Bible Dictionary: Hare

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Smith's Bible Dictionary

Hare

(Heb. arnebeth) occurs only in (Leviticus 11:6) and Deuteronomy 14:7 Amongst the animals disallowed as food by the Mosaic law. The hare is at this day called arnel by the Arabs in Palestine and Syria. It was erroneously thought by the ancient Jews to have chewed the cud. They were no doubt misled as in the case of the shaphfan (hyrax), by the habit these animals have of moving the jaw about.

ATS Bible Dictionary

Hare

Of the same genus as the rabbit, prohibited to the Jews for food, Le 11:6, because, though it "cheweth the cud," it "divideth not the hoof." No species of hare is known which strictly chews the cud. There were several varieties of the hare in Syria.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

(Hebrews `arnebeth) was prohibited as food according to the Mosaic law (Leviticus 11:6; Deuteronomy 14:7), "because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof." The habit of this animal is to grind its teeth and move its jaw as if it actually chewed the cud. But, like the cony (q.v.), it is not a ruminant with four stomachs, but a rodent like the squirrel, rat, etc. Moses speaks of it according to appearance. It is interdicted because, though apparently chewing the cud, it did not divide the hoof.

There are two species in Syria, (1) the Lepus Syriacus or Syrian hare, which is like the English hare; and (2) the Lepus Sinaiticus, or hare of the desert. No rabbits are found in Syria.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary

1. (v. t.) To excite; to tease, or worry; to harry.

2. (n.) A rodent of the genus Lepus, having long hind legs, a short tail, and a divided upper lip. It is a timid animal, moves swiftly by leaps, and is remarkable for its fecundity.

3. (n.) A small constellation situated south of and under the foot of Orion; Lepus.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

HARE

har ('arnebheth (Leviticus 11:6 Deuteronomy 14:7); compare Arabic 'arnab, "hare"): This animal is mentioned only in the lists of unclean animals in Leviticus and Deuteronomy, Where it occurs along with the camel, the coney and the swine. The camel, the hare and the coney are unclean, `because they chew the cud but part not the hoof,' the swine, "because he parteth the hoof. but cheweth not the cud." The hare and the coney are not ruminants, but might be supposed to be from their habit of almost continually moving their jaws. Both are freely eaten by the Arabs. Although 'arnebheth occurs only in the two places cited, there is no doubt that it is the hare. Septuagint has dasupous, "rough-footed," which, while not the commonest Greek word (lagos), refers to the remarkable fact that in hares and rabbits the soles of the feet are densely covered with hair. 'Arnab, which is the common Arabic word for "hare," is from the same root as the Hebrew 'arnebheth.

Leviticus 11:4-7: verse 4, English Versions of the Bible "camel"; Septuagint ton kamelon; Vulgate (Jerome's Latin Bible, 390-405 A.D.) camelus; Hebrew ha-gamal. Leviticus 11:5, English Versions of the Bible "coney"; Septuagint ton dasupoda; Vulgate, choerogryllus; Hebrew ha-shapan. Leviticus 11:6, English Versions of the Bible "hare"; Septuagint ton choirogruillion Vulgate, lepus; Hebrew ha-arnebeth. Leviticus 11:7, English Versions of the Bible "swine"; Septuagint ton hun; Vulgate, sus; Hebrew ha-chazir.

Deuteronomy 14:7: English Versions of the Bible "camel"; Septuagint ton kamelon Vulgate, camelum; Hebrew hagamal; English Versions of the Bible "hare"; Septuagint dasupoda; Vulgate, leporem; Hebrew ha'arnebeth; English Versions of the Bible "coney"; Septuagint choirogrullion; Vulgate, choerogryllum; Hebrew hashaphan.

Deuteronomy 14:8: English Versions of the Bible "swine"; Septuagint ton hun Vulgate, sus; Hebrew hacheziyr.

It is evident from the above and from the meanings of dasupous and chorogrullios as given in Liddell and Scott, that the order of Septuagint in Leviticus 11:5, 6 does not follow the Hebrew, but has apparently assimilated the order of that of Deuteronomy 14:7, 8. In Psalm 104:18, Septuagint has chorogrullios for shaphan; also in Proverbs 30:26.

Since the word "coney," which properly means "rabbit," has been applied to the hyrax, so, in America at least, the word "rabbit" is widely used for various species of hare, e.g. the gray rabbit and the jack-rabbit, both of which are hares. Hares have longer legs and ears and are swifter than rabbits. Their young are hairy and have their eyes open, while rabbits are born naked and blind. Hares are widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere, and there is one species in South America. Rabbits are apparently native to the Western Mediterranean countries, although they have been distributed by man all over the world.

Lepus syriacus, the common hare of Syria and Palestine, differs somewhat from the European hare. Lepus judeae is cited by Tristram from Northeastern Palestine, and he also notes three other species from the extreme south.

Alfred Ely Day

Strong's Hebrew

768. arnebeth -- a hare
... arnebeth. 769 . a hare. Transliteration: arnebeth Phonetic Spelling:
(ar-neh'-beth) Short Definition: rabbit. ... hare. Of uncertain derivation; the hare -- ...
/hebrew/768.htm - 5k

4118. maher -- hastening, speedy, swift
... 4117, 4118. maher. 4118a . hastening, speedy, swift. Transliteration: maher
Phonetic Spelling: (mah-hare') Short Definition: hasteth. ...
/hebrew/4118.htm - 5k

2891. taher -- to be clean or pure
... 2890, 2891. taher. 2892 . to be clean or pure. Transliteration: taher Phonetic
Spelling: (taw-hare') Short Definition: clean. Word Origin a prim. ...
/hebrew/2891.htm - 6k

4122. Maher Shalal Chash Baz -- "swift (is) booty, speedy (is) ...
... "swift (is) booty, speedy (is) prey," symbolic name of Isaiah's son. Transliteration:
Maher Shalal Chash Baz Phonetic Spelling: (mah-hare' shaw-lawl' khawsh baz ...
/hebrew/4122.htm - 6k

Library

Accession of Cyrus to the Throne.
... He wrote a letter to Cyrus, and then taking a hare, which some of his huntsmen had
caught for him, he opened the body and concealed the letter within. ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/abbott/cyrus the great/chapter v accession of cyrus.htm

Spiritual Significance of the Precepts of Moses Respecting ...
... the mud which lies at the bottom. Moreover, "Thou shall not," he says,
"eat the hare." Wherefore? "Thou shall not be a corrupter ...
/.../barnabas/the epistle of barnabas /chapter x spiritual significance of the.htm

The Versions of Tauler's Sermons
... German of Hamberger's edition (1872); then in the French translation of Sainte-Foi
(1855); and finally in the English translation of Archdeacon Hare, in his ...
//christianbookshelf.org/tauler/the inner way/v the versions of taulers.htm

A Lament
... The merry merry lark was up and singing, And the hare was out and feeding on the
lea; And the merry merry bells below were ringing, When my child's laugh rang ...
//christianbookshelf.org/kingsley/andromeda and other poems/a lament.htm

"About the Same Time, a Cow which a Demon Harassed Met Martin as ...
... of huntsmen. The dogs were pursuing a hare, and the little animal was already
much exhausted by the long run it had had. When it ...
/.../severus/life and writings of sulpitius severus /chapter ix about the same.htm

Indian Religions.
... world. It is said that almost all the nations of the Algonquin language give
this Sovereign Being the appellation of the Great Hare. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/hayward/the book of religions/indian religions.htm

Psalm CIV.
... Thence drinks the hare, thence the wild ass: the hare little, the wild ass great;
the hare timid, the wild ass fierce: either sort drinks thence, but each for ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/augustine/exposition on the book of psalms/psalm civ.htm

The Retreat from Scythia.
... interpretations."Opinions of the Persian officers."The Scythians draw up their
forces."The armies prepare for battle."Hunting the hare."The Persians ...
/...//christianbookshelf.org/abbott/darius the great/chapter ix the retreat from.htm

The Common Conception among the Dregs of Darwinian Culture is that ...
... You cannot have equality in a soap factory; so you cannot have it anywhere. You
cannot have comradeship in a wheat corner; so you cannot hare it at all. ...
/.../chesterton/whats wrong with the world/chapter 15 the common conception.htm

Mr. HG Wells and the Giants
... The hare and the tortoise may differ in the quality of swiftness, but they
must agree in the quality of motion. The swiftest hare ...
//christianbookshelf.org/chesterton/heretics/v mr h g wells and.htm

Thesaurus

Coney (2 Occurrences)
... These teeth differ also in structure from those of the hare and rabbit, not having
the persistent pulp which enables the rabbit's front teeth to grow ...
/c/coney.htm - 12k

Form (153 Occurrences)
... in society. 10. (n.) The seat or bed of a hare. 11. (n ... in part. 21. (n.)
To provide with a form, as a hare. See Form, n., 9. 22. (n ...
/f/form.htm - 45k

Cud (9 Occurrences)
... chamois. Several of the forbidden animals are expressly named in the passages,
eg the camel, the rock-badger, the hare and the swine. ...
/c/cud.htm - 11k

Rabbit (3 Occurrences)
... YLT). Leviticus 11:6 The hare, because she chews the cud but doesn't part
the hoof, she is unclean to you. (See NAS NIV). Deuteronomy ...
/r/rabbit.htm - 7k

Pricking (1 Occurrence)
... 5. (n.) A sensation of being pricked. 6. (n.) The mark or trace left by a hare's
foot; a prick; also, the act of tracing a hare by its footmarks. ...
/p/pricking.htm - 7k

Chew (5 Occurrences)
... chamois. Several of the forbidden animals are expressly named in the passages,
eg the camel, the rock-badger, the hare and the swine. ...
/c/chew.htm - 9k

Cloven (12 Occurrences)
... DBY). Leviticus 11:6 and the hare, for it cheweth the cud, but hath not
cloven hoofs it shall be unclean unto you; (DBY). Leviticus ...
/c/cloven.htm - 11k

Split (36 Occurrences)
... you. (See NIV). Leviticus 11:6 The hare, because she chews the cud but
doesn't part the hoof, she is unclean to you. (See NIV). Leviticus ...
/s/split.htm - 19k

Hara (1 Occurrence)
... Septuagint renders ore Medon, "the mountains of the Medes," which may represent
Hebrew hare madhay, "mountains of Media," or, `are madhay, "cities of Media ...
/h/hara.htm - 8k

Hoof (11 Occurrences)
... (WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV NIV). Leviticus 11:6 The hare, because she
chews the cud but doesn't part the hoof, she is unclean to you. ...
/h/hoof.htm - 11k

Bible Concordance

Hare (2 Occurrences)

Leviticus 11:6 The hare, because she chews the cud but doesn't part the hoof, she is unclean to you.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT RSV)

Deuteronomy 14:7 Nevertheless these you shall not eat of them that chew the cud, or of those who have the hoof cloven: the camel, and the hare, and the rabbit; because they chew the cud but don't part the hoof, they are unclean to you.
(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT RSV)

Subtopics

Hare

Hare: Forbidden As Food

Related Terms

Form (153 Occurrences)

Cud (9 Occurrences)

Rabbit (3 Occurrences)

Pricking (1 Occurrence)

Chew (5 Occurrences)

Cloven (12 Occurrences)

Split (36 Occurrences)

Hara (1 Occurrence)