In Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 God shows us which meats are good to eat and which are not.

Many people believe that these food laws are abolished when the Old Covenant passed away with Christ’s death.  But that is not the case.  The laws existed before the Old Covenant. 

The first point to note is that the laws of God existed before He made the Old Covenant with the nation of Israel. 

In the book of Genesis many of Gods laws are revealed.  For example, on the seventh day of creation God rested on it and sanctified it.  God made the Sabbath.  We see the 4^th commandment.  Cain murdered his brother Abel, which was breaking the 6^th commandment.  God told Noah to take 7 pairs of clean animals and 1 pair of unclean animals into the ark.  Noah knew about clean and unclean meats which Moses later wrote about in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14.  The laws that appear in the Old Covenant weren’t new.  They had existed since creation.  They predate the Old Covenant by thousands of years.

The second point to note is that these laws also will continue to exist in the future.  The prophet Isaiah wrote about them.

Isa 66:15 For behold, the LORD will come with fire And with His chariots, like a whirlwind, To render His anger with fury, And His rebuke with flames of fire.
Isa 66:16  For by fire and by His sword The LORD will judge all flesh; And the slain of the LORD shall be many.

This is clearly a future event.

Isa 66:17 Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves, To go to the gardens After an idol in the midst, Eating swine’s flesh and the abomination and the mouse, Shall be consumed together,” says the LORD.

This is clearly a future event of God’s punishment on those who eat swine and mouse, which are unclean animals listed in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14.

Unclean meats are also mentioned in the book of Revelation, which is describing events in the future.

Rev 18:1  After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illuminated with his glory.
Rev 18:2  And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for every unclean and hated bird!

So, the laws of clean and unclean meats:

• existed before they were given to Moses and
• will exist in the future.

Clearly, these laws have never been abolished, but exist right now.

One often misunderstood passage in the New Testament regarding clean and unclean meats is found in Acts 10.  Acts 10 is about Peter’s vision in which he “saw heaven opened and an object like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth.” In this sheet “were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air.”  Peter heard a voice tell him, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat”.

Peter thought the vision meant he should eat unclean animals, because he responded: “Not so, Lord!  For I have never eaten anything common or unclean”.  The same vision came to Peter three times.  This was about ten years after the death of Christ.  Think about it.  Peter had been keeping the laws of clean and unclean meats for ten years after the death of Christ.  So clearly Peter didn’t think the laws of clean and unclean meats were abolished at the cross.

What did the vision mean?  Some carelessly assume it means God did away with the laws of clean and unclean meats.  But actually, the Bible explains the meaning of the vision in verse 28 of the same chapter.

Act 10:28  … God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean.

In other words, the Gentiles were not to be considered unclean.  The gospel message was to be preached to all peoples.  Peter’s vision was not about food.  It was about the need to preach the gospel to all peoples. 

The laws of clean and unclean meats are still valid today.  Noah kept them; the apostle Peter kept them; they are valid today; and will still be valid in the future.