Deuteronomy 14:8

14:1-21 Moses tells the people of Israel how God had given them three distinguishing privileges, which were their honour, and figures of those spiritual blessings in heavenly things, with which God has in Christ blessed us. Here is election; The Lord hath chosen thee. He did not choose them because they were by their own acts a peculiar people to him above other nations, but he chose them that they might be so by his grace; and thus were believers chosen, Eph 1:4. Here is adoption; Ye are the children of the Lord your God; not because God needed children, but because they were orphans, and needed a father. Every spiritual Israelite is indeed a child of God, a partaker of his nature and favour. Here is sanctification; Thou art a holy people. God's people are required to be holy, and if they are holy, they are indebted to the grace God which makes them so. Those whom God chooses to be his children, he will form to be a holy people, and zealous of good works. They must be careful to avoid every thing which might disgrace their profession, in the sight of those who watch for their halting. Our heavenly Father forbids nothing but for our welfare. Do thyself no harm; do not ruin thy health, thy reputation, thy domestic comforts, thy peace of mind. Especially do not murder thy soul. Do not be the vile slave of thy appetites and passions. Do not render all around thee miserable, and thyself wretched; but aim at that which is most excellent and useful.

The laws which regarded many sorts of flesh as unclean, were to keep them from mingling with their idolatrous neighbours. It is plain in the gospel, that these laws are now done away. But let us ask our own hearts, Are we of the children of the Lord our God? Are we separate from the ungodly world, in being set apart to God's glory, the purchase of Christ's blood? Are we subjects of the work of the Holy Ghost? Lord, teach us from these precepts how pure and holy all thy people ought to live!

And every beast that parted the hoof,.... In this and the two following verses two general rules are given, by which it might be known what beasts were fit for food and what not; one is if they parted the hoof, and the other if they chewed the cud, such might be eaten; but such that only chewed the cud, but did not divide the hoof, as the camel, hare, and coney, might not be eaten; and so if they divided the hoof, and did not chew the cud, as the swine, they were alike unlawful; See Gill on Leviticus 11:3 ; see Gill on Leviticus 11:4 ; see Gill on Leviticus 11:5 ; see Gill on Leviticus 11:6 ; see Gill on Leviticus 11:7 ; see Gill on Leviticus 11:8 .

5. The hart—(see on [131]De 12:15). fallow deer—The Hebrew word (Jachmur) so rendered, does not represent the fallow deer, which is unknown in Western Asia, but an antelope (Oryx leucoryx), called by the Arabs, jazmar. It is of a white color, black at the extremities, and a bright red on the thighs. It was used at Solomon's table. wild goat—The word akko is different from that commonly used for a wild goat (1Sa 24:2; Ps 104:18; Pr 5:19), and it is supposed to be a goat-deer, having the body of a stag, but the head, horns, and beard of a goat. An animal of this sort is found in the East, and called Lerwee [Shaw, Travels]. pygarg—a species of antelope (Oryx addax) with white buttocks, wreathed horns two feet in length, and standing about three feet seven inches high at the shoulders. It is common in the tracks which the Israelites had frequented [Shaw]. wild ox—supposed to be the Nubian Oryx, which differs from the Oryx leucoryx (formerly mentioned) by its black color; and it is, moreover, of larger stature and more slender frame, with longer and more curved horns. It is called Bekkar-El-Wash by the Arabs. chamois—rendered by the Septuagint Cameleopard; but, by others who rightly judge it must have been an animal more familiar to the Hebrews, it is thought to be the Kebsch (Ovis tragelaphus), rather larger than a common sheep, covered not with wool, but with reddish hair—a Syrian sheep-goat.

8 . swine ] ḥǎzîr , Ar. khanzir ; from the animal’s indiscriminate feeding the flesh is liable to become the host of many parasites and therefore without care dangerous especially in warm climates. Used in heathen sacrifices, Isaiah 65:4 f., 17. Nomad Arabs eat the wild boar: ‘only the fellaḥîn say that they do not eat the wild-boar; their neighbours, however, assert the contrary of them’ (Musil, Ethn. Ber. 151). On the sacredness of the pig among other peoples and the use of it in making charms and amulets see W. R. Smith, Rel. Sem. 272, 429. LXX has here a fuller text as in Leviticus 11:7 . Note that no mention is made of the wilder beasts of prey: lion, panther, bear, wolf, hyaena or jackal. On the use of the hyaena, etc. by the present fellaḥîn see PEFQ , 1905, 120. Wolf-flesh is regarded as medicinal in Arabia (Doughty, i. 337). Deuteronomy 14:8

The immediate connection of Deuteronomy 12:17 with Deuteronomy 12:14 is clear. On these grounds Deuteronomy 12:15-16 are generally taken as a later insertion. Note, too, the Pl. ye shall not eat in 16. The Pl. does not occur in the rest of this statement of the law and may well be due to the hand that has made this addition; as so many of these sporadic changes of address are found in editorial additions. The LXX confirms the Pl. here: the Sam. Sg. may be due to harmonising. Deuteronomy 12:17 . Direct continuation of Deuteronomy 12:13-14 , completing the list of offerings to be brought to the one altar. On the contents see on Deuteronomy 12:6; Deuteronomy 12:11 : the phraseology is however, characteristic of the Sg. passages. Thou mayest not ] Heb., lit. thou shalt not be able : in the sense thou must or darest not only in Sg. passages: here, Deuteronomy 16:5 , Deuteronomy 17:15 , Deuteronomy 22:3 , or with he , Deuteronomy 21:16 ; Deuteronomy 22:19 ; Deuteronomy 22:29 ; Deuteronomy 24:4 . within thy gates ] Thy homestead or town of residence: used almost exclusively with Sg. ( Deuteronomy 5:14 , Deuteronomy 12:17 f., 21, Deuteronomy 14:21 ; Deuteronomy 14:27-29 , Deuteronomy 15:22 , Deuteronomy 16:11 ; Deuteronomy 16:14 , Deuteronomy 17:8 , Deuteronomy 24:14 , Deuteronomy 26:12 , Deuteronomy 31:12 , cp. Deuteronomy 28:57 ). Only one Pl. passage has it, Deuteronomy 12:12 . Deuteronomy 12:18 . See on Deuteronomy 12:5; Deuteronomy 12:7; Deuteronomy 12:12 . Deuteronomy 12:19 .

With reference to food, the Israelites were to eat nothing whatever that was abominable. In explanation of this prohibition, the laws of Leviticus 11 relating to clean and unclean animals are repeated in all essential points in vv. 4-20 (for the exposition, see at Leviticus 11 ); also in Deuteronomy 14:21 the prohibition against eating any animal that had fallen down dead (as in Exodus 32:30 and Leviticus 17:15 ), and against boiling a kid in its mother's milk (as in Exodus 23:19 ).