24 And by these ye shall become unclean: whosoever toucheth the carcass of them shall be unclean until the even;
25 And whosoever beareth `aught' of the carcass of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.
26 Every beast which parteth the hoof, and is not clovenfooted, nor cheweth the cud, is unclean unto you: every one that toucheth them shall be unclean.
27 And whatsoever goeth upon its paws, among all beasts that go on all fours, they are unclean unto you: whoso toucheth their carcass shall be unclean until the even.
28 And he that beareth the carcass of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: they are unclean unto you.
29 And these are they which are unclean unto you among the creeping things that creep upon the earth: the weasel, and the mouse, and the great lizard after its kind,
30 and the gecko, and the land-crocodile, and the lizard, and the sand-lizard, and the chameleon.
31 These are they which are unclean to you among all that creep: whosoever doth touch them, when they are dead, shall be unclean until the even.
32 And upon whatsoever any of them, when they are dead, doth fall, it shall be unclean; whether it be any vessel of wood, or raiment, or skin, or sack, whatsoever vessel it be, wherewith any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the even; then shall it be clean.
33 And every earthen vessel, whereinto any of them falleth, whatsoever is in it shall be unclean, and it ye shall break.
34 All food `therein' which may be eaten, that on which water cometh, shall be unclean; and all drink that may be drunk in every `such' vessel shall be unclean.
35 And every thing whereupon `any part' of their carcass falleth shall be unclean; whether oven, or range for pots, it shall be broken in pieces: they are unclean, and shall be unclean unto you.
36 Nevertheless a fountain or a pit wherein is a gathering of water shall be clean: but that which toucheth their carcass shall be unclean.
37 And if `aught' of their carcass fall upon any sowing seed which is to be sown, it is clean.
38 But if water be put upon the seed, and `aught' of their carcass fall thereon, it is unclean unto you.
39 And if any beast, of which ye may eat, die; he that toucheth the carcass thereof shall be unclean until the even.
40 And he that eateth of the carcass of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: he also that beareth the carcass of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Leviticus 11
Commentary on Leviticus 11 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 11
The ceremonial law is described by the apostle (Heb. 9:9, 10) to consist, not only "in gifts and sacrifices,' which hitherto have been treated of in this book, but "in meats, and drinks, and divers washings' from ceremonial uncleanness, the laws concerning which begin with this chapter, which puts a difference between some sorts of flesh-meat and others, allowing some to be eaten as clean and forbidding others as unclean. "There is one kind of flesh of men.' Nature startles at the thought of eating this, and none do it but such as have arrived at the highest degree of barbarity, and become but one remove from brutes; therefore there needed no law against it. But there is "another kind of flesh of beasts,' concerning which the law directs here (v. 1-8), "another of fishes' (v. 9-12), "another of birds' (v. 13-19), and "another of creeping things,' which are distinguished into two sorts, flying creeping things (v. 20-28) and creeping things upon the earth (v. 29-43). And the law concludes with the general rule of holiness, and reasons for it (v. 44, etc.).
Lev 11:1-8
Now that Aaron was consecrated a high priest over the house of God, God spoke to him with Moses, and appointed them both as joint-commissioners to deliver his will to the people. He spoke both to Moses and to Aaron about this matter; for it was particularly required of the priests that they should put a difference between clean and unclean, and teach the people to do so. After the flood, when God entered into covenant with Noah and his sons, he allowed them to eat flesh (Gen. 9:3), whereas before they were confined to the productions of the earth. But the liberty allowed to the sons of Noah is here limited to the sons of Israel. They might eat flesh, but not all kinds of flesh; some they must look upon as unclean and forbidden to them, others as clean and allowed them. The law in this matter is both very particular and very strict. But what reason can be given for this law? Why may not God's people have as free a use of all the creatures as other people?
Lev 11:9-19
Here is,
Lev 11:20-42
Here is the law,
Lev 11:43-47
Here is,