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Bible Dictionaries
Partridge
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
or PARTRIDGE ( qôrç’ , 1 Samuel 26:20 , Jeremiah 17:11 ). Two kinds of partridge abound in Palestine. The chukar or rock partridge ( Caccabis chukar ) is the commonest of game birds. Its cry may be heard all over the land, and large coveys may be encountered in the autumn. It is distinguished by its red legs. It is excellent eating. Hey’s sand partridge ( Ammoperdix heyi ) occurs in enormous numbers around the Dead Sea. It is probably the partridge referred to in Isaiah 26:20 : its short flights from place to place when hunted; Its hiding, trusting to its invisibility on account of its colour being so like the environment; its quick run from danger before taking to wing; and its final capture when too wearied to fly must form a very suitable image of a poor human fugitive remorselessly pursued. The reference in Jeremiah 17:11 is hard to understand; it may perhaps refer to the fact that when disturbed from their nests such birds sometimes never return. In Sir 11:30 the heart of a proud man is compared to a decoy partridge in a cage. It is still customary in Palestine to hunt the red-legged partridge by the aid of such decoys.
E. W. G. Masterman.
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Hastings, James. Entry for 'Partridge'. Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hdb/p/partridge.html. 1909.
