Leviticus 11:35

35 And anything on which {one of their dead bodies} falls shall become unclean: an oven or a stove must be broken--they [are] unclean and shall be unclean for you.

Leviticus 11:35 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 11:35

And everything whereupon [any part] of their carcass
falleth shall be unclean
Before the Scripture seems to speak of anyone of the reptiles perfect, that falling upon anything should pollute it; but here of any part of them, though ever so small, which should, through any accident, fall and light upon anything, even that would render it unclean and unfit for use:

[whether it be] oven, [or] ranges of pots;
the one to bake bread in, and the other to boil flesh in, as Aben Ezra observes:

they shall be broken down;
and no more made use of for baking and boiling:

[for] they are unclean, and shall be unclean to you;
were made hereby unfit for use, and should not be used: the Jewish writers F24 explain the phrase, "to you", to your necessity, that which they had need of, but now should not use nor receive advantage from; even "to you"; all men, women, and children, as Hiskuni interprets it: all this was ordered to create in them an abhorrence of these creatures, and to make them cautious of eating and touching them, and careful that they come not nigh, or touched, or fell upon anything, since it would give them so much trouble, as well as occasion loss.


FOOTNOTES:

F24 Maimon. & Bartenora in Misn. Edaiot, c. 7. sect. 8.

Leviticus 11:35 In-Context

33 And any clay vessel into which it falls shall become unclean, and you must break it.
34 Any of the food that could be eaten on which water [from such a vessel] comes shall become unclean, and any liquid that could be drunk in any [such] vessel shall become unclean.
35 And anything on which {one of their dead bodies} falls shall become unclean: an oven or a stove must be broken--they [are] unclean and shall be unclean for you.
36 Surely a spring or a cistern collecting water shall be clean, but that which touches their dead body shall become unclean.
37 And when {one of their dead bodies} falls on any {seed for sowing}, it [is] clean.

Footnotes 3

  • [a]. Literally "from their dead body"
  • [b]. Or "and"
  • [c]. Or "smashed" (NASB, HCSB, NET, NJPS) or "broken in pieces" (ASV, ESV, NRSV)
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