EAGLE:

(Herb. nesher; properly the griffon vulture or great vulture, so called from its tearing its prey with its beak), referred to for its swiftness of flight (Deuteronomy 28:49; 2 Samuel 1:23), its mounting high in the air (Job 39:27), its strength (Psalms 103:5), its setting its nest in high places (Jeremiah 49:16), and its power of vision (Job 39:27-30).

This "ravenous bird" is a symbol of those nations whom God employs and sends forth to do a work of destruction, sweeping away whatever is decaying and putrescent (Matthew 24:28; Isaiah 46:11; Ezekiel 39:4; Deuteronomy 28:49; Jeremiah 4:13; 48:40). It is said that the eagle sheds his feathers in the beginning of spring, and with fresh plumage assumes the appearance of youth. To this, allusion is made in Psalms 103:5 and Isaiah 40:31. God's care over his people is likened to that of the eagle in training its young to fly (Exodus 19:4; Deuteronomy 32:11, 12). An interesting illustration is thus recorded by Sir Humphry Davy:, "I once saw a very interesting sight above the crags of Ben Nevis. Two parent eagles were teaching their offspring, two young birds, the maneuvers of flight. They began by rising from the top of the mountain in the eye of the sun. It was about mid-day, and bright for the climate. They at first made small circles, and the young birds imitated them. They paused on their wings, waiting till they had made their flight, and then took a second and larger gyration, always rising toward the sun, and enlarging their circle of flight so as to make a gradually ascending spiral. The young ones still and slowly followed, apparently flying better as they mounted; and they continued this sublime exercise, always rising till they became mere points in the air, and the young ones were lost, and afterwards their parents, to our aching sight." (See Isaiah 40:31.)

There have been observed in Palestine four distinct species of eagles,

    (1) the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos);

    (2) the spotted eagle (Aquila naevia);

    (3) the common species, the imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca); and

    (4) the Circaetos gallicus, which preys on reptiles.

The eagle was unclean by the Levitical law (Leviticus 11:13; Deuteronomy 14:12).

EAGLE

(1) An eagle, נשר nesher

Exodus 19:4 ⁴Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.

Leviticus 11:13 ¹³And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,

Deuteronomy 14:12 ¹²But these are they of which ye shall not eat: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,

Deuteronomy 28:49 ⁴⁹The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;

Deuteronomy 32:11 ¹¹As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings:

2Samuel 1:23 ²³Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions.

Job 9:26 ²⁶They are passed away as the swift ships: as the eagle that hasteth to the prey.

Job 39:27 ²⁷Doth the eagle mount up at thy command, and make her nest on high?

Psalms 103:5 ⁵Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Proverbs 23:5 ⁵Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.

Proverbs 30:17 ¹⁷The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it.

Proverbs 30:19 ¹⁹The way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a maid.

Isaiah 40:31 ³¹But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Jeremiah 4:13 ¹³Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are spoiled.

Jeremiah 48:40 ⁴⁰For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab.

Jeremiah 49:16 ¹⁶Thy terribleness hath deceived thee, and the pride of thine heart, O thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, that holdest the height of the hill: though thou shouldest make thy nest as high as the eagle, I will bring thee down from thence, saith the LORD.

Jeremiah 49:22 ²²Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread his wings over Bozrah: and at that day shall the heart of the mighty men of Edom be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.

Lamentations 4:19 ¹⁹Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.

Ezekiel 1:10 ¹⁰As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle.

Ezekiel 10:14 ¹⁴And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle.

Ezekiel 17:3 ³And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; A great eagle with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers colours, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar:

Ezekiel 17:7 ⁷There was also another great eagle with great wings and many feathers: and, behold, this vine did bend her roots toward him, and shot forth her branches toward him, that he might water it by the furrows of her plantation.

Hosea 8:1 ¹Set the trumpet to thy mouth. He shall come as an eagle against the house of the LORD, because they have transgressed my covenant, and trespassed against my law.

Obadiah 1:4 ⁴Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.

Micah 1:16 ¹⁶Make thee bald, and poll thee for thy delicate children; enlarge thy baldness as the eagle; for they are gone into captivity from thee.

Habakkuk 1:8 ⁸Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat.

(2) An eagle, נשר neshar

Daniel 4:33 ³³The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws.

Daniel 7:4 ⁴The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

(3) An eagle, ἀετός aetos.

Matthew 24:28 ²⁸For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

Luke 17:37 ³⁷And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.

Revelation 4:7 ⁷And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.

Revelation 12:14 ¹⁴And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

EAGLE, THE:
- A bird of prey
    Job 9:26;
    Matthew 24:28

- Unclean
    Leviticus 11:13;
    Deuteronomy 14:12

- Different kinds of
    Leviticus 11:13,18;
    Ezekiel 17:3

- Called the eagle of the heavens
    Lamentations 4:19

- DESCRIBED AS
    Long-sighted
        Job 39:29

    Swift
        2 Samuel 1:23

    Soaring to heaven
        Proverbs 23:5

- Strength of its feathers alluded to
    Daniel 4:33

- Greatness of its wings alluded to
    Ezekiel 17:3,7

- Peculiarity of its flight alluded to
    Proverbs 30:19

- Delights in the lofty cedars
    Ezekiel 17:3,4

- Dwells in the high rocks
    Job 39:27,28

- Feeds her young with blood
    Job 39:29,30

- ILLUSTRATIVE
    Of wisdom and zeal of God's ministers
        Ezekiel 1:10;
        Revelation 4:7

    Of great and powerful kings
        Ezekiel 17:3;
        Hosea 8:1

    (Renewed strength and beauty of,) of the renewal of saints
        Psalms 103:5

    (Mode of teaching her young to fly,) of God's care of his church
        Exodus 19:4;
        Deuteronomy 32:11

    (Wings of,) of protection afforded to the church
        Revelation 12:14

    (Upward flight of,) of the saint's rapid progress toward heaven
        Isaiah 40:31

    (Swiftness of,) of the melting away of riches
        Proverbs 23:5

    (Swiftness of,) of the swiftness of hostile armies
        Deuteronomy 28:49;
        Jeremiah 4:13; 48:40;
        Lamentations 4:19

    (Height and security of its dwelling,) of the fancied but fatal security of the wicked
        Jeremiah 49:16;
        Obadiah 1:4

    (Increase baldness of, in the moulting season,) of calamities
        Micah 1:16

    (Hasting to the prey,) of the swiftness of man's days
        Job 9:26

- Was the standard of the Roman armies
    Matthew 24:15,28

EAGLE:
Forbidden as food
    Leviticus 11:13;

    Deuteronomy 14:12

The swift flight of
    Deuteronomy 28:49;

    Job 9:26;

    Proverbs 30:19;

    Jeremiah 4:13; 49:22;

    Lamentations 4:19

The nest of
    Deuteronomy 32:11;

    Job 39:27-30;

    Jeremiah 49:16

Carries her young upon her wings
    Exodus 19:4;

    Deuteronomy 32:11

The long life of
    Psalms 103:5

The molting of
    Micah 1:16

Gier-eagle
    Leviticus 11:18

FIGURATIVE
    Exodus 19:4;

    Deuteronomy 32:11;

    Jeremiah 48:40;

    Hosea 8:1

SYMBOLICAL
    Ezekiel 1:10; 10:14; 17:3;

    Daniel 7:4;

    Revelation 4:7; 12:14

EAGLE:

The rendering in the English Bible versions of the Hebrew "nesher." The nesher, however, was bald; nested on high rocks; and was gregarious in its habits (Micah 1:16; Job 39:27, 28; Proverbs 30:17), all of which characteristics belong to the griffin-vulture, but not to the eagle.

Several species of eagles inhabit Palestine; and these are probably all included in the term "'ozniyyah" (Leviticus 11:13; Deuteronomy 14:12; compare Tristram, "Natural History of the Bible," p. 181).

The Talmud says that the eagle is the king of birds, but that it is afraid of the flycatcher (Shab. 77b). It flies rapidly without tiring (קל בנשר = "light like the eagle," Ab. v. 20).

The eagle is ranked among the unclean birds—a fact variously explained by the Talmudic writers (Ḥul. 61a). The nesher is found deified in the Assyrian Nisroch, the vulture-headed god (II Kings 19:37; Isaiah 37:38), and in the Arabic idol Nasr. In Ezekiel (1:10, 10:14) the eagle is mentioned in connection with the throne of God. In rabbinic parlance "nesher" is used as a title of distinction; e.g., to denote the Roman government (Sanh. 12a).

On the ancient fallacy that the eagle could renew its youth see Bochart, "Hierozoicon," part ii., bk. ii., ch. 1 (compare Ḳimḥi on Ps. ciii. 5).

Bibliography: J. G. Woods, Animals of the Bible, Philadelphia, 1872;
L. Lewysohn, Die Zoologie des Talmuds, 1858.
E. G. H. H. H.

EAGLE:

e'-g'-l (nesher; aetos; Latin aquila): A bird of the genus aquila of the family falconidae.

The Hebrew nesher, meaning "to tear with the beak," is almost invariably translated "eagle," throughout the Bible; yet many of the most important references compel the admission that the bird to which they applied was a vulture.

There were many large birds and carrion eaters flocking over Palestine, attracted by the offal from animals slaughtered for tribal feasts and continuous sacrifice. The eagle family could not be separated from the vultures by their habit of feeding, for they ate the offal from slaughter as well as the vultures. One distinction always holds good. Eagles never flock. They select the tallest trees of the forest, the topmost crag of the mountain, and pairs live in solitude, hunting and feeding singly, whenever possible carrying their prey to the nest so that the young may gain strength and experience by tearing at it and feeding themselves. The vultures are friendly, and collect and feed in flocks. So wherever it is recorded that a "flock came down on a carcass," there may have been an eagle or two in it, but the body of it were vultures. Because they came in such close contact with birds of prey, the natives came nearer dividing them into families than any birds. Of perhaps a half-dozen, they recognized three eagles, they knew three vultures, four or five falcons, and several kites; but almost every Biblical reference is translated "eagle," no matter how evident the text makes it that the bird was a vulture.

For example, Micah 1:16: "Make thee bald, and cut off thy hair for the children of thy delight: enlarge thy baldness as the eagle (m "vulture"); for they are gone into captivity from thee." This is a reference to the custom of shaving the head when in mourning, but as Palestine knew no bald eagle, the text could refer only to the bare head and neck of the griffon vulture. The eagles were, when hunger-driven, birds of prey; the vultures, carrion feeders only. There was a golden eagle (the osprey of the King James Version), not very common, distinguished by its tan-colored head; the imperial eagle, more numerous and easily identified by a dark head and white shoulders; a spotted eagle; a tawny eagle, much more common and readily distinguished by its plumage; and the short-toed eagle, most common of all and especially a bird of prey, as also a small hooded eagle so similar to a vulture that it was easily mistaken for one, save that it was very bold about taking its own food.

The first Biblical reference to the eagle referred to the right bird. Exodus 19:4: "Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself." This "bare you on eagles' wings" must not be interpreted to mean that an eagle ever carried anything on its back. It merely means that by strength of powerful wing it could carry quite a load with its feet and frequently was seen doing this. Vultures never carried anything; they feasted and regurgitated what they had eaten to their young.

The second reference is found in Leviticus 11:13 and repeated in Deuteronomy 14:12, the lists of abominations. It would seem peculiar that Moses would find it necessary to include eagles in thislist until it is known that Arab mountaineers were eating these birds at that time. The next falls in Deuteronomy 28:49: "Yahweh will bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand." This also refers to the true eagle and points out that its power of sustained flight, and the speed it could attain when hastening to its hunger- clamoring young, had been observed. The next reference is in Deuteronomy 32:11: "As an eagle that stirreth up her nest, That fluttereth over her young, He spread abroad his wings, he took them, He bare them on his pinions."

This is good natural history at last. Former versions made these lines read as if the eagle carried its young on its wings, a thing wholly incompatible with flight in any bird. Samuel's record of the lamentation of David over Saul and Jonathan is a wonderful poetic outburst and contains reference to this homing flight of the eagle (2Sa 1:23). In Job 9:26 the arrow-like downward plunge of the hunger-driven eagle is used in comparison with the flight of time. In Job 39, which contains more good natural history than any other chapter of the Bible, will be found everything concerning the eagle anyone need know:

"Is it at thy command that the eagle mounteth up, And maketh her nest on high? On the cliff she dwelleth, and maketh her home, Upon the point of the cliff, and the stronghold. From thence she spieth out the prey; Her eyes behold it afar off. Her young ones also suck up blood: And where the slain are, there is she" (Job 39:27-30). Psalms 103:5 is a reference to the long life of the eagle. The bird has been known to live to an astonishing age in captivity; under natural conditions, the age it attains can only be guessed.

"Who satisfieth thy desire with good things, So that thy youth is renewed like the eagle." Proverbs 23:5 compares the flight of wealth with that of an eagle; Proverbs 30:17 touches on the fact that the eye of prey is the first place attacked in eating, probably because it is the most vulnerable point and so is frequently fed to the young. Proverbs 30:19: "The way of an eagle in the air; The way of a serpent upon a rock: The way of a ship in the midst of the sea; And the way of a man with a maiden."

This reference to the eagle is to that wonderful power of flight that enables a bird to hang as if frozen in the sky, for long periods appearing to our sight immovable, or to sail and soar directly into the eye of the sun, seeming to rejoice in its strength of flight and to exult in the security and freedom of the upper air. The word "way" is here improperly translated. To the average mind it always means a road, a path. In this instance it should be translated:

The characteristics of an eagle in the air; The habit of a serpent upon the rock; The path of a ship in the midst of the sea; And the manner of a man with a maid. Each of these lines stood a separate marvel to Agur, and had no connection with the others (but compare The Wisdom of Solomon So 5:10,11, and see WAY).

Isaiah 40:31 is another flight reference. Jeremiah 49:16 refers to the inaccessible heights at which the eagle loves to build and rear its young. Jeremiah 49:22 refers to the eagle's power of flight. Ezekiel 1:10 recounts a vision of the prophet in which strange living creatures had faces resembling eagles. The same book (17:3) contains the parable of the eagle: "Thus saith the Lord Yahweh: A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, full of feathers, which had divers colors, came unto Lebanon, and took the top of the cedar." Hosea 8:1 is another flight reference. Obadiah 1:4 is almost identical with Jeremiah 49:16. The next reference is that of Micah, and really refers to the griffon vulture (Micah 1:16). In Habakkuk 1:8 the reference is to swift flight. Matthew 24:28 undoubtedly refers to vultures. In Revelation 4:7 the eagle is used as a symbol of strength. In Revelation 8:13 the bird is represented as speaking: "And I saw, and I heard an eagle (the King James Version "angel"), flying in mid heaven, saying with a great voice, Woe, woe, woe, for them that dwell on the earth, by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, who are yet to sound." The eagle makes its last appearance in the vision of the woman and the dragon (Revelation 12:14).

Gene Stratton-Porter

EAGLE:

Job 39:27-30, a large and very powerful bird of prey, hence called the King of birds. There are several species of eagle described by naturalists, and it is probable that this word in the Bible comprehends more than one of these. The noble eastern species, called by Mr. Bruce "the golden eagle," measures eight feet four inches from wing to wing; and from the tip of his tail to the point of his beak, when dead, four feet seven inches. Of all known birds, the eagle flies not only the highest, Proverbs 23:5 Jeremiah 49:16 Obadiah 1:4, but also with the greatest rapidity. To this circumstance there are several striking allusions in the sacred volume, 2 Samuel 1:23 Job 9:26 Lamentations 4:19. Among the evils threatened to the Israelites in case of their disobedience, the prophet names one in the following terms: "The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth," Deuteronomy 28:49. The march of Nebuchadnezzar against Jerusalem, is predicted in similar terms: "Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles," Jeremiah 4:13 48:40 49:22 Hosea 8:1. This bird was a national emblem on Persian and Roman standards, as it now is on United States’ coins.

The eagle, it is said, lives to a great age; and like other birds of prey, sheds his feathers in the beginning of spring, after which his old age assumes the appearance of youth. To this David alludes, when gratefully reviewing the mercies of Jehovah: "Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things, so that thy youth is renewed like eagle’s," Psalms 103:5 Isaiah 40:31. The careful pains of the eagle in teaching its young to fly, beautifully illustrate God’s providential care over Israel, Exodus 19:4 Deuteronomy 32:11,12.

The eagle is remarkable for its keen sight and scent. Its flesh, like that of all birds of prey, was unclean to the Jews; and is never eaten by any body, unless in cases of necessity, Matthew 24:28 Luke 17:37.

EAGLE:

(Heb. nesher, i.e. a tearer with the beak). At least four distinct kinds of eagles have been observed in Palestine, viz., the golden eagle, Aquila chrysaetos, the spotted eagle, Aquila naevia, the imperial eagle, Aquila heliaca, and the very common Circaetos gallicus . The Hebrew nesher may stand for any of these different species, though perhaps more particular reference to the golden and imperial eagles and the griffon vulture may be intended. The passage in Micah, (Micah 1:16) "enlarge thy baldness as the eagle," may refer to the griffon vulture, Vultur fulvus, in which case the simile is peculiarly appropriate, for the whole head and neck of this bird are destitute of true feathers. The "eagles" of (Matthew 24:28; Luke 17:37) may include the Vultur fulvus and Neophron percnopterus; though, as eagles frequently prey upon dead bodies, there is no necessity to restrict the Greek word to the Vulturidae. The figure of an eagle is now and has long been a favorite military ensign. The Persians so employed it; a fact which illustrates the passage in (Isaiah 46:11) The same bird was similarly employed by the Assyrians and the Romans.

EAGLE:

Did you ever see an eagle? There were once a great many among the rocks and mountains of our own country, but they will not stay where there are many people; so they are seldom seen here now. They like to make their nests in high and rocky places, where nobody can find them; as a verse in the Bible says, "Though thou shouldest make thy nest on high as the eagle, yet will I bring thee down from thence." Their nests are not usually made in trees like those of many other birds, neither are they shaped in the same way: they are nothing but a layer of sticks spread flat upon the rock, and covered with some hay or straw. The care of the eagle for her young is spoken of in Deuteronomy 32:11.

"As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings; so the Lord alone did lead him."

This beautifully describes God's care over the children of Israel while they were passing through the wilderness; does it not also well express his kindness to us?

These birds fly very swiftly, and you will find verses in the Bible that speak of this. One is Deuteronomy 28:49 . "The Lord shall bring a nation against thee from far, as swift as the eagle flieth." In another place it is said, "His horses are swifter than eagles." Job says, "My days are swifter than a post, (or post-rider;) they are passed away as the swift ships, as an eagle that hasteth to the prey."

The eye of the eagle is very curious. It has something like an inner eyelid, only it is very thin; and the eagle can draw this over its eye, like a curtain, whenever there is too much light. You have heard perhaps that it can look directly at the bright sun; and this is the reason. It can see a great deal farther than we can; and when it is very high in the air, so that it would look to you but little larger than a speck, it often sees some small animal on the ground and flies down to catch it.

See how well this bird was described a great many years ago: these are the last verses of the thirty-ninth chapter of Job: "Doth the eagle mount up at thy command and make her nest on high? She dwelleth and abideth upon the rock, upon the crag of the rock, and the strong place. From thence she seeketh the prey, and her eyes behold afar off. Her young ones also suck up blood; and where the slain are, there is she."

The eagle lives a great many years; sometimes more than seventy, I believe. It sheds its feathers every spring, and new ones come out; then it looks like a young bird. This is why David says in the Psalms, "Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things, so that thy youth is renewed, (or comes again,) like the eagle's." There is this beautiful verse in Isaiah, "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up on wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." How blessed and happy a thing it is to be a christian indeed! to "wait upon the Lord" every day for the strength we need; and to be always preparing for that world where the inhabitants are for ever young, for ever active, for ever holy, for ever happy.

EAGLE (Hebrew nesher, Greek aetos). Like the Arb. nisr, the Hebrew term denotes several birds of prey. Probably the griffon vulture is most frequently intended. It has no true feathers on head and neck; hence the phrase, " enlarge thy baldness as the Eagle " (Micah 1:16). This bird abounds in Palestine, making its nest in the lofty cliffs that overhang the valleys (Jeremiah 49:16). It is noted for the telescopic range of its eyesight (Job 39:29). It spies the fallen animal from immense distances, and its flight seems to be watched by many other birds that follow to feast upon the carrion (Matthew 24:28). It attracted the eye of the prophet as it soared in graceful circles far into the sunny sky (Isaiah 40:31). Its speed on the wing is often referred to (Deuteronomy 28:49; Jeremiah, &c.), and in Ezekiel 17. it is the symbol of power. There is an allusion in Psalms 103:5 to the ancient belief that, by some means, the eagle was able to renew its youth. In the Middle Ages it was believed that every ten yrs. the Eagles beat its way upward high into the sun, whence, plunging into the sea, its old feathers were shed, and, new plumage appearing, it rejoiced again in the strength of youth. There is, of course, no ground for this superstition.

There are also found in Palestine the Lammergeier (ossifrage), the greater spotted eagle, the tawny eagle, the golden eagle, the imperial eagle, and the short-toed eagle. This last feeds entirely on reptiles, lizards, snakes, &c., and migrates in the season when snakes hibernate.

The Scriptures being reviewed here are derived from Young's Analytical Concordance to the Bible.

Exodus 19:4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles wings, and brought you unto myself. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Adam Clarke 1810/1825
How I bare you on eagles' wings] Mr. Bruce contends that the word nesher does not mean the bird we term eagle; but a bird which the Arabs, from its kind and merciful disposition, call rachama, which is noted for its care of its young, and its carrying them upon its back. See his Travels, vol. vii., pl. 33. It is not unlikely that from this part of the sacred history the heathens borrowed their fable of the eagle being a bird sacred to Jupiter, and which was employed to carry the souls of departed heroes, kings, regions. The Romans have struck several medals with this device, which may be seen in different cabinets, among which are the following: one of Faustina, daughter of Antoninus Pius, on the reverse of which she is represented ascending to heaven on the back of an eagle; and another of Salonia, daughter of the Emperor Galienus, on the reverse of which she is represented on the back of an eagle, with a scepter in her hand, ascending to heaven. Jupiter himself is sometimes represented on the back of an eagle also, with his thunder in his hand, as on a medal of Licinus. This brings us nearer to the letter of the text, where it appears that the heathens confounded the figure made use of by the sacred penman, I bare you on eagles' wings, with the manifestation of God in thunder and lightning on Mount Sinai. And it might be in reference to all this that the Romans took the eagle for their ensign. See Scheuchzer, Fusellius,

Geneva Bible Translation Notes
Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and [how] I bare you on {d} eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.
(d) For the eagle by flying high, is out of danger, and by carrying her birds on her wings rather than in her talons declares her love.

John Wesley's Notes on the Bible
Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on Eagle's wings - An high expression of the wonderful tenderness God shewed for them. It notes great speed; God not only came upon the wing for their deliverance, but he hastened them out, as it were upon the wing. Also that he did it with great ease, with the strength as well as with the swiftness of an eagle. They that faint not, nor are weary, are said to mount up with wings as eagles, Isaiah 40:31. Especially it notes God's particular care of them, and affection to them. Even Egypt was the nest in which these young ones were first formed as the embryo of a nation: when by the increase of their numbers they grew to some maturity, they were carried out of that nest. I brought you unto myself - They were brought not only into a state of liberty, but into covenant and communion with God. This, God aims at in all the gracious methods of his providence and grace, to bring us back to himself, from whom we have revolted, and to bring us home to himself, in whom alone we can be happy.

Leviticus 11:13 And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray, (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Adam Clarke 1810/1825
Verse 13. And these-among the fowls-the eagle] nesher, from nashar, to lacerate, cut, or tear to pieces; hence the eagle, a most rapacious bird of prey, from its tearing the flesh of the animals it feeds on; and for this purpose birds of prey have, in general, strong, crooked talons and a hooked beak. The eagle is a cruel bird, exceedingly ravenous, and almost insatiable.

The ossifrage] Or bone-breaker, from os, a bone, and frango, I break, because it not only strips off the flesh, but breaks the bone in order to extract the marrow. In Hebrew it is called peres, from paras, to break or divide in two, and probably signifies that species of the eagle anciently known by the name of ossifraga, and which we render ossifrage.

Ospray] ozniyah, from azan, to be strong, vigorous; generally supposed to mean the black eagle, such as that described by Homer, Iliad. lib. xxi., ver. 252.

αιετουοιματεχωνμελανοςτουθηρητηρος, οςθαμακαρτιστοςτεκαιωκιστοςπετεηνων.

"Having the rapidity of the black eagle, that bird of prey, at once the swiftest and the strongest of the feathered race."

Among the Greeks and Romans the eagle was held sacred, and is represented as carrying the thunderbolts of Jupiter. This occurs so frequently, and is so well known, that references are almost needless. See Scheuchzer.

Darby Translation Notes
sea-eagle, (b-28) Or 'griffin vulture.'

Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary
13-19. these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls—All birds of prey are particularly ranked in the class unclean; all those which feed on flesh and carrion. No less than twenty species of birds, all probably then known, are mentioned under this category, and the inference follows that all which are not mentioned were allowed; that is, fowls which subsist on vegetable substances. From our imperfect knowledge of the natural history of Palestine, Arabia, and the contiguous countries at that time, it is not easy to determine exactly what some of the prohibited birds were; although they must have been all well known among the people to whom these laws were given.

      the ossifrage—Hebrew, "bone-breaker," rendered in the Septuagint "griffon," supposed to be the Gyptos barbatus, the Lammer Geyer of the Swiss—a bird of the eagle or vulture species, inhabiting the highest mountain ranges in Western Asia as well as Europe. It pursues as its prey the chamois, ibex, or marmot, among rugged cliffs, till it drives them over a precipice—thus obtaining the name of "bone-breaker."

      the ospray—the black eagle, among the smallest, but swiftest and strongest of its kind.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the eagle.
In Hebrew, {nesher,} Chaldee, {neshar,} Syriac, {neshro,} and Arabic, {nishr,} the eagle, one of the largest, strongest, swiftest, fiercest, and most rapacious of the feathered race. His eye is large, dark, and piercing; his beak powerful and hooked; his legs strong and feathered; his feet yellow and armed with four very long and terrific claws; his wings very large and powerful; his body compact and robust; his bones hard; his flesh firm; his feathers coarse; his attitude fierce and erect; his motions lively; his flight extremely rapid and towering; and his cry the terror of every wing.

Deuteronomy 14:12-20; Job 28:7; 38:41; 39:27-30; Jeremiah 4:13,22; 48:40; Lamentations 4:19 Hosea 8:1; Habakkuk 1:8; Matthew 24:28; Romans 1:28-32; 3:13-17; Titus 3:3

the ossifrage. {Peres,} from {paras} to break, probably the species of eagle anciently called {ossifraga} or bone-breaker, (from {os,} a bone, and {frango,} to break,) because it not only strips off the flesh, but breaks the bone, in order to extract the marrow. the ospray. Hebrew {ózniyah,} Arabic {azan,} and Chaldee {azyah,} (from {azaz,} to be strong,) a species of eagle, probably the black eagle, so remarkable for its strength.

John Wesley's Notes on the Bible
Among the fowls - The true signification of the following Hebrew words is now lost, as the Jews at this day confess; which not falling out without God's singular providence may intimate the cessation of this law, the exact observation whereof since Christ came is become impossible. In general, this may be observed, that the fowls forbidden in diet, are all either ravenous and cruel, or such as delight in the night and darkness, or such as feed upon impure things; and so the signification of these prohibitions is manifest, to teach men to abominate all cruelty or oppression, and all works of darkness and filthiness. The ossifrage and the osprey - Two peculiar kinds of eagles, distinct from that which being the chief of its kind, is called by the name of the whole kind.

Deuteronomy 14:12 But these are they of which ye shall not eat: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,

Deuteronomy 28:49 הוה shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand; (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Deuteronomy 32:11 As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings: (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

2 Samuel 1:23 Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Job 9:26 They are passed away as the swift ships: as the eagle that hasteth to the prey. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Job 39:27 Doth the eagle mount up at thy command, and make her nest on high? (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Psalms 103:5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagles. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Proverbs 23:5 Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Proverbs 30:17 The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Proverbs 30:19 The way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent upon a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a maid. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Isaiah 40:31 But they that wait upon יהוה shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Jeremiah 4:13 Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are spoiled. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Jeremiah 48:40 For thus saith יהוה; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Jeremiah 49:16 Kerioth is taken, and the strong holds are surprised, and the mighty mens hearts in Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Jeremiah 49:22 Yet will I bring again the captivity of Moab in the latter days, saith יהוה. Thus far is the judgment of Moab. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Lamentations 4:19 Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Ezekiel 1:10 Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Ezekiel 10:14 As for the wheels, it was cried unto them in my hearing, O wheel. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Ezekiel 17:3,4 Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel; And say, Thus saith the Master יהוה; A great eagle with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers colours, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar: (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Ezekiel 17:8 There was also another great eagle with great wings and many feathers: and, behold, this vine did bend her roots toward him, and shot forth her branches toward him, that he might water it by the furrows of her plantation. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Daniel 4:33 The same hour was the thing fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar: and he was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles feathers, and his nails like birds claws. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Daniel 7:4 The first was like a lion, and had eagles wings: I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a mans heart was given to it. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Hosea 8:1 Set the trumpet to thy mouth. He shall come as an eagle against the house of יהוה, because they have transgressed my covenant, and trespassed against my law. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Obadiah 1:4 Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith יהוה. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Micah 1:16 Make thee bald, and poll thee for thy delicate children; enlarge thy baldness as the eagle; for they are gone into captivity from thee. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Habakkuk 1:8 Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Matthew 24:28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Luke 17:37 And they answered and said unto him, Where, Rabbi? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Revelation 4:7 And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)

Revelation 12:14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. (RNKJV Restored Name King James Version)