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Domestic Animals



in the Bible



Genesis, the Creation Week



Genesis 1:24-25



All terrestrial livestock were created on the sixth day of Creation. While they are specifically mentioned in the verses, it could be part of a merism (livestock + crawling things + wild beasts) to indicate that all terrestrial animals were created on this day, rather than that some animals were 'domesticated' at this time. (After all, all creatures were originally created to be 'grass eaters,' and there was no death or fear of man.) After the Fall, domestication occurred fairly quickly, though, indicating a particular proclivity towards domestication in some kinds.



Abel's Flocks (צֹ֔אן)



Genesis 4:2



While the Hebrew can be translated 'sheep,' it is better translated 'flocks' in Genesis 4:2. Abel's domestic animals could have been related to the sheep and goats we have today, perhaps within the same biblical kind, but we have no way of knowing how similar they might have been.



Sheep



DEUTERONOMY 14:4



Fat-tailed sheep are common in the Middle East today, and are known to have been kept in ancient times. Other varieties were known in Egypt, though, and may have been brought from there during the Exodus.



Goats



DEUTERONOMY 14:4



Goats were very important in ancient Israel, as they were used for milk, meat, hair, and skins. Milk could be turned into yogurt, cheese, or butter. Mixed herds with sheep would have been common in more arid areas, as goats were able to graze on more than just grass (Paul 2018).



Cattle



Deuteronomy 14:4



Ancient cattle domestication from wild aurochs (Bos primigenius) led to the development of both Eurasian ('taurine') cattle and the Zebu. Ancient Israel's cattle included both lineages, with subsequent crossing. Oxen would generally refer to cattle used for manual labor, often castrated bulls.



Horses



Deuteronomy 17:16



The horse in biblical times often had military or political associations. God warned Israel that when they took a king, he must not build up his stables, but rather look to God to win the nation's battles.



Donkeys



Zechariah 9:9



The donkey was very important to ancient Israel for riding, plowing, and use as a pack animal.



Mules



2 Samuel 18:9



The mule is a hybrid cross between a horse and a donkey. It was often used as a riding animal in Biblical times for royalty and ranking officials.



Dromedary Camels



Genesis 24:10



Dromedaries would have been the camels mentioned first in Genesis, coming from Egypt (though originally from Arabia). Attempts to discredit the Bible by arguing that camels weren't domesticated in Israel until later periods have been answered repeatedly (Athas 2014; Landa 2016).



Bactrian Camels



Isaiah 21:7



Bactrian camels were domesticated in Asia, but may have entered the Biblical world on the northeast fringes. A few Assyrian reliefs show two-humped camels. If Isaiah 21:7 is translated as a 'chariot of camels' rather than simply riders or a train of camels, then it probably refers to Bactrian camels.



Pigs



Deuteronomy 14:8



Pigs were unclean, so Israelites were not to consume them (or raise them for consumption), but they were sometimes kept during periods when Israel fell away from God. The Philistines are known to have acquired pigs from the Aegean region (Sapir-Hen et al. 2013).



Dogs



Exodus 11:7



Traditionally, ancient Israel's neighbors aligned themselves with canine companions much sooner than Israel did. Dogs were unclean, and were often scavengers, so the word 'dog' was often used in a derogatory manner in Scripture. Still Job (30:1) appears to have used them to watch his flocks, and a dog appeared in a positive light as companion in the apocryphal Book of Tobit, so some sympathies lay in the canine direction (Miller 2008).



Chickens



Matthew 23:37



Domestic fowl would, of course, have been created with other 'flying things,' but for simplicity's sake, I'll list them here. Most references to poultry in the Bible are from the New Testament. Proverbs 30:31 has been alternately translated as including a 'strutting rooster' or 'greyhound', referring to a creature with a stately stride. Large-scale poultry production in Israel is known from the Hellenistic period, between the fourth and third century B.C. (Perry-Gal et al. 2015), and chickens in artifact imagery appear in Israel dating back to the seventh century B.C. (Tilton 2014).



Geese



1 Kings 4:23



Not given specifically by name, the 'fattened fowl' of King Solomon's daily provisions is traditionally thought to have been geese, though ducks or guineas might also be considered.



Pigeons



Leviticus 5:7



Leviticus here is giving guidelines for guilt offering sacrifices, and if an Israelite was unable to provide a lamb or goat, they could bring a pair of doves (the wild turtledove) or a pair of young pigeons. Rock pigeons were domesticated very early, with records in both Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt. Pigeon-raising was widespread in the Levant by the Hellenistic period (third century B.C.) (Tepper et al. 2018).



References



Athas, G. 2014. Did the camel break the Bible's back? Nice try, but no. ABC Religion & Ethics (online)


Landa, J. 2016. Camels in the Bible. Jewish Bible Quarterly 44(2): 103-115.


Miller, G. D.. 2008. Attitudes towards dogs in Ancient Israel: a reassessment. Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 32(4): 487-500.


Paul, Ian. 2018. What did Jesus have against goats? Psephizo (online)


Perry-Gal, L., et al. 2015. Earliest economic exploitation of chicken outside East Asia: evidence from the Hellenistic Southern Levant. PNAS 112(32): 9849-9854.


Sapir-Hen, L., et al. 2013. Pig husbandry in Iron Age Israel and Judah: new insights regarding the origin of the 'taboo'. Zeitschrift des Deutschen Palastina-Vereins 129(1): 1-20.


Tepper, Y., et al. 2018. Pigeon-raising and sustainable agriculture at the fringe of the desert: a view from the Byzantine village of Sa'adon, Negev, Israel. Levant 50(1): 91-113.


Tilton, J. N. 2014. Chickens and the cultural context of the Gospels. Jerusalem Perspective (online)


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