“Does the eagle soar at your command and build its nest on high?” Job 39:27
Of all the birds that fly above us, there is none quite like the eagle. This powerful bird is recognized for its strength, hunting ability, and beauty as we see it soar high above the earth. So impressive is this bird that countries throughout history, including our own, have taken on the eagle as their national symbol.
Next to the dove, the eagle is the most often mentioned bird in the Bible. We learn in Exodus that because eagles were scavengers, the Lord did not allow them to be eaten. Leviticus 11:13 says, “These are the birds you are to regard as unclean and not eat because they are unclean: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture.”
The eagle is also mentioned several times in relation to God rescuing his children from the Egyptians. Exodus 19:4 tells us, “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.” Moses alluded to this again in his song, “He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye, like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them aloft” (Deuteronomy 32:10,11).
Perhaps the most familiar reference to the eagle is found in Isaiah 40, a beautiful chapter showing God’s great love and care for his people. “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” (Isaiah 40:31). What precious words to give us strength and hope each day!
From Precious Words of the Bible by Reynold R. Kremer