This certainly is an interesting song to explore. I hate the lyrics, but I have to admit they're interesting - and the song has a great tune.

It's clear that the "great speckled bird"..."on the pages of God's Holy Word" - is a reference to Jeremiah, Chapter 12, Verse 9 (Jer 12:9). The entire passage is here (click). If you look in any concordance, you'll find that this passage in Jeremiah is the only mention of speckled birds in the entire Bible.

But it's also clear that Jeremiah and the songwriter were talking about different things. A common theme among the prophets was the apostasy of the Hebrew people, that God's Chosen People were hedging their bets and worshipping the gods of all the neighboring peoples, and not relying completely on their own God. The prophets also spoke of a "remnant," a minority who would remain faithful to the Hebrew God alone - Jeremiah used the metaphor of a speckled bird among all the others. Seems to me that Jeremiah's metaphor can be compared to the Hans Christian Andersen Ugly Duckling story.

But it's also clear to me that the song is a diatribe against liberalism and secularism. Most of the gospel songs of the era were written by very conservative people, but this is one song that takes a direct stance against progressive influences in the churches. And that's why I don't like the song. I take it personally. It sounds like the many voices I hear that tell me I don't belong in my church because I support immigrants and blacks and homosexuals and homeless people. "That Old-Time Religion" has the same message, except perhaps not quite as harsh. But it's clear to me that "Great Speckled Bird" is a harsh condemnation of all those who do not adhere to fundamentalist Christianity. Phil did a good job of putting the song into its historical context - it was written in the early 20th century, at the time of the rise of fundamentalism.

-Joe-