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Clean and Unclean Animals

11 And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, (A)These are the living things that you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth. Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat. Nevertheless, among those that chew the cud or part the hoof, you shall not eat these: The camel, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. And the (B)rock badger, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. And the hare, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you. And the pig, because it parts the hoof and is cloven-footed but does not chew the cud, (C)is unclean to you. You shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall not touch their carcasses; they are unclean to you.

“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 rivers, you may eat. 10 But anything in the seas or the rivers that has not fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in the waters, is (D)detestable to you. 11 You shall regard them as detestable; you shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses. 12 Everything in the waters that has not fins and scales is detestable to you.

13 “And these you shall detest among the birds;[a] they shall not be eaten; they are (E)detestable: (F)the eagle,[b] the bearded vulture, the black vulture, 14 the kite, (G)the falcon of any kind, 15 every raven of any kind, 16 the ostrich, the nighthawk, the seagull, the (H)hawk of any kind, 17 the (I)little owl, the cormorant, the (J)short-eared owl, 18 the barn owl, the (K)tawny owl, the carrion vulture, 19 the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and (L)the bat.

20 “All winged insects that go on all fours are detestable to you. 21 Yet among the winged insects that go on all fours you may eat those that have jointed legs above their feet, with which to hop on the ground. 22 Of them you may eat: (M)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 winged insects that have four feet are detestable to you.

24 “And by these you shall become unclean. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening, 25 and whoever carries any part of their carcass (N)shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. 26 Every animal that parts the hoof but is not cloven-footed or does not chew the cud is unclean to you. Everyone who touches them shall be unclean. 27 And all that walk on their paws, among the animals that go on all fours, are unclean to you. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening, 28 and he who carries their carcass (O)shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; they are unclean to you.

29 “And these are unclean to you among the swarming things that swarm on the ground: the mole rat, (P)the mouse, the great lizard of any kind, 30 the gecko, the monitor lizard, the lizard, the sand lizard, and the chameleon. 31 These are unclean to you among all that swarm. Whoever touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until the evening. 32 And anything on which any of them falls when they are dead shall be unclean, whether it is an article of wood or a garment or a skin or a sack, any article that is used for any purpose. (Q)It must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the evening; then it shall be clean. 33 And if any of them falls into any earthenware vessel, all that is in it shall be unclean, and you (R)shall break it. 34 Any food in it that could be eaten, on which water comes, shall be unclean. And all drink that could be drunk from every such vessel shall be unclean. 35 And everything on which any part of their carcass falls shall be unclean. Whether oven or stove, it shall be broken in pieces. They are unclean and shall remain unclean for you. 36 Nevertheless, a spring or a cistern holding water shall be clean, but whoever touches a carcass in them shall be unclean. 37 And if any part of their carcass falls upon any seed that is to be sown, it is clean, 38 but if water is put on the seed and any part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you.

39 “And if any animal which you may eat dies, whoever touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening, 40 and (S)whoever eats of its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. And whoever carries the carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.

41 (T)“Every swarming thing that swarms on the ground is detestable; it shall not be eaten. 42 Whatever goes on its belly, and whatever goes on all fours, or whatever has many feet, any swarming thing that swarms on the ground, you shall not eat, for they are detestable. 43 (U)You shall not make yourselves detestable with any swarming thing that swarms, and you shall not defile yourselves with them, and become unclean through them. 44 For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and (V)be holy, for I am holy. (W)You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming thing that crawls on the ground. 45 (X)For I am the Lord who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. (Y)You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”

46 This is the law about beast and bird and every living creature that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms on the ground, 47 (Z)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.

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 11:13 Or things that fly; compare Genesis 1:20
  2. Leviticus 11:13 The identity of many of these birds is uncertain

The Lord Is Holy

19 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, (A)You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. (B)Every one of you shall revere his mother and his father, and (C)you shall keep my Sabbaths: I am the Lord your God. (D)Do not turn to idols (E)or make for yourselves any gods of cast metal: I am the Lord your God.

(F)“When you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to the Lord, you shall offer it so (G)that you may be accepted. It shall be eaten the same day you offer it or on the day after, and anything left over until the third day shall be burned up with fire. If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is (H)tainted; it will not be accepted, and everyone who eats it shall (I)bear his iniquity, because (J)he has profaned what is holy to the Lord, and that person shall be cut off from his people.

Love Your Neighbour as Yourself

(K)“When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. 10 And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God.

11 (L)“You shall not steal; (M)you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another. 12 (N)You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so (O)profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.

13 (P)“You shall not oppress your neighbour or rob him. (Q)The wages of a hired servant shall not remain with you all night until the morning. 14 (R)You shall not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall (S)fear your God: I am the Lord.

15 (T)“You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbour. 16 (U)You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not (V)stand up against the life[a] of your neighbour: I am the Lord.

17 (W)“You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but (X)you shall reason frankly with your neighbour, lest you (Y)incur sin because of him. 18 (Z)You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but (AA)you shall love your neighbour as yourself: I am the Lord.

You Shall Keep My Statutes

19 (AB)“You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your cattle breed with a different kind. (AC)You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor shall you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material.

20 “If a man lies sexually with a woman who is a slave, assigned to another man and not yet ransomed or given her freedom, a distinction shall be made. They shall not be put to death, because she was not free; 21 but (AD)he shall bring his compensation to the Lord, to the entrance of the tent of meeting, a ram for a guilt offering. 22 And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering before the Lord for his sin that he has committed, and he shall be forgiven for the sin that he has committed.

23 “When you come into the land and plant any kind of tree for food, then you shall regard its fruit as forbidden.[b] For three years it shall be forbidden to you; it must not be eaten. 24 And in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, an offering of praise to the Lord. 25 But in the fifth year you may eat of its fruit, to increase its yield for you: I am the Lord your God.

26 (AE)“You shall not eat any flesh with the blood in it. (AF)You shall not interpret omens or (AG)tell fortunes. 27 (AH)You shall not round off the hair on your temples or mar the edges of your beard. 28 You shall not make any (AI)cuts on your body for the dead or tattoo yourselves: I am the Lord.

29 (AJ)“Do not profane your daughter by making her a prostitute, lest the land fall into prostitution and the land become full of depravity. 30 (AK)You shall keep my Sabbaths and (AL)reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord.

31 (AM)“Do not turn to mediums or necromancers; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God.

32 (AN)“You shall stand up before the grey head and honour the face of an old man, and you shall (AO)fear your God: I am the Lord.

33 (AP)“When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. 34 (AQ)You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and (AR)you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.

35 (AS)“You shall do no wrong in judgement, in measures of length or weight or quantity. 36 (AT)You shall have just balances, just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin:[c] I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. 37 And (AU)you shall observe all my statutes and all my rules, and do them: I am the Lord.”

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 19:16 Hebrew blood
  2. Leviticus 19:23 Hebrew as its uncircumcision
  3. Leviticus 19:36 An ephah was about 3/5 of a bushel or 22 litres; a hin was about 4 quarts or 3.5 litres

Punishment for Child Sacrifice

20 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Say to the people of Israel, (A)Any one of the people of Israel or of the strangers who sojourn in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones. (B)I myself will set my face against that man and will cut him off from among his people, because he has given one of his children to Molech, to make my sanctuary (C)unclean and (D)to profane my holy name. And if the people of the land do at all close their eyes to that man when he gives one of his children to Molech, and do not (E)put him to death, then I will set my face against that man and against his clan and will cut them off from among their people, him and all who follow him in (F)whoring after Molech.

“If (G)a person turns to mediums and necromancers, whoring after them, (H)I will set my face against that person and will cut him off from among his people. (I)Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God. (J)Keep my statutes and do them; (K)I am the Lord who sanctifies you. For (L)anyone who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death; he has cursed his father or his mother; (M)his blood is upon him.

Punishments for Sexual Immorality

10 “If a (N)man commits adultery with the wife of[a] his neighbour, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. 11 (O)If a man lies with his father's wife, he has uncovered his father's nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. 12 (P)If a man lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death; they have committed (Q)perversion; their blood is upon them. 13 (R)If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them. 14 (S)If a man takes a woman and her mother also, it is depravity; he and they shall be burned with fire, that there may be no depravity among you. 15 (T)If a man lies with an animal, he shall surely be put to death, and you shall kill the animal. 16 (U)If a woman approaches any animal and lies with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall surely be put to death; their blood is upon them.

17 (V)“If a man takes his sister, a daughter of his father or a daughter of his mother, and sees her nakedness, and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace, and they shall be cut off in the sight of the children of their people. He has uncovered his sister's nakedness, and he shall bear his iniquity. 18 (W)If a man lies with a woman during her menstrual period and uncovers her nakedness, he has made naked her fountain, and she has uncovered the fountain of her blood. Both of them shall be cut off from among their people. 19 (X)You shall not uncover the nakedness of your mother's sister or of your father's sister, for that is to make naked (Y)one's relative; they shall bear their iniquity. 20 (Z)If a man lies with his uncle's wife, he has uncovered his uncle's nakedness; they shall bear their sin; they shall die childless. 21 (AA)If a man takes his brother's wife, it is impurity.[b] He has uncovered his brother's nakedness; they shall be childless.

You Shall Be Holy

22 (AB)“You shall therefore keep all my statutes and all my rules and do them, that the land where I am bringing you to live may not (AC)vomit you out. 23 (AD)And you shall not walk in the customs of the nation that I am driving out before you, for they did all these things, and therefore I detested them. 24 But (AE)I have said to you, ‘You shall inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess, a land (AF)flowing with milk and honey.’ I am the Lord your God, (AG)who has separated you from the peoples. 25 (AH)You shall therefore separate the clean beast from the unclean, and the unclean bird from the clean. You shall not make yourselves detestable by beast or by bird or by anything with which the ground crawls, which I have set apart for you to hold unclean. 26 (AI)You shall be holy to me, (AJ)for I the Lord am holy and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine.

27 (AK)“A man or a woman who is a medium or a necromancer shall surely be put to death. They shall be (AL)stoned with stones; (AM)their blood shall be upon them.”

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 20:10 Hebrew repeats if a man commits adultery with the wife of
  2. Leviticus 20:21 Literally menstrual impurity