Thursday, January 25, 2018

Donkeys

140 verses in ESV. 1Sam 9-10 started me thinking.

1 Samuel 9:3 - Now the donkeys of Kish, Saul's father, were lost. So Kish said to Saul his son, “Take one of the young men with you, and arise, go and look for the donkeys.”
1 Samuel 9:5 - When they came to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant who was with him, “Come, let us go back, lest my father cease to care about the donkeys and become anxious about us.”
1 Samuel 9:20 - As for your donkeys that were lost three days ago, do not set your mind on them, for they have been found. And for whom is all that is desirable in Israel? Is it not for you and for all your father's house?”
1 Samuel 10:2 - When you depart from me today, you will meet two men by Rachel's tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah, and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys that you went to seek are found, and now your father has ceased to care about the donkeys and is anxious about you, saying, “What shall I do about my son?”’
1 Samuel 10:14 - Saul's uncle said to him and to his servant, “Where did you go?” And he said, “To seek the donkeys. And when we saw they were not to be found, we went to Samuel.”
1 Samuel 10:16 - And Saul said to his uncle, “He told us plainly that the donkeys had been found.” But about the matter of the kingdom, of which Samuel had spoken, he did not tell him anything.

All we like donkeys have gone astray? Yes but there are significant donkeys to be found. (Pun?)

Of Ishmael, Genesis 16:12 - He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.”

then

Gen 49;14 Issachar is a strong donkey,
crouching between the sheepfolds.
15 He saw that a resting place was good,
and that the land was pleasant,
so he bowed his shoulder to bear,
and became a servant at forced labour.

The most famous early donkey -
Numbers 22:21 - So Balaam rose in the morning and saddled his donkey and went with the princes of Moab.
Numbers 22:22 - But God's anger was kindled because he went, and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as his adversary. Now he was riding on the donkey, and his two servants were with him.
Numbers 22:23 - And the donkey saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road, with a drawn sword in his hand. And the donkey turned aside out of the road and went into the field. And Balaam struck the donkey, to turn her into the road.
Numbers 22:25 - And when the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she pushed against the wall and pressed Balaam's foot against the wall. So he struck her again.
Numbers 22:27 - When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam. And Balaam's anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff.
Numbers 22:28 - Then the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”
Numbers 22:29 - And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have made a fool of me. I wish I had a sword in my hand, for then I would kill you.”
Numbers 22:30 - And the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey, on which you have ridden all your life long to this day? Is it my habit to treat you this way?” And he said, “No.”
Numbers 22:32 - And the angel of the LORD said to him, “Why have you struck your donkeythese three times? Behold, I have come out to oppose you because your way is perverse before me.
Numbers 22:33 - The donkey saw me and turned aside before me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, surely just now I would have killed you and let her live.”

Then Samson
Judges 15:15 - And he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and put out his hand and took it, and with it he struck 1,000 men.
Judges 15:16 - And Samson said,“With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps upon heaps, with the jawbone of a donkey have I struck down a thousand men.”

Which has lead to
The 1836 edition of a classic joke book titled “Joe Miller’s Jests with Copious Additions” included an instance of the tale in which the “jawbone of an ass” referred to the jawbone of a boastful individual: 2A young fellow, not quite so wise as Solomon, eating some Cheshire cheese full of mites, one night at the tavern: Now, said he, have I done as much as Sampson, for I have slain my thousands and my ten thousands. Yes, answered one of the company, and with the same weapon too, the jawbone of an ass.
and HENRY WATTERSON ON OSCAR WILDE
One night Oscar Wilde was in Washington, and there were many senators and congressmen present. The long-haired aesthetic was delivering himself of an eloquent tirade against the invasion of the sacred domain of art by the meaner herd of trades-people and miscellaneous nobodies, and finally, rising to an Alpine height of scorn exclaimed:“Ay, all of you here are Philistines—mere Philistines!”
“What does Oscar call us?” asked Henry Watterson of John Sherman, who sat in front.
“He calls us Philistines,” said Sherman, softly.
“I see,” said Watterson, “we are Philistines, and that, I reckon, is why we are being assaulted with the jawbone of an ass.”

But back to the Bible.

Messiah shall come
Zechariah 9:9 - Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Fulfilled
Matthew 21:2 - saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me.
Matthew 21:5 - “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’”
Matthew 21:7 - They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them
John 12:14 - And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,
John 12:15 - “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt!”

Reprise
2 Peter 2:16 - but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet's madness.

After the six verses in our Bible study I have cited the 21 others which are of significance IMO.

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