1. “Every herb that produces seed...and every tree which has fruit that produces seed” (Gen. 1:29).
Before the fall God ordained that man eat herbs and the fruit of trees. Man ate vegetables and could not eat meat.
1. “Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; just as I gave you the green herb” (Gen. 9:3).
After the fall of man God ordained that animals as well as vegetables could be food for man. In other words, after the fall both meat and vegetables could be eaten. The purpose of eating is to maintain life. The meat that we eat as food comes from the killing of animals, and in the Bible this symbolizes Christ being killed that we might obtain life and live. Therefore, in brief, meat symbolizes redemption through the shedding of blood. While meat symbolizes redemption through the shedding of blood, vegetables symbolize works without the shedding of blood. Before man fell, man could eat only vegetables to maintain his life, symbolizing that man was without sin and could live before God without the shedding of blood. But after the fall and the entrance of sin (Rom. 5:12), man needs the shedding of blood for redemption in order to live before God. This need is symbolized by God telling man to eat meat after the fall.
In contrast, Satan tells people to eat only vegetables. Satan’s hidden and crafty intention in telling people to eat only vegetables is to cause them to reject the requirement of the shedding of blood for redemption and to instead rely on their works in order to live. (Alas, vegetarians do not have this realization!) Satan influences what people eat by promoting self-denial. Those who are tricked by Satan into being vegetarians not only practice self-denial but also rely on self-denial. For example, Buddhism emphasizes self-denial and relies on self-denial. Consequently, Buddhism also emphasizes and promotes vegetarianism. Once we see Satan’s intention in this matter, we should not be influenced by the thought or practice of vegetarianism; instead, as those who eat meat, we should declare that we are sinners in need of the blood that Christ shed for our redemption.
2. “Its blood, you shall not eat” (Gen. 9:4).
Although God ordained that man could eat meat after the fall, He did not allow man to eat blood. Blood is needed for the redemption of human life because life is in the blood (Lev. 17:10-11). When the Lord Jesus came, He told us to drink His blood because only His blood redeems us and enables us to obtain His life (John 6:53-56; Matt. 26:27-28). According to typology, blood redeems man, but in reality only the blood of Jesus can take away the sin of man (Heb. 9:12; 10:4). Therefore, we can eat only the blood of the Lord Jesus. God commands man not to eat blood in order to show that the shedding of blood is for the redemption of sin and to show that only the blood of the Lord Jesus can take away man’s sin.
1. Man could eat both vegetables and meat (Lev. 10:12-14; Deut. 12:17-18, 20-22).
In the dispensation of the law, man’s failure to keep God’s requirements exposed his weakness, sin, and inability to be justified by works of law, showing that, in reality, man could be redeemed and live before God only through the shedding of blood. This is signified by God telling people to eat meat.
2. Animals were divided into clean and unclean, edible and inedible.
Even though God told His people to eat the meat of animals in the dispensation of the law, He also told them to discern between clean animals that could be eaten and unclean animals that could not be eaten. According to Acts 11:5-12, this signifies that God wants His people to discern between clean and unclean people in their relationships and dealings with others. Clean animals represent people with whom His people can deal. These include animals that have divided hooves and that chew the cud (Lev. 11:2-8, 26-28), fish that have fins and scales (vv. 9-12), birds that eat vegetables rather than meat (vv. 13-19), and insects with wings that leap up and fly (vv. 20-25, 29-38, 41-44). All of these clean animals also had to be living (vv. 39-40).
According to typology, animals with divided hooves represent people who have discernment in their walk (cf. 2 Cor. 6:17; Eph. 5:11), and animals that chew the cud represent people who continuously consider the Word of God (cf. Luke 1:29). Fish that move through the water with fins and that are protected from the water with scales signify people who live in and move through the world without being penetrated by the world (cf. John 17:15-17; Rom. 12:2). Birds that do not eat dead meat but rather seeds of life represent people who touch matters of life rather than matters of death. Insects that have wings to fly above the earth and legs that can leap above the earth signify people who can transcend the elements of the world. A living animal represents a person who has life before God. Only people represented by these types of clean animals are considered clean before God. The people of God should deal only with such people.
3. Blood still not being eaten (Lev. 17:10-15; Deut. 12:16, 23-25).
In the dispensation of the law God did not allow man to eat blood, signifying that even in the dispensation of the law, God still required the shedding of blood for redemption in type.