11/29/2025
Concerning the ritual of clean animals and unclean animals. The New Testament abolishes this distinction:
In the New Testament, some Old Testament food restrictions are transformed, with previously unclean foods now considered clean. This change is significant because in the Mosaic Law, “unclean” status was a ceremonial designation that governed ritual worship. The original reasons for distinguishing between clean and unclean animals have long been puzzling. Explanations like hygienic concerns or pagan worship connections are not entirely satisfactory, and notably, Jesus ultimately abolished the distinction between clean and unclean animals3. The New Testament continues to emphasize some Old Testament aspects of cleanness, particularly in terms of moral behavior1. The original purpose of these dietary laws was fundamentally about holiness - not physical health, but spiritual sanctification. The Israelites were called to be holy because they had been redeemed by God. 4 The transformation in the New Testament suggests a broader spiritual understanding that transcends the previous ritualistic boundaries.
1
Bryan C. Babcock, “Clean and Unclean,” in The Lexham Bible Dictionary, ed. John D. Barry et al. (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016). [See here, here.]
2
Got Questions Ministries, Got Questions? Bible Questions Answered (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2002–2013). [See here.]
3
Walter A. Elwell and Barry J. Beitzel, “Leviticus, Book Of,” in Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1988), 2:1332.
4
Mark F. Rooker, Leviticus, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 3a:180.
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