“As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings: so the Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him." Deut. 32:11, 12.
These well-known, glorious verses from the song of Moses, which picture the untiring care of God for His earthly people, the Jews of old, re-echo an object lesson for us in the ways of a mother eagle towards her young.
An eye-witness reports the following incident of the remarkable actions of this bird:
“The old eagle was soaring around the site of the nest, seeking to encourage the young eagle to leave it. At last the young bird followed its mother's coaxing, raising itself with great effort, fluttering on the outer edge of the rocky crown of the mountain peak. For a little while it looked from its new position down to the world below with thoughtful meditation, then it fluttered back to its nest, remaining deaf to the further entreaties of its mother.
“Suddenly the old bird rose upward as though tired of coaxing. I held my breath, for I knew what was to follow. The little fellow was sitting at the edge of the nest, looking downward into the abyss, into which it dared not descend. All at once a piercing cry sounded through the air, and in the next moment the mother bird shot toward the nest, catching both the young bird and the entire nest with its large claws, throwing them right out into space.
“Now the young eagle had to fly whether it wanted to or not, and it did flutter for dear life. At one time above, and then again below, or beside it was the mother bird, encouraging the same by tender calls, seeking to make it understand that she was at hand. But terror seemed to rob the young bird of its sense. Its fluttering became more unsteady and agitated, and it sank faster and faster. Then losing its balance and consciousness it went headlong downward with the wings drawn close to its body into the depths below, where it must inevitably smash on the ground.
“But just then the mother eagle shot like lightning under its baby bird thus exposed to danger. The feet of the little one just touched the broad back of the mother, and it balanced itself. Then resting itself for a moment, seemed to regain its consciousness. Shortly after this the old one again darted away from the young one, leaving it afresh to the strength of its wings. Finally I lost sight of them, and when by means of my field glasses I had found them, the little eagle was sitting in the top of a tall pine tree, being fed by its mother.
“As I still looked at the actions of the birds, suddenly it became plain to me what the prophet meant by the words at the beginning of this article. God carries His own upon the strong wings of His love through the greatest dangers and hardships. He stirs up our nest so that we may not settle down in this doomed world as though this were our home. The many trials and difficulties that come upon us are sent by Him in great love to exercise and strengthen us that we may know Him better as the One who sustains us and carries us through the difficult places. Surely we can say, 'We know that all things work together for good to them that love God.'
"Yet how often we flutter and go down like the young eagle, only to find that, after all, 'underneath are the everlasting arms' to hold us up. Oh, for grace to trust Him more." The Young. Christian