The following 4 characteristics of the fox account for its reputation in Christian art and literature: 1) it is small - usually under 15 lbs., 2) it eats carrion or rotting flesh, 3) it steals grapes from vineyards, and 4) it plays dead to escape danger or to capture prey.
Because of its small size, the fox is associated with trifling dangers. When Nehemiah and the Jews were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, Tobiah the Ammonite mocked them saying, "Whatever they build, if even a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall" (Neh 4:3).
Its small size also associates the fox with small, seemingly innocent sins or worldly cares and annoyances which, when unchecked, threaten the tender young love of the pilgrim for Christ. In the Song of Solomon, the Shulamite requests, "Catch us the foxes, The little foxes that spoil the vines, For our vines have tender grapes" (Song 2:15).
Because its depredations damage the vines and grapes which symbolize the church, the fox symbolizes those who spread heresy, and persecution. In Luke 13:32, Jesus calls Herod a fox. Jesus warns those who would walk with Him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head" (Mt. 8:20; Luke 9:58).
Along the same lines, false prophets are considered foxes. God says, "O Israel, your prophets are like foxes in the deserts...because they have seduced My people, saying, 'Peace!' when there is no peace..." (Ezek. 13:4, 10). He means they are desperate and crafty like foxes deprived of food and refers to their tendency to play dead so that, like a wolf in sheep's clothing, the prophets convince the people there is no danger. The devil, pretending to be defeated in order to trap his prey, is represented by the fox.
Because it eats carrion, the fox is connected with ruins. Lamentations decries that Jerusalem "is desolate, with foxes walking about on it" (Lam. 5:18).
Foxes are associated with hypocrisy, cunning, heresy, lust, greed, lasciviousness, false prophecy, persecution, deceit, petty sins and troubles, slyness, and injustice. In the East, the dead may return in the guise of a fox.
All scripture quotes are from the NKJV.
To discover more about foxes see:
Comments© 1997 by Suzetta Tucker
To cite this page:
Tucker, Suzetta. "ChristStory Fox Page." ChristStory
Christian Bestiary. 1997. http://ww2.netnitco.net/users/legend01/fox.htm
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