Leviticus 11:1-30

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:8

Of their flesh shall ye not eat ,.... Meaning, not of swine only, but of the camel, coney, and hare: and their carcass shall ye not touch ; which must not be understood of touching them in any sense; for then it would have been unlawful for a Jew to have rode upon a camel, or to take out and make use of hog's lard in medicine; but of touching them in order to kill them, and prepare them for food, and eat them; and indeed all unnecessary touching of them is forbidden, lest it should bring... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:9

These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters ,.... In the waters of the sea, or in rivers, pools, and ponds; meaning fishes; for though some persons abstain from eating them entirely, as the Egyptian priests, as Herodotus F13 Euterpe, sive, l. 2. c. 37. relates; and it was a part of religion and holiness, not with the Egyptians only, but with the Syrians and Greeks, to forbear eating them F14 Plutarch. Sympos. p. 730. ; and Julian F15 Orat. 5. p. 330. gives two... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:10

And all that have not fins nor scales in the seas, and in the rivers ,.... Such as eels, lampreys, &c.; of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters ; the former of these are interpreted by Aben Ezra and Ben Gersom of little fishes that have but a small body, and such as are created out of the waters; and the latter, of such as are produced of a male and female; or, as Maimonides F18 Hilchot Maacolot Asuret, l. 1. c. 2. sect. 12. explains it,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:11

They shall be even an abomination to you ,.... This is repeated again and again, to deter from the eating of such fishes, lest there should be any desire after them: ye shall not eat of their flesh , here mention is made of the flesh of fishes, as is by the apostle, 1 Corinthians 15:39 . Aben Ezra observes, that their wise men say, this is according to the usage of words in those ages: but you shall have their carcasses in abomination ; not only abstain from eating them and... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:12

Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters ,.... Which is repeated that they might take particular notice of this law, and be careful to observe it, this being the only sign given: that shall be an abomination unto you ; the Targum of Jonathan says, that not only the flesh of such fish, but the broth, and pickles made of them, were to be an abomination; which contradicts what Pliny F20 Nat. Hist. l. 31. c. 8. relates, that the Jews made a pickle of fishes that lacked... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:13

And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls ,.... No description or sign is given of fowls, as of beasts and fishes, only the names of those not to be eaten; which, according to Maimonides, are twenty four; so that all the rest but these are clean fowls, and might be eaten; wherefore the same writer observes F24 Maacolot Asurot, c. 1. sect. 14, 15. , that,"whoever was expert in these kinds, and in their names, might eat of every fowl which was not of them,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:14

And the vulture, and the kite after his kind. Perhaps it might be better if the version was inverted, and the words be read, "and the kite, and the vulture, after his kind"; and the last word is by us rendered the vulture in Job 28:7 and very rightly, since the kite is not remarkable for its sight, any other than all rapacious creatures are, whereas the vulture is to a proverb; and besides, of the vulture there are two sorts, as Aristotle says F11 Hist. Animal. l. 8. c. 3. , the one... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:15

Every raven after his kind. The red raven, night raven, the water raven, river raven, wood raven, &c.; this also includes crows, rooks, pies, jays, and jackdaws, &c.; The raven was with the Heathens sacred to Apollo F15 Aelian. De Animal. l. 1. c. 48. & l. 7. c. 18. , is a voracious creature, and so reckoned among unclean ones, and unfit for food; nor does the care that God takes of these creatures, or the use he has made of them, contradict this; see Job 38:41 . read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:16

And the owl ,.... The great and little owls being after mentioned, it seems best, by the word here used, to understand the "ostrich" with the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, the Oriental versions, and the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan: the account which Pliny F16 Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 1. Vid. Aristot. de Part. Animal. l. 4. c. 14. gives of the African and Ethiopic ostriches is this; that they are the largest of birds, and almost of the kind of beasts; that they exceed the height of a... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Leviticus 11:17

And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl. Ainsworth translates the words just the reverse, and takes the first word to signify the great owl, and the last the little one; the great owl may intend the great horn owl, called sometimes the eagle owl, which is thus described; it is of the size of a goose, and has large wings, capable of extending to a surprising breadth: its head is much of the size and figure of that of a cat, and has clusters of black feathers over the ears,... read more

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