Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Karl Randolph" <kwrandolph AT email.com>]

Dear Harold:

I have enjoyed the articles on foxes, as I enjoy learning about the wonders 
of nature, but very few of them actually mentioned the damage foxes make to 
vineyards, and those that did only mentioned damage to the fruit, not to the 
vines nor the vineyards themselves.

Even though I now live in San Francisco, I saw a fox in Golden Gate Park, 
standing under a street light on the road. It was going after some roadkill 
and allowed me to ride on my bicycle within a few feet of it and only ran 
when I stopped to take a closer look. Cute little thing. This was the only 
time I’ve seen a fox “in the wild”. Other wildlife I’ve seen in town include 
skunk, ’coon and ’possum.

Yet, even if you prove that foxes damage vineyards, that does not prove that 
XBL in Song of Songs 2:15 means “damage” and not “connected with” as I 
translate it.

When doing lexicography, if fewer than 10% of occurances of a lexeme are 
given a different definition, I tend to question the appropriateness of the 
different definition. For XBL it is only two or three examples that raise 
questions, all others fit grammatically, according to context and meaning. 
Even the two or three questionable occurances still can be resolved according 
to the majority meaning, therefore I question the minority meaning, namely 
that one connected with destruction or corruption.

Karl W. Randolph.

----- Original Message -----
From: "Harold R. Holmyard III" <hholmyard AT ont.com>

> Dear Karl,
> 
> My idea that foxes have a winter hideaway is only partly true, but 
> the part that's true may fit with Song of Solomon 2:15. The following 
> concerns the red fox in Illinois, so I don't know exactly how 
> transferable the information is.
> 
> Song 2:15 Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the 
> vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom.
> 
> HH: The phrase "little foxes" might suggest especially the younger 
> foxes, since QF+FN ("small") is used to mean "young" (Gen 9:24; 1 Sam 
> 17:14; 2 Sam 9:12). Of course, it could just mean small.
> 
> HH: The foxes because of their fur apparently can feel warm all year, 
> and the only time they use dens is when they breed, but they happen 
> to do this in the winter (see the section below on reproduction). 
> Females have a breeding period of only two to four days a year. Since 
> the foxes usually give birth at the end of March and beginning of 
> April, the pups would be running around by the time the vineyards 
> blossom in June.The article notes that about eight to ten weeks after 
> birth the pups start taking short trips along with their parents.
> 
> HH: So perhaps spring was the best time to work at reducing the fox 
> population. Here is some material from an article on foxes:
> http://www.inhs.uiuc.edu/dnr/fur/species/redfox.html
>
>                                       Yours,
>                                       Harold Holmyard
-- 
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