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 11:29KJV
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Leviticus 11:29 (KJV)

What does Leviticus 11:29 mean?

Leviticus 11:29 lists certain small animals that the Israelites were told to consider "unclean" among the creatures that move along the ground, specifically naming the weasel, mouse, and tortoise and their kinds. This means these animals were not to be eaten or touched when dead, as part of the laws about ritual purity given to Israel.

In this verse, God is speaking to Moses and Aaron, giving them detailed instructions for the Israelites about which animals are considered unclean. The context is a larger section where God outlines dietary and purity laws, helping the people of Israel understand how to remain ritually clean in their daily lives and worship.

The Hebrew behind Leviticus 11:29

  • "Unclean" (טָמֵא, tame): This word means ritually impure or not suitable for use in worship or daily life according to Israelite law. It signals that contact with these animals would make a person unfit for worship until purified.
  • "Things" (שֶׁרֶץ, sherets): This term refers to small creatures that swarm or creep, often including insects, reptiles, and small mammals. It highlights that the list covers a broad category of ground-dwelling animals, not just the ones named.
  • "Creep" (שָׁרַץ, sharats): This verb means to swarm or move along the ground, emphasizing the movement style of these animals and why they are grouped together in this law.
  • "Earth" (אֶרֶץ, erets): This word means land or ground, clarifying that the animals in question are those that live on or close to the ground, not in water or the air.
  • "Weasel" (חֹלֶד, choled), "mouse" (עַכְבָּר, akhbar), "tortoise" (צָב, tsav): These specific animals are named to make clear which creatures are included, showing that the law is not just about insects or reptiles, but also small mammals and reptiles.

Why Leviticus 11:29 matters

  • This verse helps clarify which animals were considered unclean, correcting the idea that only certain types of animals (like pigs or shellfish) were forbidden; it also included some small land creatures.
  • By listing specific animals, Leviticus 11:29 shows the detailed nature of Israel's purity laws, emphasizing the importance of careful obedience in everyday life.
  • Understanding this verse in context helps make sense of the broader chapter, which is about setting Israel apart from other nations through distinctive practices, including what they could eat and touch.

Where else these words appear

“tortoise” Hebrew H6632 · used in 3 verses

  • Numbers 7:3 And they brought their offering before the LORD, six covered wagons, and twelve oxen; a wagon for two of the princes, and for each one an ox: and they brought them before the tabernacle.
  • Isaiah 66:20 And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the LORD out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD.

“mouse” Hebrew H5909 · used in 6 verses

  • 1 Samuel 6:4 Then said they, What shall be the trespass offering which we shall return to him? They answered, Five golden emerods, and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines: for one plague was on you all, and on your lords.
  • 1 Samuel 6:5 Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods, and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel: peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land.
  • 1 Samuel 6:18 And the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both of fenced cities, and of country villages, even unto the great stone of Abel, whereon they set down the ark of the LORD: which stone remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua, the Bethshemite.

“creep” Hebrew H8317 · used in 14 verses

  • Genesis 1:20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
  • Genesis 9:7 And you, be ye fruitful, and multiply; bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply therein.
  • Leviticus 11:42 Whatsoever goeth upon the belly, and whatsoever goeth upon all four, or whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not eat; for they are an abomination.

“things” Hebrew H8318 · used in 15 verses

  • Genesis 1:20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
  • Leviticus 11:20 All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you.
  • Leviticus 11:42 Whatsoever goeth upon the belly, and whatsoever goeth upon all four, or whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not eat; for they are an abomination.