For she leaves her eggs to the earth and lets them be warmed on the ground,
English Standard Version (ESV)
What's easily missed is that the ostrich covers her eggs with sand, not just leaving them exposed. This seemingly "unnatural" act is actually how the intense desert sun, combined with her periodic warmth, incubates them. It highlights how even the most peculiar-seeming behaviors in nature are part of God's intricate design.
For she leaves her eggs to the earth and lets them be warmed on the ground,
English Standard Version (ESV)
In this section, God is highlighting the wild creatures of the earth to Job, contrasting their instincts with human understanding. The passage specifically describes the ostrich, pointing out its seemingly peculiar nesting habits where it lays eggs directly in the sand, relying on its heat and the sun for incubation. This leads into the next verse, which reveals the bird's apparent forgetfulness and lack of parental protection, further emphasizing the mysterious ways of God's creation.
Have you ever looked at the natural world and wondered if there’s a plan, or if things just happen?
This verse describes the ostrich leaving its eggs in the earth, warmed by the dust and sun. To human eyes, this looks like neglect. Ancient writers noted this behavior, some calling the ostrich 'the impious bird' because it seemed to abandon its young. It's a stark contrast to birds we see building elaborate nests and diligently sitting on their eggs. This initial impression highlights a key theme: God often works in ways that challenge our assumptions about how care and provision should look.
What appears as neglect might actually be a divinely appointed strategy. Ever experienced this paradox yourself?
While the ostrich seems to neglect its eggs, the reality is more nuanced and divinely orchestrated. The intense heat of the desert sun and sand plays a crucial role in incubation. The ostrich doesn't leave the eggs to perish; rather, it relies on the environment God created for hatching. This bird's strategy isn't one of pure forgetfulness or stupidity, as some ancient commentators suggested. Instead, it demonstrates an instinct adapted to its environment, a strategy that, while appearing unusual to us, fulfills God's purpose for the species. It points to a wisdom in creation that far surpasses human understanding.
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This psalm speaks of God bringing the speaker out of the womb and making them feel secure, highlighting divine care even from the earliest stages of life, contrasting with the ostrich's seeming neglect.
Matthew 6:26Jesus points to the birds of the air, which do not sow or reap but are fed by the Father. This passage offers a broader perspective on God's provision for all creatures, even those whose habits might appear unconventional.
Luke 12:24Similar to Matthew 6:26, this verse emphasizes God's care for ravens, which also seem to have irregular or unmanaged lives, serving as another example of divine oversight beyond human understanding.
Proverbs 30:22-23This passage lists creatures whose behavior is considered out of place or improper according to human standards, including a servant when he rules and a servant girl who dispossesses her mistress, paralleling the ostrich's unusual parenting as something noteworthy and potentially unsettling.
clarkeJob 39:14: "Which leaveth her eggs in the earth, and warmeth them in dust,"
Which leaveth her eggs in the earth - This want of parental affection in the ostrich is almost universally acknowledged. Mr. Jackson, in his Account of Morocco, observes: "The ostrich, having laid her eggs, goes away, forgetting or forsaking them: and if some other ostrich discover them, she hatches them as if they were her own, forgetting probably whether they are or are not; so deficient is the recollection of this bi…
ellicottJob 39:14: "Which leaveth her eggs in the earth, and warmeth them in dust,"
(14) Which leaveth her eggs. —The ostrich only sits upon her eggs at night, when the cold would chill and destroy them; by day the heat of the sand continues the process of hatching.
What's easily missed is that the ostrich covers her eggs with sand, not just leaving them exposed. This seemingly "unnatural" act is actually how the intense desert sun, combined with her periodic warmth, incubates them. It highlights how even the most peculiar-seeming behaviors in nature are part of God's intricate design.
In this section, God is highlighting the wild creatures of the earth to Job, contrasting their instincts with human understanding. The passage specifically describes the ostrich, pointing out its seemingly peculiar nesting habits where it lays eggs directly in the sand, relying on its heat and the sun for incubation. This leads into the next verse, which reveals the bird's apparent forgetfulness and lack of parental protection, further emphasizing the mysterious ways of God's creation.
In this section, God is highlighting the wild creatures of the earth to Job, contrasting their instincts with human understanding. The passage specifically describes the ostrich, pointing out its seemingly peculiar nesting habits where it lays eggs directly in the sand, relying on its heat and the sun for incubation. This leads into the next verse, which reveals the bird's apparent forgetfulness and lack of parental protection, further emphasizing the mysterious ways of God's creation.
"For she leaves her eggs to the earth and lets them be warmed on the ground," — What's easily missed is that the ostrich covers her eggs with sand, not just leaving them exposed. This seemingly "unnatural" act is actually how the intense desert sun, combined with her periodic…
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Last reviewed October 2026