What Does Scripture Say About Food?
Leviticus 11 still applies.
I’ve spent a good portion of my life outdoors. If it’s legal to do so (in a "laws of man” context here), I’ve probably at least tried to hunt, trap, or catch on a line every animal I could near my home. I’ve often been successful. Resources in the form of animals are renewable (if done right), and I believe they should be utilized. So, I’ve eaten a lot of different animals. Even if I trapped them for fur (and for management reasons), I figured I may as well try to see if they were any good to eat. I’ve eaten meat from all kinds of critters in my life. Pigs, rabbits, squirrels, muskrats, raccoons, catfish, burbot, and a whole array of other animals have been cooked and at least attempted to be made palatable. Were any of those things actually food? I could eat concrete if I broke it into small enough pieces. Maybe slap some honey on it and put it between two slices of bread. But does that make it food? Most of the modern world seems to define food as something you put in your stomach to ease hunger. But how does scripture define food? Let’s dig in.
Leviticus 11:1-47 (LXX) - And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, Speak you to the sons of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which you shall eat of all beasts that are upon the earth. Every beast parting the hoof and making divisions of two claws, and chewing the cud among beasts, these you shall eat. But of these you shall not eat, of those that chew the cud, and of those that part the hoofs, and divide claws; the camel, because it chews the cud, but does not divide the hoof, this is unclean to you. And the rabbit, because it chews the cud, but does not divide the hoof, this is unclean to you. And the hare, because it does not chew the cud, and does not divide the hoof, this is unclean to you. And the swine, because this animal divides the hoof, and makes claws of the hoof, and it does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. You shall not eat of their flesh, and you shall not touch their carcasses; these are unclean to you. And these are what you shall eat of all that are in the waters: all things that have fins and scales in the waters, and in the seas, and in the brooks, these you shall eat. And all things which have not fins or scales in the water, or in the seas, and in the brooks, of all which the waters produce, and of every soul living in the water, are an abomination; and they shall be abominations to you. You shall not eat of their flesh, and you shall abhor their carcasses. And all things that have not fins or scales of those that are in the waters, these are an abomination to you. And these are the things which you shall abhor of birds, and they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle and the ossifrage, and the sea-eagle. And the vulture, and the kite, and the like to it; and the sparrow, and the owl, and the cormorant, and the like to it: and every raven, and the birds like it, and the hawk and his like, and the night-raven and the cormorant and the stork, and the red-bill, and the pelican, and swan, and the heron, and the lapwing, and the like to it, and the hoopoe and the bat. And all winged creatures that creep, which go upon four feet, are abominations to you. But these you shall eat of the creeping winged animals, which go upon four feet, which have legs above their feet, to leap with on the earth. And these of them you shall eat: the caterpillar and his like, and the attacus and his like, and the cantharus and his like, and the locust and his like. Every creeping thing from among the birds, which has four feet, is an abomination to you. And by these you shall be defiled; every one that touches their carcasses shall be unclean till the evening. And every one that takes of their dead bodies shall wash his garments, and shall be unclean till the evening. And whichever among the beasts divides the hoof and makes claws, and does not chew the cud, shall be unclean to you; every one that touches their dead bodies shall be unclean till evening. And every one among all the wild beasts that moves upon its fore feet, which goes on all four, is unclean to you; every one that touches their dead bodies shall be unclean till evening. And he that takes of their dead bodies shall wash his garments, and shall be unclean till evening: these are unclean to you. And these are unclean to you of reptiles upon the earth, the weasel, and the mouse, and the lizard, the ferret, and the chameleon, and the evet, and the newt, and the mole. These are unclean to you of all the reptiles which are on the earth; every one who touches their carcasses shall be unclean till evening. And on whatever one of their dead bodies shall fall it shall be unclean; whatever wooden vessel, or garment, or skin, or sack it may be, every vessel in which work should be done, shall be dipped in water, and shall be unclean till evening; and then it shall be clean. And every earthen vessel into which one of these things shall fall, whatever is inside it, shall be unclean, and it shall be broken. And all food that is eaten, on which water shall come from such a vessel, shall be unclean; and every beverage which is drunk in any such vessel, shall be unclean. And every thing on which there shall fall of their dead bodies shall be unclean; ovens and stands for jars shall be broken down: these are unclean, and they shall be unclean to you. Only if the water be of fountains of water, or a pool, or confluence of water, it shall be clean; but he that touches their carcasses shall be unclean. And if one of their carcasses should fall upon any sowing seed which shall be sown, it shall be clean. But if water be poured on any seed, and one of their dead bodies fall upon it, it is unclean to you. And if one of the cattle die, which it is lawful for you to eat, he that touches their carcasses shall be unclean till evening. And he that eats of their carcasses shall wash his garments, and be unclean till evening; and he that carries any of their carcasses shall wash his garments, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean till evening. And every reptile that creeps on the earth, this shall be an abomination to you; it shall not be eaten. And every animal that creeps on its belly, and every one that goes on four feet continually, which abounds with feet among all the reptiles creeping upon the earth—you shall not eat it, for it is an abomination to you. And you shall not defile your souls with any of the reptiles that creep upon the earth, and you shall not be polluted with them, and you shall not be unclean by them. For I am the Lord your God; and you shall be sanctified, and you shall be holy, because I the Lord your God am holy; and you shall not defile your souls with any of the reptiles creeping upon the earth. For I am the Lord who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God; and you shall be holy, for I the Lord am holy. This is the law concerning beasts and birds and every living creature moving in the water, and every living creature creeping on the earth; to distinguish between the unclean and the clean; and between those that bring forth alive, such as should be eaten, and those that bring forth alive, such as should not be eaten.
There’s a lot to unpack there. First off, I believe that Yah is not commanding us not to eat certain animals to punish us, but rather to keep us healthy. That is important. Many of these animals are garbage-eaters, cleaning up the earth. Others are predators that are designed to keep a balance and not let the prey animals get too populated. It’s not about our Creator flaunting animals in our faces and saying “do not eat these!”, but rather it’s about narrowing it down and Him saying, “hey, these ones aren’t food, but these other ones you can eat…enjoy!”
Dr. David Jockers discussed why eating Biblically unclean animals is scientifically unhealthy in the documentary The Way. He goes into why trash-eaters have a high toxin load and discusses the health consequences of eating unclean. Here’s a little clip of some of that interview:
There is also a lot of talk of carcasses and how you’re “unclean” if you touch one. There are a couple different things going on here with the word “unclean”. Animals are described as either “clean” or “unclean”, meaning “food” or “not food”. The other meaning of unclean (especially regarding carcasses and the touching of them) in this chapter is about being ceremonially unclean. If you were ceremonially unclean, you weren’t fit to go to the temple and be in the presence of Yah. Things have changed a bit, though. In the physical sense, it’s my belief that we are currently all physically unclean. There are biological functions that can make us unclean, and other things that need to be done in life that do the same. We are now the temple (1 Corinthians 3:16). While there are many examples of the Spirit taking up residence inside of people before Messiah, we all (who choose & have been chosen) have been given the Spirit to help us (John 14:16). I don’t think there’s a way to “clean” our uncleanness from a ceremonial perspective. At least for now.
Physical uncleanness can’t be avoided at times, but that doesn’t mean we should be reckless and defile ourselves physically in unnecessary ways. It’s probably not a good idea to mess with animal carcasses uselessly. If you see a dead opossum on the side of the road, it might be a good idea to not walk around swinging it by the tail until you get tired of it.
Physical/ceremonial uncleanness doesn’t mean that we get to redefine what food is, however. Most of Christianity today tries to use scripture to say that we can eat whatever we want (“those dietary laws were for Israel!”…that’s a whole other nutshell that you can read about in What Group Of People Is In Covenant With The Most High?) because along the way food is now basically whatever we want it to be. There are a few scriptures that are always pulled out when this topic comes up. Let’s talk about ‘em.
Acts 10 is probably the most popular. In this chapter, Peter has a vision which is a parable that tells him to view Gentiles in a different light. They are now to be sought out and grafted in (for more on that see Romans 11) to the tree that is Israel.
Acts 10:1-48 (NASB2020) - Now there was a man in Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, and made many charitable contributions to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually. About the ninth hour of the day he clearly saw in a vision an angel of God who had just come in and said to him, “Cornelius!” And he looked at him intently and became terrified, and said, “What is it, lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and charitable gifts have ascended as a memorial offering before God. Now dispatch some men to Joppa and send for a man named Simon, who is also called Peter; he is staying with a tanner named Simon, whose house is by the sea.” When the angel who spoke to him left, he summoned two of his servants and a devout soldier from his personal attendants, and after he had explained everything to them, he sent them to Joppa. On the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. But he became hungry and wanted to eat; but while they were making preparations, he fell into a trance; and he saw the sky opened up, and an object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, and on it were all kinds of four-footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the sky. A voice came to him, “Get up, Peter, kill and eat!” But Peter said, “By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy and unclean.” Again a voice came to him a second time, “What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.” This happened three times, and immediately the object was taken up into the sky. Now while Peter was greatly perplexed in mind as to what the vision which he had seen might mean, behold, the men who had been sent by Cornelius had asked directions to Simon’s house, and they appeared at the gate; and calling out, they were asking whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there. While Peter was reflecting on the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are looking for you. But get up, go downstairs and accompany them without misgivings, for I have sent them Myself.” Peter went down to the men and said, “Behold, I am the one you are looking for; what is the reason for which you have come?” They said, “Cornelius, a centurion, a righteous and God-fearing man well spoken of by the entire nation of the Jews, was divinely directed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house and hear a message from you.” So he invited them in and gave them lodging. Now on the next day he got ready and went away with them, and some of the brothers from Joppa accompanied him. On the following day he entered Caesarea. Now Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. When Peter entered, Cornelius met him, and fell at his feet and worshiped him. But Peter helped him up, saying, “Stand up; I, too, am just a man.” As he talked with him, he entered and found many people assembled. And he said to them, “You yourselves know that it is forbidden for a Jewish man to associate with or visit a foreigner; and yet God has shown me that I am not to call any person unholy or unclean. That is why I came without even raising any objection when I was sent for. So I ask, for what reason did you send for me?” Cornelius said, “Four days ago to this hour, I was praying in my house during the ninth hour; and behold, a man stood before me in shining clothing, and he said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your charitable gifts have been remembered before God. Therefore send some men to Joppa and invite Simon, who is also called Peter, to come to you; he is staying at the house of Simon the tanner, by the sea.’ So I sent men to you immediately, and you have been kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here present before God to hear everything that you have been commanded by the Lord.” Opening his mouth, Peter said: “I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the one who fears Him and does what is right is acceptable to Him. The word which He sent to the sons of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ (He is Lord of all)--you yourselves know the thing that happened throughout Judea, starting from Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed. You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. We are witnesses of all the things that He did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross. God raised Him up on the third day and granted that He be revealed, not to all the people, but to witnesses who had been chosen beforehand by God, that is, to us who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. And He ordered us to preach to the people, and to testify solemnly that this is the One who has been appointed by God as Judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify of Him, that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.” While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. All the Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had also been poured out on the Gentiles. For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter responded, Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?” And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days.
Now, where, in any of that chapter, do you see anything that would change how food is defined? If you see something along those lines, I’m assuming it’s because you were taught by man to see it. Because there is nothing in this chapter that redefines food. Dart frog has not been made clean. Peter certainly doesn’t change his diet after this. This whole chapter was about seeking out people in ALL nations to follow Yeshua and become part of the nation of Israel.
What happens is that people isolate one verse, take it out of context, and use it to justify bacon consumption.
Acts 10:15 (NASB2020) - Again a voice came to him a second time, “What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.”
This is a parable. This is not literally about animals. It’s that simple. The conversation continues into the next chapter when Peter goes to Jerusalem and talks to some Jewish followers of The Way who are bent out of shape that he was hanging out with people from other nations:
Acts 11:1-18 (NASB2020) - Now the apostles and the brothers and sisters who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. And when Peter came up to Jerusalem, the Jewish believers took issue with him, saying, “You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them.” But Peter began and explained at length to them in an orderly sequence, saying, “I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a vision, an object coming down like a great sheet lowered by four corners from the sky; and it came to where I was, and I stared at it and was thinking about it, and I saw the four-footed animals of the earth, the wild animals, the crawling creatures, and the birds of the sky. I also heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat.’ But I said, ‘By no means, Lord, for nothing unholy or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ But a voice from heaven answered a second time, ‘What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.’ This happened three times, and everything was drawn back up into the sky. And behold, at that moment three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea came up to the house where we were staying. And the Spirit told me to go with them without misgivings. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. And he reported to us how he had seen the angel standing in his house, and saying, ‘Send some men to Joppa and have Simon, who is also called Peter, brought here; and he will speak words to you by which you will be saved, you and all your household.’ And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as He did upon us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how He used to say, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ Therefore, if God gave them the same gift as He also gave to us after believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, “Well then, God has also granted to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life.”
Did the people in Jerusalem say anything about how it was also now acceptable to eat ham sandwiches? No! Because changing the definition of food had nothing to do with anything in these chapters. It was all about opening a door for other nations.
The scripture that gets pulled out almost as often as Acts 10 in these discussions is Mark 7. In this chapter, Pharisees are whining (go figure…they probably should have just been called Karens) about how the manmade handwashing laws are being ignored. Yeshua responds to them masterfully, as always.
Mark 7:1-23 (NASB2020) - The Pharisees and some of the scribes gathered to Him after they came from Jerusalem, and saw that some of His disciples were eating their bread with unholy hands, that is, unwashed. (For the Pharisees and all the other Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thereby holding firmly to the tradition of the elders; and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they completely cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received as traditions to firmly hold, such as the washing of cups, pitchers, and copper pots.) And the Pharisees and the scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk in accordance with the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with unholy hands?” But He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips,
But their heart is far away from Me. ‘And in vain do they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.” He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition. For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘The one who speaks evil of father or mother, is certainly to be put to death’; but you say, ‘If a person says to his father or his mother, whatever I have that would help you is Corban (that is, given to God),’ you no longer allow him to do anything for his father or his mother; thereby invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that.” After He called the crowd to Him again, He began saying to them, “Listen to Me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside the person which can defile him if it goes into him; but the things which come out of the person are what defile the person.” And when He later entered a house, away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him about the parable. And He said to them, “Are you so lacking in understanding as well? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the person from outside cannot defile him, because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and is eliminated?” (Thereby He declared all foods clean.) And He was saying, “That which comes out of the person, that is what defiles the person. For from within, out of the hearts of people, come the evil thoughts, acts of sexual immorality, thefts, murders, acts of adultery, deeds of greed, wickedness, deceit, indecent behavior, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile the person.”
As per usual, the Pharisees come at Yeshua with a “why aren’t your people following the laws of man?!” mentality. He calls them out for “setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.” They’re concerned that people aren’t following their rules rather than the Father’s. Messiah blasts them by quoting Isaiah 29:13 and pointing out that they’re heart posture is lacking (to put it mildly). Where people get tripped up is when he’s talking about what “defiles” a person. This is again talking about heart posture. It’s not an excuse to eat lobster. Yeshua is calling people out for not following the commands of The Most High, do you think he’s all of a sudden making a case for ignoring Leviticus 11? Absolutely not! He’s talking about the heart, and if you have a heart for Abba, you’ll follow his commands. Furthermore, the “(Thereby He declared all foods clean.)” part wasn’t even in the original text…it was added later! That’s a big problem, and it means that people will add to scripture (if given the chance) to push their own doctrine (sound Pharisaic to you?). Also, for the record, all “foods” are already clean…or they wouldn’t be considered food. And if you’re hung up on putting whatever you want in your stomach because it won’t defile you, there are plenty of poisons out there (many of them in animals) that I guarantee would defile you to death. We wouldn’t drink strychnine because it goes in our stomach and not our heart, correct? Mark 7 is not an argument against dietary laws and if used as one, that argument falls flat when taken in it’s proper context.
The last couple anti-dietary law arguments that I’ll be addressing come from Paul. Which is no big surprise because people often twist Paul’s writings (2 Peter 3:16) to promote antinomian doctrine.
1 Timothy 4:1-5 (NASB2020) - But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.
This passage is again talking about the traditions of men, not bashing the commands of Yah. Food is already defined by Leviticus 11. Paul isn’t trying to redefine food here. This is about what people will do in the future (from the time of Paul’s writing) to try to impose on people what their diets must consist of. There are those that teach that meat can’t be eaten at certain times (Lent, anyone?!) or in some cases at all. It’s not up to men to tell others what they can or can’t eat at certain times. That’s a Pharisaic mindset. Paul is pushing back on that mentality. Just because we don’t let men tell us what to eat or not eat doesn’t mean we also start rejecting what our Creator told us to eat or not eat.
Colossians 2:16 (NASB2020) - Therefore, no one is to act as your judge in regard to food and drink, or in respect to a festival or a new moon, or a Sabbath day--
This is also a passage of Paul’s that gets cherry-picked frequently. Collosae was a very pagan environment, and the assembly there was constantly pressured to insert pagan polytheistic rituals into their following of Yeshua. Paul is telling the church there to not be bullied into disregarding the Father’s commands. He’s telling the people not to cave to pressure from pagan Roman society. It didn’t matter if the pagans were making fun of the assembly for eating clean, keeping Sabbath holy, or keeping feast days. Paul was encouraging the congregation to be steadfast. This was not Paul rubber-stamping eating unclean foods or celebrating pagan festivals. Yet many in modern churchianity treat this verse as such.
These are the main arguments people seem to use against dietary laws today. There are other ones that get pulled out from time to time, but those don’t carry much, if any, weight either.
I also want to point out that while the dietary laws were written by Moses in Leviticus 11, they didn’t begin there. In the days of Noah people were familiar with clean and unclean animals:
Genesis 7:1-3 (LXX) - And the Lord God said to Noe, Enter you and all your family into the ark, for you have I seen righteous before me in this generation. And of the clean cattle take in to you sevens, male and female, and of the unclean cattle pairs male and female. And of clean flying creatures of the sky sevens, male and female, and of all unclean flying creatures pairs, male and female, to maintain seed on all the earth.
Noah was commanded to take 7 pairs of clean animals, and only 1 pair of unclean animals. Many people suggest that “Mosaic Law” doesn’t apply to us anymore. I believe that it was law before Moses. If it applied before Moses, why would it disappear after Moses? Yeshua did not come to abolish the law, and said as much. If you would like to read more on that, you can check out Even The Demons Believe.
A couple thousand years ago people would willingly die rather than eat pork. Look at how far we’ve come today! Instead of dying to keep Yah’s commands, the average Christian is more prone to make fun of or pressure someone who doesn’t eat pork. Where has all the testicular fortitude gone? Shouldn’t we be taking a stand for Abba’s commands rather than taking a stand against them?
Whatever you think of whether or not the Maccabees are considered scripture, it’s my belief that they are historically accurate. In my opinion, you will not find a more heroic example of standing up to the satanic powers of the world regarding what we put in our bodies. Where were these types of people in 2020?
1 Maccabees 1:62-63 (LXX) - Howbeit many in Israel were fully resolved and confirmed in themselves not to eat any unclean thing. Wherefore they chose rather to die, that they might not be defiled with meats, and that they might not profane the holy covenant; so then they died.
That is a good summary of the mindset of the steadfast followers of Yah, but Maccabees goes into much greater detail than that. The Judeans were being oppressed by the Greek occupation, and the Greeks were trying (and often succeeding) to make the Judeans assimilate to their ways. There were heroes who died instead of caving. First we see Eleazar hold his ground:
2 Maccabees 6:1-31 (LXX) - Not long after this the king sent an old man of Athens to compel the Jews to depart from the laws of their fathers, and not to live after the laws of God: and to pollute also the temple in Jerusalem, and to call it the temple of Jupiter Olympius; and that in Garazim, of Jupiter the defender of strangers, as they did desire that dwelt in the place. The coming in of this mischief was sore and grievous to the people: for the temple was filled with riot and revelling by the Gentiles, who dallied with harlots, and had to do with women within the circuit of the holy places, and besides that brought in things that were not lawful. The altar also was filled with profane things, which the law forbiddeth. Neither was it lawful for a man to keep sabbath days or ancient feasts, or to profess himself at all to be a Jew. And in the day of the king’s birth every month they were brought by bitter constraint to eat of the sacrifices; and when the feast of Bacchus was kept, the Jews were compelled to go in procession to Bacchus, carrying ivy. Moreover there went out a decree to the neighbor cities of the heathen, by the suggestion of Ptolemee, against the Jews, that they should observe the same fashions, and be partakers of their sacrifices: and whoso would not conform themselves to the manners of the Gentiles should be put to death. Then might a man have seen the present misery. For there were two women brought, who had circumcised their children; whom when they had openly led round about the city, the babes hanging at their breasts, they cast them down headlong from the wall. And others, that had run together into the caves near by, to keep the sabbath day secretly, being discovered to Philip, were all burnt together, because they made a conscience to help themselves for the honor of the most sacred day. Now I beseech those that read this book, that they be not discouraged for these calamities, but that they judge those punishments not to be for destruction, but for a chastening of our nation. For it is a token of his great goodness, when wicked doers are not suffered any longer time, but forthwith punished. For not as with other nations, whom the Lord patiently forbeareth to punish, till they be come to the fulness of their sins, so dealeth he with us, lest that, being come to the height of sin, afterwards he should take vengeance of us. And therefore he never withdraweth his mercy from us: and though he punish with adversity, yet doth he never forsake his people. But let this that we have spoken be for a warning unto us. And now will we come to the declaring of the matter in a few words. Eleazar, one of the principal scribes, an aged man, and of a well-favored countenance, was constrained to open his mouth, and to eat swine’s flesh. But he, choosing rather to die gloriously, than to live stained with such an abomination, spit it forth, and came of his own accord to the torment. As it behooved them to come, that are resolute to stand out against such things as are not lawful for love or life to be tasted. But they that had the charge of that wicked feast, for the old acquaintance they had with the man, taking him aside, besought him to bring flesh of his own provision, such as was lawful for him to use, and make as if he did eat of the flesh taken from the sacrifice commanded by the king; that in so doing he might be delivered from death, and for the old friendship with them find favor. But he began to consider discreetly, and as became his age, and the excellency of his ancient years, and the honor of his gray head, whereunto he was come, and his most honest education from a child, or rather the holy law made and given by God: therefore he answered accordingly, and willed them straightways to send him to the grave. For it becometh not our age, said he, in any wise to dissemble, whereby many young persons might think that Eleazar, being fourscore years old and ten, were now gone to a strange religion; and so they through mine hypocrisy, and desire to live a little time and a moment longer, should be deceived by me, and I get a stain to mine old age, and make it abominable. For though for the present time I should be delivered from the punishment of men: yet should I not escape the hand of the Almighty, neither alive, nor dead. Wherefore now, manfully changing this life, I will shew myself such an one as mine age requireth, and leave a notable example to such as be young to die willingly and courageously for the honorable and holy laws. And when he had said these words, immediately he went to the torment: they that led him changing the good will they bare him a little before into hatred, because the foresaid speeches proceeded, as they thought, from a desperate mind. But when he was ready to die with stripes, he groaned, and said, it is manifest unto the Lord, that hath the holy knowledge, that whereas I might have been delivered from death, I now endure sore pains in body by being beaten: but in soul am well content to suffer these things, because I fear him. And thus this man died, leaving his death for an example of a noble courage, and a memorial of virtue, not only unto young men but unto all his nation.
Eleazar refused to eat the pig. He could have eaten a clean meat and played it off as being pig, but he refused to lead others astray. Dying was worth the price to him to keep Yah’s commands. He was an old man, though. He probably didn’t have much longer to live anyway. Surely women and children wouldn’t stand up and accept the consequences for rejecting the orders of men over the instructions of Abba, would they? Let’s continue into the next chapter and find out:
2 Maccabees 7:1-42 (LXX) - It came to pass also, that seven brethren with their mother were taken, and compelled by the king against the law to taste swine’s flesh, and were tormented with scourges and whips. But one of them that spake first said thus, “What wouldest thou ask or learn of us? We are ready to die, rather than to transgress the laws of our fathers.” Then the king, being in a rage, commanded pans and caldrons to be made hot: which forthwith being heated, he commanded to cut out the tongue of him that spake first, and to cut off the utmost parts of his body, and rest of his brethren and his mother looking on. Now when he was thus maimed in all his members, he commanded him being yet alive to be brought out to the fire, and to be fried in the pan: and as the vapor of the pan was for a good space dispersed, they exhorted one another with the mother to die manfully, saying thus, “The Lord God looking upon us, and in truth hath comfort in us, as Moses in his song, which witnessed to their faces, declared, saying, and he shall be comforted in his servants.” So when the first was dead after this manner, they brought the second to make him a mocking stock: and when they had pulled off the skin of his head with the hair, they asked him, “Wilt thou eat, before thou be punished throughout every member of thy body?” But he answered in his own language, and said, “No.” Wherefore he also received the next torment in order, as the former did. And when he was at the last gasp, he said, “Thou like a fury takest us out of this present life, but the King of the world shall raise us up, who have died for his laws, unto everlasting life.” After him was the third made a mocking stock: and when he was required he put out his tongue, and that right soon, holding forth his hands manfully, and said courageously, “These I had from heaven; and for his laws I despise them; and from him I hope to receive them again.” Insomuch that the king, and they that were with him, marveled at the young man’s courage, for that he nothing regarded the pains. Now when this man was dead also, they tormented and mangled the fourth in like manner. So when he was ready to die he said thus, “It is good, being put to death by men, to look for hope from God to be raised up again by him: as for thee, thou shalt have no resurrection to life.” Afterward they brought the fifth also, and mangled him. Then looked he unto the king, and said, “Thou hast power over men, thou art corruptible, thou doest what thou wilt; yet think not that our nation is forsaken of God; but abide a while, and behold his great power, how he will torment thee and thy seed.” After him also they brought the sixth, who being ready to die said, “Be not deceived without cause: for we suffer these things for ourselves, having sinned against our God: therefore marvelous things are done unto us. But think not thou, that takest in hand to strive against God, that thou shall escape unpunished. But the mother was marvelous above all, and worthy of honorable memory: for when she saw her seven sons slain within the space of one day, she bare it with a good courage, because of the hope she had in the Lord. Yea, she exhorted every one of them in her own language, filled with courageous spirits; and stirring up her womanish thoughts with a manly stomach, she said unto them, “I cannot tell how ye came into my womb; for I neither gave you breath nor life, neither was it I that formed the members of every one of you; but doubtless the Creator of the world, who formed the generation of man, and found out the beginning of all things, will also of His own mercy give you breath and life again, as ye now regard not your own selves for his laws’ sake.” Now Antiochus, thinking himself despised, and suspecting it to be a reproachful speech, whilst the youngest was yet alive, did not only exhort him by words, but also assured him with oaths, that he would make him both a rich and happy man, if he would turn from the laws of his fathers; and that also he would take him for his friend, and trust him with affairs. But when the young man would in no case hearken unto him, the king called his mother, and exhorted her that she would counsel the young man to save his life. And when he had exhorted her with many words, she promised him that she would counsel her son. But she bowing herself toward him, laughing the cruel tyrant to scorn, spake in her country language on this manner; “O my son, have pity upon me that bare thee nine mouths in my womb, and gave thee suck three years, and nourished thee, and brought thee up unto this age, and endured the troubles of education. I beseech thee, my son, look upon the heaven and the earth, and all that is therein, and consider that God made them of things that were not; and so was mankind made likewise. Fear not this tormentor, but, being worthy of thy brethren, take thy death, that I may receive thee again in mercy with thy brethren.” While she was yet speaking these words, the young man said, “Whom wait ye for? I will not obey the king’s commandment: but I will obey the commandment of the law that was given unto our fathers by Moses. And thou, that hast been the author of all mischief against the Hebrews, shalt not escape the hands of God. For we suffer because of our sins. And though the living Lord be angry with us a little while for our chastening and correction, yet shall he beat one again with his servants. But thou, O godless man, and of all other most wicked, be not lifted up without a cause, nor puffed up with uncertain hopes, lifting up thy hand against the servants of God: for thou hast not yet escaped the judgement of Almighty God, who seeth all things. For our brethren, who now have suffered a short pain, are dead under God’s covenant of everlasting life: but thou, through the judgement of God, shalt receive just punishment for thy pride. But I, as my brethren, offer up my body and life for the laws of our fathers, beseeching God that he would speedily be merciful unto our nation; and that thou by torments and plagues mayest confess, that he alone is God; and that in me and my brethren the wrath of the Almighty, which is justly brought upon all our nation, may cease.” Then the king, being in a rage, handled him worse than all the rest, and took it grievously that he was mocked. So this man died undefiled, and put his whole trust in the Lord. Last of all after the sons the mother died. Let this be enough now to have spoken concerning the idolatrous feasts, and the extreme tortures.
The mother and her seven sons were even more bold than Eleazar! The youngest was offered wealth and power, and still rejected it to keep the laws of our Father. Can I get a halleluYah anyone?! This is what it looks like to be loyal to the covenant with the Most High.
Now, compare that to modern times. Where are all the people willing to die to follow Yah’s commands? What did we see in 2020? Pastors closing up shop on government orders, churches with mask mandates and pushing people to get experimental (and “experimental” is a rather kind assumption) shots. Not only do many people who claim to do Yah’s will scoff at Leviticus 11 applying to them, they’re willing to put other junk in their body and not push back against the systems of the beast. We need more people of all ages and genders (or rather, both genders) to stand up for Yah’s commands. A punishment for doing so here is a reward later. These 9 people martyred in the Maccabees quoted above are heroic, though what they did should be the status quo for every espousing believer.
I’m not here to condemn people for their past, or for something they’re struggling with. I started this piece of writing out by discussing the fact that I’ve eaten plenty of unclean foods in my day. However, that’s not an excuse for the present or the future. Yah wants me to eat clean animals for my own benefit, just as a parent wants their child to be obedient about the things they are told to do for their own health. I think we need to have an attitude of obedience, no matter the consequences. Not an attitude that says, “You’ll have to pry this bacon from my cold, dead hands!”
If you made it this far, thanks for reading. I hope to see you at the wedding feast. 🪔
P.S. For those of you looking to cut out unclean foods, it can be a process. Don’t get discouraged. Here’s a couple links to beef bacon that may help start you out 😉:
Lol, we eat the Thousand Hills one!! It's really good! And turkey bacon is a good substitute for ham (IMO).
Also, great post!! I always enjoy reading what you have to say 😊