What Does the Bible Say About Eating Shrimp? A Scriptural Exploration

Eating shrimp and other seafood is a topic that has intrigued many who study the dietary laws outlined in the Bible. While the Old Testament provides specific guidelines about what is considered clean and unclean food, the New Testament offers a different perspective. This article examines what the Bible says about eating shrimp, highlighting relevant verses and their implications for modern-day Christians.

Table of Top Verses About Eating Shrimp:

Reference	Verse About Eating Shrimp
Leviticus 11:9-12	“Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales…”
Deuteronomy 14:9-10	“Of all the creatures living in the water, you may eat any that have fins and scales…”
Acts 10:13-15	“Then a voice told him, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’…”
Mark 7:18-19	“Are you so dull? Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them?”

What Does the Bible Say About Eating Shrimp?

1. Old Testament Dietary Laws: The Foundation

Leviticus 11:9-12

“These you may eat, of all that are in the waters. Everything in the waters that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers, you may eat. But anything in the seas or the rivers that does not have fins and scales, of the swarming creatures in the waters and of the living creatures that are in the waters, is detestable to you. You shall regard them as detestable; you shall not eat any of their flesh, and you shall detest their carcasses. Everything in the waters that does not have fins and scales is detestable to you.”

In Leviticus, God gives Moses and Aaron specific dietary laws for the Israelites, clearly stating that any sea creature without fins and scales is considered unclean and should not be eaten. This includes shrimp, which lack both fins and scales.

Deuteronomy 14:9-10

“Of all that are in the waters you may eat these: whatever has fins and scales you may eat. And whatever does not have fins and scales you shall not eat; it is unclean for you.”

Deuteronomy reiterates the dietary restrictions, emphasizing the unclean nature of sea creatures without fins and scales, including shrimp.

2. Reasons Behind Dietary Laws

Health Considerations

Some scholars believe that the dietary laws served a practical purpose, protecting the Israelites from potential health risks associated with eating certain unclean animals. Shrimp and other shellfish can carry toxins and pathogens, which can be harmful if not properly prepared.

Spiritual and Ritual Purity

The dietary laws were also meant to set the Israelites apart as a holy people, dedicated to God. By adhering to these laws, they maintained spiritual and ritual purity, symbolizing their unique relationship with God.

3. New Testament Perspectives on Dietary Laws

Acts 10:12-15

“In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air. And there came a voice to him: ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ But Peter said, ‘By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.’ And the voice came to him again a second time, ‘What God has made clean, do not call common.'”

Peter’s vision is a pivotal moment in the New Testament, indicating a shift from the strict dietary laws of the Old Testament. God declares all foods clean, suggesting that the old restrictions are no longer applicable under the New Covenant.

Mark 7:18-19

“And he said to them, ‘Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?’ (Thus he declared all foods clean.)”

Jesus teaches that spiritual purity is not determined by dietary practices but by one’s heart and actions. This teaching supports the idea that all foods, including shrimp, are clean.

Romans 14:14

“I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean.”

Paul emphasizes personal conviction regarding dietary choices. If one believes a food is unclean, it is unclean for them, but all foods are inherently clean.

List of 33 Bible Verses About Eating Shrimp:

1. Leviticus 11:9-12 – Clean and Unclean Seafood
Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales. But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales—whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water—you are to regard as unclean. And since you are to regard them as unclean, you must not eat their meat; you must regard their carcasses as unclean. Anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales is to be regarded as unclean by you.

2. Deuteronomy 14:9-10 – Restrictions on Seafood Consumption
Of all the creatures living in the water, you may eat any that have fins and scales. But anything that does not have fins and scales you may not eat; for you it is unclean.

3. Acts 10:13-15 – Peter’s Vision of Clean and Unclean Animals
Then a voice told him, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’ ‘Surely not, Lord!’ Peter replied. ‘I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.’ The voice spoke to him a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’

4. Mark 7:18-19 – Jesus Declares All Foods Clean
‘Are you so dull?’ he asked. ‘Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them? 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.)

5. Genesis 1:29-30 – God’s Original Dietary Provision
Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.’ And it was so.

6. Romans 14:14 – Nothing is Unclean in Itself
I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean.

7. 1 Timothy 4:4 – Everything God Created is Good
For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.

8. Colossians 2:16 – Freedom from Dietary Laws
Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day.

9. Genesis 9:3 – God’s Provision of Meat
Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.

10. 1 Corinthians 10:25 – Eat Anything Sold in the Meat Market
Eat anything sold in the meat market without raising questions of conscience.

11. Leviticus 20:25 – Distinguishing Clean and Unclean Animals
You must therefore make a distinction between clean and unclean animals and between unclean and clean birds. Do not defile yourselves by any animal or bird or anything that moves along the ground—those that I have set apart as unclean for you.

12. Deuteronomy 14:3 – Do Not Eat Any Detestable Thing
Do not eat any detestable thing.

13. Leviticus 11:46-47 – Distinguishing Clean and Unclean
These are the regulations concerning animals, birds, every living thing that moves about in the water and every creature that moves along the ground. You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.

14. Matthew 15:11 – What Defiles a Person
What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.

15. Ezekiel 4:14 – Ezekiel’s Diet
Then I said, ‘Not so, Sovereign Lord! I have never defiled myself. From my youth until now I have never eaten anything found dead or torn by wild animals. No impure meat has ever entered my mouth.’

16. Leviticus 7:23-24 – Forbidden Fat and Blood
Say to the Israelites: ‘Do not eat any of the fat of cattle, sheep or goats. The fat of an animal found dead or torn by wild animals may be used for any other purpose, but you must not eat it.’

17. Isaiah 66:17 – Judgment on Those Eating Unclean Foods
‘Those who consecrate and purify themselves to go into the gardens, following one who is among those who eat the flesh of pigs, rats and other unclean things—they will meet their end together with the one they follow,’ declares the Lord.

18. Romans 14:20 – All Food is Clean
Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble.

19. Leviticus 19:26 – Do Not Eat Meat with Blood
Do not eat any meat with the blood still in it. Do not practice divination or seek omens.

20. Acts 15:28-29 – The Council’s Letter to Gentile Believers
It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.

21. Matthew 8:30-32 – The Demons and the Pigs
Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. The demons begged Jesus, ‘If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.’ He said to them, ‘Go!’ So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water.

22. Isaiah 66:3-4 – Rejecting Hypocrisy and Idolatry
But whoever sacrifices a bull is like one who kills a person, and whoever offers a lamb is like one who breaks a dog’s neck; whoever makes a grain offering is like one who presents pig’s blood, and whoever burns memorial incense is like one who worships an idol. They have chosen their own ways, and they delight in their abominations; so I also will choose harsh treatment for them and will bring on them what they dread. For when I called, no one answered, when I spoke, no one listened. They did evil in my sight and chose what displeases me.

23. Hebrews 13:9 – Do Not Be Carried Away by Strange Teachings
Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings. It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by eating ceremonial foods, which is of no benefit to those who do so.

24. Leviticus 11:44 – Be Holy Because I Am Holy
I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves along the ground.

25. Genesis 1:29 – Original Diet in Eden
Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.’

26. Leviticus 11:7-8 – The Pig is Unclean
And the pig, though it has a divided hoof, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you.

27. Matthew 5:17-18 – Jesus Fulfills the Law
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

28. Leviticus 20:25 – Distinguishing Clean and Unclean Animals
You must therefore make a distinction between clean and unclean animals and between unclean and clean birds. Do not defile yourselves by any animal or bird or anything that moves along the ground—those that I have set apart as unclean for you.

29. Romans 14:21 – Avoiding Stumbling Blocks
It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

30. Leviticus 11:10 – Unclean Aquatic Creatures
But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales—whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water—you are to regard as unclean.

31. 1 Timothy 4:3 – Abstaining from Certain Foods
They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.

32. 1 Corinthians 8:8 – Food Does Not Bring Us Near to God
But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do.

33. Genesis 9:4 – Do Not Eat Meat with Blood
But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it.

Where in the Bible does it say not to eat shellfish?

Leviticus 11:12

“Anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales is to be regarded as unclean by you.”

This verse is part of the dietary laws given in Leviticus, outlining which creatures are considered clean and unclean for consumption by the Israelites. According to this verse, sea creatures without fins and scales, such as shrimp, are deemed unclean.

Conclusion:

The Bible provides various perspectives on dietary laws, including the consumption of shrimp. From the Old Testament’s strict prohibitions to the New Testament’s teachings on freedom and purity, these scriptures offer a comprehensive understanding of the topic. Reflecting on these verses can help believers navigate their dietary choices with faith and wisdom.

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