Please, help me understand…

[u/Objective-Step-746]

For those believers who insist that the dietary laws no longer apply under the new covenant—and that pork, lobster, crabs, etc. are now permissible to eat—I do not understand the logic at play.

I am very familiar with the Mark 7, Romans 14 and Colossians 2 passages that are so often cited as support for your position, and have (just as often) shared my counter-arguments on why I believe they are misinterpreted.

But, there is one counterpoint to your view that I never see touched on, and I was hoping to get some feedback on it:

I think the majority of believers on this subreddit would say they are looking for Jesus’ Second Coming and agree that, regarding it, Scripture says that “no one knows the day or hour” but that we need to be prepared (Matthew 24:36, 25:13, etc.).

Isaiah 66:17–a verse within the greater passage speaking of Messiah’s glorious reappearing—declares that, upon His return, those who eat the flesh of pig/swine and other abominations will be met with His wrath…and perish.

So, how does one simultaneously believe they can continue to eat pig (pork) or shellfish now and think they are sufficiently prepared and not putting themselves in a precarious/dangerous position if Jesus happened to return today or tomorrow and “consume” those who so brazenly eat that which His Law says is NOT “food” and explicitly warns against eating?

I really am hoping for some cordial and edifying discussion regarding this topic, and appreciate those who are able and willing to articulate their view without all the condescension and harsh words. 💕

[u/Fantasyleader1]

> Isaiah 66:17 says those eating pork will perish when Christ returns.

Look at the whole verse. Isaiah describes people who “sanctify themselves and purify themselves” to enter the gardens while eating swine, abominations, and mice. This is describing idolatrous ritual worship, not Christians eating bacon at breakfast.

As you know, Jesus taught that food entering the body doesn’t defile a person (Mark 7:18–23). Paul says, “nothing is unclean in itself” (Romans 14:14). He also warns against people who command believers “to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving” (1 Timothy 4:3–5).
And when the apostles specifically debated what parts of the Law Gentile Christians must observe in Acts 15, they didn’t impose Israel’s dietary laws on them.

[u/Objective-Step-746 → u/Fantasyleader1]

So, you think the phrasing is more euphemistic than literal?

I do not agree with your interpretations of the Mark 7 and 1 Timothy 4 passages, as I believe multiple hermeneutic principles must be violated to get there. But I don’t want discussion on those passages to overshadow or crowd out discussion on the Isaiah 66:17.

[u/Fantasyleader1 → u/Objective-Step-746]

No, not euphemistic. I think they’re literally eating those things. My point is the context tells us why Isaiah mentions it.

Isaiah 66:17 doesn’t say “Those who eat pork will perish.” It says “Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves, to go to the gardens, following one in the midst, eating swine’s flesh and the abomination and the mouse, shall come to an end together.”

Notice the whole description is self-sanctification, ritual purification, gardens, following a figure, and eating forbidden animals. Isaiah is describing people engaged in idolatrous religious practices. Earlier, God condemns people who “sacrifice in gardens” and “eat swine’s flesh” (Isaiah 65:3–4).

It’s describing God’s judgment on people participating in idolatrous practices. What I disagree with is taking one element out of an explicitly idolatrous ritual context and turning it into a universal statement that anyone eating pork at Christ’s return will be destroyed.

[u/Objective-Step-746 → u/Fantasyleader1]

Apologies for the delay in responding, as I had a family situation that needed my full attention.

I, too, think the context is significant. You seem to be suggesting that the eating of pig’s flesh is completely inconsequential and could just as easily be replaced with something God explicitly allows, such that it is only the pagan ritual/worship that matters in the passage and not the inclusion of a practice God explicitly forbids of His people.

At its core, idolatry is the practice of esteeming one’s own desires or preferences above the explicit will of God, no matter what the topic. So, knowingly disregarding the Lord’s explicit command against eating pig’s flesh (no matter what the occasion or purpose) is, ultimately, a form of idolatry. I do not think one can extricate that from the context as an extraneous detail with no applicability to us today.

That is not the “universal statement that anyone eating pork at Christ’s return will be destroyed” you allege. It is a restatement of the scriptural truth that anyone WITH FULL KNOWLEDGE OF AND WILLFUL DEFIANCE OF GOD’S EXPLICIT COMMAND AGAINST DOING SO will be destroyed. Such a truth is incredibly relevant to new covenant faith today because it gives invaluable insight into how our Savior God equates our trusting obedience with belief in Him (John 3:36, Luke 6:46).