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Foods That Could Be Eaten

¹ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ² "Say to the people of Israel, ‘These are the living things which you may eat among all the animals on the earth. ³ You may eat any animal that has hard and divided feet and chews its food again. ⁴ But among those which chew their food again or have feet that are hard and divided, do not eat the camel. For it chews its food again, but does not have feet that are hard and divided. It is unclean to you. ⁵ Do not eat the rock badger. For it chews its food again, but does not have feet that are hard and divided. It is unclean to you. ⁶ Do not eat the rabbit. For it chews its food again, but does not have feet that are hard and divided. It is unclean to you. ⁷ And do not eat the pig. For it has feet that are hard and divided, but it does not chew its food again. It is unclean to you. ⁸ Do not eat their flesh or touch their dead bodies. They are unclean to you.

⁹ ‘These you may eat, of all that are in the water. You may eat everything in the water that has fins and scales, in the seas or in the rivers. ¹⁰ But whatever is in the seas and rivers that does not have fins and scales, among all the living things moving in the water, are to be hated by you. ¹¹ You will hate them. You may not eat their meat, and you will hate their dead bodies. ¹² Whatever in the water does not have fins and scales will be hated by you.

¹³ ‘These you will hate among the birds. They are hated and not to be eaten: the eagle, the vulture, the buzzard, ¹⁴ the kite, every kind of falcon, ¹⁵ every kind of raven, ¹⁶ the ostrich, the owl, the sea gull, every kind of hawk, ¹⁷ the little owl, the cormorant, the big owl, ¹⁸ the white owl, the pelican, the vulture that eats dead flesh, ¹⁹ the stork, every kind of heron, the hoopoe and the bat.

²⁰ ‘All bugs with wings and that walk on all fours are to be hated by you. ²¹ But you may eat, among all the bugs with wings and that walk on all fours, those which have legs above their feet that allow them to jump on the ground. ²² You may eat every kind of locust, every kind of destroying locust, every kind of cricket, and every kind of grasshopper. ²³ But you are to hate all other bugs with wings and four feet.

²⁴ ‘If you touch these you will be unclean. Whoever touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening. ²⁵ And whoever picks up any of their dead bodies will wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. ²⁶ Every animal that has a parted foot but not a divided foot, or that does not eat its food again, is unclean to you. Whoever touches them will be unclean. ²⁷ Whatever walks on its soft feet, among all the animals that walk on all fours, are unclean to you. Whoever touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening. ²⁸ And he who picks up their dead bodies will wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. They are unclean to you.

²⁹ ‘These animals that move on the earth are unclean to you: the mole, the mouse, every kind of big lizard, ³⁰ the gecko, the crocodile, the lizard, the sand lizard, and the chameleon. ³¹ These animals that move on the earth are unclean to you. Whoever touches their dead bodies will be unclean until evening. ³² And anything on which one of them may fall when they are dead will be unclean. Each piece of wood or clothing or skin or bag or anything used as you work, must be put in water. It will be unclean until evening. Then it will be clean. ³³ If any falls into a clay pot, whatever is in the pot will be unclean. You should break the pot. ³⁴ Any food that could be eaten but has water from such a pot on it will be unclean. And anything which could be drunk from any such pot will be unclean. ³⁵ Everything on which part of their dead body may fall will be unclean. A stove or a place for pots must be broken. They are unclean to you. ³⁶ But a well or a place holding water will be clean. But whoever touches a dead body will be unclean. ³⁷ If a part of their dead body falls on any seed which is to be planted, it is clean. ³⁸ But if water is put on the seed, and a body falls on it, it is unclean to you.

³⁹ ‘If one of the animals dies which you have for food, the one who touches its dead body will be unclean until evening. ⁴⁰ He who eats some of the dead body will wash his clothes and be unclean until evening. And he who picks up its dead body will wash his clothes and be unclean until evening.

⁴¹ ‘Anything that moves around on the ground in large numbers is hated and is not to be eaten. ⁴² You should not eat whatever moves on its stomach, or goes on four feet, or has many feet, among all the things that move around on the ground in large numbers. For they are hated. ⁴³ Do not make yourselves unclean by any of the small living things that move together on the ground, so you become unclean. ⁴⁴ For I am the Lord your God. So set yourselves apart, and be holy. For I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean with any of the small living things that move together in large numbers on the ground. ⁴⁵ For I am the Lord Who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. So be holy, because I am holy.'"

⁴⁶ This is the Law of the animal, the bird, every living thing that moves in the water, and everything that moves on the ground. ⁴⁷ It is so you know the difference between those that are clean and those that are unclean, and between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.