Hunting and Trapping in the Bible

• Nimrod, “a mighty hunter before the LORD”Gen 10:9
  The verses

  Gen 10:9He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; so it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.”
• Ishmael grows up in the wilderness and becomes a great archerGen 21:20
  The verses

  Gen 21:20And God was with the boy, and he grew up and settled in the wilderness and became a great archer.
• Esau becomes a skillful hunter, a man of the fieldGen 25:27
  The verses

  Gen 25:27When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, while Jacob was a quiet man who stayed at home.
• Isaac has a taste for wild game and loves EsauGen 25:28
  The verses

  Gen 25:28Because Isaac had a taste for wild game, he loved Esau; but Rebekah loved Jacob.
• Isaac sends Esau out with quiver and bow to hunt gameGen 27:3–5
  The verses

  Gen 27:3–5Take your weapons—your quiver and bow—and go out into the field to hunt some game for me. Then prepare a tasty dish that I love and bring it to me to eat, so that I may bless you before I die.” Now Rebekah was listening to what Isaac told his son Esau. So when Esau went into the field to hunt game and bring it back,
• Esau returns from the hunt too late for the blessingGen 27:30–33
  The verses

  Gen 27:30–33As soon as Isaac had finished blessing him and Jacob had left his father’s presence, his brother Esau returned from the hunt. He too made some tasty food, brought it to his father, and said to him, “My father, sit up and eat of your son’s game, so that you may bless me.” But his father Isaac replied, “Who are you?” “I am Esau, your firstborn son,” he answered. Isaac began to tremble violently and said, “Who was it, then, who hunted the game and brought it to me? Before you came in, I ate it all and blessed him—and indeed, he will be blessed!”

In the Law

• The blood of hunted game is drained and covered with dirtLev 17:13
  The verses

  Lev 17:13And if any Israelite or foreigner living among them hunts down a wild animal or bird that may be eaten, he must drain its blood and cover it with dirt.

Snares and nets

• Net, mesh, trap, snare and a noose hidden in the groundJob 18:8–10
  The verses

  Job 18:8–10For his own feet lead him into a net, and he wanders into its mesh. A trap seizes his heel; a snare grips him. A noose is hidden in the ground, and a trap lies in his path.
• An antelope caught in a netIsa 51:20
  The verses

  Isa 51:20Your sons have fainted; they lie at the head of every street, like an antelope in a net. They are full of the wrath of the LORD, the rebuke of your God.
• Fowlers lie in wait and set trapsJer 5:26
  The verses

  Jer 5:26For among My people are wicked men; they watch like fowlers lying in wait; they set a trap to catch men.
• The cords of a net spread along the path, and lures set outPs 140:5
  The verses

  Ps 140:5The proud hide a snare for me; the cords of their net are spread along the path, and lures are set out for me. Selah

Comparisons

• David: like one who hunts a partridge in the mountains1 Sam 26:20
  The verses

  1 Sam 26:20So do not let my blood fall to the ground far from the presence of the LORD. For the king of Israel has come out to look for a flea, like one who hunts a partridge in the mountains.”
• “My enemies hunted me like a bird”Lam 3:52
  The verses

  Lam 3:52Without cause my enemies hunted me like a bird.
• Delivered “from the snare of the fowler”Ps 91:3
  The verses

  Ps 91:3Surely He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly plague.