The black vulture is mentioned several times throughout the Bible, often in symbolic ways. As a carrion bird that feeds on dead and decaying flesh, the black vulture has come to represent different themes and warnings in Scripture.
The black vulture as a symbol of judgment and punishment
One of the main symbolic meanings of the black vulture in the Bible is as a sign of judgment and punishment for sin. Several verses associate the black vulture and other carrion birds with doom and destruction:
“Wherever the carcass is, there the vultures will gather” (Matthew 24:28). This verse foretells how vultures will gather around the dead corpses of those destroyed at the end times as a sign of judgment.
“Their slain will be thrown out, and their dead bodies will stink; the mountains will be soaked with their blood” (Isaiah 34:3). Isaiah describes how the corpses of the wicked will be left as carrion for vultures.
“The wild beasts will tear them to pieces, the birds will devour their corpses” (Hosea 13:8). Hosea warns how sinners who have departed from God will become food for vultures as punishment.
These verses depict how the black vulture’s tendency to feed on dead bodies symbolizes being condemned before God and facing death and destruction as punishment for sin.
The black vulture as a symbol of desolation and abandonment
In addition to punishment, the black vulture can also represent desolation, abandonment, and loss. In the Bible, the presence of vultures or other scavenger birds often signifies that an area has been deserted:
“After them I will send the sword until I have consumed them. I will make their widows more numerous than the sand of the seas…The mother of seven has grown feeble; she has fainted away. The sun is gone down while it was yet day; she has been shamed and humiliated. And the rest of them I will give to the sword before their enemies” (Jeremiah 15:2, 3, 9). Jeremiah describes how the land will be so desolated that even widows will fall victim and their bodies will be left for scavenging birds.
“Hazor will become a haunt of jackals, a desolation forever; no one will live there; no human being will dwell in it” (Jeremiah 49:33). The prophet warns that Hazor will be so destroyed that only jackals and vultures will remain.
“And I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, a lair of jackals, and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant” (Jeremiah 9:11). Jeremiah’s vivid language depicts Jerusalem being reduced to rubble inhabited by scavengers.
So the vulture can be a powerful symbol of abandonment, representing areas that have been emptied of human life and activity and left ruined.
The black vulture as a symbol of greed and rapaciousness
The black vulture’s tendency to aggressively feed on dead carcasses has also led to it symbolizing greed, rapaciousness, and exploitation in the Bible. There are several Biblical references to vultures’ ravenous appetites:
“Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather” (Matthew 24:28). This highlights the vultures’ relentless greed for dead bodies.
“But these are the men who…devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation” (Mark 12:40). Here Jesus criticizes the greedy religious leaders who exploit the vulnerable, like vultures feeding ravenously.
“Her princes…are like wolves tearing the prey, shedding blood…Her prophets are fickle, treacherous men; her priests profane what is holy; they do violence to the law” (Zephaniah 3:3-4). The greed and corruption of Jerusalem’s leaders are compared to the rapaciousness of wolves and vultures.
So the insatiable greed with which vultures consume carrion makes them fitting symbols for people who exploit or take advantage of others without restraint.
The black vulture as a symbol of uncleanliness and impurity
In the Old Testament, the vulture is included in lists of birds that the Israelites were forbidden to eat because they were considered unclean (Leviticus 11:13-19). As scavengers that feed on waste and carcasses, vultures symbolized contamination and impurity. Eating vulture meat was taboo:
“These you shall detest among the birds; they shall not be eaten; they are detestable: the eagle, the bearded vulture, the black vulture…” (Leviticus 11:13).
So in addition to other negative associations, the black vulture represents that which is unclean, contaminated, and impure – the opposite of the Israelites’ spiritual ideal.
Positive symbolism?
While the black vulture has many negative associations in the Bible, there are some more positive symbolic meanings that can be drawn as well:
- As unpleasant as it is, the vulture serves the useful ecological role of disposing of carrion and preventing the spread of disease. So it can represent cleaning away impurity and corruption from a community.
- Like other scavengers, the black vulture serves as a sanitary agent by removing waste and debris from the environment. So it can symbolize the virtue of humility, not being too proud to do society’s “dirty work.”
- The vulture can represent renewal and redemption, as decaying matter is transformed by scavengers into new life.
- Seeing the vulture as a creature dependent on God’s provision, just as the ancient Israelites depended on manna in the desert, can inspire confidence in God’s sustenance.
However, in most cases the black vulture has negative connotations when used symbolically in the Bible.
The vulture in prophecies of God’s judgment
One common prophetic theme involving the black vulture is using it to represent the judgment coming upon Israel or other nations that have rebelled against God. A few examples:
“And I will lay waste your high places…I will cast your corpses upon the corpses of your idols, and my soul will abhor you. I will lay your cities waste…And I will scatter you among the nations, and I will unsheathe the sword after you…” (Leviticus 26:30-33). This passage warns Israel that if they break God’s laws, their bodies will be carrion for scavengers.
“And as for those of you who are left, I will send faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies. The sound of a driven leaf shall put them to flight, and they shall flee as one flees from the sword, and they shall fall when none pursues. They shall stumble over one another, as if to escape a sword, though none pursues. And you shall have no power to stand before your enemies. And you shall perish among the nations, and the land of your enemies shall eat you up” (Leviticus 26:36-38). Here God threatens that Israel will be so helpless against their enemies that they will become like carcasses for vultures even without being pursued.
“And I will lay the dead bodies of the people of Israel before their idols, and I will scatter your bones around your altars…your land shall be a desolation, and your cities shall be a waste” (Ezekiel 6:5, 6). Ezekiel warns that sinners’ bodies will be left for carrion animals around pagan altars.
“Speak to every feathered bird and to every beast of the field: Assemble yourselves and come; gather together from all around to the sacrificial feast that I am preparing for you, a great sacrificial feast on the mountains of Israel, and you shall eat flesh and drink blood” (Ezekiel 39:17). This describes scavenger birds feasting on God’s enemies slain in battle as part of His judgment.
So these prophecies use the ominous imagery of vultures gathering over corpses to convey the severity of the judgment coming upon evildoers.
The vulture and Jesus’ sacrificial death
There are no direct Biblical references to vultures in connection with Jesus’ crucifixion. However, Matthew’s and Luke’s accounts of the Passion both include references to birds of prey:
“Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour… And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice,…And Jesus uttered another loud cry and breathed his last. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, ‘Truly this was the Son of God!'” (Matthew 27:45-54).
“It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, while the sun’s light failed… Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!’ And having said this he breathed his last. Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, ‘Certainly this man was innocent!'” (Luke 23:44-47).
Though vultures are not specified, some scholars theorize their presence is implied in the centurions’ awe and praise of Jesus, suggesting the soldiers witnessed birds of prey gathering miraculously over Jesus’ body, identifying him as a righteous man.
Just as vultures and scavenger birds gathered over the sacrificed carcasses of righteous martyrs in extrabiblical literature, some argue the centurions witnessed similar supernatural gathering around Jesus’ crucifixion, stirring their faith.
Vultures gathering over the wicked in Jesus’ parables
While no vultures are mentioned at Christ’s death, Jesus does refer to vultures gathering over condemned sinners in some of His parables. Two examples:
“As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful” (Matthew 13:22). Here Jesus warns that those consumed by worldly cares and wealth will be unfruitful, like seed devoured by birds.
“And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers —so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ And he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ He said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead’” (Luke 16:24-31). In this parable of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man’s burial is described as being left for vultures to scavenge, representing his condemnation.
So while the Gospels do not specifically mention vultures gathering at Golgotha during Christ’s passion, Jesus did use the imagery of vultures over corpses to symbolize the final judgment of the wicked in his teaching.
The Vulture in Revelation’s descriptions of judgment
The Book of Revelation uses vivid scavenger bird imagery to illustrate God’s end times wrath poured out on the wicked:
“Then the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft.” (Revelation 9:1-2). The apocalyptic smoke rising like a carrion column summons scavengers.
“Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. And to them was given power like the power of scorpions of the earth.” (Revelation 9:3). The demonic locusts emerge from the abyss to torment the unrighteous.
“They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.” (Revelation 9:4). The locusts attack those lacking God’s protection.
“They were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone. And in those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.” (Revelation 9:5-6). The victims long for death but cannot find release.
This passage uses the plague of scavenger locusts to represent the suffering God inflicts on the wicked. Thelocusts likely represent spiritual forces God allows to punish unrepentant sinners who refuse salvation in Christ.
Later in Revelation, birds of prey again symbolize the condemnation of the unrighteous at Christ’s return:
“Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, ‘Come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave,e both small and great.’ And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.” (Revelation 19:17-21).
The grotesque image of scavenger birds gorging on the corpses of the wicked graphically illustrates the final destruction of the ungodly when Christ returns.
Conclusion
Throughout the Bible, the black vulture and other carrion birds consistently symbolize judgment on the wicked. As unpleasant scavengers who feed on death and decay, vultures represent the condemnation awaiting the unrighteous. Both the Old and New Testaments frequently use vultures gathering over fallen corpses to signify imminent divine punishment.
While vultures themselves are not evil, Scripture employs them metaphorically due to their association with death. Their rapacious greed and starvation are also used to depict the wicked exploited by spiritual forces of evil.
So in the Biblical worldview, the sight of vultures circling ominously overhead serves as a vivid warning of God’s impending wrath on individual sinners and entire nations rebelling against Him. Where the vultures gather, punishment soon follows.