Seder 83: The "Forbidden Impurity" of Leviticus 11:42-43

 Like chapters 12-15 of Leviticus, Leviticus 11 mentions some ways of contracting ritual impurity.  Specifically, touching or carrying the carcass of an impure animal, or a pure animal that had died of itself, resulted in a minor ritual impurity that could be dealt with by washing one's clothes (verses 24-25,27-28, 31).  Such rules on ritual impurity are connected with protecting the tabernacle or temple from defilement.  

Leviticus 11:42-43 speaks of a different kind of defilement associated with eating meat from impure animals.  Scholar Roy Gane points out that this kind of impurity is associated not with the holiness of the sanctuary, but with the holiness of the people themselves (see verses 44-45).  Gane also observes that the distinction between pure and impure animals predates the covenant at Sinai (Ge 7:2-3, 8-9; 8:20).

This kind of impurity can't be remedied with a simple washing, and it can't be passed along through contact with another person. Assuming this sin was not carried out in a defiant or "high-handed" manner, presumably it could have remedied with a purification offering.  

Gane, a Seventh-day Adventist, also argues that since Christians are also a holy people in covenant with God, the dietary rules of Leviticus 11 continue to have relevance for Christians.  That's a topic for another time.

Seder 83: Understanding Ritual Impurity

 The middle chapters of Leviticus, with their discussion of ritual purity and impurity, constitute one of the most obscure parts of the Bible for modern readers.  But they lie behind a number of incidents recorded in the Gospels, and understanding them can teach us more about who Jesus was and what he came to do.

In the time of Moses and in the time of Jesus, to be ritually pure meant to be allowed to participate in worship at the tabernacle or temple.  To be ritually impure meant that one was not allowed to be in contact with holy places or things, much as antimatter is not allowed to contact matter in a science fiction story.

Some things to understand about ritual impurity:

• Becoming ritual impure happened to everybody and was just a part of life.  Ritual impurity was not usually something to avoid and only became a problem if it came in contact with the holy.
• Ritual impurity usually was not a matter of sin, hygiene, or public health.
• Ritual impurity was not just a "Jewish thing."  Other cultures in the ancient Near East of Moses' time and the Mediterranean world of Jesus' time had similar restrictions on access to temples.

All of the sources of ritual impurity have some connection to death or human mortality.  So ritual impurity was a reminder of the limitations of being human and the great gulf between mortal humans and an immortal, holy God.  Appearing before God was a privilege not to be taken lightly.  (Today we approach the throne of grace boldly, but not nonchalantly.)

Dealing with a temporary ritual impurity involved two simple ingredients---water and time.  For example, if one came in contact with the carcass of a dead animal, one picked up a minor ritual impurity, which could be dealt with by washing.  After one washed, the period of ritual impurity ended that evening (Lev 11;24-28).  

One who was in the same room with a dead human body contracted a major ritual impurity.  One dealt with it in a 7-day procedure, with washings and application of the ashes of a red heifer on days 3 and 7 (Num 19).  

This is a challenging topic, as evidenced by some misconceptions and misunderstandings surrounding it.  For example, there is a widespread "urban legend" that Jewish shepherds in the time of Jesus were treated as outcasts because they were often ritually impure.  However, the minor ritual impurities that shepherds encountered were easily dealt with, and there was no need for anyone to avoid contact with them.  

A major book on ritual impurity in the Gospels has been published recently:  Jesus and the Forces of Death by Matthew Thiessen of McMaster University (Baker Academic, 2020).  Thiessen explains the concepts of ritual purity and impurity in the Bible and the ancient world and discusses how they were applied in the time of Jesus.  Thiessen shows that Jesus was a Torah observant Jew who did not ignore or oppose Jewish law on this subject.  What he did do repeatedly was to remove the sources of major ritual impurity when he encountered them.  

For example, when Jesus came in contact with corpse impurity, he brought corpses back to life (Mark 5:21-24; 35-43; Luke 7:11-17; John 11:38-44).  As the "Holy One of God" (Mark 1:24), he exerted a powerful force of holiness that erased corpse impurity.  

When Jesus died, a number of dead saints came back to life (Matt 27:51-53).  Usually when someone died, the person's body was a source of ritual impurity that spread to people nearby.  But when Jesus died, others came back to life.  A key message of the Gospels is that Jesus came to defeat death and the forces of death.

Seder 83: Lev 11---Diet of a Holy People

 God tells the Israelites in Lev 11:45, "For I am the LORD who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God.  You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy." 

This is a message repeated often in the book of Leviticus--see 19:2; 20:7, 26; 21:8; 22;16.  God had set them apart for a special mission, and they were to be submitted to God in every part of their lives, including the way they ate.  

Leviticus 11 covers the rules for which kinds of meat were to be eaten by the Israelites, and which kinds were not to be eaten.  All of the sacrificial animals fell into the former category, the "clean" animals that could be eaten.  The distinction between clean and unclean animals seems to have been present for some time, going back to before the flood (Gen 7:1-3).  

There's no one rationale that covers all of the cases covered in Lev 11.  Certainly a number of creatures that are predators and scavengers fall into the "unclean" category.  Health benefits of following these dietary rules are often pointed out, but these are side benefits rather than the main purpose of the rules.

It should be remembered that all animals are God's creatures, and being declared "unclean" does not lessen the worth of a type of creature.  The rules of Lev 11 give some measure of protection to the unclean animals.

There is a common misunderstanding of Mark 7:19 ("Thus he declared all foods clean") that has Jesus abrogating these rules.  However, a growing number of scholars (Daniel Boyarin, James Crossley, Matthew Thiessen, Yair Furstenberg, John Van Maaren, et. al.) have recognized that in context, the discussion of Mark 7 is about ritual purity issues rather than dietary laws, and Jesus would not have cancelled biblical commandments in the same discussion in which he upheld such commandments as being superior to human traditions (vv 6-13).  

Peter's vision of Acts 10 also does not do away with these rules.  The vision had to do with Peter's treatment of people, not with his diet.  The issue of what things will best set God's people apart today is a separate discussion.

Seder 83: Psalm 42-43---Longing for God in a Time of Trouble

 Scholars believe that Psalms 42 and 43 were originally one unit, since the refrain of Ps 42:5,11 is repeated in Ps 43:5.  This psalm was divided in two long ago, though, as early as the Septuagint.

Psalm 42 is the first psalm in Book 2 of the Psalter, and the first of the psalms of the sons of Korah.  It is an individual lament, with the psalmist cut off from worship at the Temple and harassed by enemies.  In a spiritual struggle, he mourns his current situation and reminds himself to hope in a faithful God.

He asks in the psalm's refrain,  "Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?  Hope in God; for I shall again praise him."

The Gospel writers picture Jesus in a similar position shortly before his arrest, as he thought about what lay ahead:  

Matt 26:38:  "My soul is very sorrowful and troubled, even to death."

Mark 14:34:  "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death."

John 12:27:  "Now is my soul troubled." 

This is another example in which early Christians saw the situation of the psalmist prefiguring that of the Messiah.