Leviticus 11:15 Meaning and Explanation
“Every raven after his kind;”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Every raven after his kind belongs to the prohibited covenant fowl list introduced in verse 13. The deliberately broad wording gives Israel a clear category-wide food boundary even though this short continuation does not repeat the controlling command against eating.
Every raven after its kind is included among the fowls that Israel was specifically prohibited from eating under this covenant law.
The Context of Leviticus 11:15
Leviticus 11:13 announces that the following fowls are an abomination to Israel and shall not be eaten. After the first five names, verse 15 adds every raven after his kind. The list continues in verses 16 through 19 before the chapter moves to flying creeping things. Deuteronomy 14:14 repeats every raven after his kind in a closely corresponding prohibited list. Ravens also appear elsewhere in Scripture outside this food classification: Noah sends one from the ark, God commands ravens to feed Elijah, and Jesus points to ravens as creatures God feeds. These passages keep this concise dietary line within the Bible's fuller testimony about God's creation and care.
What Does Leviticus 11:15 Mean?
Every and after his kind make the scope broader than a single bird. The verse includes the raven category represented by the name, while the command controlling the list comes from verse 13: they shall not be eaten. This is why context is essential for a fragment ending in a semicolon. A study that quotes only five words may correctly repeat the name yet fail to explain what Israel must do. Reading the whole sentence restores the covenant food function and prevents an unsupported symbolic interpretation from replacing it.
The verse offers no explanation based on the raven's color, call, diet, or behavior. Readers should resist filling that silence with folklore or treating an observed habit as God's unstated reason. Other biblical narratives show ravens performing ordinary creaturely roles and even serving within God's provision. The same creature can be prohibited as food for Israel and still remain under the Creator's command and care. That distinction protects us from imagining uncleanness as moral guilt in the animal or from turning blackness, scavenging, or any other association into a human insult.
Jesus tells his disciples to consider the ravens because God feeds them, using the Father's care to answer anxiety about daily provision. His words do not erase the meaning Leviticus held for Israel. They reveal that a prohibited food creature can still direct attention toward divine generosity. Christian readers should therefore reject raven as a slur, repent of contempt tied to skin color or poverty, and trust God without neglecting responsible work. At the table, following Christ means making room for dietary conscience and refusing to make another person's meal a test of belonging.
Bible Verses Related to Leviticus 11:15
“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 his kind; Every raven after his kind; And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind, And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl, And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle, And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.”
- Leviticus 11:13-19
“Of all clean birds ye shall eat. But these are they of which ye shall not eat: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray, And the glede, and the kite, and the vulture after his kind, And every raven after his kind, And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind, The little owl, and the great owl, and the swan, And the pelican, and the gier eagle, and the cormorant, And the stork, and the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.”
- Deuteronomy 14:11-18
“And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.”
- 1 Kings 17:4-6
“Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls?”
- Luke 12:24
Where Leviticus 11:15 Echoes in Scripture
Deuteronomy 14:14 repeats every raven after his kind within its prohibited bird list. Elsewhere, God uses ravens to carry food to Elijah, and Jesus tells disciples to consider how God feeds them. The echoes preserve both Israel's food boundary and the Creator's continuing care.
How to Apply Leviticus 11:15 Today
Always restore a list fragment's governing sentence before explaining it. Do not invent spiritual meanings from an animal's appearance or habits when the passage supplies none. Challenge expressions that use raven, darkness, or scavenging to demean racial groups, hungry people, or those who survive through stigmatized work. Address actual misconduct precisely without animalizing anyone. When anxiety rises, consider Jesus' teaching about God's care and pair trust with honest planning, community support, and appropriate professional help. In shared meals, disclose ingredients and provide welcoming choices for people whose convictions exclude certain birds or meat entirely.
Reflection & Prayer
Can the same raven teach us both careful covenant distinction and confidence in the Father's care? We might pray: 'Faithful Provider, free us from anxious contempt, guard us from invented meanings, teach us to trust Jesus, and make our provision generous toward others.'