Ostrich: (Lamentations 4:3) the rendering of Hebrew pl. enim; so called from its
greediness and gluttony. The allusion here is to the habit of the
ostrich with reference to its eggs, which is thus described: "The
outer layer of eggs is generally so ill covered that they are
destroyed in quantities by jackals, wild-cats, etc., and that the
natives carry them away, only taking care not to leave the marks of
their footsteps, since, when the ostrich comes and finds that her
nest is discovered, she crushes the whole brood, and builds a nest
elsewhere." In
(Job 39:13) this word in the Authorized Version is the
rendering of a Hebrew word (notsah) which means "feathers," as in the
Revised Version. In the same verse the word "peacocks" of the
Authorized Version is the rendering of the Hebrew pl. renanim,
properly meaning "ostriches," as in the Revised Version.
