RENEWED LIKE THE EAGLE
When the Psalmist mentions the renewal of the eagle, he may be referring to the "molting process" in an eagle’s life. As eagles age, their beaks and talons become encrusted with calcium. Thus, neither is as sharp as they once were. When this happens the aging eagle cannot hunt as effectively as he once did. As he ages, he also loses some of his feathers. When this happens it causes his body to "whistle" in the air as he dives toward his prey. This destroys his ability to hunt in silence, thus further reducing his effectiveness as a hunter. When the eagle enters this period of his life, he will descend from soaring in the heights above and find him a place in the rocks. There, he will pluck out all of his feathers and break off his own calcium encrusted beak against the rocks. He will even scratch his talons against the rocks until they are reduced to nubs. At this point, the eagle is absolutely vulnerable and defenseless. Many eagles die during this process because they cannot feed themselves or escape predators. But, during this time a wonderful thing begins to happen to those who survive.
One day the feathers of the eagle begin to grow back. His beak will also grow back. His talons regrow as long and as sharp as ever before. After a time, the eagle will step out on the rocks, flap his great wings and take to the skies once again in victory!
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