The kite is a bird of prey mentioned in the Bible, known for its keen eyesight and swift flight. It is classified among the unclean birds in the Mosaic Law, which prohibited the Israelites from consuming it. The Hebrew word for kite is "אַיָּה" (ayah), and it appears in several passages of the Old Testament.

Biblical References:

1. Leviticus 11:13-14 : "These are the birds you are to detest and not eat because they are detestable: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, the kite, any kind of falcon." This passage lists the kite among the birds that are considered detestable and unclean for consumption. The inclusion of the kite in this list underscores its status as a bird of prey, which feeds on carrion and live animals, making it unsuitable for the dietary laws given to Israel.

2. Deuteronomy 14:12-13 : "But these you may not eat: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, the red kite, the black kite, any kind of falcon." Here, the kite is again mentioned as an unclean bird. The repetition of this prohibition in Deuteronomy reinforces the importance of adhering to the dietary restrictions as part of the covenantal relationship between God and Israel.

3. Job 28:7 : "No bird of prey knows that path; no falcon’s eye has seen it." While the specific term "kite" is not used in this verse, the reference to birds of prey and their keen vision can be associated with the kite, known for its sharp eyesight. This passage highlights the limitations of even the most perceptive creatures in comprehending the wisdom and mysteries of God.

Characteristics and Symbolism:

The kite is characterized by its forked tail and graceful flight, often seen soaring high in the sky. It is a medium-sized raptor, with a diet that includes small mammals, insects, and carrion. The kite's ability to glide effortlessly and its sharp vision make it a symbol of vigilance and swiftness.

In biblical symbolism, the kite, like other birds of prey, can represent desolation and judgment. Its presence in the list of unclean animals serves as a reminder of the distinction between the holy and the profane, a recurring theme in the Levitical laws.

Cultural and Historical Context:

In the ancient Near East, birds of prey were often associated with omens and divine messages. The kite, with its distinctive call and soaring flight, would have been a familiar sight to the Israelites. Its inclusion in the dietary laws reflects a broader cultural understanding of purity and the need to maintain a distinct identity as God's chosen people.

The kite's role in the biblical narrative is primarily as a creature to be avoided in terms of consumption, yet its presence in the scriptures also serves to illustrate broader theological themes of discernment, purity, and the natural order established by God.Kite

(Heb. ayyah), a rapacious and keen-sighted bird of prey belonging to the hawk family. The Hebrew word thus rendered occurs in three passages -- (Leviticus 11:14; 14:13; Job 28:7) In the two former it is translated "kite" in the Authorized Version, in the latter "vulture." It is enumerated among the twenty names of birds mentioned in (14:1) ... which were considered unclean by the Mosaic law and forbidden to be used as food by the Israelites.

Kite

The kite is mentioned but once or twice in the Bible. In Leviticus 11:13,14, it is named among the birds which the Israelites were not allowed to use for food. "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, and the vulture, and the kite after its kind." These are all birds of prey, that is, they live by destroying other animals, and some of them are very fierce and cruel; I suppose this is one reason why they were not to be eaten.

The kite is a large bird, more than two feet long; and when its wings are spread it would take a string five feet and a half long to stretch from the tip of one across to the other. It does not fly very rapidly, but its motion in the air is very graceful and beautiful. On this account it has sometimes been called the Gled, or the gliding bird.

The kite is very much dreaded and disliked by those who have ducks and chickens, because it carries them off for food. It also eats frogs and moles: it is said that more than twenty of the latter have been found in one Kite's nest. It is a cowardly bird, and does not attack any animal that is strong enough to defend itself. Its nest is usually built between the forked branches of some tall tree in the thickest part of the forest; and if you could look into one of them in the spring, you would probably see three eggs, almost white, but a little tinged with blue.

Kite

A bird of prey, and therefore placed by Moses among the unclean birds, Le 11:14. See BIRDS.

An unclean and keen-sighted bird of prey (Leviticus 11:14; Deuteronomy 14:13). The Hebrew word used, 'ayet, is rendered "vulture" in Job 28:7 in Authorized Version, "falcon" in Revised Version. It is probably the red kite (Milvus regalis), a bird of piercing sight and of soaring habits found all over Palestine. 1. (n.) Any raptorial bird of the subfamily Milvinae, of which many species are known. They have long wings, adapted for soaring, and usually a forked tail.

2. (n.) Fig. : One who is rapacious.

3. (n.) A light frame of wood or other material covered with paper or cloth, for flying in the air at the end of a string.

4. (n.) A lofty sail, carried only when the wind is light.

5. (n.) A quadrilateral, one of whose diagonals is an axis of symmetry.

6. (n.) Fictitious commercial paper used for raising money or to sustain credit, as a check which represents no deposit in bank, or a bill of exchange not sanctioned by sale of goods; an accommodation check or bill.

7. (n.) The brill.

8. (v. i.) To raise money by kites; as, kiting transactions. See Kite, 6.

9. (n.) The belly.

KITE

kit ('ayyah; iktinos; Latin Milvus ictinus or regalis): A medium-sized member of the hawk tribe (see HAWK). This bird is 27 inches long, of bright reddish-brown color, has sharply pointed wings and deeply forked tail. It is supposed to have exceptionally piercing eyes. It takes moles, mice, young game birds, snakes and frogs, as well as carrion for food. Its head and facial expression are unusually eagle-like. It was common over Palestine in winter, but bred in the hills of Galilee and rough mountainous places, so it was less conspicuous in summer. It is among the lists of abominations (see Leviticus 11:14 and Deuteronomy 14:13). It is notable that this is the real bird intended by Job to be used as that whose eye could not trace the path to the silver mine:

"That path no bird of prey knoweth,

Neither hath the falcon's eye seen it" (Job 28:7).

The word used here in the original Hebrew is 'ayyah, which was the name for kite. Our first translators used "vulture"; our latest efforts give "falcon," a smaller bird of different markings, not having the kite's reputation for eyesight.

Gene Stratton-Porter

1676. daah -- perhaps kite (a bird of prey)
... 1675, 1676. daah. 1677 . perhaps kite (a bird of prey). Transliteration:
daah Phonetic Spelling: (daw-aw') Short Definition: kite. ...
/hebrew/1676.htm - 6k

344. ayyah -- a hawk, falcon, kite
... 343, 344. ayyah. 345 . a hawk, falcon, kite. Transliteration: ayyah Phonetic
Spelling: (ah-yaw') Short Definition: falcon. ... kite, vulture. ...
/hebrew/344.htm - 6k

1772. dayyah -- perhaps a kite (a bird of prey)
... 1771, 1772. dayyah. 1773 . perhaps a kite (a bird of prey). Transliteration:
dayyah Phonetic Spelling: (dah-yaw') Short Definition: hawks. ...
/hebrew/1772.htm - 6k

On the End of Man
... You would not think much of the wisdom of a boy who allowed his kite to be smashed
in pieces by giving his whole attention to the tail of the kite. ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/kinkead/baltimore catechism no 4/lesson 1 on the end.htm

On the Animals
... [Cant.2:12]. The kite signifies, so I think, rapacity or pride; in the psalm,
according to the Hebrew: the kite, once away, is at home. ...
/.../eucherius/the formulae of st eucherius of lyons/iv on the animals.htm

On Sin and Its Kinds
... Suppose, for example, a boy should doubt whether it is sinful or not to
fly a kite. Well, is there any law of God or of His Church ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/kinkead/baltimore catechism no 4/lesson 6 on sin and.htm

The Inheritance.
... What boy, however fain to be a disciple of Christ and a child of God, would prefer
a sermon to his glorious kite, that divinest of toys, with God himself for ...
//christianbookshelf.org/macdonald/unspoken sermons/the inheritance.htm

Spiritual Significance of the Precepts of Moses Respecting ...
... "Neither shalt thou eat," says he "the eagle, nor the hawk, nor the kite, nor the
raven." "Thou shalt not join thyself," he means, "to such men as know not how ...
/.../barnabas/the epistle of barnabas /chapter x spiritual significance of the.htm

Through-The-Week Activities for Boys' Organized Classes
... Laws of recreation, Hiking, etc. Kite Making and Flying Gliding and Aeroplaning
Circus Stunts Sport Carnival Corn, Apple, Clam Roasts, etc. ...
/.../the boy and the sunday school/x through-the-week activities for boys.htm

General Conclusion.
... name. [344] We will see to it, if, after the type of the Ark, there shall
be in the Church raven, kite, dog, and serpent. At all ...
/.../tertullian/on idolatry/chapter xxiv general conclusion.htm

God's Jewels.
... floor; If I could kiss a rosy, restless foot, And hear it patter in my house once
more; If I could mend a broken cart to-day, To-morrow make a kite to reach ...
/.../the life of duty a years plain sermons v 2/sermon lxiii gods jewels.htm

That it was Previously Foretold that they Would Neither Know the ...
... Behold, the word of the Lord has become unto them a reproach, and they do not wish
for it." [3832] Again in the same the Lord says: "The kite knoweth his time ...
/.../three books of testimonies against the jews/3 that it was previously.htm

First Ministry in Jud??a --John's Second Testimony.
... ["Here, then," says Lieutenant Conder, "in the wild, desert valley, beneath the
red precipices, where the hawk and kite find nests in 'the stairs of the rocks ...
/.../mcgarvey/the four-fold gospel/xxv first ministry in judaeajohns.htm

Kite (3 Occurrences)
... It is probably the red kite (Milvus regalis), a bird of piercing sight and of soaring
habits found all over Palestine. Noah Webster's Dictionary. ... See Kite, 6. ...
/k/kite.htm - 9k

Glede (1 Occurrence)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary An Old English name for the common kite, mentioned only
in Deuteronomy 14:13 (Hebrews ra'ah), the Milvus ater or black kite. ...
/g/glede.htm - 8k

Vulture (16 Occurrences)
... "When used without the epithet `red,' the name is commonly confined to the black
kite. ... In Leviticus 11:14 and Deuteronomy 14:13 it is rendered "kite" (qv). ...
/v/vulture.htm - 14k

Unclean (393 Occurrences)
... In the American Standard Revised Version it is translated "kite" in Leviticus, while
in Deuteronomy it is translated "glede." The additional one in Deuteronomy ...
/u/unclean.htm - 39k

Black (52 Occurrences)
... and the black vulture, (WEB NIV). Leviticus 11:14 and the red kite, any kind
of black kite, (WEB NIV). Leviticus 13:31 If the priest ...
/b/black.htm - 24k

Falcon (2 Occurrences)
... Gene Stratton-Porter. Multi-Version Concordance Falcon (2 Occurrences). Leviticus
11:14 and the kite, and the falcon after its kind, (ASV BBE DBY JPS NAS RSV). ...
/f/falcon.htm - 8k

Vultur (2 Occurrences)
... Multi-Version Concordance Vultur (2 Occurrences). Leviticus 11:14 And the
vulture, and the kite after his kind; (Root in KJV WBS YLT). ...
/v/vultur.htm - 6k

Buzzard (3 Occurrences)
... the vulture, and the osprey, (See NAS). Deuteronomy 14:13 and the red kite,
and the falcon, and the kite after its kind, (See RSV). ...
/b/buzzard.htm - 7k

Hawk (6 Occurrences)
... They knew the kite that Isaiah mentioned in predicting the fall of Edom. ... See GLEDE;
KITE; NIGHT HAWK; FALCON. Gene Stratton-Porter. NIGHT HAWK. ...
/h/hawk.htm - 14k

Birds (125 Occurrences)
... have in abomination among the birds; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination:
the eagle, and the gier-eagle, and the osprey, and the kite, and the ...
/b/birds.htm - 62k

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