LEVITICUS 28


     We will begin this lesson in Leviticus 11:21 "Yet these may ye
eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon [all] four, which
have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;" Leviticus
11:22 "[Even] these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and
the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the
grasshopper after his kind."

     I repeated verse 21 from the last lesson, to make a complete
statement here. In the part of the world, where the Israelites lived,
beetle, locust, and grasshopper were eaten regularly.  These were not
only eaten when they were in desperate situations, but were actually
thought of as a delicacy.  Personally I have never eaten anything like
this, but in many parts of the world today these are still served as a
delicacy.

     Leviticus 11:23 "But all [other] flying creeping things, which
have four feet, [shall be] an abomination unto you." Leviticus 11:24
"And for these ye shall be unclean: whosoever toucheth the carcase of
them shall be unclean until the even."

     It seems that out of all the insects that fly and walk, just the
ones of the locust family were permitted to be eaten. Come to think of
it, who would want to eat a fly, or mosquito, or any of the other
flying pests we spray to get rid of? There is nothing dirtier, in my
opinion, than a roach. We could understand with no problem God
restricting them in use for the table.

     Leviticus 11:25 "And whosoever beareth [ought] of the carcase of
them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even."

     Mosquitoes carry malaria, among other things, and you can see it
would not be good to touch them. These ordinances are just good common
sense rules that God has made to help man. We watch out for our
children and try to keep them safe. God cares more for us than we do
for our children. Why would He not give these ordinances to protect us
from destroying ourselves?

     Leviticus 11:26 "[The carcases] of every beast which divideth the
hoof, and [is] not clovenfooted, nor cheweth the cud, [are] unclean
unto you: every one that toucheth them shall be unclean."  Leviticus
11:27 " And whatsoever goeth upon his paws, among all manner of beasts
that go on [all] four, those [are] unclean unto you: whoso toucheth
their carcase shall be unclean until the even."

     Those animals that have paws, would be all animals from the cat
family. This, also, includes dogs and wild animals like bear. These
warnings just go into greater detail than those mentioned earlier.
Some animals eat things like grass and do not eat flesh. Other animals
do not eat anything but flesh. God made each animal for its specific
use on this earth. We need to learn what God's purpose was for each
animal and use them for that purpose only.
     Leviticus 11:28 "And he that beareth the carcase of them shall
wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: they [are] unclean
unto you."

     As we said before, a carcase is the body of a dead animal. It
died for some reason. You can catch a disease from an animal the same
as from another human. This washing of the clothes is another common
sense precaution. Any germs in the clothes probably would be lost
after washing. In our day when so many dread diseases are around, we
should be very careful to always wash our hands after coming in
contact with animals, or even after we have shaken hands with a
stranger. In the hospitals, nurses wear gloves when they are caring
for patients to keep from catching the Aids virus and other dreaded
diseases.

     Leviticus 11:29  "These also [shall be] unclean unto you among
the creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the
mouse, and the tortoise after his kind," Leviticus 11:30 "And the
ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the
mole."

     The only visible difference in these and the unclean we read
about in the previous verses, is that these go on their belly, they do
not fly. Many of the things in this category, such as squirrel, and
snail are eaten today. These are not forbidden to those who speak the
Word and pray over everything they eat. Food is cleansed by the Word
and prayer.

     Leviticus 11:31 "These [are] unclean to you among all that creep:
whosoever doth touch them, when they be dead, shall be unclean until
the even."  Leviticus 11:32 "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], wherein [any] work is done, it must be put into water, and it
shall be unclean until the even; so it shall be cleansed."

     As we have mentioned throughout these lessons, these instructions
were given for the benefit of man. These things mentioned here, are
just very good health practices. The Israelites were not as well
learned on germs and how they are passed on, as our society today. I
believe these laws were like {rules for living a healthy life}.

     Leviticus 11:33 "And every earthen vessel, whereinto [any] of
them falleth, whatsoever [is] in it shall be unclean; and ye shall
break it."

     An earthen vessel could not be properly washed and freed from
germs. The only thing to do to get rid of the germs then, would be to
break it.

     Leviticus 11:34 "Of all meat which may be eaten, [that] on which
[such] water cometh shall be unclean: and all drink that may be drunk
in every [such] vessel shall be unclean."

     This is speaking of the earthen vessel above. It is easy to see
that anything in the earthen vessel that had been contaminated would,
also, be contaminated, since you could not wash the earthen vessel and
remove the germs.

     Leviticus 11:35 "And every [thing] whereupon [any part] of their
carcase falleth shall be unclean; [whether it be] oven, or ranges for
pots, they shall be broken down: [for] they [are] unclean, and shall
be unclean unto you."

     This just shows how the germs can be carried from the carcase,
and anything it touches would be contaminated. This is just stating
again, that anything the dead body falls on, that can not be washed
up, has to be done away with. I remember, when I was a child, if you
went to see someone with a disease like typhoid, you had to go to a
place away from everyone, take a bath and burn your old clothes you
wore in the room where the patient was. There would be fresh clothes
that had not been in contact with the disease to put on. I really
believe this is what God is saying here. It has just been in the last
few years, that Doctors and nurses wore masks in the operating room.
Until modern cleanliness standards were incorporated into hospital
regulations, many people died from infections, rather than the illness
they  were being doctored for.

     Leviticus 11:36 "Nevertheless a fountain or pit, [wherein there
is] plenty of water, shall be clean: but that which toucheth their
carcase shall be unclean."

     You can easily see why running water would wash the contamination
away.

     Just to sum up this lesson, I would say a loving God cared so
much for His children that He not only gave them laws to preserve
their soul, but gave them laws of cleanliness to help them live
healthy lives here on earth.



















                             Questions 28

1.  What 3 insects from the locust family were permitted to be eaten?
2.  What were they thought to be?
3.  If you touched the carcase of an unclean thing, you were unclean
    until when?
4.  What instructions were given about clothing when you touched the
    unclean thing?
5.  What insect is well-known for carrying malaria?
6.  What are these ordinances of cleanliness really?
7.  Not only were they not to eat unclean animals, but were not to
    ______ them as well.
8.  Name some of the animals that go upon their paws.
9.  How do the eating habits of animals vary?
10. What should we learn about animals and their purpose?
11. What is a carcase?
12. What advantage is it to wash your clothes after you have touched a
    dead animal?
13. Why are so many nurses in hospitals wearing gloves today when they
    care for their patients?
14. Name the things in the mouse family forbidden to eat.
15. Why would a wooden vessel have to be washed after something
    unclean touched it?
16. Why would an earthen vessel, that had been in contact something
    unclean, have to be broken?
17. Many years ago, when people visited those with very contagious
    diseases, they did what, with their clothing they had worn in the
    presence of the sick person?
18. Until modern cleanliness standards were installed in hospital
    rooms, what unexpected thing did many patients die of?
19. Why would a fountain or pit not be contaminated?
20. God loved His people so much that He not only gave them laws to
    preserve their soul, but laws of cleanliness--------------------.