Leviticus 11:18
Translations
King James Version (KJV)
And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,
American King James Version (AKJV)
And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,
American Standard Version (ASV)
and the horned owl, and the pelican, and the vulture,
Basic English Translation (BBE)
And the water-hen and the pelican and the vulture;
Webster's Revision
And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier-eagle,
World English Bible
the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey,
English Revised Version (ERV)
and the horned owl, and the pelican, and the vulture;
Clarke's Leviticus 11:18 Bible Commentary
The swan - תנשמת tinshemeth. The Septuagint translate the word by πορφυριωνα, the porphyrion, purple or scarlet bird. Could we depend on this translation, we might suppose the flamingo or some such bird to be intended. Some suppose the goose to be meant, but this is by no means likely, as it cannot be classed either among ravenous or unclean fowls. Bochart thinks the owl is meant.
The pelican - קאת kaath. As קאת kaah signifies to vomit up, the name is supposed to be descriptive of the pelican, who receives its food into the pouch under its lower jaw, and, by pressing it on its breast with its bill, throws it up for the nourishment of its young. Hence the fable which represents the pelican wounding her breast with her bill, that she might feed her young with her own blood; a fiction which has no foundation but in the above circumstance. Bochart thinks the bittern is meant, vol. iii., col. 292.
The gier eagle - רחם racham. As the root of this word signifies tenderness and affection, it is supposed to refer to some bird remarkable for its attachment to its young; hence some have thought that the pelican is to be understood. Bochart endeavors to prove that it means the vulture, probably that species called the golden vulture - Bochart, vol. iii., col. 303.
Barnes's Leviticus 11:18 Bible Commentary
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.