Leviticus 11:6 Meaning and Explanation
“And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The hare is the third specifically named example of a land animal that does not satisfy Israel's complete edible-beast rule. The verse describes cud chewing without divided hoof structure and therefore places the hare clearly in the unclean food category for Israel.
The hare is unclean to Israel because, as the verse describes it, the animal chews the cud without also dividing the hoof.
The Context of Leviticus 11:6
Leviticus 11 gives a two-part rule for edible land animals: they must have a divided, cloven hoof and chew the cud. The camel is named first as chewing the cud without dividing the hoof. The coney follows under the same description. Verse 6 adds the hare as a third example. Verse 7 then names swine as the reverse partial match, dividing the hoof without chewing the cud. Verse 8 prohibits eating the flesh or touching the carcasses of these animals. Deuteronomy 14 repeats the land-animal rule and the same named exclusions. The chapter concludes with holiness and the distinction between animals that may and may not be eaten.
What Does Leviticus 11:6 Mean?
The hare repeats the same classification pattern after camel and coney. That deliberate repetition gives the rule greater breadth. Israel cannot assume that a familiar or available animal becomes edible because two earlier examples already made the point. Each specifically named creature is brought under the same complete criterion. The verse also keeps the conclusion relational: the hare is unclean unto Israel. This food boundary belongs within the people's covenant practice and must be taught in a way households can apply consistently.
Modern readers sometimes make the animal's bodily description the center of controversy. This study should neither invent a speculative scientific defense nor dismiss the covenant text with ridicule. Leviticus uses its own descriptive category within a law about what Israel may eat. The clear interpretive work is to trace the paired rule, the repeated exclusions, and the chapter's stated holy purpose. Questions about animal physiology can be researched separately with qualified sources and careful attention to ancient and modern terminology.
Jesus directs moral defilement toward the evil that proceeds from the heart, including deceit, covetousness, pride, and violence. His teaching calls Christians to a holiness deeper than winning an argument about an animal. It also gives no permission to sneer at Israel's law or at people who abstain. Christlike reading combines genuine reverence, careful truthfulness, intellectual humility, and neighbor love. We can admit where a biological question remains, honor the verse's covenant function, and make shared meals safe for different practices.
Bible Verses Related to Leviticus 11:6
“Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat. Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you. And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you. Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.”
- Leviticus 11:3-8
“And every beast that parteth the hoof, and cleaveth the cleft into two claws, and cheweth the cud among the beasts, that ye shall eat. Nevertheless 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: for they chew the cud, but divide not the hoof; therefore they are unclean unto you. And 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.”
- Deuteronomy 14:6-8
“For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. For I am the LORD that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy. This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature that moveth in the waters, and of every creature that creepeth upon the earth: To make a difference between the unclean and the clean, and between the beast that may be eaten and the beast that may not be eaten.”
- Leviticus 11:44-47
“And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.”
- Mark 7:20-23
Where Leviticus 11:6 Echoes in Scripture
Deuteronomy 14:7 specifically names the hare alongside the camel and coney under the same bodily description and covenant conclusion. The careful parallel law confirms that the hare belongs to Israel's stable, public, and teachable list of prohibited partial matches for household food practice.
How to Apply Leviticus 11:6 Today
Separate three questions when studying a difficult animal verse: what the translation says, how the covenant rule functions, and what modern zoology observes. Do not answer one by pretending it settles all three. Consult reliable scholarship before teaching disputed details. For hospitality, disclose ingredients and honor a guest's refusal without debate at the table. Refuse jokes that connect an unclean animal with a race, body, or person. Let careful study produce humility and practical love rather than contempt.
Reflection & Prayer
Does a difficult biological question make us more careful and humble or more eager to ridicule? We might pray: 'Creator LORD, patiently guide all our study, guard our speech from careless claims and contempt, deepen our intellectual humility, and make our reverence for Scripture visible in generous love.'