Leviticus 11

Rules about animals that people may eat

1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 ‘Tell the Israelites, “These are the animals that you may eat from among the animals which live on the land. 3 You may eat animals which have feet in two separate parts. They must also be animals which bring their food back into their mouths and eat it again.

4 Some animals have feet in two separate parts but they do not eat their food twice. Other animals eat their food twice but their feet do not have two separate parts. You must not eat those animals. Camels eat their food twice but their feet are not in two separate parts. So camels are not clean for you to eat. 5 Rock badgers also eat their food twice but their feet are not in two separate parts. So they are also unclean. 6 Rabbits also eat their food twice but their feet are not in two separate parts. They are unclean too. 7 Pigs have feet that are in two completely separate parts. But pigs do not bring their food back to eat it a second time. So pigs are not clean for you to eat. 8 You must not eat the meat from these animals. You must not touch their dead bodies. They are unclean animals for you.

9 These are the rules about animals that live in rivers or in the sea. If they have both fins and scales on their bodies, you may eat them. 10 But you must not eat anything that does not have both fins and scales. That includes fish or any other animals that live in water. They are disgusting for you. 11 So do not eat their meat or touch their dead bodies. 12 Any fish or other animals that live in water and do not have both fins and scales are unclean. Keep away from them.

13 These are the rules about birds. These birds are disgusting so do not eat them: eagles, vultures, 14-19 buzzards, kites, all kinds of crows, different kinds of owls, seagulls, hawks, cormorants, ospreys, herons, hoopoes and bats.

20 These are the rules about insects that fly in the air and also walk on the ground. They are disgusting and you must not eat them. 21 But some of these insects have legs that they can use to jump. You may eat those kinds of insects. 22 You may eat any kinds of locusts, crickets and grasshoppers. 23 But you must not eat any other insects that fly and they also walk on the ground.

24 All these animals will make you unclean if you touch the dead body of one of them. If you do touch one, you will be unclean until the evening. 25 If you carry a body of one of these animals, you must wash your clothes. But you will still be unclean until the evening.

26 Do not touch an animal that does not have feet in two completely separate parts. Do not touch an animal that does not bring food back into its mouth to eat it again. If you touch the dead body of any of these animals, you become unclean. 27 Do not touch the dead body of an animal that has paws to walk on. If you do touch one, you will be unclean until the evening. 28 If you carry a body of one of these animals, you must wash your clothes. But you will still be unclean until the evening. These animals are unclean for you.

29-30 These are the rules about animals that move near to the ground. These animals are unclean for you: moles, rats, different kinds of lizards, geckos and chameleons. 31 If you touch the dead body of one of them, you will be unclean until the evening. 32 If one of them dies and it falls onto something, that thing becomes unclean too. That includes things made of wood, leather or sackcloth, whatever people use them for. You must put it into water. It will be unclean until the evening. Then it will be clean again.

33 If one of these dead animals falls into a clay pot, everything in the pot becomes unclean. You must break the pot. 34 If you pour water from the pot onto food, the food becomes unclean. Anything in the pot which you could drink also becomes unclean. 35 If one of these dead animals falls onto something, that thing becomes unclean, whatever it is. If it is an oven or a cooking pot, you must break it into pieces. It has become unclean and you must not use it.

36 But if one of these dead animals falls into a spring of water, the water will still be clean. The same is true if it falls into a well where people keep clean water. But the person who removes the dead animal will become unclean. 37 If one of these dead animals falls onto some dry seeds, they will still be clean. You may plant them in your fields. 38 But if the seeds are wet and the dead animal falls onto them, they become unclean. Do not use them.

39 An animal that is good for food might die. If anyone touches its dead body, he will be unclean until the evening. 40 If anyone eats meat from it, he must wash his clothes. He will still be unclean until the evening. If a person carries the body of the dead animal, he must wash his clothes. He will be unclean until the evening.

41 You must not eat small animals that move across the ground. 42 This includes animals that move along the ground on their stomachs and animals that walk on four legs or on many legs. All those things that move near to the ground are disgusting. Do not eat them. 43 Do not allow those small animals to make you unclean. Do not become disgusting yourselves, as they are.

44 I am the Lord your God. So keep yourselves separate from these unclean things. You must be holy, because I am holy. Make yourselves holy. Do not allow any of these small animals that move across the ground to make you unclean. 45 I am the Lord. I brought you out of the land of Egypt so that I would be your God. So you must be holy, because I am holy.

46 These are the rules about animals which live on the land, about the birds, about all the animals that live in water and about all the animals which move across the ground. 47 You must learn the difference between animals that are unclean and animals that are clean. You must know which animals you may eat and which animals you must not eat.” ’