Leviticus Chapter 11 to 12 : Easy-to-Read Version  | SearchSearch | Next Version | Previous Page | Next Page |

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Rules about Eating Meat 

11 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2“Tell the people of Israel: These are the animals you can eat: 3If an animal has hooves* that are split into two parts, and if that animal also chews the cud,* then you can eat the meat from that animal. 4–6“Some animals chew the cud,* but they don’t have split hooves.* Don’t eat those animals. Camels, rock badgers, and rabbits are like that, so they are unclean* for you. 7Other animals have hooves* that are split into two parts, but they don’t chew the cud. Don’t eat those animals. Pigs are like that, so they are unclean for you. 8Don’t eat the meat from those animals! Don’t even touch their dead bodies! They are unclean for you!

Rules about Sea Food

9“If an animal lives in the sea or in a river and if the animal has fins and scales, then you can eat that animal. 10–11But if an animal lives in the sea or in a river and does not have fins and scales, then you must not eat that animal. It is one of the animals the Lord says is bad to eat. Don’t eat the meat from that animal. Don’t even touch its dead body! 12You must treat any animal in the water that does not have fins and scales as one of the animals that God says are bad to eat.

Birds That Must Not Be Eaten

13“You must also treat these birds as animals God says are bad to eat. Don’t eat any of these birds: eagles, vultures, buzzards, 14kites,* all kinds of falcons, 15all kinds of black birds, 16ostriches, nighthawks, sea gulls, all kinds of hawks, 17owls, cormorants, great owls, 18water hens, pelicans, carrion-vultures, 19storks, all kinds of herons, hoopoes, and bats.

Rules about Eating Insects

20“If insects have wings and crawl,* then you should treat them as things the Lord says you must not eat. Don’t eat those insects! 21But you can eat those insects if they have legs with joints above their feet so they can jump. 22You can also eat all kinds of locusts, all kinds of winged locusts, all kinds of crickets, and all kinds of grasshoppers. 23“But all the other insects that have wings and crawl* are things the Lord says you must not eat. 24Those insects will make you unclean.* Any person who touches the dead bodies of these insects will become unclean until evening. 25If a person picks up one of those dead insects, then that person must wash his clothes. That person will be unclean until evening.

More Rules about Animals

26–27“Some animals have split hooves,* but the hooves don’t make exactly two parts. Some animals don’t chew the cud.* Some animals {don’t have hooves—they} walk on their paws.* All of those animals are unclean* for you. Any person who touches them will become unclean. That person will be unclean until evening. 28If any person picks up their dead bodies, that person must wash his clothes. That person will be unclean until evening. Those animals are unclean to you.

Rules about Crawling Animals

29“These crawling animals are unclean* for you: moles, mice, all kinds of great lizards, 30geckos, crocodiles, lizards, sand reptiles, and chameleons. 31Those crawling animals are unclean for you. Any person who touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening.

Rules about Unclean Animals

32“If any of those unclean* animals dies and falls on something, then that thing will become unclean. It might be something made from wood, cloth, leather, a cloth of sadness or some work tool. Whatever it is, it must be washed with water. It will be unclean until evening. Then it will become clean again. 33If any of those unclean animals dies and falls into a clay dish, then anything in the dish will become unclean. And you must break the dish. 34If water {from the unclean clay dish} comes on any food, then that food will become unclean. Any drink in the unclean dish will become unclean. 35If any part of a dead unclean animal falls on something, then that thing is unclean. It may be a {clay} oven or a {clay} baking pan. It must be broken into pieces. Those things will not be clean {any more}. They will always be unclean for you. 36“A spring or a well that collects water will {stay} clean.* But any person who touches the dead bodies of any unclean animal will become  unclean. 37If any part of those dead unclean* animals falls on any seed that is to be planted, then that seed is {still} clean. 38But if you put water on some seeds and then if any part of those dead unclean animals falls on those seeds, then those seeds are unclean for you. 39“Also, if an animal {that you use for food} dies, then the person who touches its dead body will be unclean* until evening. 40And the person who eats meat from this animal’s body must wash his clothes. This person will be unclean until evening. The person who picks up the dead body of the animal must wash his clothes. This person will be unclean until evening. 41“Every animal that crawls on the ground is one of the animals the Lord says you must not eat. You must not eat it. 42You must not eat any of the reptiles that crawl on their stomachs or that walk on all four feet, or any of the animals that have many feet. Don’t eat those animals! 43Don’t let those animals make you filthy.* You must not become unclean! 44Why? Because I am the Lord your God! I am holy, so you should keep yourselves holy! Don’t make yourselves unclean with those crawling things! 45I brought you people from Egypt. I did this so you could be my special people and I could be your God. I am holy, so you must be holy too!” 46Those are the rules about all of the tame animals, birds, and other animals on earth. Those are the rules about all of the animals in the sea and all of the animals that crawl on the ground. 47Those teachings are so people can know unclean* animals from clean* animals. So people will know which animals they can eat and which animals they must not eat.

hooves The hard part of the foot of certain animals. cud The food that is brought up from the stomach of some animals (like cows) and chewed again.  kite(s) A bird like a hawk. crawl Literally, “walk on four feet.” unclean Not pure or not acceptable to God for worship.  paws The soft feet with claws on certain animals. clean Pure or acceptable to God for worship. filthy Or, “hated.” Not pure or not acceptable to God for worship.


Rules for New Mothers

12 The Lord said to Moses, 2“Tell the people of Israel: If a woman gives birth to a baby boy, then that woman will be unclean* for seven days. This will be like her being unclean during her monthly time of bleeding. 3On the eighth day, the baby boy must be circumcised.* 4Then it will be 33 days before she becomes clean* from her loss of blood. She must not touch anything that is holy. She must not enter the Holy Place until the time of her being made clean is finished. 5But if the woman gives birth to a girl, then the mother will be unclean for two weeks, the same as for her monthly time of bleeding. It will be 66 days before she becomes clean from her loss of blood. 6“After the time for being made clean* is finished, the new mother of a baby girl or boy must bring special sacrifices to the Meeting Tent.* She must give those sacrifices to the priest at the entrance of the Meeting Tent. She must bring a one-year-old lamb for a burnt offering and a dove or young pigeon for a sin offering. 7–8If the woman can’t afford a lamb, she may bring two doves or two young pigeons. One bird will be for a burnt offering and one for a sin offering. The priest will offer those things before the Lord. In this way, the priest will make her pure.* Then she will be clean from her loss of blood. Those are the rules for a woman who gives birth to a baby boy or a baby girl.”

unclean Not pure or not acceptable to God for worship. circumcised To have the foreskin cut off. This was done to every Jewish male to show he shared in the Agreement God made with Israel. See Gen. 17:4–14. clean Pure or acceptable to God for worship. Meeting Tent The Holy Tent (tabernacle) where the people of Israel came to meet with God. make … pure Or, “make atonement.” The Hebrew word means “to cover,” “to hide,” or “to erase sins.”

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