Flea. Fleas flourished in the sand and dust of the Holy Land. Classified as parasites, these tiny insects attach themselves to a body and suck blood from their host. Fleas have no wings, but they do have strong legs and can jump several inches at one leap. The flea that lives on man is tiny, but it can be very irritating. David described himself as a mere flea being pursued by a king (1 Sam. 24:14; 26:20). He may have seemed insignificant, but he irritated King Saul.
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Category Archives: Alphabetical
Fowl
Fowl are birds or small animals that fly through the air. They distinction from land only animals is their perspective from the air.
Fowl. Most people assume that hens and roosters (cocks) were common in Palestine, but they are rarely mentioned in the Bible. Domestic chickens probably descended from the red jungle fowl of Asia. Cocks were bred for the ancient sport of cock-fighting before hens were raised for meat and eggs.
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Falcon
Falcon. In some translations of the Bible the falcon appears in the lists of unclean birds (Lev. 11:14; Deut. 14:13), (NKJV). As a bird of prey, it is often grouped with hawks. But a falcon is not a true hawk. The sport of hunting with trained falcons originated in ancient Persia. Great numbers of falcons are still seen in Palestine, as they surely were in Bible times (Job 28:7).
Fallow Deer
Fallow Deer (see Deer).
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Fawn
Fawn (see Deer).
Dromedary
Dromedary (see Camel).
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Ewe
Ewe (see Sheep).
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Elephant
Elephant. No elephants lived in Palestine. But they were native to the neighboring continents of Africa and Asia. Wealthy Jews sometimes imported the ivory which came from their great tusks. King Solomon “made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold” (1 Kin. 10:18). And King Ahab built an “ivory house” (1 Kin. 22:39).
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Eagle Owl
Eagle Owl (see Owl).
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cormorant
Cormorant. Both the prophets Isaiah and Zephaniah linked the cormorant or “the pelican” (NKJV) with the bittern to describe the ruin God brings in judgment upon man’s proud cities (Is. 34:11; Zeph. 2:14). The cormorant (or “the fisher owl,” NKJV) was listed among the few birds the Israelites were not to eat (Lev. 11:17; Deut. 14:17).
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