Leviticus 11:1-33 ▼

1 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron:

2 Speak to the Israelites and tell them: Of all land animals these are the ones you may eat:

3 Any animal that has hoofs you may eat, provided it is cloven-footed and chews the cud.

4 But you shall not eat any of the following from among those that only chew the cud or only have hoofs: the camel, which indeed chews the cud, but does not have hoofs and is therefore unclean for you;

5 the rock hyrax, which indeed chews the cud, but does not have hoofs and is therefore unclean for you;

6 the hare, which indeed chews the cud, but does not have hoofs and is therefore unclean for you;

7 and the pig, which does indeed have hoofs and is cloven-footed, but does not chew the cud and is therefore unclean for you.

8 You shall not eat their meat, and you shall not touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you.

9 Of the various creatures that live in the water, you may eat the following: whatever in the seas or in river waters that has both fins and scales you may eat.

10 But of the creatures that swarm in the water or of animals that otherwise live in the water, whether in the sea or in the rivers, all those that lack either fins or scales are loathsome for you,

11 and shall always be loathsome to you. Their meat you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall loathe.

12 Every water creature that lacks fins or scales is loathsome for you.

13 Of the birds, these you shall loathe; they shall not be eaten, they are loathsome: the griffon vulture, the bearded vulture, the black vulture,

14 the kite, the various species of falcons,

15 the various species of crows,

16 the eagle owl, the kestrel, the long-eared owl, the various species of hawks,

17 the little owl, the cormorant, the screech owl,

18 the barn owl, the horned owl, the osprey,

19 the stork, the various species of herons, the hoopoe, and the bat.

20 The various winged insects that walk on all fours are loathsome for you.

21 But of the various winged insects that walk on all fours you may eat those that have legs jointed above their feet for leaping on the ground;

22 hence of these you may eat the following: the various kinds of locusts, the various kinds of bald locusts, the various kinds of crickets, and the various kinds of grasshoppers.

23 All other winged insects that have four legs are loathsome for you.

24 You become unclean by the following—anyone who touches their carcasses shall be unclean until evening,

25 and anyone who carries any part of their carcasses shall wash his garments and be unclean until evening—

26 by all hoofed animals that are not cloven-footed or do not chew the cud; they are unclean for you; anyone who touches them becomes unclean.

27 Also by the various quadrupeds that walk on paws; they are unclean for you; anyone who touches their carcasses shall be unclean until evening,

28 and anyone who carries their carcasses shall wash his garments and be unclean until evening. They are unclean for you.

29 Of the creatures that swarm on the ground, the following are unclean for you: the rat, the mouse, the various kinds of lizards,

30 the gecko, the spotted lizard, the agama, the skink, and the chameleon.

31 Among the various swarming creatures, these are unclean for you. Everyone who touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until evening.

32 Everything on which one of them falls when dead becomes unclean, including any article of wood, cloth, leather or goat hair—any article of which use can be made. It must be immersed in water and remain unclean until evening, when it again becomes clean.

33 Should any of these creatures fall into a clay vessel, everything in it becomes unclean, and the vessel itself you must break.