1God's children must not disfigure themselves in mourning. 3What may, and what may not be eaten, of beasts, 9of fishes, 11of fowls. 21That which dieth of itself must not be eaten. 22Tithing to be truly performed. 23Tithes and firstlings of cattle to be eaten before the Lord. 24What is to be done in case of very distant abode. 28The third year's tithe of alms and charity.
1YE are the 1children of the LORD your God: ye shall not 2cuta yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead.
1 Children of grace and consequently heirs of God, Rom. 8:17, having the promise and hope of the blessed resurrection and of life everlasting; wherefore it is not becoming to mourn about the dead as the heathens who have no hope, 1 Thes. 4:13.
2 That is, make no incision in your flesh; a pagan manner of mourning, especially at the death or departure of any of our dearest friends. See Lev. 19:28. Compare 1 Kings 18:28; Jer. 16:6; 41:5; 47:5.
a Lev. 19:27, 28; 21:5.
2For thou art anb holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiarc people unto himself, above all the nations that are 3upon the earth.
b Deut. 7:6; 26:18.
c one’s own property*
3 Hebr. upon the face of the earth.
3¶Thou shalt not eat any 4abominable thing.
4 That is, anything which the LORD has forbidden you to eat, and which consequently you ought to abhor and detest.
4Thesedare the beasts which ye shall eat: the ox, the sheep, and the goat,
d Lev. 11:2, etc.
5The hart, and the roebuck, and the fallow deer, and the wild goat, and the pygarg,e and the wild ox, and the chamois.
e antelope
6And 5every beast that parteth the hoof, and cleavethf the cleft into two claws, and cheweth the cud among the beasts, that ye shall eat.
5 See hereof and of the following Lev. 11:3, etc., and the annotations there.
f split or divided
7Nevertheless these ye shall not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the cloven hoof; as the camel, and the hare, and the coney:g for they chew the cud, but divide not the hoof; therefore they are unclean unto you.
g hyrax, rock-badger, like a rabbit
8And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you: ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase.
9¶These ye shall eat of all that are in the waters: all that have fins and scales shall ye eat:
10And whatsoever hath not fins and scales ye may not eat; it is unclean unto you.
11¶Of all clean birds ye shall eat.
12But these are they of which ye shall not eat: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,
13And the glede,h and the kite, and the vulture after his kind,
h kite, vulture
14And every raven after his kind,
15And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow,i and the hawk after his kind,
i gull
16The little owl, and the great owl, and the swan,
17And the pelican, and the gier eagle,j and the cormorant,
j vulture
18And the stork, and the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.
19And every creeping thing that flieth is unclean unto you: they shall not be eaten.
20But of all clean fowls ye may eat.
21¶Ye shall not eat of any thing that dieth of itself: thou shalt give it unto the 6stranger that is in thy gates, that he may eat it; or thou mayest sell it unto an alien: for thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not 7seethe a kidk in his mother's milk.
6 Understand the uncircumcised stranger who had not bound himself to the keeping of God’s law, associating only among the Israelites; for, the circumcised strangers were bound to keep the laws of Israel.
7 Other, dress.
k Exod. 23:19; 34:26.
22Thou shalt 8truly tithel all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth 9year by year.
8 Hebr. tithing tithe. See Lev. 27 on verse 30.
l give a tenth*
9 Hebr. year, year; that is, every year, year by year, or year after year.
23Andm thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God 10always.
m Deut. 12:17, 18.
10 Namely, of your life, as Deut. 11:1, etc.
24And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath 11blessed thee:
11 Namely also, that the tithes would be too much to carry to the place which God has chosen.
25Then shalt thou turn it into money, and 12bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose:
12 That is, tie it up together in bundles or bags (see 2 Kings 12 on verse 10) and take it along with you.
26And thou shalt bestow that moneyn for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for 13strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt 14eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,
n Mat. 21:12.
13 See Lev. 10 on verse 9.
14 See Deut. 12:7.
27And the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath 15no parto nor inheritance with thee.
15 See Deut. 10 on verse 9.
o Num. 18:20, 24; Deut. 10:9; 12:12; 18:1, 2; 26:12.
28 ¶ 16At the end of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase 17the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates:
16 See Deut. 12 on verse 17.
17 Namely, the last of all the three years, or, every third year.
29And the Levite, (because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,) and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou doest.