God's laws on clean and unclean meats remain in force for all mankind, not just Jews, because the God who gave them does not change (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8) and Christ did not come to destroy the Law (Matthew 5:17-18). The distinction predates Sinai, appearing with Noah (Genesis 7:2; 8:20), and Genesis 9:3 grants flesh for food only "even as the green herbs," meaning within healthful limits that God defines in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14. Health benefits may exist, but the laws are fundamentally a test of obedience. The New Testament passages commonly cited against them are misunderstood. Peter's vision (Acts 10) concerned the acceptance of Gentiles like Cornelius, as Peter himself explains (verse 28), not food. First Timothy 4:1-5 speaks of foods "sanctified by the word of God and prayer," meaning those the Bible sets apart as food, and prayer does not make unclean meat clean. Mark 7 addresses the Pharisees' hand-washing tradition, and "purifying all foods" describes the stomach eliminating waste, not Christ declaring foods clean. Romans 14 deals with vegetarianism and meat defiled by idol association, since Paul's word koinos means "common" or "defiled," not akarthatos, "unclean." Unless the New Testament specifically sets a law aside, its principle remains valid and beneficial.

The biblical law of clean and unclean meats remains in force for Christians. It represents dozens of laws, such as those on quarantine and sexual behavior, that guard against physical and spiritual impurity and relate directly to the pursuit of holiness, without which no one will see the Lord. The principle behind it is that God's people are set apart and different from the nations around them. Because the church is the Israel of God, Christians are responsible to be holy as God is, and II Corinthians 6:16-7:1 commands cleansing from defilements of the flesh as well as of the spirit. The law predates the Old Covenant, since Noah knew the distinction, and what did not originate with the Old Covenant did not die with it. Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 list which animals may be eaten and give the means to identify those not listed. Mark 7 addresses ritual handwashing, not unclean meats, and verse 19 speaks of the digestive system, not a declaration that all foods are clean. Peter's vision taught that no man is to be called common or unclean, and the ensuing dispute never mentions food. Paul's discussion in I Corinthians 8 concerns clean meats offered to idols and sensitivity to a brother's conscience. In the Millennium the priesthood will teach the difference between clean and unclean, and nothing defiling will enter the New Jerusalem, so keeping this law prepares Christians for that destiny.

The Day of Atonement emphasizes the cleansing of all defilement, highlighting the importance of purity in every area of life. Holiness stands as the opposite of being adulterated, corrupted, or contaminated, setting one apart as acceptable in God's presence. Foolishness, like more obvious sins, is defiling and can be physically dangerous, separating one from God. The underlying instruction of clean and unclean laws in Scripture aims to keep one free from spiritual defilement and to provide a means of cleansing if defilement occurs. Obedience to these laws was a rigorous requirement, intended to teach the importance of being clean bodily, mentally, and in conduct and attitudes. Uncleanness is not acceptable to God, and the impossibility of fully adhering to these laws mirrors the pervasive nature of spiritual defilement from sin, which touches everything and everyone. On the Day of Atonement, the cleansing extends beyond the individual sinner to encompass every aspect of sin committed by every Israelite during the year. This includes the priest, the priesthood, the people, the mercy seat, the altar, the holy place, and the tabernacle itself, all purified in one ceremony. This portrays the leavening effect of sin and foolishness, impacting the entire fellowship, showing that the foolishness of worshippers transfers defilement to sacred spaces and must be cleansed annually through the effective power of blood, symbolizing a complete covering of sin's debt.

Some members have stated their belief that it is acceptable for people outside the church to eat unclean meats because they are not under the New Covenant, not set apart, and not holy to God. This view represents a specific application of the idea that the law applies only to ancient Israel. The claim that God's law is limited in scope to ancient Israel or the church contradicts the universality of sin. Sin affects everyone, both Jews and Gentiles alike, as shown in the statement that sin is a reproach to any people. Because sin is universal, its consequence of death is also universal. The law that empowers sin to produce death therefore applies universally as well. God's law pertains to everyone, not only to ancient Israel.

God never calls pigs dogs cats cockroaches or caterpillars food. Every example involves only the eating of clean God-created foods and in each circumstance idolatry is the closest sin either directly or indirectly. The subjects covered do not involve things unclean by creation but rather clean foods offered to idols through a religious act that resulted in idolatry. In Matthew 15 Christ is again talking about clean foods.

God gave the Israelites the principles of quarantining the sick in Leviticus 13 and Numbers 5 where He used examples of leprosy to represent any contagious sickness or disease. Leviticus 13 records the health law God gave to Moses to combat the spread of disease. When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling, a scab, or a bright spot, and it becomes on the skin of his body like a leprous sore, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. The priest shall examine it; and indeed if the swelling of the sore is reddish-white on his bald head or on his bald forehead, as the appearance of leprosy on the skin of the body, he is a leprous man. He is unclean. The priest shall surely pronounce him unclean; his sore is on his head. Now the leper on whom the sore is, his clothes shall be torn and his head bare; and he shall cover his mustache, and cry, 'Unclean! Unclean!' He shall be unclean. All the days he has the sore he shall be unclean. He is unclean and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp. The infected were expected to live outside the community until they were completely over any contagious symptom. The Unclean! Unclean! warning was meant to separate the community from those in quarantine. The infected person was to take on mannerisms that warned others of the disease.

The clean and unclean laws address the maintenance of holiness that God confers through His choice. God commands His people not to eat any abominable thing. The term abominable denotes anything impure, unclean, and devoid of holiness. Eating what is abominable renders a person unclean and defiled. The word defile applies to both ceremonial and spiritual defilement. The same term appears in contexts of sexual sins that break the Ten Commandments. Consumption of unclean flesh therefore produces spiritual defilement of the temple of God that now resides in His children. Only animals from the flock or herd that God designates as clean qualify as acceptable food. Those same animals appear on the list of creatures approved for sacrifice. God requires that offerings come from clean animals without blemish. He accepts as food for His children only those animals He Himself would accept on His altar. The laws of purity set His people apart from other nations. These laws demonstrate that the holiness of God and of His children cannot coexist with the uncleanness of the world. The vision given to Peter confirms that only those whom God cleanses through His calling become holy and acceptable. All others remain unclean and unrecognized by Him. Unclean persons or objects transfer defilement to whatever they touch, while clean persons or objects do not remove defilement. God therefore instructs His people to eat only the flesh of animals He has set apart, lest they become spiritually defiled and their offerings unacceptable.

The text explains clean and unclean laws from Leviticus as pertaining to sanitation, quarantine, and containing disease. These laws address skin conditions generically termed leprosy, mold in fabrics and buildings, and bodily discharges. Priests examine and pronounce individuals clean or unclean, requiring washing, isolation, and separation to prevent spread. Similar principles appear in Deuteronomy regarding camp sanitation during war, mandating covering refuse and washing after emissions to maintain holiness. God walks in the camp and turns away from uncleanness. These physical laws parallel spiritual cleansing, where filth represents sin and disease, and washing symbolizes purification through the word. The principle extends to avoiding contamination in food handling to prevent infections like E. Coli from poor sanitation. Overall, these laws emphasize that God requires separation from uncleanness, both physical and spiritual, as only the clean can approach Him.

Any vaccination or immunization that contains unclean substances as listed in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 should not be taken. God says their flesh shall not be eaten and their carcasses shall not be touched because they are unclean. In several following verses He calls them abominations. As Creator He knows what is best for human bodies and what fuel they need to last. The food He supplies must be honored and obeyed very carefully in these matters.

Under Old Testament law the leper was completely defiled in his uncleanness. He was to live alone and warn any who would venture near of possible contamination. Ordinarily uncleanness is transferred among men but holiness is not. Clean has a sense of purity and holiness so to be cleansed was to be made pure. The leper could no more pronounce himself clean than anyone can pronounce himself sinless. Before giving the gift that Moses commanded the leper had to be inspected by the priest who would confirm that he had been healed. The priest was to command that two living and clean birds cedar wood scarlet and hyssop be taken. One bird was killed over running water. The living bird the cedar wood the scarlet and the hyssop were dipped in the blood of the killed bird. The mixture was sprinkled seven times on the one to be cleansed from the leprosy. He was pronounced clean and the living bird was let loose in the open field. He who was to be cleansed was to wash his clothes shave off all his hair and wash himself in water. After that he could come into the camp but had to stay outside his tent seven days. On the eighth day the former leper and the priest offered the regime of offerings that included a wave offering and a trespass offering with a log of oil a sin offering and a burnt offering with its grain offering. Blood from the trespass offering and then oil were placed on the tips of the right ear right thumb and right big toe. These body parts represent areas of a person's life and they are all meant to work together so that he may function effectively. The blood and oil cleanse and anoint his hearing his works and his walk or way of life.

The law differentiating clean and unclean foods imparts a sense of being different and thus gives a constant stream of confirmation of separation from the world. Eating only clean things is therefore a constant witness that the sanctified ones are to be clean. The laws of clean and unclean meats should be a constant reminder of this separation. Cleanliness in a spiritual moral and physical sense constitutes the realities that differentiate the sanctified ones from the world and make them distinctive from others. The defiling thing represents sin and its effects. The possibility of defilement by sin is taught in every case in which God declares a person unclean and therefore unsuited to serve Him until the defilement is taken away through the washing ceremonies prescribed by Him. It is so easy for that which is contaminating and defiling to character to be transferred. Human nature is like a magnet attracting defilement. These Old Covenant laws serve as reminders and guides about how serious God is and therefore the sanctified ones should be about not being contaminated by the world. In warfare the Israelite was to remember that he was different and God required cleanliness amongst His people. There is a line that is drawn between the faithful and the unfaithful and under the Old Covenant the lines were shown in physical terms. Religion makes a difference and God demands absolute loyalty in the people that He has cleansed.

The clean and unclean laws establish principles for separating those with contagious conditions from the community to prevent the spread of disease. These laws require inspection by priests and temporary isolation outside the camp for individuals showing signs of leprosy or other infectious illnesses. Infected persons must adopt specific behaviors to signal their condition, such as tearing their clothes and announcing their unclean status. The laws also address spiritual purity by mandating the removal of defiling influences, including heretical ideas, from the community. Spiritual impurity arises from false doctrine, which must be quarantined to protect the minds of believers. Obedience to these laws demonstrates love for others by maintaining a healthful environment free from physical and doctrinal contamination.