“Blessed
art thou, O land, when thy king
is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!”
Ecclesiastes 10:17 · KJV
Today's reading — Leviticus 11:1-42▾
(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.
(24) And for these ye shall be unclean: whosoever toucheth the carcase of them shall be unclean until the even.
(25) And whosoever beareth
ought of the carcase of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.
(26) The carcases of every beast which divideth the hoof, and
is not clovenfooted, nor cheweth the cud,
are unclean unto you: every one that toucheth them shall be unclean.
(27) And whatsoever goeth upon his paws, among all manner of beasts that go on
all four, those
are unclean unto you: whoso toucheth their carcase shall be unclean until the even.
(28) And he that beareth the carcase of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: they
are unclean unto you.
(29) These also
shall be unclean unto you among the creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise after his kind,
(30) And the ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole.
(31) These
are unclean to you among all that creep: whosoever doth touch them, when they be dead, shall be unclean until the even.
(32) And upon whatsoever
any of them, when they are dead, doth fall, it shall be unclean; whether
it be any vessel of wood, or raiment, or skin, or sack, whatsoever vessel
it be, wherein
any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the even; so it shall be cleansed.
(33) And every earthen vessel, whereinto
any of them falleth, whatsoever is in it shall be unclean; and ye shall break it.
(34) Of all meat which may be eaten,
that on which
such
water cometh shall be unclean: and all drink that may be drunk in every
such vessel shall be unclean.
(35) And every
thing whereupon
any part of their carcase falleth shall be unclean;
whether it be oven, or ranges for pots, they shall be broken down:
for they
are unclean, and shall be unclean unto you.
(36) Nevertheless a fountain or pit,
wherein there is plenty of water, shall be clean: but that which toucheth their carcase shall be unclean.
(37) And if
any part of their carcase fall upon any sowing seed which is to be sown, it
shall be clean.
(38) But if
any water be put upon the seed, and
any part
of their carcase fall thereon, it
shall be unclean unto you.
(39) And if any beast, of which ye may eat, die; he that toucheth the carcase thereof shall be unclean until the even.
(40) And he that eateth of the carcase of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: he also that beareth the carcase of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.
(41) And every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth
shall be
an abomination; it shall not be eaten.
(42) Whatsoever goeth upon the belly, and whatsoever goeth upon
all
four, or whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not eat; for they
are an abomination.
The primary reason people eat is for them to be healthy and have the strength to do the things they need to do. This means that any food a person eats that weakens or shortens his or her life is not good for the fellow. In today’s Bible reading, God gave the Israelites instructions on what to eat and what not to eat. Modern day scientists have discovered that the foods God allowed them to eat are good for our health, while the ones He said they shouldn’t eat are bad for our health. I believe this contributed to their unusual strength and vigour in the wilderness (Psalm 105:37).
God cares about your health. He doesn’t want you falling sick all the time because sickness doesn’t glorify Him. Don’t eat junk foods that endanger your health and then run to God to seek healing when the doctor’s report comes out. You should glorify Him with your body by eating only foods that will keep you healthy.
Nowadays, many crops are grown and preserved with chemicals. This is why you should have your own garden and grow some of your own food if you have the opportunity to do so. When people contract diseases, they hardly trace them to the food they eat. However, some of the foods they eat are silent killers.
As good and important as food is, it can also make a fellow weak spiritually and physically. When you see people who have become obese because they eat whatever they like whenever they like, you will notice that they are usually weak. If you notice that getting up from a seat takes longer and requires more effort than it should, you should check your diet. Besides checking what you eat, it is also important to check when you eat. You cannot eat very heavy food late in the night and expect to wake up in the middle of the night to pray. Those who eat for strength don’t just eat anything; they eat what will make them strong. Fruits and vegetables will provide you with strength, therefore you should eat a lot of them. Also, avoid eating excessive sugary foods as too much sugar, like any other thing, is harmful.
Beloved, God needs you to be fit and healthy so you can express His glory on the earth and fulfil your destiny in Him. Glorify Him with your body; eat right!
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Open Heavens daily devotional by Pastor E.A. Adeboye, published by RCCG.
