So this begs the question, did God thoughtlessly conjure up these laws so He could have a good laugh or is there a rationale behind them? And can these laws (in any way) benefit God's people today? Many believe these laws are completely outdated and obsolete but I actually think they speak an important message to our lives today. I believe this because a very specific principle seems to stand at the CORE of these laws. Let me explain.
THE RATIONALE
If you look closely at Leviticus 11 you quickly notice that the passage is structured using the same categories of animals (but in reverse order) as Genesis 1 (sea animals, flying creatures, land animals, and "creatures that move along the ground"). This is a clue that Genesis might hold the key to unlocking the rationale behind these strange purity laws. And in fact, observations have been presented by scholars that support this.
For instance, the types and categories of uncleanness in Leviticus 11-15 seem to correspond to the storyline of Genesis 3. In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve EAT what is forbidden (Lev. 11: FOOD Laws; Gen. 3:6), the woman is cursed with pain in CHILDBEARING (Lev. 12: CHILDBIRTH Laws; Gen. 3:16), nakedness becomes a source of shame for the man and woman which God covers with a GARMENT of SKIN (Lev. 13-14: SKIN and CLOTHING Laws; Gen. 3:7, 10, 21, 23), and tension is infused into the relationship between the man and woman which interferes with their INTIMACY (Lev. 15: BED Laws; Gen. 3:16). So then, what does this rationale tell us about the purpose behind these purity laws?
THE PURITY PRINCIPLE
The purity laws served a symbolic function as daily reminders to God's people about the FALL and the fact that they were living in an IMPURE and DYING world in need of major renewal. Likewise, the purity laws reminded God's people of their LIFE-GIVING mission and the importance of living as a HOLY (distinct) people under God's rule to accomplish this mission. In this way, IMPURITY and DEATH, on the one hand, and HOLINESS and LIFE, on the other, stand at the center of these laws. This is confirmed in Leviticus 11:43-47. And so the general principle is that anything that defies God's HOLY design for life symbolizes DEATH and is therefore UNCLEAN while anything that conforms to God's HOLY design symbolizes LIFE and is CLEAN. So how does this work itself out in the specific purity laws in Leviticus 11-15? Let me show you.
THE DIRTY DETAILS (pardon the pun!)
Food Laws
Notice in the food laws (Lev. 11) that CLEAN animals BOTH chewed the cud and had a split hoof. On the surface this sounds both strange and random. But animals that chew the cud are by definition VEGETARIAN (they do not eat meat). And so this tells us that God's people were only allowed to eat animals NOT associated with DEATH. This is to say, animals that killed other animals for food were UNCLEAN (this includes the pig). This was also true for the birds of prey listed in Leviticus 11:13-19. So what practical purpose did this serve? This law reminded God's people every time they ate that God's original creation design did not include DEATH!
So then what was so special about animals with a split hoof? For starters, split hooves allow greater cushion for animals that graze in the field, such as cattle (no need for orthopedic shoes!). Also, animals with split hooves have an important distinction from animals with claws. Clawed animals are meat-eaters while split-hoofed animals graze and therefore don't eat meat. Additionally, the author helps us here by giving us three animals (that do not have a split hoof but chew the cud) as examples to draw out the rationale for this criterion: the camel, rabbit, and cony (rock badger). Let's begin with the camel. What function did the camel serve? Transportation. Right? The same holds true for the horse and donkey which also DO NOT have a split hoof (but DO chew the cud). And so eating a donkey, horse or a camel would defy God's original creation design for these animals. They were not created to be eaten! And doing so would symbolically bring DEATH to God's creation order.
Now personally I would love to see someone ride a rabbit but it hasn't happened yet in my lifetime. And so if not for functional reasons, why are non-split hoofed rabbits and rock badgers (cony) off limits for eating? Regarding rabbits, you're probably thinking, "They have the 'cute factor' going for them." But not so with the rock badger! Believe it or not, the rabbit and the rock badger (cony) were most likely considered UNCLEAN because they were often confused as being rodents (which are classified as UNCLEAN for reasons we'll later discuss). And so vegetarian animals that can easily be confused with UNCLEAN animals are UNCLEAN (Remember...back then they didn't have Siri to verify information). But the confusion doesn't end here.
Why were sea creatures without fins or scales such as lobsters and crabs considered UNCLEAN? The likely explanation is that these creatures were BOTH land and sea creatures and did not fit neatly into ONE of God's original creation categories (land, sea, or sky). In this way, these animals defy God's original creation design and remind us that in Genesis 3 disorder and DEATH were brought into the world.
Finally, why are insects and animals that "move about on the ground" UNCLEAN? This criterion points us back to Genesis 3 when the serpent was sentenced to "crawl on his belly and eat dust." As a result, since the time of Genesis 3 anything associated with the ground is considered UNCLEAN. This includes insects and rodents that move by hovering over the ground whether on their bellies or on four legs. Conversely, insects like grasshoppers and locusts that moved by hopping over the ground were considered CLEAN because they didn't bring to mind the serpent (and the DEATH he introduced to God's creation order).
Other Purity Laws
Regarding the other purity laws (Lev. 12-15), they were linked with everyday occurrences that brought to mind Genesis 3 and the DEATH that resulted from Adam and Eve's sin. For instance, childbirth brought to mind the curse of PAIN. Also, many believe childbirth was associated with DEATH because of the loss of blood during delivery (and the risk of death that this presented). Likewise, skin diseases and molds were associated with SHAME and the process of DEATH which weren't a part of God's original creation order.
THE BOTTOM LINE
So what message do these purity laws have for us today? Notice that God used these laws to plant symbols into the everyday lives of His people to remind them of their life-giving mission. And so when people ate a meal, welcomed a new child into the world, or contracted an illness, they were reminded that they live in an impure and dying world and that God has called them to be a life-giving force through the way they represent Him to the world. We are called to do the same. Our actions are to reflect God to the world. May you bring God into your everyday life and be a life-giving force for the honor of God and for the sake of others.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION
When do you think about God the most? Why then?
What steps can you take to make God more a part of your everyday life?
THE RATIONALE
If you look closely at Leviticus 11 you quickly notice that the passage is structured using the same categories of animals (but in reverse order) as Genesis 1 (sea animals, flying creatures, land animals, and "creatures that move along the ground"). This is a clue that Genesis might hold the key to unlocking the rationale behind these strange purity laws. And in fact, observations have been presented by scholars that support this.
For instance, the types and categories of uncleanness in Leviticus 11-15 seem to correspond to the storyline of Genesis 3. In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve EAT what is forbidden (Lev. 11: FOOD Laws; Gen. 3:6), the woman is cursed with pain in CHILDBEARING (Lev. 12: CHILDBIRTH Laws; Gen. 3:16), nakedness becomes a source of shame for the man and woman which God covers with a GARMENT of SKIN (Lev. 13-14: SKIN and CLOTHING Laws; Gen. 3:7, 10, 21, 23), and tension is infused into the relationship between the man and woman which interferes with their INTIMACY (Lev. 15: BED Laws; Gen. 3:16). So then, what does this rationale tell us about the purpose behind these purity laws?
THE PURITY PRINCIPLE
The purity laws served a symbolic function as daily reminders to God's people about the FALL and the fact that they were living in an IMPURE and DYING world in need of major renewal. Likewise, the purity laws reminded God's people of their LIFE-GIVING mission and the importance of living as a HOLY (distinct) people under God's rule to accomplish this mission. In this way, IMPURITY and DEATH, on the one hand, and HOLINESS and LIFE, on the other, stand at the center of these laws. This is confirmed in Leviticus 11:43-47. And so the general principle is that anything that defies God's HOLY design for life symbolizes DEATH and is therefore UNCLEAN while anything that conforms to God's HOLY design symbolizes LIFE and is CLEAN. So how does this work itself out in the specific purity laws in Leviticus 11-15? Let me show you.
THE DIRTY DETAILS (pardon the pun!)
Food Laws
Notice in the food laws (Lev. 11) that CLEAN animals BOTH chewed the cud and had a split hoof. On the surface this sounds both strange and random. But animals that chew the cud are by definition VEGETARIAN (they do not eat meat). And so this tells us that God's people were only allowed to eat animals NOT associated with DEATH. This is to say, animals that killed other animals for food were UNCLEAN (this includes the pig). This was also true for the birds of prey listed in Leviticus 11:13-19. So what practical purpose did this serve? This law reminded God's people every time they ate that God's original creation design did not include DEATH!
So then what was so special about animals with a split hoof? For starters, split hooves allow greater cushion for animals that graze in the field, such as cattle (no need for orthopedic shoes!). Also, animals with split hooves have an important distinction from animals with claws. Clawed animals are meat-eaters while split-hoofed animals graze and therefore don't eat meat. Additionally, the author helps us here by giving us three animals (that do not have a split hoof but chew the cud) as examples to draw out the rationale for this criterion: the camel, rabbit, and cony (rock badger). Let's begin with the camel. What function did the camel serve? Transportation. Right? The same holds true for the horse and donkey which also DO NOT have a split hoof (but DO chew the cud). And so eating a donkey, horse or a camel would defy God's original creation design for these animals. They were not created to be eaten! And doing so would symbolically bring DEATH to God's creation order.
Now personally I would love to see someone ride a rabbit but it hasn't happened yet in my lifetime. And so if not for functional reasons, why are non-split hoofed rabbits and rock badgers (cony) off limits for eating? Regarding rabbits, you're probably thinking, "They have the 'cute factor' going for them." But not so with the rock badger! Believe it or not, the rabbit and the rock badger (cony) were most likely considered UNCLEAN because they were often confused as being rodents (which are classified as UNCLEAN for reasons we'll later discuss). And so vegetarian animals that can easily be confused with UNCLEAN animals are UNCLEAN (Remember...back then they didn't have Siri to verify information). But the confusion doesn't end here.
Why were sea creatures without fins or scales such as lobsters and crabs considered UNCLEAN? The likely explanation is that these creatures were BOTH land and sea creatures and did not fit neatly into ONE of God's original creation categories (land, sea, or sky). In this way, these animals defy God's original creation design and remind us that in Genesis 3 disorder and DEATH were brought into the world.
Finally, why are insects and animals that "move about on the ground" UNCLEAN? This criterion points us back to Genesis 3 when the serpent was sentenced to "crawl on his belly and eat dust." As a result, since the time of Genesis 3 anything associated with the ground is considered UNCLEAN. This includes insects and rodents that move by hovering over the ground whether on their bellies or on four legs. Conversely, insects like grasshoppers and locusts that moved by hopping over the ground were considered CLEAN because they didn't bring to mind the serpent (and the DEATH he introduced to God's creation order).
Other Purity Laws
Regarding the other purity laws (Lev. 12-15), they were linked with everyday occurrences that brought to mind Genesis 3 and the DEATH that resulted from Adam and Eve's sin. For instance, childbirth brought to mind the curse of PAIN. Also, many believe childbirth was associated with DEATH because of the loss of blood during delivery (and the risk of death that this presented). Likewise, skin diseases and molds were associated with SHAME and the process of DEATH which weren't a part of God's original creation order.
THE BOTTOM LINE
So what message do these purity laws have for us today? Notice that God used these laws to plant symbols into the everyday lives of His people to remind them of their life-giving mission. And so when people ate a meal, welcomed a new child into the world, or contracted an illness, they were reminded that they live in an impure and dying world and that God has called them to be a life-giving force through the way they represent Him to the world. We are called to do the same. Our actions are to reflect God to the world. May you bring God into your everyday life and be a life-giving force for the honor of God and for the sake of others.
QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION
When do you think about God the most? Why then?
What steps can you take to make God more a part of your everyday life?
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