11:17 Or the ibis
- Leviticus 11:18 Or little
- Leviticus 11:18 Or the pelican, or the horned owl
- Leviticus 11:18 Or Egyptian vulture
- Leviticus 11:19 Or heron
- Leviticus 11:19 Or cormorant, or hawk
- Leviticus 11:29 Or mole rat, or rat
- Leviticus 11:29 Or of thorn-tailed or dabb lizard, or of crocodile
- Leviticus 11:30 Or the spotted lizard, or the chameleon
- Leviticus 11:30 Or the gecko, or the newt, or the salamander
- Leviticus 11:30 Or sand lizard, or newt, or snail
- Leviticus 11:30 Or salamander, or mole
- Leviticus 11:39 Dies of itself or by predators; this does not apply to animals slaughtered for food.
- Leviticus 11:42 Lit fours, to anything multiplying pairs of feet
Leviticus 11
New Living Translation
Ceremonially Clean and Unclean Animals
11 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel.
“Of all the land animals, these are the ones you may use for food. 3 You may eat any animal that has completely split hooves and chews the cud. 4 You may not, however, eat the following animals[a] that have split hooves or that chew the cud, but not both. The camel chews the cud but does not have split hooves, so it is ceremonially unclean for you. 5 The hyrax[b] chews the cud but does not have split hooves, so it is unclean. 6 The hare chews the cud but does not have split hooves, so it is unclean. 7 The pig has evenly split hooves but does not chew the cud, so it is unclean. 8 You may not eat the meat of these animals or even touch their carcasses. They are ceremonially unclean for you.
9 “Of all the marine animals, these are ones you may use for food. You may eat anything from the water if it has both fins and scales, whether taken from salt water or from streams. 10 But you must never eat animals from the sea or from rivers that do not have both fins and scales. They are detestable to you. This applies both to little creatures that live in shallow water and to all creatures that live in deep water. 11 They will always be detestable to you. You must never eat their meat or even touch their dead bodies. 12 Any marine animal that does not have both fins and scales is detestable to you.
13 “These are the birds that are detestable to you. You must never eat them: the griffon vulture, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, 14 the kite, falcons of all kinds, 15 ravens of all kinds, 16 the eagle owl, the short-eared owl, the seagull, hawks of all kinds, 17 the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, 18 the barn owl, the desert owl, the Egyptian vulture, 19 the stork, herons of all kinds, the hoopoe, and the bat.
20 “You must not eat winged insects that walk along the ground; they are detestable to you. 21 You may, however, eat winged insects that walk along the ground and have jointed legs so they can jump. 22 The insects you are permitted to eat include all kinds of locusts, bald locusts, crickets, and grasshoppers. 23 All other winged insects that walk along the ground are detestable to you.
24 “The following creatures will make you ceremonially unclean. If any of you touch their carcasses, you will be defiled until evening. 25 If you pick up their carcasses, you must wash your clothes, and you will remain defiled until evening.
26 “Any animal that has split hooves that are not evenly divided or that does not chew the cud is unclean for you. If you touch the carcass of such an animal, you will be defiled. 27 Of the animals that walk on all fours, those that have paws are unclean. If you touch the carcass of such an animal, you will be defiled until evening. 28 If you pick up its carcass, you must wash your clothes, and you will remain defiled until evening. These animals are unclean for you.
29 “Of the small animals that scurry along the ground, these are unclean for you: the mole rat, the rat, large lizards of all kinds, 30 the gecko, the monitor lizard, the common lizard, the sand lizard, and the chameleon. 31 All these small animals are unclean for you. If any of you touch the dead body of such an animal, you will be defiled until evening. 32 If such an animal dies and falls on something, that object will be unclean. This is true whether the object is made of wood, cloth, leather, or burlap. Whatever its use, you must dip it in water, and it will remain defiled until evening. After that, it will be ceremonially clean and may be used again.
33 “If such an animal falls into a clay pot, everything in the pot will be defiled, and the pot must be smashed. 34 If the water from such a container spills on any food, the food will be defiled. And any beverage in such a container will be defiled. 35 Any object on which the carcass of such an animal falls will be defiled. If it is an oven or hearth, it must be destroyed, for it is defiled, and you must treat it accordingly.
36 “However, if the carcass of such an animal falls into a spring or a cistern, the water will still be clean. But anyone who touches the carcass will be defiled. 37 If the carcass falls on seed grain to be planted in the field, the seed will still be considered clean. 38 But if the seed is wet when the carcass falls on it, the seed will be defiled.
39 “If an animal you are permitted to eat dies and you touch its carcass, you will be defiled until evening. 40 If you eat any of its meat or carry away its carcass, you must wash your clothes, and you will remain defiled until evening.
41 “All small animals that scurry along the ground are detestable, and you must never eat them. 42 This includes all animals that slither along on their bellies, as well as those with four legs and those with many feet. All such animals that scurry along the ground are detestable, and you must never eat them. 43 Do not defile yourselves by touching them. You must not make yourselves ceremonially unclean because of them. 44 For I am the Lord your God. You must consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. So do not defile yourselves with any of these small animals that scurry along the ground. 45 For I, the Lord, am the one who brought you up from the land of Egypt, that I might be your God. Therefore, you must be holy because I am holy.
46 “These are the instructions regarding land animals, birds, marine creatures, and animals that scurry along the ground. 47 By these instructions you will know what is unclean and clean, and which animals may be eaten and which may not be eaten.”
Leviticus 11
The Message
Foods
11 1-2 God spoke to Moses and Aaron: “Speak to the People of Israel. Tell them, Of all the animals on Earth, these are the animals that you may eat:
3-8 “You may eat any animal that has a split hoof, divided in two, and that chews the cud, but not an animal that only chews the cud or only has a split hoof. For instance, the camel chews the cud but doesn’t have a split hoof, so it’s unclean. The rock badger chews the cud but doesn’t have a split hoof and so it’s unclean. The rabbit chews the cud but doesn’t have a split hoof so is unclean. The pig has a split hoof, divided in two, but doesn’t chew the cud and so is unclean. You may not eat their meat nor touch their carcasses; they are unclean to you.
9-12 “Among the creatures that live in the water of the seas and streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales. But anything that doesn’t have fins and scales, whether in seas or streams, whether small creatures in the shallows or huge creatures in the deeps, you are to detest. Yes, detest them. Don’t eat their meat; detest their carcasses. Anything living in the water that doesn’t have fins and scales is detestable to you.
13-19 “These are the birds you are to detest. Don’t eat them. They are detestable: eagle, vulture, osprey, kite, all falcons, all ravens, ostrich, nighthawk, sea gull, all hawks, owl, cormorant, ibis, water hen, pelican, Egyptian vulture, stork, all herons, hoopoe, bat.
20-23 “All flying insects that walk on all fours are detestable to you. But you can eat some of these, namely, those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground: all locusts, katydids, crickets, and grasshoppers. But all the other flying insects that have four legs you are to detest.
24-25 “You will make yourselves ritually unclean until evening if you touch their carcasses. If you pick up one of their carcasses you must wash your clothes and you’ll be unclean until evening.
26 “Every animal that has a split hoof that’s not completely divided, or that doesn’t chew the cud is unclean for you; if you touch the carcass of any of them you become unclean.
27-28 “Every four-footed animal that goes on its paws is unclean for you; if you touch its carcass you are unclean until evening. If you pick up its carcass you must wash your clothes and are unclean until evening. They are unclean for you.
29-38 “Among the creatures that crawl on the ground, the following are unclean for you: weasel, rat, all lizards, gecko, monitor lizard, wall lizard, skink, chameleon. Among the crawling creatures, these are unclean for you. If you touch them when they are dead, you are ritually unclean until evening. When one of them dies and falls on something, that becomes unclean no matter what it’s used for, whether it’s made of wood, cloth, hide, or sackcloth. Put it in the water—it’s unclean until evening, and then it’s clean. If one of these dead creatures falls into a clay pot, everything in the pot is unclean and you must break the pot. Any food that could be eaten but has water on it from such a pot is unclean, and any liquid that could be drunk from it is unclean. Anything that one of these carcasses falls on is unclean—an oven or cooking pot must be broken up; they’re unclean and must be treated as unclean. A spring, though, or a cistern for collecting water remains clean, but if you touch one of these carcasses you’re ritually unclean. If a carcass falls on any seeds that are to be planted, they remain clean. But if water has been put on the seed and a carcass falls on it, you must treat it as unclean.
39-40 “If an animal that you are permitted to eat dies, anyone who touches the carcass is ritually unclean until evening. If you eat some of the carcass you must wash your clothes and you are unclean until evening. If you pick up the carcass you must wash your clothes and are unclean until evening.
41-43 “Creatures that crawl on the ground are detestable and not to be eaten. Don’t eat creatures that crawl on the ground, whether on their belly or on all fours or on many feet—they are detestable. Don’t make yourselves unclean or be defiled by them, because I am your God.
44-45 “Make yourselves holy for I am holy. Don’t make yourselves ritually unclean by any creature that crawls on the ground. I am God who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Be holy because I am holy.
46-47 “These are the instructions on animals, birds, fish, and creatures that crawl on the ground. You have to distinguish between the ritually unclean and the clean, between living creatures that can be eaten and those that cannot be eaten.”
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