ass
The ass (or donkey) is an animal frequently mentioned throughout Scripture. The name donkey did not enter the vocabulary until the late 1700s. This is a domesticated member of the horse family. Its current scientific name is Equus africanus asinus.
Of the domesticated species we read of…
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The female donkey (a jenny) is called in Hebrew 'athon, so named from its slowness (Genesis 12:16; 45:23; Numbers 22:23; 1 Samuel 9:3).
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The male donkey (a jack) is called in Hebrew Hamor.
Issachar is compared to a strong donkey (Genesis 49:14).
It was forbidden to yoke together a donkey and an ox to pull a plow (Deuteronomy 22:10).
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The donkey’s colt is called in Hebrew: 'air and is mentioned in Judges 10:4 and 12:14. It is translated “foal” in Genesis 32:15; 49:11. (Compare Job 11:12; Isaiah 30:6.)
The donkey is listed as an unclean animal, because it does not chew the cud (Leviticus 11:26. Compare 2 Kings 6:25).
Asses constituted a considerable portion of wealth in ancient times (Genesis 12:16; 30:43; 1 Chronicles 27:30; Job 1:3; 42:12). They were noted for their spirit and their attachment to their master (Isaiah 1:3).
They are frequently spoken of as having been ridden upon, as by…
- Abraham (Genesis 22:3)
- Balaam (Numbers 22:21)
- the disobedient prophet (1 Kings 13:23)
- the family of Abdon the judge, seventy in number (Judges 12:14)
- Zipporah (Exodus 4:20)
- the Shunammite (1 Samuel 25:30)
- etc.
Zechariah (9:9) predicted our Lord’s triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, “riding upon an ass, and upon a colt,” etc. (Matthew 21:5, Revised King James Version).
Of wild donkeys, two species are noted in the Bible:
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that called in Hebrew 'arod, mentioned Job 39:5 and Dan. 5:21, noted for its swiftness
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that called pe're, the wild ass of Asia (Job 39:6-8; 6:5; 11:12; Isaiah 32:14; Jeremiah 2:24; 14:6, etc.).
The wild donkey was distinguished for its fleetness and its extreme shyness. In allusion to his mode of life, Ishmael is likened to a wild donkey (Genesis 16:12. Here the word is simply rendered “wild” in the King James Version, but in the Revised King James Version, “wild-ass among men”).
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