the Second Week after Easter
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New King James Version
Leviticus 11:16
Bible Study Resources
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- InternationalParallel Translations
the tanshemet, the screech owl, and the gull, any kind of hawk,
And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,
and the ostrich and the short-eared owl and the seagull and the hawk according to its kind,
horned owls, screech owls, sea gulls, any kind of hawk,
the eagle owl, the short-eared owl, the long-eared owl, the hawk of any kind,
the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, every species of hawk,
the ostrich, the owl, the seagull, and the hawk in its kind,
The ostrich also, and the night crowe, and the seameaw, and the hauke after his kinde:
and the ostrich and the owl and the gull and the hawk in its kind,
the ostrich, the screech-owl, the seagull, the various kinds of hawks,
and the female ostrich and the male ostrich, and the sea-gull, and the hawk, after its kind;
ostriches, nighthawks, sea gulls, all kinds of hawks,
the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind,
And the little owl and the pelican, the great owl, the cuckoo, and the hawk after its kind;
ostriches,
and the ostrich, and the great owl, and the gull, and small hawks, according to its kind;
the Estrich, ye Nightcrow, the Cocow, the Sparow hauke with his kynde,
and the ostrich, and the night-hawk, and the sea-mew, and the hawk after its kind,
And the ostrich and the night-hawk and the sea-hawk, and birds of that sort;
The Estrich, the nyght Crowe, the Coockowe, and the Hauke after his kynde,
and the ostrich, and the night-hawk, and the sea-mew, and the hawk after its kinds;
And the Owle, and the nighthauke, & the Cuckow, and the Hawke after his kinde,
and every raven, and the birds like it, and the hawk and his like,
and the ostrich, and the night hawk, and the seamew, and the hawk after its kind;
the ostrich, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk,
and nyyt crowe, a lare, and an hauke bi his kinde;
and the owl, and the night-hawk, and the cuckoo, and the hawk after its kind,
and the ostrich, and the night-hawk, and the seamew, and the hawk after its kind,
And the owl, and the night-hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,
the horned owl, the screech owl, and the gull, any kind of hawk,
the eagle owl, the short-eared owl, the seagull, hawks of all kinds,
the ostrich, the owl, the sea gull, every kind of hawk,
the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind;
and the female ostrich, and the male ostrich, and the sea-gull, - and the hawk after its kind;
The ostrich, and the owl, and the larus, and the hawk according to its kind.
the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk according to its kind,
and the ostrich and the owl and the sea gull and the hawk in its kind,
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
Deuteronomy 14:15-18, Psalms 102:6, Isaiah 13:21, Isaiah 13:22, Isaiah 34:11-15, John 3:19-21, Ephesians 2:2, Ephesians 2:3, Ephesians 4:18, Ephesians 4:19, Ephesians 5:7-11, Philippians 3:18, Philippians 3:19, 1 Thessalonians 5:5-7, Revelation 18:2
Cross-References
And children were born also to Shem, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder.
To Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother's name was Joktan.
But ships shall come from the coasts of Cyprus, [fn] And they shall afflict Asshur and afflict Eber,And so shall Amalek, [fn] until he perishes."
To Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg, [fn] for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother's name was Joktan.
the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah,
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And the owl,.... The great and little owls being after mentioned, it seems best, by the word here used, to understand the "ostrich" with the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, the Oriental versions, and the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan: the account which Pliny p gives of the African and Ethiopic ostriches is this; that they are the largest of birds, and almost of the kind of beasts; that they exceed the height of a horseman on horseback, and are swifter than the horses; that their wings are given them to help them in their running, otherwise they are not flying fowls, nor are they lifted up from the earth. Their hoofs are like to those of harts, with which they fight, and are cloven, and serve to gather up stones, which in their flight they throw with their feet against them that follow them; they have a wonderful concoction, digesting whatever is swallowed down; and, according to Galen q, all the parts of them, their flesh and their eggs, are hard and difficult of digestion, and excermentitious: Aben Ezra says r, their flesh is as dry as a stick, and it is not usual to eat it, for there is no moisture in it; and therefore nothing can be eaten of the whole species, but the daughter or young one, for that being a female and little, there is some moisture in it; but not so the male when little; wherefore as the flesh of this creature is always reckoned by the Jews as unlawful to be eaten, it may the rather be supposed to be intended here, since if not here, it cannot be thought to be any where observed; and yet we find that both the eggs and the flesh of this creature have been eaten by some people: their eggs with the Indians were reckoned delicate eating, as Aelianus s reports; and near the Arabians and Ethiopians were a people, as both Diodorus Siculus t and Strabo u relate, who were called Struthophagi, from their living on ostriches; and they eat them in Peru, where they are common w; and in several parts of Africa, as Nubia, Numidia, and Lybia, as Leo Africanus x relates:
and the night hawk; which, according to Pliny y, is sometimes called "cymindis", and is seldom to be found in woods, sees not so well in the day time, and wages a deadly war with the eagle, and they are often found joined together: Bochart z who thinks that the female ostrich is meant by the preceding bird, is of opinion that the male ostrich is meant here, there being no general name in the Hebrew language to comprehend both sexes:
and the cuckoo; a bird well known by its voice at least: some have thought it to be the same with the hawk, changing its figure and voice; but this has been refuted by naturalists a: but though it is here forbidden to be eaten, yet its young, when fat, are said to be of a grateful savour by Aristotle: and Pliny b says, no bird is to be compared to it for the sweetness of its flesh, though perhaps it may not be here intended: the word is by the Septuagint rendered a "sea gull", and so it is by Ainsworth, and which is approved of by Bochart c:
and the hawk after his kind; a well known bird, of which, according to Aristotle d, there are not less than ten sorts: Pliny e says sixteen; it has its name in Hebrew from flying, it being a bird that flies very swiftly; see Job 39:26 the hawk was a symbol of deity with the Egyptians, and was reverenced and worshipped by them f.
p Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 1. Vid. Aristot. de Part. Animal. l. 4. c. 14. q Apud Bochart. Hierozoic. par. 2. l. 2. c. 14. col. 226. r Pirush in Exod. xxiii. 19. s De Animal. l. 14. c. 13. t Bibliothec. l. 3. p. 162. u Geograph. l. 16. p. 531. w Calmet's Dictionary in the word "Ostrich". x Descriptio Africae, l. 6. p. 601, 605, 613. l. 9. p. 766. y Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 8. z Ut supra, (Apud Bochart. Hierozoic. par. 2. l. 2.) c. 15. col. 235. a Aristot. Hist. Animal. l. 6. c. 7. Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 9. b Ibid. c Ut supra, (Apud Bochart. Hierozoic. par. 2. l. 2. c. 15.) col. 26. d Hist. Animal. l. 9. c. 36. e Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 8. f Plutarch. de Iside & Osyr. Strabo. Geograph. l. 17. p. 559, 562. Diodor. Sicul. l. 1. p. 78. Clement. Alex. Stromat. l. 5. p. 566.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
As far as they can be identified, the birds here mentioned are such as live upon animal food. They were those which the Israelites might have been tempted to eat, either from their being easy to obtain, or from the example of other nations, and which served as types of the entire range of prohibited kinds.
Leviticus 11:13
The eagle - Rather, the great vulture, which the Egyptians are known to have ranked as the first among birds. Compare 2 Samuel 1:23; Psalms 103:5; Proverbs 23:5, etc.
The Ossifrage, or bone-breaker, was the lammer-geyer, and the “ospray” (a corruption of ossifrage) the sea-eagle.
Leviticus 11:14
The vulture - Rather, the (black) kite Isaiah 34:15 : “the kite,” rather the red kite, remarkable for its piercing sight Job 28:7.
Leviticus 11:15
Every raven after his kind - i. e. the whole family of corvidae.
Leviticus 11:16
And the owl ... - Rather, “and the ostrich, and the owl, and the gull, and the hawk,” etc.
Leviticus 11:18
The swan - More probably the ibis, the sacred bird of the Egyptians. “The gier eagle” is most likely the Egyptian vulture, a bird of unprepossessing appearance and disgusting habits, but fostered by the Egyptians as a useful scavenger.
Leviticus 11:19
The heron ... the lapwing - Rather, the great plover the hoopoe, so called from its peculiar cry.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Leviticus 11:16. The owl — בת היענה bath haiyaanah, the daughter of vociferation, the female ostrich, probably so called from the noise they make. "In the lonesome part of the night," says Dr. Shaw, "the ostriches frequently make a very doleful and hideous noise, sometimes resembling the roar of the lion; at other times, the hoarser voice of the bull or ox." He adds, "I have heard them groan as if in the deepest agonies." - Travels, 4to edition, p. 455. The ostrich is a very unclean animal, and eats its own ordure as soon as it voids it, and of this Dr. Shaw observes, (see above,) it is remarkably fond! This is a sufficient reason, were others wanting, why such a fowl should be reputed to be unclean, and its use as an article of diet prohibited.
The night hawk — תחמס tachmas, from חמס chamas, to force away, act violently and unjustly; supposed by Bochart and Scheuchzer to signify the male ostrich, from its cruelty towards its young; (see Job 39:13-18); but others, with more reason, suppose it to be the bird described by Hasselquist, which he calls the strix Orientalis, or Oriental owl. "It is of the size of the common owl, living in the ruins and old deserted houses of Egypt and Syria; and sometimes in inhabited houses. The Arabs in Egypt call it Massasa, the Syrians Bana. It is very ravenous in Syria, and in the evenings, if the windows be left open, it flies into the house and kills infants, unless they are carefully watched; wherefore the women are much afraid of it." - Travels, p. 196.
If this is the fowl intended, this is a sufficient reason why it should be considered an abomination.
The cuckoo — שחף shachaph, supposed rather to mean the sea mew; called shachaph, from שחפת shachepheth, a wasting distemper, or atrophy, (mentioned Leviticus 26:16; Deuteronomy 28:22), because its body is the leanest, in proportion to its bones and feathers, of most other birds, always appearing as if under the influence of a wasting distemper. A fowl which, from its natural constitution or manner of life, is incapable of becoming plump or fleshy, must always be unwholesome; and this is reason sufficient why such should be prohibited.
And the hawk — נץ nets, from the root נצה natsah, to shoot forth or spring forward, because of the rapidity and length of its flight, the hawk being remarkable for both. As this is a bird of prey, it is forbidden, and all others of its kind.
