The short answer
The law of Moses forbids it. Leviticus 11:7–8 calls the pig “unclean to you” and says, “You shall not eat their meat.” Most Christians believe the New Testament lifted that rule, pointing to passages like Romans 14:14 and Mark 7, while Seventh-day Adventists and some others still avoid pork.
What the Old Testament says about pork
The rule appears twice, in Leviticus and in Deuteronomy 14:8: “The pig, because it has a split hoof, and is cloven-footed, but doesn’t chew the cud, is unclean to you. You shall not eat their meat.” (Leviticus 11:7–8).
The text gives its own reason, and that reason is holiness. At the end of the list, God says, “You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.” (Leviticus 11:45). Later he ties the food laws to Israel’s calling: “I, the LORD, am holy, and have set you apart from the peoples, that you should be mine.” (Leviticus 20:26). At every meal, food marked Israel as God’s own people. People have long proposed health reasons too, but the passage doesn’t give one.
These laws came through Moses. Long before that, God told Noah, “Every moving thing that lives will be food for you.” (Genesis 9:3). Noah also knew a difference between clean and unclean animals (Genesis 7:2), a detail that matters below.
What changed in the New Testament
These are the passages most Christians rely on.
- Mark 7. Jesus teaches that food can’t defile a person, since it doesn’t reach the heart. Verse 19 draws the conclusion that no food is unclean, and translations differ on whether that note comes from Mark or from Jesus.
- Acts 10. Peter sees a vision of unclean animals and hears a voice telling him to eat. He then meets the Gentile Cornelius and concludes that he shouldn’t call any person unclean (Acts 10:28).
- Acts 15. Church leaders decide not to bind Gentile believers to the law of Moses. Their short list of requests doesn’t mention pork.
- Romans 14:14. “I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean of itself; except that to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean.” Paul is writing to a church divided over food.
- Colossians 2:16–17. “Let no one therefore judge you in eating or drinking, or with respect to a feast day or a new moon or a Sabbath day, which are a shadow of the things to come; but the body is Christ’s.” Paul calls these things a shadow of what was coming in Christ.
- 1 Timothy 4:4. “For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving.” Written against teachers who were ordering people to abstain from certain foods.
These passages turn on setting and wording, so it’s worth reading each one in context. The same question about old laws comes up with tattoos and Leviticus 19.
How Christians see pork differently
Most Christians eat pork, but not all, and those who avoid it have reasons worth hearing.
| Tradition | Practice | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Catholic and most Protestants | Eat pork | The food laws were for Israel and are fulfilled in Christ |
| Eastern Orthodox | Eat pork outside fasting seasons | Meat is set aside at times as a spiritual discipline, which isn’t the same as calling it unclean |
| Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox | Traditionally avoid pork | A long-held custom tied to the Old Testament food laws |
| Seventh-day Adventists | Avoid pork and other unclean meats, and many are vegetarian | The distinction is older than Moses (Genesis 7:2) and protects health |
| Messianic Jews and some Sabbath-keeping groups | Many keep the biblical food laws | Jewish identity, or continuing obedience |
Adventists read the key passages closely, and differently. Mark 7 opens with a dispute over unwashed hands, so they see it as being about human tradition. Peter’s own conclusion in Acts 10 is about people, and Romans 14 may concern some other dispute, such as food offered to idols. Most other Christians answer that the wording in Mark 7 and Paul’s letters is broader than that.
Adventist teaching has also developed. In the 1800s Adventists rejected pork largely on health grounds, and the wider teaching on clean and unclean meats came later.
Traditional Judaism and Islam also forbid pork, so this may come up with friends and neighbors too.
If you and someone else see it differently
Paul’s main concern in Romans 14 is how believers treat each other: “Don’t let him who eats despise him who doesn’t eat. Don’t let him who doesn’t eat judge him who eats, for God has accepted him.” (Romans 14:3). That applies whichever side you’re on.
If you avoid pork, no one should mock you for it. If you eat it, no one should make you feel unclean. If you’ve changed your mind and your family hasn’t, go gently, because meals carry a lot of love and memory. “But food will not commend us to God.” (1 Corinthians 8:8).
Questions to think through
- Have you read Mark 7, Acts 10 and Romans 14 for yourself, all the way through?
- Do you think the food laws were for Israel only, or for everyone?
- Is your choice about conviction, culture, family or health?
- Would eating it, or refusing it, hurt someone at the table?
- Do you look down on Christians who choose differently?
If you’d like to go deeper, our beginner’s guide to studying the Bible shows you where to start.
Common questions
Why was pork forbidden in the Bible?
Leviticus gives holiness as the reason: the food laws set Israel apart (Leviticus 20:26). The only thing it says against the pig is that it doesn’t chew the cud. Health and hygiene theories came later, and scholars still debate them.
Did Jesus eat pork?
The Gospels don’t say so, and most scholars assume he didn’t. He was a Jewish man who lived under the law of Moses. The debate is about what his teaching meant for his followers.
Does the same rule cover shellfish?
Yes. Leviticus 11:10 forbids sea creatures without fins and scales. Christians who see the food laws as ended generally eat shellfish, and those who keep them don’t.
Should Christians keep the Old Testament food laws today?
Most Christians say no, while Adventists, Messianic Jews and some others keep them in whole or in part, for different reasons. Paul’s word to both groups is generous: “He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks. He who doesn’t eat, to the Lord he doesn’t eat, and gives God thanks.” (Romans 14:6).