Clean and Unclean Animals
(Deuteronomy 14:1–21; Acts 10:9–16)

1And YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, 2“Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘This is the living thing that you⁺ may eat among all the beasts that are on the earth: 3Any dividing a hoof, and cleaving the cleft of the hooves, and chewing the cud among the livestock, you⁺ may eat.

4Nevertheless this you⁺ shall not eat among those that chew the cud, and of those dividing the hoof:†

The camel, though it chews the cud, yet the hoof is not dividing—it is unclean to you⁺.

5And the rock badger,† though it chews the cud, yet the hoof is not divided—it is unclean to you⁺.

6And the hare, though it chews the cud, yet the hoof has not divided—to you⁺ it is unclean.

7And the swine, though it is dividing the hoof and cleaving the cleft of the hoof, yet the cud it does not chew—it is unclean to you⁺.

8Their flesh you⁺ shall not eat, and their carcasses you⁺ shall not touch—they are unclean to you⁺.

9This you⁺ may eat of all that are in the waters: All that to it has fins and scales in the waters, whether in the seas or in the rivers, you⁺ may eat.

10And all that do not have fins and scales in the seas, or in the rivers, all that move in the waters, or anything living and thtat is in the waters—they are an abomination to you⁺. 11And an abomination they shall be to you⁺; their flesh you⁺ shall not eat, and their carcasses you⁺ shall regard as an abomination. 12All that does not have fins or scales in the waters—it is an abomination to you⁺.

13And these you⁺ shall detest among the birds; they shall not be eaten; they are an abomination:

The eagle, and the bearded vulture, and the black vulture,

14and the kite, and the falcon after its kind,

15every raven after its kind,

16and the daughter of the ostrich,† and the screech owl, and the gull, and the hawk after its kind,

17and the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,

18and the white owl, and the desert owl, and the osprey,

19and the stork, the heron after its kind, and

the hoopoe, and the bat.

20All the flying insects that creep, going on four legs, shall be an abomination to you⁺. 21Yet this you⁺ may eat of every flying insect that creeps on all fours: Those that do not have jointed legs above their feet with which to leap on the earth. 22These you⁺ may eat: The locust after its kind, and the katydid after its kind, and the cricket after its kind, and the grasshopper after its kind. 23And all the flying insects that have unto them four feet shall be an abomination to you⁺.

24And by these you⁺ shall become unclean; whoever touches the carcass of any of them shall be unclean until the evening. 25And whoever carries their carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.

26Of any animal that is dividing the hoof, and is not a divided split hoof, or the cud does not chew, it is unclean to you⁺. Everyone who touches them shall be unclean.

27And whatever goes on its paws among all kinds of living things that go on four, those are unclean to you⁺. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening. 28And whoever carries their carcasses shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening—they are unclean to you⁺.

29And this is unclean to you⁺ among the swarming things that swarm on the earth: The mole, and the mouse, and the large lizard after its kind, 30and the gecko, and the monitor lizard, and the lizard, and the skink, and the chameleon.

31These are unclean to you⁺ among all that creep; whoever touches them in their death shall be unclean until the evening. 32And that on which one of them falls in their death shall be unclean, whether it is any item of wood, or clothing, or leather, or sackcloth. Whatever item it is in which work is done, it must be put in the water, and it shall be unclean until the evening; then it shall be clean. 33And any earthen vessel that falls of them into its midst, all that is in it shall be unclean, and you⁺ shall break it. 34From it any food that may be eaten, on which water falls, it becomes unclean, and any drink that may be drunk in such a vessel becomes unclean.

35And everything on which their carcass falls, it shall be unclean. Whether an oven or cooking pot, it shall be broken down. They are unclean, and they shall be unclean to you⁺. 36Nevertheless, a spring or a cistern, a collection of water, shall be clean, and whatever touches any such carcass becomes unclean. 37And if their carcass falls on any planting seed that is to be sown, it is clean. 38But if water is put on the seed, and if any such carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you⁺.

39And if any animal that is food for you⁺ dies, he who touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening. 40And He who eats of its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; and he who carries its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.

41And every creeping thing that creeps on the earth is an abomination; it shall not be eaten. 42Whatever crawls on its belly and whatever goes on four, or whatever has many feet among all creeping things that creep on the earth, you⁺ shall not eat, for they are an abomination.

43You⁺ shall not make yourselves detestable with any creeping thing that creeps, nor shall you⁺ make yourselves unclean with them and be defiled by them. 44For I am YHWH your⁺ God. Therefore you⁺ shall consecrate yourselves, and you⁺ shall be holy, because I am holy.† And neither shall you⁺ defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth. 45For I am YHWH, the One bringing you⁺ up out of the land of Egypt, to be your⁺ God; therefore you⁺ shall be holy, because I am holy.

46This is the law of the animals and the birds and every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps on the earth, 47to distinguish between the unclean and between the clean, and between the animal that may be eaten and between the animal that may not be eaten.’”