Smith's Bible Dictionary.pdf - Online Christian Library

Smith's Bible Dictionary
(active). (1 Chronicles 21:15; 2 Chronicles 3:1) [Araunah]
Orpah
(a gazelle), a Moabite woman wife of Chilion son of Naomi, and thereby sister-in-law to Ruth.
(Ruth 2:4,14) (B.C. 1360.)
Oshea
(salvation). [Joshua]
Osprey
The Hebrew word occurs in (Leviticus 11:13) and Deuteronomy 14:12 So the name of some
unclean bird. It’s probably either the osprey (Pandion haliaetus) or the white-tailed eagle (Haliaetus
albicella).
Ossifrage
(the bone-breaker). The Hebrew word occurs, as the name of an unclean bird, in (Leviticus
11:13) and Deuteronomy 14:12 It is probably the lammergeyer, or bearded vulture as it is sometimes
called, one of the largest of the birds of prey. It well deserves its name ossifrage, bone breaker, for
“not only does he push kids and lambs and even men off the rocks, but he takes the bones of animals
that other birds of prey have denuded of the flesh high up into the air and lets them fall upon a stone
in order to crack them and render them more digestible even for his enormous powers of deglutition.
Marrow-bones are the dainties he loves. This is probably the bird that dropped a tortoise on the
bald head of poor old AEschylus.”—N. H. Simpson.
Ostrich
a large bird, native of African and Arabia, nearly ten feet high, having s long neck and short
wings. It seeks retired places, (Job 30:29; Lamentations 4:13) and has a peculiar mournful cry that
is sometimes mistaken by the Arabs for that of the lion. (Micah 1:8) In (Job 39:13-18) will be found
a description of the bird’s habits. Ostriches are polygamous; the hens lay their eggs promiscuously
in one nest, which is merely a hole scratched in the sand; the eggs are then covered over to the
depth of about a foot, and are, in the case of those birds which are found within the tropics, generally
left for the greater part of the day to the heat of the sun, the parent-birds taking their turns at
incubation during the night. The habit of the ostrich leaving its eggs to be matured by the sun’s
heat is usually appealed to in order to confirm the scriptural account, “she leaveth her eggs to the
earth;” but this is probably the case only with the tropical birds. We believe that the true explanation
of this passage is that some of the eggs are left exposed around the nest for the nourishment of the
young birds. It is a general belief among the Arabs that the ostrich is a very stupid bird; indeed they
have a proverb, “stupid as an ostrich.” As is well known, the ostrich will swallow almost any
substance, iron, stones, and even has been known to swallow “several leaden bullets scorching hot
from the mould.” But in many other respects the ostrich is not as stupid as this would indicate, and
is very hard to capture. It is the largest of all known birds, and perhaps the swiftest of all cursorial
animals. -The feathers so much prized are the long white plumes of the wings. The best are brought
from Barbary and the west coast of Africa.
Othni
(lion of Jehovah), son of Shemaiah, the first-horn of Obed-edom. (1 Chronicles 26:7) (B.C.
1013.)
Othniel
(lion of God), son of Kenaz and younger brother of Caleb. (Joshua 15:17; Judges 1:13; 3:9; 1
Chronicles 4:13) (B.C. 1460.) The first mention of Othniel is on occasion of the taking of
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William Smith