Clean and Unclean Animals

(Deuteronomy 14:1-21; Acts 10:9-16)

1And Jehovah speaketh unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying unto them, 2Speak unto the sons of Israel, saying, This is the beast which ye do eat out of all the beasts which are on the earth: 3any dividing a hoof, and cleaving the cleft of the hoofs, bringing up the cud, among the beasts, it ye do eat. 4Only, this ye do not eat -- of those bringing up the cud, and of those dividing the hoof -- the camel, though it is bringing up the cud, yet the hoof not dividing -- it is unclean to you; 5and the rabbit, though it is bringing up the cud, yet the hoof it divideth not -- unclean it is to you; 6and the hare, though it is bringing up the cud, yet the hoof hath not divided -- unclean it is to you; 7and the sow, though it is dividing the hoof, and cleaving the cleft of the hoof, yet the cud it bringeth not up -- unclean it is to you. 8Of their flesh ye do not eat, and against their carcase ye do not come -- unclean they are to you.

9This ye do eat of all which are in the waters; any one that hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the brooks, them ye do eat; 10and any one that hath not fins and scales in the seas, and in the brooks, of any teeming creature of the waters, and of any creature which liveth, which is in the waters -- an abomination they are to you; 11yea, an abomination they are to you; of their flesh ye do not eat, and their carcase ye abominate. 12Any one that hath not fins and scales in the waters -- an abomination it is to you.

13And these ye do abominate of the fowl; they are not eaten, an abomination they are: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray, 14and the vulture, and the kite after its kind, 15every raven after its kind, 16and the owl, and the night-hawk, and the cuckoo, and the hawk after its kind, 17and the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl, 18and the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle, 19and the stork, the heron after its kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.

20Every teeming creature which is flying, which is going on four -- an abomination it is to you. 21'Only -- this ye do eat of any teeming thing which is flying, which is going on four, which hath legs above its feet, to move with them on the earth; 22these of them ye do eat: the locust after its kind, and the bald locust after its kind, and the beetle after its kind, and the grasshopper after its kind; 23and every teeming thing which is flying, which hath four feet -- an abomination it is to you.

24'And by these ye are made unclean, any one who is coming against their carcase is unclean till the evening; 25and anyone who is lifting up aught of their carcase doth wash his garments, and hath been unclean till the evening: -- 26even every beast which is dividing the hoof, and is not cloven-footed, and the cud is not bringing up -- unclean they are to you; any one who is coming against them is unclean. 27And any one going on its paws, among all the beasts which are going on four -- unclean they are to you; any one who is coming against their carcase is unclean until the evening; 28and he who is lifting up their carcase doth wash his garments, and hath been unclean until the evening -- unclean they are to you.

29And this is to you the unclean among the teeming things which are teeming on the earth: the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise after its kind, 30and the ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole; 31these are the unclean to you among all which are teeming; any one who is coming against them in their death is unclean till the evening. 32'And anything on which any one of them falleth, in their death, is unclean, of any vessel of wood or garment or skin or sack, any vessel in which work is done is brought into water, and hath been unclean till the evening, then it hath been clean; 33and any earthen vessel, into the midst of which any one of them falleth, all that is in its midst is unclean, and it ye do break. 34Of all the food which is eaten, that on which cometh such water, is unclean, and all drink which is drunk in any such vessel is unclean; 35and anything on which any of their carcase falleth is unclean (oven or double pots), it is broken down, unclean they are, yea, unclean they are to you. 36'Only -- a fountain or pit, a collection of water, is clean, but that which is coming against their carcase is unclean; 37and when any of their carcase falleth on any sown seed which is sown -- it is clean; 38and when water is put on the seed, and any of its carcase hath fallen on it -- unclean it is to you.

39'And when any of the beasts which are to you for food dieth, he who is coming against its carcase is unclean till the evening; 40and he who is eating of its carcase doth wash his garments, and hath been unclean till the evening; and he who is lifting up its carcase doth wash his garments, and hath been unclean till the evening.

41'And every teeming thing which is teeming on the earth is an abomination, it is not eaten; 42any thing going on the belly, and any going on four, unto every multiplier of feet, to every teeming thing which is teeming on the earth -- ye do not eat them, for they are an abomination; 43ye do not make yourselves abominable with any teeming thing which is teeming, nor do ye make yourselves unclean with them, so that ye have been unclean thereby. 44For I am Jehovah your God, and ye have sanctified yourselves, and ye have been holy, for I am holy; and ye do not defile your persons with any teeming thing which is creeping on the earth; 45for I am Jehovah who am bringing you up out of the land of Egypt to become your God; and ye have been holy, for I am holy.

46This is a law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature which is moving in the waters, and of every creature which is teeming on the earth, 47to make separation between the unclean and the pure, and between the beast that is eaten, and the beast that is not eaten.'