How many pairs of each clean animal were Noah told to bring into the Ark?

Genesis 7 tells Noah to bring seven pairs of each clean animal into the Ark.

Genesis 7:2 distinguishes clean animals from animals that are not clean. It instructs Noah to take seven pairs—traditionally understood as seven male-and-female pairs—of each clean animal, while specifying one pair of animals that are not clean. Genesis 7:3 gives a similar seven-pair instruction for birds.

This passage is often compared with Genesis 6:19–20, which describes bringing animals in pairs. The two passages create a well-known textual difference in emphasis: Genesis 6 presents the general preservation plan, while Genesis 7 adds the larger number for clean animals and birds.

The category “clean” is not fully defined in the Flood narrative itself. Later biblical dietary laws provide a more developed classification, but importing every later rule into the earlier passage can obscure the wording actually used in Genesis.