Mentioned first in Genesis 10:9 in connection with Nimrod. Esau was "a cunning hunter" (Genesis 25:27). Hunting was practised by the Hebrews after their settlement in the "Land of Promise" (Leviticus 17:15; Proverbs 12:27). The lion and other ravenous beasts were found in Palestine (1 Samuel 17:34; 2 Samuel 23:20; 1 Kings 13:24; Ezek. 19:3-8), and it must have been necessary to hunt and destroy them. Various snares and gins were used in hunting (Psalm 91:3; Amos 3:5; 2 Samuel 23:20).

War is referred to under the idea of hunting (Jeremiah 16:16; Ezek. 32:30).

Noah Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language

1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Hunt.

2. (n.) The pursuit of game or of wild animals.