John Gill Commentary Luke 11:12

"Or [if] he shall ask an egg, will he give him a scorpion?" — Luke 11:12 (ASV)

Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a
scorpion
&c.] Of which there are three sorts; some are terrestrial, or land scorpions, scorpions of the earth, a kind of serpents, very venomous and mischievous, to whom the wicked Jews are compared, (Ezekiel 2:6) and the locusts in (Revelation 9:3Revelation 9:5) others are airy, or flying scorpions, a sort of fowl; and others are sea scorpions; of the fish kind: it is not easy to say which of them is here meant.

There is an herb which is called (Nynbrqe) ^F14 , "the scorpion": its leaves are like to a scorpion, as the Jewish commentators say ^F15 . This is observed with the same view as the former.

By it may be meant here, either the fish that is so called, since a fish is mentioned before; or rather, the land scorpion, which is of the serpent kind; this brings forth little worms, in the form of eggs, as ^F16 Pliny says. It is also said that a scorpion put into an empty eggshell has been used to be given to persons whose death has been desired; bursting from it, the scorpion at once strikes and kills. But what father would do so to a child!

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FOOTNOTES:

• F14: Misn. Erubin, c. 2. sect. 6.
• F15: Maimon. & Bartonora in lb,
• F16: Lib. 11. c. 25.