HUNTING (צוּד, H7421, צַ֫יִד֒, H7473, hunt, hunting), the quest for animals as a source of food, or in order to check marauding, or for sport. There are few references to hunting in the OT, and no direct allusions in the NT, since hunting can occur only in a rural or wilderness setting, whereas the Bible, esp. the NT, deals largely with urban life. Hunting for food is most common among rural or nomadic peoples except for those who participate in it as a sport. “Hunter” is applied to Nimrod, the founder of Babel and of other cities of the Mesopotamian valley (Gen 10:9). Evidently the word implies his warlike qualities and his feats as a conqueror. Esau was commissioned by his father, Jacob, to hunt venison for him (Gen 27:3), and Ishmael, who grew up in the wilderness, became an archer (Gen 21:20), adept with the use of the bow and arrow. Occasional allusions to the killing of wild animals occur in the OT, but they seem to refer mostly to the defense of sheep or cattle against predators, such as the episode of Samson and the lion (Judg 14:5, 6), or David’s adventures with a lion and bear (1 Sam 17:34-36), or Benaiah’s encounter with a lion in a pit (2 Sam 23:20). Wild animals as well as domesticated cattle are mentioned in the dietary laws, which implies that the Jewish people ate them, and must have been dependent on hunters to supply their needs (Lev 17:13; Deut 14:5; 1 Sam 26:20).

Weapons for hunting included the bow and arrow (Gen 27:3), nets for birds and fish (Prov 1:17; Eccl 9:12), traps (Amos 3:5), and pits into which animals would fall (Ps 35:17; Ezek 19:1-4). These terms are frequently used metaphorically.

The Israelites were a settled pastoral people rather than nomads who lived by hunting and plundering; consequently the language that they used reflected only the occasional use of weapons. Allusions to the phenomena of hunting are largely figurative.

Among other nations of the time, such as the Egyptians and Assyrians, hunting was regarded as a pastime, and was prob. a favorite royal sport. The monuments bear ample witness to the practice of hunting in these countries.