A Ground Nest

 

[The Lord said] “If you come across a bird’s nest in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs and the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young. You shall let the mother go, but the young you may take for yourself, that it may go well with you, and that you may live long.” (Deuteronomy 22:6-7 ESV).

 

As I have mentioned before, we live more in the country than the city. I also feed the wild birds. I also have several nesting boxes that I have built and set up for various kinds of birds. I have two boxes designed for Eastern Bluebirds. It is always a pleasure to watch them as they return each year to lay the eggs and raise their clutch. Some of the other nests I have found belong to the many doves that frequent our home; swallows that love the “bird hotel” I’ve erected about twenty feet in the air which is their preference; and, of course, we have nests in other places from the ever-present English Sparrows. Last year, as I was mowing, I found a ground nest that was well camouflaged in the grass and leaves. I had seen this before and began to look around for the Killdeer that had laid them. She wasn’t far, doing her best to lure me away from her clutch. I was sure to take a wide path around the nest and watched over the next few weeks as they hatched. It was an incredible reminder that God’s creation is constantly changing and being infused with life.

 

Our reading today is among the many Old Testament guidelines for holy living. These give God’s instruction in what they should do if they found such a nest. At that time, it was considered okay to take the eggs or the young hatchlings, but it was not acceptable to harm the bird that laid them. That was a simple principle of conservation: if the eggs are taken, the bird can lay more eggs, but if the mother bird is taken or destroyed, she can’t produce any more. In times of hunger, it might have been tempting to take both the bird and the eggs, but the prevailing wisdom cautioned people to use restraint, even if they were desperate.

 

These instructions aren’t only about conservation, though. We can trust that if God cares for birds, he cares far more about us, whom he made in his image. Jesus made this clear when he said to his followers, “Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:31). He was explaining God’s care for them when they were threatened by enemies. Similarly, God cares for us!