Leviticus 11:20-23 Meaning: Why Locusts but Not Other Insects?

Two Hebrew words shape this passage with striking clarity. The first is sherets, a swarming thing, the kind of small creature that multiplies quickly. It appears in verse 20: “All flying insects that walk on all fours are an abomination.” The word sherets recalls Genesis, where God made the waters teem with living creatures. But here, teeming life is not automatically clean. What matters is how it moves.

The second key word is sheqets, usually translated “abomination” or “detestable thing.” It is a strong word, used often in Leviticus for idols and forbidden practices. Calling an insect sheqets meant it carried a weight of uncleanness, touching its dead body made you impure until evening. God was teaching Israel to see the ordinary as holy or unholy, not neutral.

Then there is khera'ayim, the word for “jointed legs above their feet.” This describes the locust’s long back legs that fold up like springs. The word itself suggests something set apart for leaping, a design that marked these insects as different. The same Hebrew root appears in the word for “curse” or “curved,” hinting at the bent shape that makes the hop possible. God gave His people a simple, observable trait to tell clean from unclean: does it walk like the rest, or does it hop?

Christians have read these verses in different ways. Some, like Matthew Henry, see a symbolic meaning: the forbidden insects “crawl” rather than rise, suggesting a lesson about avoiding those who mix earthly and spiritual in unholy ways. Other commentators point to practical hygiene, locusts were a clean food source in the Near East, while other insects carried disease. Still others emphasize that these laws were given only to Israel as part of the old covenant. Across traditions, readers agree that the passage calls God's people to pay attention, to discern, and to trust that God has a reason for every boundary He sets.

A common misreading is that Leviticus 11:20-23 bans all insects. But the passage says the opposite: locusts, grasshoppers, crickets, and katydids are explicitly permitted. In fact, verse 21 names the very ones that may be eaten, those with jointed legs for hopping. The confusion comes because English translations often use the word “fowl” for winged creatures, making readers think of birds. But the Hebrew sherets ha'of means “swarming things of the wing”, insects. God drew a fine line, not a blanket ban.

You are not deciding whether to eat grasshoppers this week. But the question behind these verses still matters: How do you tell what God calls clean from what He calls unclean in your own life? The Israelites had to look closely at a creature’s legs. You may need to look closely at your habits, your entertainment, the words you speak, the thoughts you let settle. Small things, like what you scroll past or what you laugh at, can become patterns. The law of clean and unclean was training Israel to see the holy in the ordinary. That training is still yours: to pause, to ask, to let God’s word shape your yes and your no.