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Today's Bible Reading :: Leviticus 11 - 13 (ESV)

Leviticus 11Listen to the passage

Leviticus 12Listen to the passage

Leviticus 13Listen to the passage

Leviticus 11

Clean and Unclean Animals

(Deu 14:3–21 )
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:1 - And the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:2 - “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, These are the living things that you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:3 - Whatever parts the hoof and is cloven-footed and chews the cud, among the animals, you may eat.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:4 - Nevertheless, among those that chew the cud or part the hoof, you shall not eat these: The camel, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:5 - And the rock badger, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:6 - And the hare, because it chews the cud but does not part the hoof, is unclean to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:7 - And the pig, because it parts the hoof and is cloven-footed but does not chew the cud, is unclean to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:8 - You shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall not touch their carcasses; they are unclean to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:9 - “These you may eat, of all that are in the waters. Everything in the waters that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers, you may eat.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:10 - But anything in the seas or the rivers that does not have fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in the waters, is detestable to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:11 - You shall regard them as detestable; you shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:12 - Everything in the waters that does not have fins and scales is detestable to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:13 - “And these you shall detest among the birds;[fn] they shall not be eaten; they are detestable: the eagle,[fn] the bearded vulture, the black vulture,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:14 - the kite, the falcon of any kind,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:15 - every raven of any kind,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:16 - the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:17 - the little owl, the cormorant, the short-eared owl,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:18 - the barn owl, the tawny owl, the carrion vulture,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:19 - the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:20 - “All winged insects that go on all fours are detestable to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:21 - Yet among the winged insects that go on all fours you may eat those that have jointed legs above their feet, with which to hop on the ground.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:22 - Of them you may eat: the locust of any kind, the bald locust of any kind, the cricket of any kind, and the grasshopper of any kind.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:23 - But all other winged insects that have four feet are detestable to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:24 - “And by these you shall become unclean. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:25 - and whoever carries any part of their carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:26 - Every animal that parts the hoof but is not cloven-footed or does not chew the cud is unclean to you. Everyone who touches them shall be unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:27 - And all that walk on their paws, among the animals that go on all fours, are unclean to you. Whoever touches their carcass shall be unclean until the evening,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:28 - and he who carries their carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening; they are unclean to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:29 - “And these are unclean to you among the swarming things that swarm on the ground: the mole rat, the mouse, the great lizard of any kind,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:30 - the gecko, the monitor lizard, the lizard, the sand lizard, and the chameleon.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:31 - These are unclean to you among all that swarm. Whoever touches them when they are dead shall be unclean until the evening.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:32 - And anything on which any of them falls when they are dead shall be unclean, whether it is an article of wood or a garment or a skin or a sack, any article that is used for any purpose. It must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the evening; then it shall be clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:33 - And if any of them falls into any earthenware vessel, all that is in it shall be unclean, and you shall break it.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:34 - Any food in it that could be eaten, on which water comes, shall be unclean. And all drink that could be drunk from every such vessel shall be unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:35 - And everything on which any part of their carcass falls shall be unclean. Whether oven or stove, it shall be broken in pieces. They are unclean and shall remain unclean for you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:36 - Nevertheless, a spring or a cistern holding water shall be clean, but whoever touches a carcass in them shall be unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:37 - And if any part of their carcass falls upon any seed grain that is to be sown, it is clean,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:38 - but if water is put on the seed and any part of their carcass falls on it, it is unclean to you.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:39 - “And if any animal which you may eat dies, whoever touches its carcass shall be unclean until the evening,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:40 - and whoever eats of its carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. And whoever carries the carcass shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:41 - “Every swarming thing that swarms on the ground is detestable; it shall not be eaten.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:42 - Whatever goes on its belly, and whatever goes on all fours, or whatever has many feet, any swarming thing that swarms on the ground, you shall not eat, for they are detestable.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:43 - You shall not make yourselves detestable with any swarming thing that swarms, and you shall not defile yourselves with them, and become unclean through them.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:44 - For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming thing that crawls on the ground.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:45 - For I am the LORD who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:46 - This is the law about beast and bird and every living creature that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms on the ground,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 11:47 - to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean and between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that may not be eaten.
ESV Footnotes
Or things that fly; compare Genesis 1:20
The identity of many of these birds is uncertain

Leviticus 12

Purification After Childbirth

(cf. Luk 2:22–24 )
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 12:1 - The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 12:2 - “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days. As at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 12:3 - And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 12:4 - Then she shall continue for thirty-three days in the blood of her purifying. She shall not touch anything holy, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying are completed.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 12:5 - But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation. And she shall continue in the blood of her purifying for sixty-six days.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 12:6 - “And when the days of her purifying are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb a year old for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 12:7 - and he shall offer it before the LORD and make atonement for her. Then she shall be clean from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who bears a child, either male or female.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 12:8 - And if she cannot afford a lamb, then she shall take two turtledoves or two pigeons,[fn] one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for her, and she shall be clean.”
ESV Footnotes
Septuagint two young pigeons

Leviticus 13

Laws About Leprosy

Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:1 - The LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:2 - “When a person has on the skin of his body a swelling or an eruption or a spot, and it turns into a case of leprous[fn] disease on the skin of his body, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:3 - and the priest shall examine the diseased area on the skin of his body. And if the hair in the diseased area has turned white and the disease appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a case of leprous disease. When the priest has examined him, he shall pronounce him unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:4 - But if the spot is white in the skin of his body and appears no deeper than the skin, and the hair in it has not turned white, the priest shall shut up the diseased person for seven days.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:5 - And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day, and if in his eyes the disease is checked and the disease has not spread in the skin, then the priest shall shut him up for another seven days.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:6 - And the priest shall examine him again on the seventh day, and if the diseased area has faded and the disease has not spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean; it is only an eruption. And he shall wash his clothes and be clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:7 - But if the eruption spreads in the skin, after he has shown himself to the priest for his cleansing, he shall appear again before the priest.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:8 - And the priest shall look, and if the eruption has spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is a leprous disease.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:9 - “When a man is afflicted with a leprous disease, he shall be brought to the priest,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:10 - and the priest shall look. And if there is a white swelling in the skin that has turned the hair white, and there is raw flesh in the swelling,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:11 - it is a chronic leprous disease in the skin of his body, and the priest shall pronounce him unclean. He shall not shut him up, for he is unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:12 - And if the leprous disease breaks out in the skin, so that the leprous disease covers all the skin of the diseased person from head to foot, so far as the priest can see,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:13 - then the priest shall look, and if the leprous disease has covered all his body, he shall pronounce him clean of the disease; it has all turned white, and he is clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:14 - But when raw flesh appears on him, he shall be unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:15 - And the priest shall examine the raw flesh and pronounce him unclean. Raw flesh is unclean, for it is a leprous disease.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:16 - But if the raw flesh recovers and turns white again, then he shall come to the priest,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:17 - and the priest shall examine him, and if the disease has turned white, then the priest shall pronounce the diseased person clean; he is clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:18 - “If there is in the skin of one’s body a boil and it heals,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:19 - and in the place of the boil there comes a white swelling or a reddish-white spot, then it shall be shown to the priest.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:20 - And the priest shall look, and if it appears deeper than the skin and its hair has turned white, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a case of leprous disease that has broken out in the boil.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:21 - But if the priest examines it and there is no white hair in it and it is not deeper than the skin, but has faded, then the priest shall shut him up seven days.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:22 - And if it spreads in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is a disease.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:23 - But if the spot remains in one place and does not spread, it is the scar of the boil, and the priest shall pronounce him clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:24 - “Or, when the body has a burn on its skin and the raw flesh of the burn becomes a spot, reddish-white or white,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:25 - the priest shall examine it, and if the hair in the spot has turned white and it appears deeper than the skin, then it is a leprous disease. It has broken out in the burn, and the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is a case of leprous disease.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:26 - But if the priest examines it and there is no white hair in the spot and it is no deeper than the skin, but has faded, the priest shall shut him up seven days,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:27 - and the priest shall examine him the seventh day. If it is spreading in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is a case of leprous disease.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:28 - But if the spot remains in one place and does not spread in the skin, but has faded, it is a swelling from the burn, and the priest shall pronounce him clean, for it is the scar of the burn.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:29 - “When a man or woman has a disease on the head or the beard,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:30 - the priest shall examine the disease. And if it appears deeper than the skin, and the hair in it is yellow and thin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is an itch, a leprous disease of the head or the beard.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:31 - And if the priest examines the itching disease and it appears no deeper than the skin and there is no black hair in it, then the priest shall shut up the person with the itching disease for seven days,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:32 - and on the seventh day the priest shall examine the disease. If the itch has not spread, and there is in it no yellow hair, and the itch appears to be no deeper than the skin,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:33 - then he shall shave himself, but the itch he shall not shave; and the priest shall shut up the person with the itching disease for another seven days.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:34 - And on the seventh day the priest shall examine the itch, and if the itch has not spread in the skin and it appears to be no deeper than the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean. And he shall wash his clothes and be clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:35 - But if the itch spreads in the skin after his cleansing,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:36 - then the priest shall examine him, and if the itch has spread in the skin, the priest need not seek for the yellow hair; he is unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:37 - But if in his eyes the itch is unchanged and black hair has grown in it, the itch is healed and he is clean, and the priest shall pronounce him clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:38 - “When a man or a woman has spots on the skin of the body, white spots,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:39 - the priest shall look, and if the spots on the skin of the body are of a dull white, it is leukoderma that has broken out in the skin; he is clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:40 - “If a man’s hair falls out from his head, he is bald; he is clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:41 - And if a man’s hair falls out from his forehead, he has baldness of the forehead; he is clean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:42 - But if there is on the bald head or the bald forehead a reddish-white diseased area, it is a leprous disease breaking out on his bald head or his bald forehead.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:43 - Then the priest shall examine him, and if the diseased swelling is reddish-white on his bald head or on his bald forehead, like the appearance of leprous disease in the skin of the body,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:44 - he is a leprous man, he is unclean. The priest must pronounce him unclean; his disease is on his head.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:45 - “The leprous person who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip[fn] and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:46 - He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:47 - “When there is a case of leprous disease in a garment, whether a woolen or a linen garment,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:48 - in warp or woof of linen or wool, or in a skin or in anything made of skin,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:49 - if the disease is greenish or reddish in the garment, or in the skin or in the warp or the woof or in any article made of skin, it is a case of leprous disease, and it shall be shown to the priest.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:50 - And the priest shall examine the disease and shut up that which has the disease for seven days.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:51 - Then he shall examine the disease on the seventh day. If the disease has spread in the garment, in the warp or the woof, or in the skin, whatever be the use of the skin, the disease is a persistent leprous disease; it is unclean.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:52 - And he shall burn the garment, or the warp or the woof, the wool or the linen, or any article made of skin that is diseased, for it is a persistent leprous disease. It shall be burned in the fire.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:53 - “And if the priest examines, and if the disease has not spread in the garment, in the warp or the woof or in any article made of skin,
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:54 - then the priest shall command that they wash the thing in which is the disease, and he shall shut it up for another seven days.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:55 - And the priest shall examine the diseased thing after it has been washed. And if the appearance of the diseased area has not changed, though the disease has not spread, it is unclean. You shall burn it in the fire, whether the rot is on the back or on the front.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:56 - “But if the priest examines, and if the diseased area has faded after it has been washed, he shall tear it out of the garment or the skin or the warp or the woof.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:57 - Then if it appears again in the garment, in the warp or the woof, or in any article made of skin, it is spreading. You shall burn with fire whatever has the disease.
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:58 - But the garment, or the warp or the woof, or any article made of skin from which the disease departs when you have washed it, shall then be washed a second time, and be clean.”
Unchecked Copy BoxLev 13:59 - This is the law for a case of leprous disease in a garment of wool or linen, either in the warp or the woof, or in any article made of skin, to determine whether it is clean or unclean.
ESV Footnotes
Leprosy was a term for several skin diseases
Or mustache
ESV

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version copyright © 2001, 2007, 2011, 2016, 2025 by Crossway Books and Bibles, a Publishing Ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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