Daily Scripture Reading Leviticus 11:9-33

Marcus was a Christian who worked in a secular business among people who were not believers. His coworkers frequently told dirty jokes, swore, and used sexual innuendo. Marcus did not swear and tell crude jokes himself, but he laughed when others did. He made no effort to communicate that there was anything wrong with such talk.

On Friday nights, his coworkers often went to a bar for happy hour. Marcus usually went along. Marcus did not get drunk, as the others did, but he did laugh at the silly antics of those who did consume too much alcohol.

Marcus did not sleep with any of his coworkers, even though that was common among his fellow employees. However, his reaction to their sexual exploits made it appear as though he approved of adultery.

Marcus obeyed God by not participating in the evil that surrounded him. However, the Mosaic Law made it clear that sometimes abstention from evil was not enough. The Israelites also had to detest evil. That is a concept we see throughout the Bible, including in the New Testament, and it governs how we should react to the evil that surrounds us in our lives.

The first ten chapters of Leviticus explain the sacrificial system that was established at Mount Sinai, as well as the procedures the Israelites used to inaugurate the tabernacle and ordain the priests. The eleventh chapter is a long list detailing which animals the Israelites could eat and which were forbidden.

Lev. 11:9 ¶ ‘These you may eat, whatever is in the water: all that have fins and scales, those in the water, in the seas, or in the rivers, you may eat.

Lev. 11:10 But whatever is in the seas and in the rivers that does not have fins and scales among all the swarming life of the water, and among all the living creatures that are in the water, they are detestable things to you,

Take note of the word “detestable”.

Lev. 11:11 and they shall be detestable to you; you may not eat of their flesh, and their carcasses you shall detest.

Verse 11 contains the words “detestable” and “detest”.

Lev. 11:12 Whatever in the water does not have fins and scales is detestable to you.

Once again we see the word “detestable”.

Yahweh did not merely prohibit the Israelites from eating certain foods. He stated that these foods were detestable. The Israelites needed to detest them, not merely avoid them.

Today, it is common for believers to think of sin as something we need to avoid. That is correct; we need to abstain from sin. However, the Bible also teaches it is not enough to simply refrain from sin. We have to hate it.

The book of Proverbs tells us the fear of Yahweh is to hate evil (Proverbs 8:13). That book also lists six specific sins that Yahweh hates (see Proverbs 6:16-19).

The New Testament contains many verses that instruct us how to live in the 21st century. Just as the Israelites needed to detest unclean food, so too Paul commanded us to abhor what is evil (see Romans 12:9), not merely avoid it.

We should not shun non-Christians. We need to live among them and interact with them. However, neither should we approve of their evil deeds. We should hate sin. Non-believers should know that we have a different standard of morality.

Lev. 11:13 ¶ ‘These, moreover, you shall detest among the birds; they shall not be eaten; they are detestable: the eagle and the vulture and the buzzard,

Lev. 11:14 and the kite and the falcon in its kind,

Lev. 11:15 every raven in its kind,

Lev. 11:16 and the ostrich and the owl and the gull and the hawk in its kind,

Lev. 11:17 and the little owl and the cormorant and the great owl,

Lev. 11:18 and the white owl and the pelican and the carrion vulture,

Lev. 11:19 and the stork, the heron in its kinds, and the hoopoe, and the bat.

Lev. 11:20 ¶ ‘All the swarming things that fly and that walk on all fours are detestable to you.

Lev. 11:21 Yet these you may eat among all the swarming things that fly and that walk on all fours: those which have above their feet jointed legs with which to jump on the earth.

Lev. 11:22 These of them you may eat: the locust in its kinds and the devastating locust in its kinds and the cricket in its kinds and the grasshopper in its kinds.

Lev. 11:23 But all other swarming things that fly and that are four-footed are detestable to you.

Lev. 11:24 ¶ ‘By these, moreover, you will be made unclean: whoever touches their carcasses becomes unclean until evening,

Lev. 11:25 and whoever picks up any of their carcasses shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening.

Look at the word “carcasses”. Uncleanness did not come merely from eating the forbidden animals. It also came from even touching the carcasses of unclean animals. It appears that touching a live animal was okay, but touching a dead animal was not okay.

Lev. 11:26 Concerning all the animals which divide the hoof but do not make a split hoof or which do not chew cud, they are unclean to you: whoever touches them becomes unclean.

Here we see that touching a live animal that met the characteristics of verse 26 made a person unclean.

Lev. 11:27 Also whatever walks on its paws, among all the creatures that walk on all fours, are unclean to you; whoever touches their carcasses becomes unclean until evening,

Lev. 11:28 and the one who picks up their carcasses shall wash his clothes and be unclean until evening; they are unclean to you.

Lev. 11:29 ¶ ‘Now these are to you the unclean among the swarming things which swarm on the earth: the mole and the mouse and the great lizard in its kinds,

Lev. 11:30 and the gecko and the crocodile and the lizard and the sand reptile and the chameleon.

Lev. 11:31 These are to you the unclean among all the swarming things; whoever touches them when they are dead becomes unclean until evening.

Lev. 11:32 Also anything on which one of them may fall when they are dead becomes unclean, including any wooden article or clothing or a skin or a sack—any article by which work is done—it shall be put in the water and be unclean until evening, then it becomes clean.

Notice the words “on which one of them may fall”. Here we see that uncleanness could also be acquired passively by inanimate objects.

Lev. 11:33 As for any earthenware vessel into which one of them may fall, whatever is in it becomes unclean, and you shall break the vessel.

Christians generally think of sin as something we need to avoid. That is correct; we need to abstain from sin. However, the Bible also teaches it is not enough to simply refrain from sin. We have to hate it.

The book of Proverbs tells us the fear of Yahweh is to hate evil (Proverbs 8:13). Paul commanded us to abhor what is evil (see Romans 12:9), not merely avoid it.

We should not hate non-Christians. We need to live among them and interact with them. However, we need to hate sin. Non-believers should have no doubt that we have a different standard of morality.

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“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”