Leviticus 11:4 (LSB)

Passage

Nevertheless, you shall not eat of these, among those which chew the cud or among those which divide the hoof: the camel, for though it chews cud, it does not divide the hoof; it is unclean to you.

Nearby Context

Leviticus 11:2 “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘These are the creatures which you may eat from all the animals that are on the earth.

Leviticus 11:3 Whatever divides a hoof, thus making split hoofs, and chews the cud, among the animals, that you may eat.

Leviticus 11:4 Nevertheless, you shall not eat of these, among those which chew the cud or among those which divide the hoof: the camel, for though it chews cud, it does not divide the hoof; it is unclean to you.

Leviticus 11:5 Likewise, the shaphan, for though it chews cud, it does not divide the hoof; it is unclean to you;

Leviticus 11:6 the rabbit also, for though it chews cud, it does not divide the hoof; it is unclean to you;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "nevertheless", "shall", "chew", "divide", "hoof", "camel", "though", and "chews". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "nevertheless" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Whatever divides a hoof thus making split..." into verse 5's "Likewise the shaphan for though it chews...", so "nevertheless" and "shall" belong inside that flow. In Leviticus context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "nevertheless" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.