Isaiah 1:3
3 The ox knows its owner And the donkey its master’s crib; But Israel does not know, My people do not consider.”
They Are Unthinking - Like An Ox
The Ox and the Ass or donkey, were, of course, fundamental presences in an agrarian society such as Israel in the 8th century BC. The word Ox appears to have been used of any adult bovine, but especially of a bull that has been castrated to make it a more docile draft animal. The biblical terms “ox” and “oxen” however, often are used in a much broader sense to indicate cattle of either sex and various ages, often in the collective sense[1] Cows were quite often used for labor in those days, especially cows that were aged beyond the time bearing calves and producing milk. Because such things were precious and were not cast away easily. Nor were there huge farms dedicated to producing beef as there are today and so a family’s needs were met quite modestly. A cow would live a useful life long after her bearing years by submitting to the yoke and pulling the plow.
The modern ox is probably a descendant of the wild ox with which the Hebrews were apparently rather familiar. The indomitable spirit and strength of the wild ox were proverbial (Job. 39:9–12), and its horns symbolized strength (Num. 23:22; 24:8) and majesty (Deut. 33:17; Ps. 92:10). Isaiah prophesied that God’s judgment of Edom would extend to even the wild ox (Isa. 34:7). In Assyrian reliefs of hunting scenes the animal’s two horns are superimposed, giving the appearance of only one, “one-horned,” hence KJV “unicorn”).
One would be hard pressed to find a more naturally aggressive and combative animal that the male bovine. This, in addition to their immense size and strength, made them extremely dangerous Additionally, a single bull could propagate an entire herd of cattle, so the Israelites often castrated additional or lesser bulls (no simple or safe task in and of itself) to make them a more suitable draft animal (an “ox,” in the more specific modern sense). Such oxen pulled plows (Deut. 22:10; 1 Sam. 11:5; Luke 14:19), wagons (Num. 7:3; 2 Sam. 6:6), and threshing sleds (Deut. 25:4; 1 Cor. 9:9; 1 Tim. 5:18), as well as for a number of other purposes such as: Used for carrying burdens (1Ch 12:40), ploughing (1Ki 19:19; Job 1:14; Am 6:12), “earing” the ground (preparing the ground to receive seed - Isa 30:24; 32:20).
They were, unaltered, allowed for sacrifice (Ex 20:24; 2Sa 24:22). and were clean, and thus allowed for food (1Ki 1:9; 19:21; 2Ch 18:2).[2]
Oxen (perhaps in the generic sense of “cattle” or less precisely meaning “bull”) were specified for certain forms of sacrifice (Exod. 24:5, par “young bull”; Deut. 17:1; 2 Sam. 24:22–25; John 2:14–15; Acts 14:13). Just as a note, by Levitical standards a castrated beast would have been regarded as unsuitable for such a purpose (Lev. 22:17–25). The symbol of oxen for strength was even a part of the imagery used in the Temple. Twelve bronze oxen supported the molten sea of Solomon’s temple (1 Kgs. 7:25; cf. Ezek. 1:10, where each living creature had one face like that of an ox; Rev. 4:7).[3]
It is interesting that here is Isaiah 3:1 the word used is the common word for ox or bull. Yet it is here used in the singular. This could be simply a literary device, but I suspect that the reference here is to “the” bull on a farm, the unaltered male that was used to service cows in season and produce offspring that was essential to the ongoing health of the farm.
As we will note, the point here is that even the ox, not the brightest of creatures, often thought to be among the stupidest (wrongly, actually) has a certain amount of sense. It at least knows it’s owner and recognizes the hand that feeds it, acting in loyalty and according to a certain kind of righteousness and integrity if not at least self interest! But Israel, in their persistence in sin and idolatry, pursuing after their own lusts and their rebellion against the God Who had done so much for them had pursued a course of behavior that was, in reality, more stupid than the behavior of the ox!
Man prides himself in his wisdom and in his intellect! But in that profession – he has really become foolish – just as the Scripture says! Paul said in Romans 1:22, in the very famous verse concerning the unredeemed:
Professing to be wise, they became fools,
We see that no where and at no time better than today! We live in a time when knowledge abounds to an extent never before seen, and multiplies at a rate than is almost impossible for any one person to keep up with. Yet foolishness multiplies at rate equal, if not surpassing that rate! Oh Lord – come quickly – lest indeed You return and, as You said in Luke 18:8:
“…when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”
[1] Myers, A. C. (1987). The Eerdmans Bible dictionary. Rev., augm. translation of: Bijbelse encyclopedie. Rev. ed. 1975. (787). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans.
[2] Torrey, R. (1995, c1897). The new topical text book : A scriptural text book for the use of ministers, teachers, and all Christian workers. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos research Systems, Inc.
[3] Myers, A. C. (1987). The Eerdmans Bible dictionary. Rev., augm. translation of: Bijbelse encyclopedie. Rev. ed. 1975. (787). Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans.
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