Leviticus 11:26 - Ellicott's Commentary On The Whole Bible

The carcases of every beast. — The construction of this text constituted one of the differences between the Pharisees and the Sadducees during the second Temple. According to the Pharisees, or the National Church in the time of Christ, the phrase “that toucheth them” in the last part of this verse refers to “the carcases” of the unclean animals spoken of in the preceding verse. It was only when an unclean animal was dead, whether death was owing to natural causes, design, or accident, that contact with its body defiled (see Leviticus 11:8; Leviticus 11:31); but when alive, unclean animals were freely used. Hence camels, asses, horses, &c, were employed in daily life, though unclean (1 Chronicles 12:40; Zechariah 14:15; Matthew 21:2; Luke 13:15, &c.). The Authorised Version rightly expresses this sense by inserting “the carcases” in italics at the beginning of the verse, thus showing that “them” in the latter part of the verse refers to the bodies of unclean animals when dead. Indeed some MSS. have actually “that toucheth their carcases,” instead of “that toucheth them.” The Sadducees, however, took the expression “them” to refer to the living unclean animals, and hence maintained that touching the body of any animal described in this dietary list as unclean defiled. The difference which this interpretation of the text produced in the domestic life and social intercourse of the Jews can hardly be described, since, according to the doctrine of the Sadducees, it was exceedingly difficult to remain undefiled as soon as one of them stepped outside their dwellings.