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Christian Churches of God
No. 29
Lambs of God
(Edition 3.0 19940521-20000617-20071220)
This paper was written by a pastoralist who trained sheep and goats for the highly acclaimed award-winning family film, Babe. He examines the lessons relating to sheep husbandry with the biblical message from creation. The roles of the sheep and the shepherd are also examined. The behaviour of sheep and the expectations of a shepherd are developed. The difference between the Egyptian and biblical systems and the spiritual implications are shown.
Christian Churches of God
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(Copyright ã 1994 Storm Cox, ed. 2000, 2007 Wade Cox)
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Lambs of God
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Introduction
From a very young age the writer was exposed to the life of the sheep manager. From his youth and on through to university, and then later working as an animal trainer (of the sheep and goats for the film, Babe), he was closely involved in the management and general husbandry of sheep, as well as most other farm animals. This experience made him ponder on the methods of the biblical agriculturists, which seemed to be the dominant occupation of men in Old Testament times. Such experiences led the writer to consider the meaning of the much-used sheep and shepherd analogies, and in this paper he endeavours to relate his observations to the Church of God.
The origins of the flock
On the fifth day of creation, God willed that the land was to produce living creatures.
Genesis 1:24-26 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind.”- And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. 26 The God said, “let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground”.
The Hebrew word for livestock is miqneh (SHD 4735), which also means possessions, purchase or substance. The word also means flock and herd, which thus incorporates sheep, goats, cattle and all other quadruped (four-legged) ‘clean’ animals. They were separated as animals to be used for consumption. The Hebrew word for sheep is tso'n (SHD 6629), which means sheep, goats and young cattle, unless the word is kaseb (SHD 3775; Gen. 30:32,33,35; Lev. 1:10; 7:23; 22:19,27; Num. 18:17; Deut. 14:4), which applies directly to the sheep as we understand a sheep to be today.
Rachel (7354) means to journey and is attributed to the ewe. It applies to the female animal as kebes (3532) is to the male.
The Hebrew word for cattle is behemah (929), which means a four-legged beast. The point here is that other than the word kaseb, which is used in only nine verses, the words for cattle, sheep, goats, and all other quadruped clean animals are the same. Likewise, in the Greek, the word for sheep used throughout the New Testament is probaton (SGD 4263), the Greek word for the Hebrew behemah, which, as mentioned, means quadruped animal and also applies to all clean livestock.
Deciding what particular species is used in any given verse is a decision on behalf of the translator, depending on the nature of the Scripture.
All cattle, sheep and goats are related biologically, as they are all members of the bovidae family. The characteristics of this family are that they:
- Are ruminants,
- Have cloven hoofs and,
- All have hollow horns.
Each meets the biblical requirements of (spiritual) cleanliness, as outlined in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14, and thus can be eaten.
The origins of the shepherd
As we read in Genesis 1:26, man was commissioned by God from the creation to rule over the animals. Therefore, one could assume that it is part of our responsibility to do so in a correct manner. Thus, the occupation of the shepherd was predestined from the beginning of time.
The Hebrew word for shepherd is ra'ah (SHD 7462) and is defined as:
... to tend a flock, i.e. to pasture it; intrans. to graze (lit or fig); gen. to rule; by extens. to associate with (as a friend):-* break, companion, keep company with, devour, eat up, evil entreat, feed, use as a friend, make friendship with, herdsman, keep (sheep) (-er), pastor, + shearing house, shepherd, wander, waste.
Ra'ah stems from the word ra', which means adversity, affliction, bad, calamity and evil. Ra' means to destroy or tear down, whereas ra'ah means to hold together under adversity. The word ra'ah is the feminine of the word ra' (SHD 7451, from7489), and thus has opposite connotations.
In the Greek, the word is poimen (pr. poy-mane; SGD 4166), which simply means shepherd or pastor.
Thus far we can see from the Bible the background of the position of the shepherd and his management of the clean animals that God has given to man to eat. Clean animals are God’s gift to us as food, so that we may dwell on His Earth within the system that He organised for our well-being. This is why Abel's offering to God was more pleasing than Cain's in the eyes of the Lord, as sin requires expiation by blood sacrifice, and pointed to Christ (cf. Gen. 4:3-5).
What does it mean to be a sheep?
In biblical times, as today, the chief role of the sheep is to provide wool (Lev. 13:47-48; Job 31:20), meat (1Sam. 14:32), hides (Ex. 25:5; Heb. 11:37), milk (Deut. 32:14; Isa. 7:21-22), and other products such as horns for containers and musical instruments (1Sam. 16:1; Josh. 6:4).
In the days of old, wool was a precious commodity and thus a significant means of trade. We know from 2Kings 3:4 that Mesha, King of Moab, had to pay the King of Israel the wool from a hundred thousand rams each year.
Sheep were also attributed to a man's wealth. In the Bible, a man was blessed if he was the owner of thousands or tens of thousands of sheep (Ps. 144:13).
From the Bible we can gain an understanding of the nature of the animal. In 2Samuel 12:3 we see that sheep were understood to be affectionate. From Isaiah 53:7, Jeremiah 11:19 and John 10:34, sheep are non-aggressive. From Micah 5:8 and Matthew 10:16 sheep are relatively defenceless and, most importantly, in Numbers 27:17, Ezekiel 34:5 and Matthew 9:36 and 26:31 we note that they were in need of constant care and supervision.
In the Old Testament, when a shepherd and his flock were discussed, it was usually in the literal sense. In the New Testament, however, it was nearly always in the figurative.
In the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE) on page 464, it quotes Psalm 95:7:
We are the people of his [God’s] Pasture, and the sheep of his hand.
And it goes on to say:
These familiar words use a common biblical metaphor that emphasises the utter dependence of human beings upon God for their existence, survival, and welfare. The Figure gives glad recognition both to the needs of human beings as creatures and to God’s sufficiency as the creator and provider for all human needs. (referring to 2Sam. 24:17, 1Chr. 21:17, Ps 78:52, Ezek. 34:31, Zech. 11:4-17, 13:7 and John 10:10-15).
From this we can see the similarities between the literal and metaphorical relationships between sheep and the people of God.
Much to the surprise of most people, sheep are actually quite intelligent animals. Sheep act erratically at times due to the vulnerability of the animal, as they have the least defence mechanisms of most of the land-faring species. Due to this, sheep are insecure and timid animals. Modern-day management techniques of large flocks using dogs and motorbikes only add to this fearfulness within the animal.
In the days of old, management took a much different form. The shepherd led the sheep from the front. The sheep would hear his voice and follow, secure in his presence. When sheep are secure they will graze in what seems like a daydream and can easily wander off, oblivious to what is happening around them. A human can quite easily catch a sheep in the paddock.
Sheep see, hear, think and learn, as all animals do. Each animal has a different level of intelligence, in much the same way as humans. As a sheep trainer, the writer observed that not all of the animals could pick up some of the behaviour expected of them. Some sheep would take longer periods of time to develop. Some would react quickly. Often it depends on previous experiences with humans and the experiences within their training environment.
Often the bigger the appetite, the more committed the animal would be to learn and thus receive its reward of sweet feed. Hence, ‘blessed is he who hungers and thirsts after righteousness’.
It is also interesting to note that trained sheep, when put back into a flock situation due to its development, will become a leader in the flock and the rest will follow it. Hence, we become ‘fishers of men’.
If a sheep had been treated well by humans it would not be so nervous, and so more ready to have closer contact. If the sheep had been treated aggressively by a human, then it would cower and not wish to communicate. Even after the sheep had been trained for many months, it would still run away if the trainer was in a tense mood or stood over the animal and made too rapid a movement. We were taught to only move towards the animal at eye level, moving slowly and gently. If the trainer was in a bad mood it was better not to train the animal until he was in a more serene mood. It is easy to undo weeks of work by giving the animal a negative experience, even if the animal was scared accidentally.
From this we can conclude that sheep are sensitive, observant and watchful. They have an under-estimated capacity for memory and a more adept sheep will learn in a matter of weeks tasks such as travelling through obstacle paths, being sent to marks, returning on command and also climbing onto blocks.
Sheep are herbivores and thus do not prey on other animals. They are content in a safe environment, and are harmless and unobtrusive. Their demands are simple and they only make a noise when they are hungry or they fear danger.
Sheep instinctively stay close to one another to be safe. When a ewe with lamb is sick or cast (i.e., miscarriesthe foetus), the other ewes will protect her young unless the danger becomes too severe. Often a pregnant or fat sheep can roll onto its back and will not be able to get back on its feet. Thus, it relies on its human keeper to get it back on its feet. The smallest of birds will kill a sheep if it becomes cast or injured. To run away is a sheep’s only defence. It is such a peaceful animal, totally reliant on its human friend.
The Bible talks of sheep that listen and hear the shepherd's voice (Jn. 10:3), and the shepherds can call their sheep by name (see the paper He Calls Them by Name: A Study of Psalm 23 (No. 18)). This shows how the shepherds and all people can, through symbiosis, form incredible communicative relationships with all types of livestock as part of their management techniques. This is why humans love to have pets so much.
It is of note to point that the Church was used in the context of a flock, not as God's pets, but as a group that only functions properly as a united whole.
One can go on, but surely we can appreciate the comparisons to a Christian and see why the sheep/shepherd analogies were used – peaceful, harmless, united, and watchful for our caring shepherd.
Understanding the nature of the sheep allows us to appreciate the function and importance of the task of the shepherd even more.
What does it mean to be a shepherd?
To understand this, we must first realise the importance of the responsibilities placed on the heads of the shepherds. If we had only a small portion of food to feed ourselves and our families for a given period of time and without which we would starve, then surely we would use every means available to defend our means of sustenance, should somebody break into our house and try to steal it.
The flocks were the lifeblood of the families of the shepherds. The flocks fed and nourished all the people, including the widows, orphans and the lame. If the animals were stolen or died they could not provide enough for all, thus the job of being a shepherd was indeed great.
Another important point to consider before we move on is the attitude or mindset that the shepherding system involved.
Genesis 46:34 That ye shall say, “Thy servants' trade hath been about cattle from our youth even until now, both we, and also our fathers.” that ye may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination unto the Egyptians.
The Hebrew culture of sheep herding was detested by the Egyptian mindset. The Egyptian way of thinking was and is understood throughout the Bible as being an anti-God thought process. The Egyptians were a rich trading nation. They were capitalists (another word could be materialists), who sought wealth and prosperity in the form of physical things. This mentality brought them to enslave Israel. They became rich from the labours of and to the detriment of other nations. We have seen this in more modern times with the enslavement of the Africans by the United States, among other nations. The reason the shepherds were detestable was because, in the management of their flocks and families and general leadership, they expounded a servant-leadership style of government. This is an opposite system to the Egyptians, and thus a total witness against their system.