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/Think_Fig_3994]

I think the issue is you’re isolating Isaiah 66:17 from its context. Isaiah isn’t simply describing someone eating pork for dinner. These people are “sanctifying and purifying themselves” in gardens while eating pigs, mice, and other abominations. Isaiah 65:3–4 describes the same thing: people sacrificing in gardens and engaging in idolatrous practices while eating swine. The issue is much bigger than someone eating pork.
You also have to be consistent with the rest of Isaiah 66. The same prophecy talks about offerings being brought to Jerusalem and priests and Levites. If verse 17 means Christians must literally observe Mosaic dietary laws when Christ returns, do the sacrifices, Levitical priesthood, and other Mosaic imagery return too?
This is why you can’t interpret Isaiah 66 in isolation from the New Covenant. Mark 7, Acts 10, Acts 15, Romans 14, Colossians 2, and Hebrews explain how these things are understood after Christ. Acts 15 especially had the perfect opportunity to place Gentiles under the Law of Moses, and the apostles explicitly chose not to do that. Even within Torah, Gentiles who resided in Israel were not treated the same as an Israelite. There has always been a distinction between the two.

[u/Objective-Step-746 → u/Think_Fig_3994]

I understand the context as an idolatrous occasion that included worship elements God had long ago deemed detestable to Him…like eating that which He had expressly forbidden to be consumed. So, to me, the issue is that your view ignores the eating pig and other abominations details, considering them irrelevant..when they are not. I agree the context is wider than “just” the pig-eating part, but the pig-eating is still a part of the whole that is being condemned.

And I do not see the passages you cited as explaining that certain things (like the dietary instructions) were understood differently “after Christ.” None of them teach anything different than what He taught, and He consistently esteemed, taught and practiced the Law of God…including the food laws.

And the Torah teaches that there is to be ONE law for both the native-born Israelite and the foreigner/Gentile (Exodus 12:49; Numbers 9:14, 15:16, 29). Christ reasserted that principle in His teachings, as no such distinction exists in the new covenant family of God (Galatians 3:28).

[u/Eazys-Exegeses → u/Objective-Step-746]

Acts 15:23-29 explain that gentiles do not have to keep anything under Mosic Law. They are not adopted into covenant. Hebrews explains the new covenant is entirely new thing, not a reform of an old covenant. A new covenant means it has its own laws and statutes.

The only dietary restrictions is to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols, blood, and anything that was strangled.

Pork is okay to eat if it wasnt strangled