Leviticus 11-13

Holman Christian Standard Bible

Clean and Unclean Land Animals

11 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: ² “Tell the Israelites: You may eat^(A) all these kinds of land animals.^{(B) 3} You may eat any animal with divided hooves and that chews the cud. ⁴ But among the ones that chew the cud or have divided hooves you are not to eat these:

⁸ Do not eat any of their meat or touch their carcasses—they are unclean for you.^(E)

Clean and Unclean Aquatic Animals

⁹ “This is what you may eat from all that is in the water: You may eat everything in the water that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or streams. ¹⁰ But these are to be detestable to you: everything in the seas or streams that does not have fins and scales among all the swarming things and other living creatures^(F) in the water. ¹¹ They are to remain detestable to you; you must not eat any of their meat, and you must detest their carcasses. ¹² Everything in the water that does not have fins and scales will be detestable to you.

Unclean Birds

¹³ “You are to detest these birds. They must not be eaten because they are detestable:

Clean and Unclean Flying Insects

²⁰ “All winged insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you. ²¹ But you may eat these kinds of all the winged insects that walk on all fours: those that have jointed legs above their feet for hopping on the ground. ²² You may eat these:

²³ All other winged insects that have four feet are to be detestable to you.

Purification after Touching Dead Animals

²⁴ “These will make you unclean. Whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean^(M) until evening, ²⁵ and whoever carries any of their carcasses must wash his clothes and will be unclean until evening.^{(N) 26} All animals that have hooves but do not have a divided hoof and do not chew the cud are unclean for you. Whoever touches them becomes unclean. ²⁷ All the four-footed animals^(O) that walk on their paws are unclean for you. Whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean until evening, ²⁸ and anyone who carries their carcasses must wash his clothes and will be unclean until evening. They are unclean for you.

²⁹ “These creatures that swarm^(P) on the ground are unclean for you:

³¹ These are unclean for you among all the swarming creatures. Whoever touches them when they are dead will be unclean until evening. ³² When any one of them dies and falls on anything it becomes unclean—any item of wood, clothing, leather, sackcloth,^(R) or any implement used for work. It is to be rinsed with water and will remain unclean until evening; then it will be clean. ³³ If any of them falls into any clay pot, everything in it will become unclean; you must break it. ³⁴ Any edible food^(S) coming into contact with that unclean water will become unclean, and any drinkable liquid in any container will become unclean. ³⁵ Anything one of their carcasses falls on will become unclean. If it is an oven or stove, it must be smashed; it is unclean and will remain unclean for you. ³⁶ A spring or cistern containing water will remain clean, but someone who touches a carcass in it will become unclean. ³⁷ If one of their carcasses falls on any seed that is to be sown, it is clean; ³⁸ but if water has been put on the seed and one of their carcasses falls on it, it is unclean for you.

³⁹ “If one of the animals that you use for food dies,^[x] anyone who touches its carcass will be unclean until evening. ⁴⁰ Anyone who eats some of its carcass must wash his clothes and will be unclean until evening. Anyone who carries its carcass must wash his clothes and will be unclean until evening.

Unclean Swarming Creatures

⁴¹ “All the creatures that swarm on the earth are detestable; they must not be eaten. ⁴² Do not eat any of the creatures that swarm on the earth, anything that moves on its belly or walks on all fours or on many feet,^[y] for they are detestable. ⁴³ Do not become contaminated by any creature that swarms; do not become unclean or defiled by them. ⁴⁴ For I am Yahweh your God,^(T) so you must consecrate yourselves^(U) and be holy because I am holy.^(V) You must not defile yourselves by any swarming creature that crawls on the ground. ⁴⁵ For I am Yahweh, who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God,^(W) so you must be holy because I am holy.^(X)

⁴⁶ “This is the law concerning animals, birds, all living creatures that move in the water, and all creatures that swarm on the ground, ⁴⁷ in order to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between the animals^(Y) that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.”

Purification after Childbirth

12 The Lord spoke to Moses: ² “Tell the Israelites: When a woman becomes pregnant and gives birth to a male child,^(Z) she will be unclean seven days, as she is during the days of her menstrual impurity.^{(AA) 3} The flesh of his foreskin^(AB) must be circumcised^(AC) on the eighth day.^{(AD) 4} She will continue in purification^(AE) from her bleeding^(AF) for 33 days. She must not touch any holy thing or go into the sanctuary until completing her days of purification. ⁵ But if she gives birth to a female child, she will be unclean for two weeks as she is during her menstrual impurity. She will continue in purification from her bleeding for 66 days.

⁶ “When her days of purification are complete, whether for a son or daughter, she is to bring to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting a year-old male lamb for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove for a sin^[z] offering. ⁷ He will present them before the Lord and make atonement on her behalf; she will be clean from her discharge of blood. This is the law for a woman giving birth, whether to a male or female. ⁸ But if she doesn’t have sufficient means^[aa](AG) for a sheep, she may take two turtledoves or two young pigeons,^(AH) one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin^[ab] offering. Then the priest will make atonement on her behalf, and she will be clean.”

Skin Diseases

13 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: ² “When a person has a swelling,^[ac] scab,^[ad] or spot on the skin of his body, and it becomes a disease on the skin^(AI) of his body, he is to be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons, the priests. ³ The priest will examine the infection^(AJ) on the skin of his body. If the hair in the infection has turned white and the infection appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a skin disease. After the priest examines him, he must pronounce him unclean. ⁴ But if the spot on the skin of his body is white and does not appear to be deeper than the skin, and the hair in it has not turned white, the priest must quarantine the infected person for seven days.^{(AK) 5} The priest will then reexamine him on the seventh day. If he sees that the infection remains unchanged and has not spread on the skin, the priest must quarantine him for another seven days. ⁶ The priest will examine him again on the seventh day. If the infection has faded and has not spread on the skin, the priest is to pronounce him clean;^(AL) it is a scab. The person is to wash his clothes and will become clean. ⁷ But if the scab spreads further on his skin after he has presented himself to the priest for his cleansing,^(AM) he must present himself again to the priest. ⁸ The priest will examine him, and if the scab has spread on the skin, then the priest must pronounce him unclean; he has a skin disease.

⁹ “When a skin disease develops on a person, he is to be brought to the priest. ¹⁰ The priest will examine him. If there is a white swelling on the skin that has turned the hair white, and there is a patch of raw flesh in the swelling, ¹¹ it is a chronic disease on the skin of his body, and the priest must pronounce him unclean.^(AN) He need not quarantine him, for he is unclean. ¹² But if the skin disease breaks out all over the skin so that it covers all the skin of the infected person from his head to his feet so far as the priest can see, ¹³ the priest will look, and if the skin disease has covered his entire body, he is to pronounce the infected person clean.^(AO) Since he has turned totally white, he is clean. ¹⁴ But whenever raw flesh appears on him, he will be unclean. ¹⁵ When the priest examines the raw flesh, he must pronounce him unclean. Raw flesh is unclean; it is a skin disease. ¹⁶ But if the raw flesh changes^[ae] and^[af] turns white, he must go to the priest. ¹⁷ The priest will examine him, and if the infection has turned white, the priest must pronounce the infected person clean; he is clean.

¹⁸ “When a boil appears on the skin^(AP) of one’s body^(AQ) and it heals, ¹⁹ and a white swelling or a reddish-white spot develops where the boil was, the person must present himself to the priest. ²⁰ The priest will make an examination, and if the spot seems to be beneath the skin and the hair in it has turned white, the priest must pronounce him unclean; it is a skin disease that has broken out in the boil. ²¹ But when the priest examines it, if there is no white hair in it, and it is not beneath the skin but is faded, the priest must quarantine him seven days. ²² If it spreads further on the skin, the priest must pronounce him unclean; it is an infection. ²³ But if the spot remains where it is and does not spread, it is only the scar from the boil. The priest is to pronounce him clean.

²⁴ “When there is a burn on the skin of one’s body produced by fire, and the patch made raw by the burn becomes reddish-white or white, ²⁵ the priest is to examine it. If the hair in the spot has turned white and the spot appears to be deeper than the skin, it is a skin disease that has broken out in the burn. The priest must pronounce him unclean; it is a skin disease. ²⁶ But when the priest examines it, if there is no white hair in the spot and it is not beneath the skin but is faded, the priest must quarantine him seven days. ²⁷ The priest will reexamine him on the seventh day. If it has spread further on the skin, the priest must pronounce him unclean; it is a skin disease. ²⁸ But if the spot has remained where it was and has not spread on the skin but is faded, it is the swelling from the burn. The priest is to pronounce him clean, for it is only the scar from the burn.

²⁹ “When a man or woman has an infection on the head or chin, ³⁰ the priest must examine the infection. If it appears to be deeper than the skin,^(AR) and the hair in it is yellow and sparse, the priest must pronounce the person unclean. It is a scaly outbreak,^[ag] a skin disease of the head or chin. ³¹ When the priest examines the scaly infection, if it does not appear to be deeper than the skin, and there is no black hair in it, the priest must quarantine the person with the scaly infection for seven days. ³² The priest will reexamine the infection on the seventh day. If the scaly outbreak has not spread and there is no yellow hair in it and it does not appear to be deeper than the skin, ³³ the person must shave himself^(AS) but not shave the scaly area. Then the priest must quarantine the person who has the scaly outbreak for another seven days. ³⁴ The priest will examine the scaly outbreak on the seventh day, and if it has not spread on the skin and does not appear to be deeper than the skin, the priest is to pronounce the person clean. He is to wash his clothes, and he will be clean. ³⁵ But if the scaly outbreak spreads further on the skin after his cleansing, ³⁶ the priest is to examine the person. If the scaly outbreak has spread on the skin, the priest does not need to look for yellow hair; the person is unclean. ³⁷ But if as far as he can see, the scaly outbreak remains unchanged and black hair has grown in it, then it has healed; he is clean. The priest is to pronounce the person clean.

³⁸ “When a man or a woman has white spots on the skin of the body, ³⁹ the priest is to make an examination. If the spots on the skin of the body are dull white, it is only a rash^[ah] that has broken out on the skin; the person is clean.

⁴⁰ “If a man loses the hair of his head, he is bald,^(AT) but he is clean. ⁴¹ Or if he loses the hair at his hairline, he is bald on his forehead, but he is clean. ⁴² But if there is a reddish-white infection on the bald head or forehead, it is a skin disease breaking out on his head or forehead.^{(AU) 43} The priest is to examine him, and if the swelling of the infection on his bald head or forehead is reddish-white, like the appearance of a skin disease on his body, ⁴⁴ the man is afflicted with a skin disease;^(AV) he is unclean. The priest must pronounce him unclean; the infection is on his head.

⁴⁵ “The person afflicted with an infectious skin disease is to have his clothes torn^(AW) and his hair hanging loose, and he must cover his mouth^(AX) and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ ⁴⁶ He will remain unclean as long as he has the infection; he is unclean. He must live alone in a place outside the camp.^(AY)

Contaminated Fabrics

⁴⁷ “If a fabric is contaminated with mildew—in wool or linen fabric, ⁴⁸ in the warp or woof of linen or wool, or in leather or anything made of leather— ⁴⁹ and if the contamination is green or red in the fabric, the leather, the warp, the woof, or any leather article, it is a mildew contamination and is to be shown to the priest. ⁵⁰ The priest is to examine the contamination and quarantine the contaminated fabric for seven days. ⁵¹ The priest is to reexamine the contamination on the seventh day. If it has spread in the fabric, the warp, the woof, or the leather, regardless of how it is used, the contamination is harmful mildew; it is unclean.^{(AZ) 52} He is to burn the fabric, the warp or woof in wool or linen, or any leather article, which is contaminated. Since it is harmful mildew it must be burned up.

⁵³ “When the priest examines it, if the contamination has not spread in the fabric, the warp or woof, or any leather article, ⁵⁴ the priest is to order whatever is contaminated to be washed and quarantined for another seven days. ⁵⁵ After it has been washed, the priest is to reexamine the contamination. If the appearance of the contaminated article has not changed, it is unclean. Even though the contamination has not spread, you must burn up the fabric. It is a fungus^[ai] on the front or back of the fabric.

⁵⁶ “If the priest examines it, and the contamination has faded after it has been washed, he must cut the contaminated section out of the fabric, the leather, or the warp or woof. ⁵⁷ But if it reappears in the fabric, the warp or woof, or any leather article, it has broken out again. You must burn up whatever is contaminated. ⁵⁸ But if the contamination disappears from the fabric, the warp or woof, or any leather article, which have been washed, it is to be washed again, and it will be clean.

⁵⁹ “This is the law concerning a mildew contamination in wool or linen fabric, warp or woof, or any leather article, in order to pronounce it clean or unclean.”^(BA)