Bible Study Did Christ declare all foods clean?

[reddogs]

Now there are many Christians who have a hard time to understand the truth about clean and unclean foods. In the Bible, God tells us not to eat things like Pork, crab, cuttlefish, shellfish, lobster, etc. God had to put these laws in the Bible so that we could know certain creatures are harmful to eat. We see it in Leviticus 11..
Leviticus 11:1-23
1 And the Lord spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them,
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.
3 Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat.
4 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.
5 And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
6 And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
7 And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.
8 Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.
9 These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat.
10 And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you:
11 They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination.
12 Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you.
13 And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,
14 And the vulture, and the kite after his kind;
15 Every raven after his kind;
16 And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,
17 And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,
18 And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,
19 And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.
20 All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you.
21 Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;
22 Even these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the grasshopper after his kind.
23 But all other flying creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.

Now some Christians think that Mark 7:19 changes this and claim it says you can eat anything you want. Well lets look at it.
Mark 7:19
19 Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?

Doesnt really say there is any changes to the clean or unclean foods that are set out, so where did this idea come in. Well lets look through a couple of the new versions of the Bible, Interestingly other versions had this in brackets, that “Jesus declared all foods clean”.

New International Version “For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.)
English Standard Version “since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.)
New American Standard Bible “because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and is eliminated?” (Thus He declared all foods clean.)

So why did all the old versions of the Bible not contain this portion, and why do the new versions carry it within brackets? The Original Greek Manuscripts do not carry “In saying this, Jesus declared” which is in Mark 7:19.

This had been a later addition by some of the translators, its not what the Bible had, just a decision by the translators of the modern versions to add “(In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean)” was valid. Well lets look at the context of the chapter in Mark leading up to verse 19 and see if it is about eating any food, or eating food according to the traditions of man. We begin with Mark 7:1-4..
Mark 7:1-5
1 Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem.
2 And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault.
3 For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders.
4 And when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables.
5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands?

We see here that the story begins with the Pharisees accusing some of Jesus disciples of not washing their hands before eating bread according to the “tradition of the elders”. Now the Pharisees had their own laws they had made up and told others they had to follow in addition to God’s Law, and this is what Christ addresses in the verses that proceed.
Mark 7:6-9
6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.
7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
8 For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.
9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

He starts by quoting Isaiah 29:13, showing their hypocrisy saying, that they honor God with their mouth but their hearts are far from Him as we see in 'honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.' And that in vain they worship Him, teaching commandments of men for 'doctrine'. Jesus goes further on their mistake showing that they are laying aside God’s Commandments and are holding onto the 'traditions of men', which include their ideas of 'washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.' He says that they reject 'reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.' And He tells them they make God’s Word of no effect by their traditions, 'Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.'

So what is the context, food or man made traditions? Lets go and give even more context starting at verse 13..
Mark 7:13-15
13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.
14 And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:
15 There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.

 

[reddogs]

So what is Christ talking about, well we clearly see what it is in verse 13, and then He makes sure they are listening in verse 14 to the lesson about to be given. In verse 15 He declares, 'There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.' Is He saying that we can now eat whatever we want? No, He says that nothing that goes into a person from the outside can make him unclean. It is what comes out of a person that makes a person unclean.

Then in verse 17, the disciples ask what He meant as even they had questions..
Mark 7:17
17 And when he was entered into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable.

Now we come to the verses in question and Christ actually begins the answer in verse 18
Mark 7:18
18 And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him;

He answers the disciples saying, whatever enters into man cannot make him unclean, but only through sin that proceed from the inside of man. It is clear that He says that man is defiled by the sin which is inside. And you can see how He finishes with the same..
Mark 7:19-23
19 Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?
20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.
21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

Now is He saying that God’s direction on clean and unclean foods are of no use because whatever we eat is purged out of the stomach. Of course not, as we can see the whole context He was talking of was the 'tradition of man' the Pharisees had added, and declaring them hypocrites for making what God had given on clean and unclean, as they had the Law, Void. Putting in their own 'traditions'.

 

[Hopeful 2]

Personally, I am not interested in readopting the ways of those dead in trespasses and sins.
Paul wrote..."I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean." (Rom 14:14)
If you are condemned for eating crab, don't eat crab.

Paul also wrote..."Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.
4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:
5 For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer." (1 Tim 4:3-5)

 

[1pet2_9]

Not Christ. The Father declared all foods clean. Acts 10:9-16.

 

[for_his_glory]

Act 10:9 On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour:
Act 10:10 And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,
Act 10:11 And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
Act 10:12 Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
Act 10:13 And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
Act 10:14 But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.
Act 10:15 And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.

1Tim 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;
1Tim 4:2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
1Tim 4:3 Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.
1Tim 4:4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:
1Tim 4:5 For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

 

[reddogs]

Personally, I am not interested in readopting the ways of those dead in trespasses and sins.
Paul wrote..."I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean." (Rom 14:14)
If you are condemned for eating crab, don't eat crab.

Paul also wrote..."Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.
4 For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:
5 For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer." (1 Tim 4:3-5)

Everyone has to decide, and if it was offered to idols or worse, people were forced to make a choice..

 

[Hopeful 2]

Everyone has to decide, and if it was offered to idols or worse, people were forced to make a choice..

Agreed.

 

[Christian Saboteur]

If it is cooked well and tastes good,'Go Forth My Son,Let The Viddles Enter Unto Your Mouth'.

 

[Free]

Now there are many Christians who have a hard time to understand the truth about clean and unclean foods. In the Bible, God tells us not to eat things like Pork, crab, cuttlefish, shellfish, lobster, etc. God had to put these laws in the Bible so that we could know certain creatures are harmful to eat. We see it in Leviticus 11..
Leviticus 11:1-23
1 And the Lord spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them,
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.
3 Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat.
4 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.
5 And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
6 And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
7 And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.
8 Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.
9 These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat.
10 And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you:
11 They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination.
12 Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you.
13 And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,
14 And the vulture, and the kite after his kind;
15 Every raven after his kind;
16 And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,
17 And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,
18 And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,
19 And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.
20 All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you.
21 Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;
22 Even these of them ye may eat; the locust after his kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his kind, and the grasshopper after his kind.
23 But all other flying creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.

Now some Christians think that Mark 7:19 changes this and claim it says you can eat anything you want. Well lets look at it.
Mark 7:19
19 Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?

Doesnt really say there is any changes to the clean or unclean foods that are set out, so where did this idea come in. Well lets look through a couple of the new versions of the Bible, Interestingly other versions had this in brackets, that “Jesus declared all foods clean”.

New International Version “For it doesn’t go into their heart but into their stomach, and then out of the body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.)
English Standard Version “since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.)
New American Standard Bible “because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and is eliminated?” (Thus He declared all foods clean.)

So why did all the old versions of the Bible not contain this portion, and why do the new versions carry it within brackets? The Original Greek Manuscripts do not carry “In saying this, Jesus declared” which is in Mark 7:19.

This had been a later addition by some of the translators, its not what the Bible had, just a decision by the translators of the modern versions to add “(In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean)” was valid. Well lets look at the context of the chapter in Mark leading up to verse 19 and see if it is about eating any food, or eating food according to the traditions of man. We begin with Mark 7:1-4..
...

So what is the context, food or man made traditions? Lets go and give even more context starting at verse 13..
Mark 7:13-15
13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.
14 And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:
15 There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.

Let's look at the verse from different versions of the Bible and see:

Mar 7:19 because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and is eliminated?" (Thus He declared all foods clean.) (NASB)
Mar 7:19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) (ESV)
Mar 7:19 For it does not enter into his heart but into his stomach, and goes out into the latrine"—thus declaring all foods clean. (LEB)
Mar 7:19 For it doesn't go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body." (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods "clean.") (NIV)

So, why do they all say that? Because it is in the KJV and in the Greek:

Mar 7:19 Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats? (KJV)

Comparing all of them, one clause at a time:

"because it does not go into his heart" (NASB)
"since it enters not his heart" (ESV)
"For it does not enter into his heart" (LEB)
"For it doesn't go into his heart" (NIV)
"Because it entereth not into his heart" (KJV)

So far, so good.

"but into his stomach" (NASB)
"but his stomach" (ESV)
"but into his stomach" (LEB)
"but into his stomach," (NIV)
"but into his stomach" (KJV)

Again, so far, so good.

"and is eliminated?" (NASB)
"and is expelled?" (ESV)
"and goes out into the latrine" (LEB)
"and then out of his body." (NIV)
"and goeth out into the draught," (KJV)

Once again, so far, so good. So, what's left?

"(Thus He declared all foods clean.)" (NASB)
"(Thus he declared all foods clean.)" (ESV)
"thus declaring all foods clean." (LEB)
'(In saying this, Jesus declared all foods "clean.")' (NIV)
"purging all meats?" (KJV)

The question at this point should be, "What does 'purging all meats' mean?" Well, let's take a look.

2511 [e] 3956 [e] 3588 [e] 1033 [e]
katharizōn panta ta brōmata
καθαρίζων πάντα τὰ βρώματα
purifying all the food

Here is the Greek: https://biblehub.com/interlinear/mark/7.htm

So, the next question is, if the meat (food) is expelled into the latrine/privy/toilet ("draught" in the KJV), then how is it even possible that that can purify or make clean (the meaning of the word "purge" in the KJV) all the food? It can't; that's impossible because it is in a latrine. So, something else must be meant by the words of Christ; and Mark provides the meaning.

It's also worth keeping in mind the similarity of what God tells Peter in Acts 10:15, regarding eating unclean food: “What God has made clean, do not call common" (ESV). Of course, the two texts are referring to different things, but what is said is very similar. It's also worth noting that Peter is considered the one who dictated to Mark.

This leads to just one reason why the KJV should be left alone for serious study, or at least why other versions should be used alongside it: meanings of words change over time and many English words in the KJV simply don't mean what they used to. So, when someone applies a meaning today to words that meant something else in 1611, or don't study what the Greek words behind the English text mean, misunderstanding occurs.

 

[Corn Pop]

The Lord said to Moses speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth...

Im not a hebrew.

 

[Corn Pop]

Not Christ. The Father declared all foods clean. Acts 10:9-16.

The Father declaired all foods clean to Noah and his Sons as well.

 

[tdidymas]

"All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable." If eating something is unhealthy, don't eat it - this isn't "God's Word," but it's wise advice. But in regard to Mk. 7:19, the part in parentheses is Mark's commentary on his quote of what Jesus said. Mark's commentary is as inspired by the Holy Spirit as the words of any apostle. Here is proof:

Authority of the statement’s origin

This link:
https://creation.com/all-food-clean
is a scholarly article on the subject, which includes objections and responses. I would like to point out that the oldest codices dated 4th century all have the phrase about Jesus making all foods clean, which indicates that Mark wrote it into the text under the authority of Peter. One of these codices is the Codex Vaticanus in the Vatican library.

A parenthetical statement in scripture is not less authoritative than the surrounding text. Another example of such that was used by Mark is in Mark 13:14: "When you see the appalling abomination set up where it ought not to be (let the reader understand), then those in Judaea must escape to the mountains." This comment is to the reader of his gospel, as is the comment in Mk. 7:19.

Meaning of the statement is spiritual

Another translation renders it: “By saying this, Jesus was declaring that people can eat any food without causing God to consider them defiled.”

The idea Jesus was portraying in the text, in which Mark makes this parenthetical comment, has spiritual meaning, and is not related to any idea of whether or not certain foods make the physical body clean or unclean. The statement that Jesus “declared all foods clean” means that certain foods no longer make us ceremonially unclean in approaching God, which is the thrust of the Old Testament law. The fact that certain foods are unhealthy or risky is incidental to the main reason the law was written. Therefore, eating shrimp does not displease God, even though it may be unhealthy for some people to eat.

So then, Peter’s vision in Acts 10:9-16 in which God said “What God has made clean, you are not to call profane,” applies both literally and figuratively. Since Christ cleansed humanity by His blood sacrifice, there is no more concern that anyone is ceremonially unclean to God by eating certain foods which the Mosaic law declared unclean.

This is also the thrust of Paul’s statement in Col. 2:16-17 “Then never let anyone criticise you for what you eat or drink, or about observance of annual festivals, New Moons or Sabbaths. These are only a shadow of what was coming: the reality is the body of Christ.” In addition to his argument against those who “forbid marriage and prohibit foods which God created to be accepted with thanksgiving by all who believe and who know the truth” in 1 Tim. 4:3. These statements are conducive to the idea that the Old Testament dietary laws were ceremonial in nature regarding the Mosaic covenant. The writer of Hebrews concurs, as he says in Heb. 13:9 “Do not be led astray by all sorts of strange doctrines: it is better to rely on grace for inner strength than on food, which has done no good to those who concentrate on it.”

Jewish laws burdensome to the Gentiles

In Acts 15:28, the apostle James writes “It has been decided by the Holy Spirit and by ourselves not to impose on you any burden beyond these essentials...” in which he is acknowledging that the Jewish laws, including the dietary laws, are burdensome to the Gentiles. In that acknowledgement, the letter releases the gentiles from any obligation to obey the Mosaic ceremonial laws, with the exception of the 3 items mentioned. The context of this letter to the gentile churches acknowledges by implication the ceremonial nature of those dietary laws.

Types, shadows, and figures of Old Testament law

Since Paul says that dietary and other ceremonial laws are mere shadows of what was to come, that is Christ, then those laws no longer apply to the action of pleasing God. Ref. Col. 2:16-17. Several places in Hebrews also concurs with this, such as 8:5 and 10:1. Since the Old Covenant (that is, the Mosaic covenant) is now obsolete (Heb. 8:13), such laws are in fact nullified in the purpose of pleasing God, and thus appeasing His wrath.

Then, to claim that this makes the Mosaic law somehow wrong, would be a false conclusion. The Mosaic law was temporary by nature, in which God put up a barrier between the Jews and Gentiles, in order to distinguish to the world what God defined as holy and unholy. Then when Christ came, that barrier was destroyed by the fact that Gentiles were then accepted into the family of God, as Paul argues in Eph. 2:14 “For he is the peace between us, and has made the two into one entity and broken down the barrier which used to keep them apart, by destroying in his own person the hostility, that is, the Law of commandments with its decrees.”

In this way, Paul argues that the Law was a tutor to lead us to Christ, and that in Christ we are no longer under the tutor. Gal. 3:24-25 “Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.”

The final point is that reasoning is good, but only if it aligns with the teaching of Christ and His apostles. If our reasoning disagrees with their teaching and the contextual meaning of the Bible, then our reasoning must change.

 

[JLB]

Doesnt really say there is any changes to the clean or unclean foods that are set out, so where did this idea come in.

The idea came from the words of truth; the words of Christ.


So He said to them, “Are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?” Mark 7:18-19

• thus purifying all foods?”

Also reiterated by Paul —

• I know and am convinced by the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean of itself;

I know and am convinced by the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean of itself; but to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. Yet if your brother is grieved because of your food, you are no longer walking in love. Do not destroy with your food the one for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let your good be spoken of as evil; for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Romans 14:14-17

Again —


Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer. 1 Timothy 4:1-5

• For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

JLB