Deuteronomy 14:17 — Word Study
WLCוְהַקָּאָ֥ת וְאֶֽת־ הָרָחָ֖מָה וְאֶת־ הַשָּׁלָֽךְ׃
BSAthe desert owlqâʼath [pelican, Egyptian vulture] the ospreyrâchâm [vulture, gier eagle] the cormorantshâlâk [diving bird of prey, fish eater]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| וְהַקָּאָ֥ת | and the desert owl | Conjunction, particle, noun common feminine singular absolute |
| וְאֶֽת־ | and the object marker | Conjunction, particle |
| הָרָחָ֖מָה | the Egyptian vulture | Particle, noun common feminine singular absolute, suffix |
| וְאֶת־ | and the object marker | Conjunction, particle |
| הַשָּׁלָֽךְ׃ | the cormorant | Particle, noun common masculine singular absolute |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | the desert owl, the osprey, the cormorant, |
| KJV | And the pelican, and the gier eagle, and the cormorant, |
| ASV | and the pelican, and the vulture, and the cormorant, |
| YLT | and the pelican, and the gier-eagle, and the cormorant, |
| WEB | the pelican, the vulture, the cormorant, |
| BBE | And the pelican and the vulture and the cormorant; |
Where they part company is in the identification of the birds; see How Translations Differ.
The verse lists three birds, each identified as unclean, in a simple structure that emphasizes their classification.
2 commentators on this verse
Jamieson, Cambridge & more — read them ›
clause
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Deuteronomy 14:17
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — Dietary Laws in Deuteronomygenerated
Deuteronomy 14:17 is part of a list of birds that are considered unclean for the Israelites to eat. This section emphasizes the importance of adhering to specific dietary laws as a means of maintaining ritual purity. The surrounding verses provide additional context about other unclean birds and insects, reinforcing the dietary restrictions that the Israelites were to follow.
Cross References
The Key Word — קָאַת, ve.ha.ka.'Atgenerated
The word קָאַת (qa'ath) refers to a bird, commonly identified as a pelican. It is part of a list of unclean animals in the Hebrew Bible, indicating that it was not to be consumed. The exact identification of this bird remains uncertain, with some sources suggesting it may also refer to a cormorant or an extinct bird.
This word is a feminine noun and is classified as ceremonially unclean. Its usage in Leviticus 11:17 further establishes its status within the dietary laws.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, which includes the desert owl, the osprey, and the cormorant, aligning with the KJV and ASV.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The structure of the verse is straightforward, consisting of a series of noun phrases that list the unclean birds. The main verb is implied in the context of dietary laws, with each bird being presented as part of the same category.
The Hebrew word order places emphasis on the specific birds being enumerated, indicating a clear directive regarding dietary restrictions.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
In the Septuagint, the word for the desert owl is rendered as καταράκτην, which suggests a broader interpretation of the bird's identity. This choice may reflect the translators' understanding of the bird's characteristics and its relation to other unclean birds.
The term for the cormorant is translated as ἱέρακα, indicating a specific identification that aligns with the Hebrew context, though the exact species may differ.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Deuteronomy 14:17 lists the desert owl, the osprey, and the cormorant as birds that are considered unclean for the Israelites. These dietary laws are part of a larger instruction on what animals may or may not be eaten.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
In the context of the Hebrew Bible, being unclean means that the animal is not fit for consumption according to the dietary laws given to the Israelites.
These birds are mentioned as part of God's instructions to the Israelites regarding which animals are permissible to eat and which are not.
The dietary laws outlined in the Old Testament were specific to the Israelite community and are not typically observed in the same way by modern readers, though they may hold cultural or religious significance.
The number of birds listed may reflect a broader principle of dietary purity and the importance of following God's commandments.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- What do these dietary laws teach us about the importance of obedience to God's commands?
- How can we apply the principles of purity and cleanliness in our lives today?
- What do you think is the significance of listing specific animals in the context of the Israelite community?
- How do these laws reflect the cultural and religious identity of the Israelites?
Commentators on this verse — 2 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Deuteronomy 14:17 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryAnd the pelican, and the gier eagle, and the cormorant, Gier eagle , [ haaraachaamaah (H7360)] - is manifestly identical with Rachamah, the name which the Arabs give to the common vulture of Western
Read Robert Jamieson on Deuteronomy 14 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges17. pelican] ḳ ?a‘ath, LXX, πελεκάν. Tristram (108) suggests the roseate pelican, P. onocrotalus. vulture] raḥ ?amah, Ar. rakhim, ‘a small white carrion eagle,’ migratory, and haunting the abodes of men, one of the commonest carrion birds in Arabia, ‘the white scavenger’ (Doughty, passim; cp. Burton, Pilgrimage, etc., ii. 62); according to Tristram (96) the neophron percnopterus; in Arabia their flesh is forbidden meat, yet mothers give it to their children to expel worms (Doughty, i. 393). The name appears to be derived from its affection to its young, which in Deuteronomy 32:11 is imputed also to the nesher. LXX, κύκνος, swan. cormorant] shalak, that hurls itself on the prey. LXX…
Read Cambridge on Deuteronomy 14 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
the desert owl, the osprey, the cormorant,
the pelican, the vulture, the cormorant,
the desert owl, the osprey, the cormorant,
the jackdaw, the carrion vulture, the cormorant,
Tyndale line
And the pelican, and the gier eagle, and the cormorant,
and the pelican, and the vulture, and the cormorant,
and the pelican, and the vulture, and the cormorant;
And the pelican, and the gier-eagle, and the cormorant,
Nor the pellicane, nor the swanne, nor the cormorant:
Strictly literal
and the pelican, and the carrion vulture, and the gannet,
and the pelican, and the gier-eagle, and the cormorant,
and the pelican, and the Egyptian vulture, and the cormorant,
And the pelican, and the gier-eagle, and the cormorant,
the pelican, the carrion vulture, the cormorant.
From the Latin
And the cormorant, the porphyrion, and the night crow,
Simplified
desert owl, Egyptian vulture, fish owl,
And the pelican and the vulture and the cormorant;
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text lists the same birds as in the verse, while the Samaritan Pentateuch agrees word for word with the Masoretic Text. The Septuagint shows partial agreement, with two of the five words matched.
וְהַקָּאָ֥ת וְאֶֽת־ הָרָחָ֖מָה וְאֶת־ הַשָּׁלָֽךְ׃
2 of the 5 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
ואת הקאת ואת הרחמה
Agrees with the Masoretic Text here, word for word.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Deuteronomy 14:17
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
קָאַת (qa'ath) refers to a bird, commonly identified as a pelican, though some sources suggest it may also refer to a cormorant or an extinct bird. The term is considered ceremonially unclean, with its precise meaning remaining uncertain.
קָאַת, קָאָת n.[f.] a bird, usu. pelican
base
H6893 קָאַת, קָאָת a bird, usu. pelican
6893 qa'ath kaw-ath'
from 6958; probably the pelican (from vomiting):--cormorant.
see HEBREW for 06958
קָאַת (qa.at) — pelican.
1) a ceremonially unclean bird
1a) perhaps pelican or cormorant
1b) perhaps an extinct bird, exact meaning unknown
Conj | Art | N-fs — Conjunction · particle · noun common feminine singular absoluteHC/Td/Ncfsa
oul (bath ha-ya`anah; Latin Ulula): The name of every nocturnal bird of prey of the Natural Order Striges. These birds range from the great horned owl of 2 feet in length, through many subdivisions to the little screech-owl of 5 inches. All are characterized by very large heads, many have ear tufts, all have large eyes surrounded by a disk of tiny, stiff, radiating feathers. The remainder of the plumage has no aftershaft. So these birds make the softest flight of any creature traveling on wing. A volume could be written on the eye of the owl, perhaps its most wonderful feature being in the power of the bird to enlarge the iris if it wishes more distinct vision. There is material for another on the prominent and peculiar auditory parts. With almost all owls the feet are so arranged that two toes can be turned forward and two back, thus reinforcing the grip of the bird by an extra toe and…
Owl
(1.) Heb. bath-haya’anah, “daughter of greediness” or of “shouting.” In the list of unclean birds (Lev. 11:16; Deut. 14:15); also mentioned in Job 30:29; Isa. 13:21; 34:13; 43:20; Jer. 50:39; Micah 1:8. In all these passages the Revised Version translates “ostrich” (q.v.), which is the correct rendering.
(2.) Heb. yanshuph, rendered “great owl” in Lev. 11:17; Deut. 14:16, and “owl” in Isa.…
A number of species of the owl are mentioned in the Bible, (Leviticus 11:17; 14:16; Isaiah 14:23; 34:15; Zephaniah 2:14) and in several other places the same Hebrew word is used where it is translated ostrich. (Job 30:29; Jeremiah 50:39) Some of these species were common in Palestine, and, as is well known, were often found inhabiting ruins. (Isaiah 34:11,13-15)
A night bird of prey, unfit for food. Several species are found in Palestine, and are mentioned in the Bible; as in Le 11:17 De 14:16 Isa 14:23 34:15 Zep 2:14. One of the words, however, translated "owl," probably means "OSTRICH," (which see;) and another, Le 11:17 De 14:16 Isa 34:11, the ibis or night heron.
אֵת (eth) is primarily a grammatical marker in Hebrew, indicating the definite direct object of a verb. It is not translated into English and typically precedes nouns that are definite. The word is derived from a demonstrative sense of entity, related to the Hebrew word for 'self.' Its Aramaic equivalent is יָת (yat).
אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
base
H853 אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
853 'eth ayth
apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of
entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more
definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or
namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).
see HEBREW for 0226
אֵת (et) — [Obj.].
sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative
Aramaic equivalent: yat (יָת "whom" H3487)
HC/To — Conjunction · particleHC/To
רָחָם (racham) refers to a type of vulture, specifically a carrion-vulture, with some sources suggesting it may be an extinct species. The word is derived from a root meaning 'to be tender,' possibly indicating a nurturing behavior towards its young.
רָחָם n.[m.] carrion-vulture
base
H7360 רָחָם carrion-vulture
7360 racham raw-khawm'
or (feminine) rachamah {raw-khaw-maw'}; from 7355; a kind of
vulture (supposed to be tender towards its young):--gier-
eagle.
see HEBREW for 07355
רָחָם (ra.cham) — carrion.
1) carrion vulture
1a) perhaps an extinct bird, exact meaning unknown
Art | N-ms | Suff — Particle · noun common feminine singular absolute · suffixHTd/Ncfsa/Sd
vul'-tur (da'ah; Septuagint gups, and iktinos; Latin Vulturidae): Any member of a family of large birds that subsist wholly or in part on carrion. The largest vulture of Palestine was the Lammer-geier. This bird waited until smaller vultures, eagles and hawks stripped a carcass to the bone, then carried the skeleton aloft and dashed it on the rocks until the marrow could be secured. This was a favorite delicacy. This bird was fond of tortoise also, and is said to have dropped the one that struck the bald head of Aeschylus, which the bird mistook for a stone, so causing the death of the poet. Several smaller species, including "Pharaoh's chickens," flocked all over Palestine. These were protected by a death penalty for their value as scavengers in cities. They fed on carcasses of animals that killed each other, ate putrid fish under the nests of pelican and cormorant, followed caravans…
Vulture
(1.) Heb. da’ah (Lev. 11:14). In the parallel passage (Deut. 14:13) the Hebrew word used is ra’ah, rendered “glede;” LXX., “gups;” Vulg., “milvus.” A species of ravenous bird, distinguished for its rapid flight. “When used without the epithet ‘red,’ the name is commonly confined to the black kite. The habits of the bird bear out the allusion in Isa. 34:15, for it is, excepting during the winter three months, so numerous everywhere in Palestine as to be almost gregarious.” (See EAGLE.)
(2.) In Job 28:7 the Heb. ‘ayyah is thus rendered. The word denotes a clamorous and a keen-sighted bird of prey. In
The rendering in the Authorized Version of the Hebrew daah, dayyah , and also in (Job 28:7) of ayyah . There seems no doubt that the Authorized Versions translation is incorrect, and that the original words refer to some of the smaller species of raptorial birds, as kites or buzzards. [KITE] But the Hebrew word nesher , invariably rendered "eagle" in the Authorized Version, is probably the vulture. [EAGLE]
A large bird of prey, belonging to the genus hawks, and including a great many species. It is pronounced unclean by Moses, Le 11:14 De 14:13. See BIRDS. The vulture has a naked or downy head, a bare neck and long wings, and is disgusting to every sense, especially to the smell. It is a carrion bird, though not exclusively, and has extraordinary powers of vision. Scarcely can an exhausted camel fall on it route and die, before numbers of these filthy scavengers show themselves in the distance, hastening to the spot, Job 28:7.
אֵת (eth) is primarily a grammatical marker in Hebrew, indicating the definite direct object of a verb. It is not translated into English and typically precedes nouns that are definite. The word is derived from a demonstrative sense of entity, related to the Hebrew word for 'self.' Its Aramaic equivalent is יָת (yat).
אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
base
H853 אֵת the mark of the accusative, prefixed as a rule only to nouns that are definite
853 'eth ayth
apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of
entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more
definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or
namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).
see HEBREW for 0226
אֵת (et) — [Obj.].
sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative
Aramaic equivalent: yat (יָת "whom" H3487)
HC/To — Conjunction · particleHC/To
שָׁלָךְ (shalak) refers to a bird of prey, likely identified as a cormorant. The word is derived from a root meaning to cast or throw, which may relate to its behavior of diving into water. Both Brown-Driver-Briggs and Strong's suggest this identification, with Strong's also mentioning the pelican as a possibility.
שָׁלָךְ n.[m.] bird of prey, prob. cormorant
base
H7994 שָׁלָךְ bird of prey, prob. cormorant
7994 shalak shaw-lawk'
from 7993; bird of prey, usually thought to be the pelican
(from casting itself into the sea):--cormorant.
see HEBREW for 07993
שָׁלָךְ (sha.lakh) — cormorant.
1) bird of prey
1a) probably the cormorant
Art | N-ms — Particle · noun common masculine singular absoluteHTd/Ncmsa
kor'-mo-rant (shalakh; kataraktes; Latin Corvus marinus): A large sea-fowl belonging to the genus Phalacrocorax and well described by the Hebrew word used to designate it--which means a "plunging bird." The bird appears as large as a goose when in full feather, but plucked, the body is much smaller. The adult birds are glossy black with bronze tints, touched with white on the cheeks and sides as a festal dress at mating season, and adorned with filamentary feathers on the head, and bright yellow gape. These birds if taken young and carefully trained can be sent into the water from boats and bring to their masters large quantities of good-sized fish: commonly so used in China. The flesh is dark, tough and quite unfit to eat in the elders on account of their diet of fish. The nest is built mostly of seaweed. The eggs are small for the size of the birds, having a rough, thick, but rather…
Cormorant
(Lev. 11:17; Deut. 14:17), Heb. shalak, “plunging,” or “darting down,” (the Phalacrocorax carbo), ranked among the “unclean” birds; of the same family group as the pelican. It is a “plunging” bird, and is common on the coasts and the island seas of Palestine. Some think the Hebrew word should be rendered “gannet” (Sula bassana, “the solan goose”); others that it is the “tern” or “sea swallow,” which also frequents the coasts of Palestine as well as the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan valley during several months of the year. But there is no reason to depart from the ordinary rendering.
In Isa. 34:11, Zeph. 2:14 (but in R.V.…
the representative in the Authorized Version of the Hebrew words kaath and shalac . As to the former, see PELICAN. Shalac occurs only as the name of an unclean bird in (Leviticus 11:17; 14:17) The word has been variously rendered. The etymology points to some plunging bird. The common cormorant (phalacrocorax carbo), which some writers have identified with the shalac , is unknown in the eastern Mediterranean; another species is found south of the Red Sea, but none on the west coast of Palestine.
A water bird about the size of a goose. It lives on fish, which it catches with great dexterity; and is so voracious and greedy, that its name has passed into a kind of proverbial use. The Hebrew word translated "cormorant" in Isa 34:11 Zep 2:14, should rather be translated, as it is in other passages, "pelican," Le 11:17.