Ostriches are mentioned several times in the Bible, often symbolizing certain characteristics or serving as a metaphor for specific behaviors. These large, flightless birds are native to the arid and semi-arid regions of Africa and the Middle East, areas familiar to the biblical authors. The biblical references to ostriches provide insight into their nature and the cultural perceptions of them during biblical times.

Job 39:13-18
In the Book of Job, God speaks to Job about the wonders of creation, including the ostrich. The passage highlights the ostrich's unique characteristics, particularly its lack of wisdom and understanding, juxtaposed with its remarkable speed and strength. The Berean Standard Bible states:
“The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, but cannot match the pinions and feathers of the stork. For she leaves her eggs on the ground and lets them warm in the sand. She forgets that a foot may crush them, or a wild animal may trample them. She treats her young harshly, as if they were not her own, with no concern that her labor was in vain. For God has deprived her of wisdom; He has not endowed her with understanding. Yet when she proudly spreads her wings, she laughs at the horse and its rider.”

This passage emphasizes the ostrich's apparent lack of maternal instinct and wisdom, yet acknowledges its impressive physical abilities. The ostrich's behavior is used to illustrate the diversity and complexity of God's creation, where even creatures with seemingly foolish traits have their own strengths.

Lamentations 4:3
In Lamentations, the ostrich is used metaphorically to describe the behavior of the people of Jerusalem during the city's destruction. The BSB reads:
“Even jackals offer their breasts to nurse their young, but the daughter of my people has become cruel, like ostriches in the wilderness.”

Here, the ostrich is associated with cruelty and neglect, contrasting with the natural care that even wild animals like jackals provide for their offspring. This metaphor serves to underscore the severity of the people's actions and the dire circumstances they faced.

Isaiah 13:21
The Book of Isaiah uses the imagery of ostriches to depict desolation and abandonment. In a prophecy concerning the fall of Babylon, the BSB states:
“But desert creatures will lie down there, and howling creatures will fill her houses. Owls will dwell there, and ostriches will dance there.”

In this context, the presence of ostriches in the ruins of Babylon symbolizes the complete desolation and the transformation of a once-thriving city into a wilderness inhabited by wild animals. The imagery conveys the totality of God's judgment and the reversal of human pride and achievement.

Micah 1:8
The prophet Micah uses the ostrich's behavior to express deep mourning and lamentation. The BSB records:
“Because of this I will lament and wail; I will walk barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackal and mourn like an ostrich.”

The reference to the ostrich's mournful cry serves as a powerful expression of grief and sorrow. The prophet's use of this imagery highlights the intensity of his lament over the sins and impending judgment of Israel.

In summary, the biblical references to ostriches provide a multifaceted view of these creatures, highlighting their unique characteristics and using them as metaphors for human behavior and divine judgment. The ostrich serves as a symbol of both folly and strength, neglect and desolation, reflecting the complexity of God's creation and the moral lessons drawn from it.Job 39:13-18
Gave you the goodly wings to the peacocks? or wings and feathers to the ostrich?
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Lamentations 4:3
Even the sea monsters draw out the breast, they give suck to their young ones: the daughter of my people is become cruel, like the ostriches in the wilderness.
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Isaiah 13:21
But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there.
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Isaiah 34:13
And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof: and it shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for owls.
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Isaiah 43:20
The beast of the field shall honor me, the dragons and the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen.
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Answer to Eunomius' Second Book .
... and divine,"these wise folk, on the contrary, convicting men in general of want ... and
whence, on these points they are silent; so, too, concerning God Himself ...
/.../gregory of nyssa dogmatic treatises etc/answer to eunomius second book.htm

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