14:1The actions described here refer to a cult of the dead. Many other religions today have some kind of worship of or service to the dead. But Christianity and Judaism are very different from other religions because they focus on serving God in this life. Don’t let concern or worry over the dead distract you from the tasks that God has for you while you are still alive. 14:3-21_ Why was Israel forbidden to eat certain foods? There are several reasons: (1) Predatory animals ate the blood of other animals, and scavengers ate dead animals. Because the people could not eat blood or animals they found dead, they could not eat animals that did these things either. (2) Some forbidden animals had bad associations in the Israelite culture just as bats, snakes, and spiders do for some people today. Some may have been used in pagan religious practices (Isaiah 66:17}. To the Israelites, the unclean animals represented sin or unhealthy habits. (3) Perhaps some restrictions were given to Israel just to remind them continually that they were a different and separate people committed to God. Although we no onger must follow these laws about food (Acts 10:9-16), we can still learn from them the lesson that holiness is to be carried into all parts of life, We can’t restrict holiness only to the spiritual side; we must be holy in the everyday practical part of lite as well. Health practices, finances, use of leisure—all provide opportunities to put holy living into daily living.
Life Application Study BibleDeuteronomyChapter 14
Deuteronomy 14
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 283, 284
A few verse numbers on this page were hard to read in the scan and are marked with a dotted underline — compare with the original page image if in doubt.
Ceremonially Clean and Unclean Animals
114 “Since you are the people of the LORD your God, never cut yourselves or shave the hair above your foreheads in mourning for the dead. 2You have been set apart as holy to the LORD your God, and he has chosen you from all the nations of the earth to be his own special treasure. 3”You must not eat any detestable animals that are ceremonially unclean. 4These are the animals* you may eat: the ox, the sheep, the goat, the deer, the gazelle, the roe deer, the wild goat, the addax, the antelope, and the mountain sheep. 6"You may eat any animal that has completely split hooves and chews the cud, 7but if the animal doesn’t have both, it may not be eaten. So you may not eat the camel, the hare, or the hyrax.* They chew the cud but do not have split hooves, so they are ceremonially unclean for you. 8And you may not eat the pig. It has split hooves but does not chew the cud, so it is ceremonially unclean for you. You may not eat the meat of these animals or even touch their carcasses. 9“Of all the marine animals, you may eat whatever has both fins and scales. 10You may not, however, eat marine animals that do not have both fins and scales. They are ceremonially unclean for you. 11”You may eat any bird that is ceremonially clean. 12These are the birds you may not eat: the griffon vulture, the bearded vulture, the black vulture, '$the kite, the falcon, buzzards of all kinds, 14ravens of all kinds, 15the eagle owl, the short-eared owl, the seagull, hawks of all kinds, 16the little owl, the great owl, the barn owl, 7the desert owl, the Egyptian vulture, the cormorant, 18the stork, herons of all kinds, the hoopoe, and the bat. 19“ All winged insects that walk along the ground are ceremonially unclean for you and may not be eaten. 20But you may eat any winged bird or insect that is ceremonially clean. 21“You must not eat anything that has died a natural death. You may give it to a foreigner living in your town, or you may sell it to a stranger. But do not eat it yourselves, for you are set apart as holy to the LORD your God. “You must not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk.
The Giving of Tithes
2222" You must set aside a tithe of your crops—one-tenth of all the crops you harvest each year. 23Bring this tithe to the designated place of worship—the place the LORD your God chooses for his name to be honored—and eat it there in his presence. This applies to your tithes of grain, new wine, olive oil, and the firstborn males of your flocks and herds. Doing this will teach you always to fear the LORD your God. 24“Now when the LORD your God blesses you with a good harvest, the place of worship he chooses for his name to be honored might be too far for you to bring the tithe. 25If so, you may sell the tithe portion of your crops and herds, put the money in a pouch, and go to the place the LORD your God has chosen. 26When you arrive, you may use the money to buy any kind of food you want—cattle, sheep, goats, wine, or other alcoholic drink. Then feast there in the presence of the LORD your God and celebrate with your household. 2”And do not neglect the Levites in your town, for they will receive no allotment of land among you. 28" At the end of every third year, bring the entire tithe of that year’s harvest and store it in the nearest town. 29Give it to the Levites, who will receive no allotment of land among you, as well as to the foreigners living among you, the orphans, and the widows in your towns, so they can eat and be satisfied. Then the LORD your God will biess you in all your work.
Textual footnotes
- destroying them or by giving them as an offering; similarly in 13:17.
- and birds listed in this chapter is uncertain.
- 14:4 The identification of some of the animais
- 14:7 Or coney, or rock badger.
Life Application Notes 4 notes
14:21This prohibition against cooking a young goat in its mother's mitk may reflect a Canaanite fertility rite. Or it may just mean that the Israelites were not to take what was intended to promote life and use it to kill or destroy life. This commandment is also given in Exodus 23:19.
14:22,23The Bible makes the purpose of tithing very clear— to teach us to fear the LORD and to put him first in our lives. We are to give God the first and best of what we earn. For example, what we do first with our money shows what we value most. Giving the first part of our paycheck to God immediately focuses our attention on him. It also reminds us that all we have belongs to him. A habit of regular tithing can keep God at the top of our pony list and give us a proper perspective on everything else we have.
14:28,29The Bible supports an organized system of caring for the poor. God told his people to use their tithe every third year for those who were helpless, hungry, or poor. These regulations were designed to prevent the country from sinking under crushing poverty and oppression. It was everyone's responsibility to care for those less fortunate. Families were to help other family members, and towns were to help members of their community. National laws protected the rights of the poor, but helping the poor was also an active part of religious life. God counts on believers to provide for the needy, and we should use what God has given us to aid those less fortunate. Look beyond your regular giving and think of ways to help the needy. This will help you show your regard for God as Creator of all people, share God’s goodness with others, and draw them to him. It is a practical and essential way to make faith work in everyday life.