1    2   The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron and said, Speak to the Israelites in these words: Of all animals on land these are the creatures you may eat: 3   you may eat any animal which has a parted foot or a cloven hoof and also chews the cud; 4   those which have only a cloven hoof or only chew the cud you may not eat. These are: the camel, because it chews the cud but has not a cloven hoof; you shall regard it as unclean; 5   the rock-badger, ^note because it chews the cud but has not a parted foot; 6   you shall regard it as unclean; the hare, because it chews the cud but has not a parted foot; you shall regard it as unclean; the pig, 7   because it has a parted foot and a cloven hoof but does not chew the cud; you shall regard it as unclean. 8   You shall not eat their flesh or even touch their dead bodies; you shall regard them as unclean.

9   Of creatures that live in water these you may eat: all those that have fins and scales, whether in salt water or fresh; 10   but all that have neither fins nor scales, whether in salt or fresh water, including both small creatures in shoals and larger creatures, you shall regard as vermin. 11   They shall be vermin to you; you shall not eat their flesh, and their dead bodies you shall treat as those of vermin. 12   Every creature in the water that has neither fins nor scales shall be vermin to you.

13   These are the birds you shall regard as vermin, and for this reason they shall not be eaten: the griffon-vulture, ^note the black vulture, and the bearded vulture; ^note 14    15   the kite and every kind of falcon; every kind of crow, ^note 16   the desert-owl, the short-eared owl, the long-eared owl, and every kind of hawk; 17   the tawny owl, the fisher-owl, and the screech-owl; the little owl, 18    19   the horned owl, the osprey, the stork, ^note every kind of cormorant, the hoopoe, and the bat.

20   All teeming winged creatures that go on four legs shall be vermin to you, 21   except those which have legs jointed above their feet for leaping on the ground. 22   Of these you may eat every kind of great locust, every kind of long-headed locust, every kind of green locust, and every kind of desert locust. 23   Every other teeming winged creature that has four legs you shall regard as vermin; 24   you would make yourselves unclean with them: whoever ^note touches their dead bodies shall be unclean till evening. 25   Whoever picks up their dead bodies shall wash his clothes but remain unclean till evening.

26   You shall regard as unclean every animal which has a parted foot but

Laws of purification and atonement has not a cloven hoof and does not chew the cud: whoever ^note touches them shall be unclean. 27   You shall regard as unclean all four-footed wild animals that go on flat paws; whoever ^note touches their dead bodies shall be unclean till evening. 28   Whoever takes up their dead bodies shall wash his clothes but remain unclean till evening. You shall regard them as unclean.

29   You shall regard these as unclean among creatures that teem on the ground: the mole-rat, ^note the jerboa, and every kind of thorn-tailed lizard; 30   the gecko, the sand-gecko, the wall-gecko, the great lizard, and the chameleon. 31   You shall regard these as unclean among teeming creatures; whoever ^note touches them when they are dead shall be unclean till evening. 32   Anything on which any of them falls when they are dead shall be unclean, any article of wood or garment or skin or sacking, any article in regular use; it shall be plunged into water but shall remain unclean till evening, when it shall be clean. 33   If any of these falls into an earthenware vessel, its contents shall be unclean and it shall be smashed. 34   Any food on which water from such a vessel is poured shall be unclean, and any drink in such a vessel shall be unclean. 35   Anything on which the dead body of such a creature falls shall be unclean; an oven or a stove shall be broken, for they are unclean and you shall treat them as such; 36   but a spring or a cistern where water collects shall remain clean, though whatever ^note touches the dead body shall be unclean. 37   When any of their dead bodies falls on seed intended for sowing, it remains clean; 38   but if the seed has been soaked in water and any dead body falls on it, you shall treat it as unclean.

39   When any animal allowed as food dies, all that touch the carcass shall be unclean till evening. 40   Whoever eats any of the carcass shall wash his clothes but remain unclean till evening; whoever takes up the carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean till evening. 41   All creatures that teem on the ground are vermin; they shall not be eaten. 42   All creatures that teem on the ground, crawl on their bellies, go on all fours or have many legs, you shall not eat, because they are vermin which contaminate. 43   You shall not contaminate yourselves through any teeming creature. You shall not defile yourselves with them and make yourselves unclean by them. 44   For I am the Lord your God; you shall make yourselves holy and keep yourselves holy, because I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any teeming creature that creeps on the ground. 45   I am the Lord who brought you up from Egypt to become your God. You shall keep yourselves holy, because I am holy.

46   This, then, is the law concerning beast and bird, every living creature that swims in the water and every living creature that teems on the land. 47   It is to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean,

Laws of purification and atonement between living creatures that may be eaten and living creatures that may not be eaten.

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