Goats and sheep.?

Question

Does anybody know why the Bible specifically refers to goats and not pigs or cows etc....For example, on judgement day the sheep will be gathered to His right, the goats to His left. What is the significance of the goat verses using any other animal. And only mature and serious answars. Any nastiness or hatred will be reported.

Answer 1

The goats and sheep are classical cultural icons.

The offering that Abel made to God, that was acceptable, was sheep. Cain murdered Abel for the acceptability before God.

When Noah was rescued by God and landed, as a seal on the covenant God made, he offered a sacrifice of sheep.

When God put Abraham to the test, and Abraham passed, instead of offering Isaac, God gave them a Ram (boy-sheep).

Joseph (of the multicolored coat) and his family were shepherds, and that was detestable to ancient egyptians. That separated them culturally from egypt for 400 years. When God redeemed them in the time of Exodus, their sacrifices were sheep.

The sheep and goats eat grass differently. When the sheep bites, its teeth cut through the plant. Goats are greedier, and they sometimes pull the roots out of the ground. The sheep are better for the area they live in, they are more sustainable.

There is a HUGE personality difference between goats and sheep. Sheep are community oriented. They follow, they stick together, but the goal is community. Notsomuch with goats. They are rebellious and stubborn. They fight you, and they by nature are not community focussed. Some individuals wander a LOT but the bulk of sheep stick together.

I like the way that Smiths bible dictionary puts it when it says about sheep: "As the sheep is an emblem of meekness, patience and submission, it is expressly mentioned as typifying these qualities in the person of our blessed Lord."

The words of Jesus refer to the sheep and goats judgements in Matthew 25:32, and its associated passage of Matthew 25:31 - 46. He provides context in the passage about what he means. His audience of farmers and shepherds in a culture of shepherds hears his first statement about sheep and goats and gets an idea, but this is like a parable of the 4 soils. It is meant to contain an idea about heaven, but its not immediately obvious. Jesus then elaborated on what it meant, and his disciple, when writing the text also wrote down the elaboration. This is accomplished in Revelations between Chapter 16 and Chapter 19.

Oh yeah, and the left and right hand, also mentioned in Jonah, is from a period prior to the invention of toilet paper, or mass-produced soap. One hand was used to wipe after defecation. If a person ate using that hand, they were liable to get serious diseases. The right hand was culturally the clean hand, while the left was the hand used to wipe. Rich Romans used sponges on the end of a stick, thats where the phrase "wrong end of the stick" came from. Symbolically the right hand of God is meant to express his goodness and mercy while the left is meant to express his wrath.

Answer 2

When the bible refers to goats and sheeps it's refering to the righteous and the unrighteous. The goat is symbolizing the unrighteous because of their rebelliousness to God. I know you're asking why a goat, but why not? If you observe a goat you see how it's hardheaded and it bucks against its own master. God also describes the unrighteous as being a stubborn mule. You have to practically beat it half to death in order for it to move the way you want it to. The sheep is symbolizing the righteous because of their obedience to God and his word. Why sheep? If you observe a sheep you see how humble and meek they are. These verses are in the bible to help us shape our lives into what God intended for them to be like. Jesus told Nicodemis in John 3 that ye must be born again of water and of spirit. Just like he told Nicodemis we also must be born again of water and of spirit. This water I'm speaking of is baptist in the name of Jesus Christ and the spirit I'm speaking of is the Holy Ghost. To read more about this go to Acts 2.

Answer 3

probably, the scribes/writer thought that sheep are the best example. Sheep are quite quiet and obedient and follow the leader. While goats are otherwise. If you make them go here they would run somewhere else. Pigs and dogs may have been common in those days. But interestingly, sheep and goats were recorded

Answer 4

Christians are considered the sheep of Jesus who is our shepard. Goats are those who choose to follow satan and not accept Jesus as thier savior.

Defination of Sheep-Properly the neuter of a presumed derivative of G4260; something that walks forward (a quadruped), that is, (specifically) a sheep (literally or figuratively): - sheep ([-fold]).

From G2056; a kidling, that is, (generally) goat (symbolically wicked person): - goat.

Answer 5

Sheep are animals of the grassy plain. Goats are animals of the rocky hills. Every symbol represents its use.

Answer 6

I guess its because Goats and Sheep were popular animals back then so thir refered to a lot.

Answer 7

There were rules on sacrifices for certain sins, in the old testament b4 Christ saved us. The sin had the according punishments sheep were consider pure goat not so pure.

It may be in Leviticus, google old testaments sacrifices.

Answer 8

Goats were considered a satanic symbol for some reason.

Answer 9

well, try looking at how a real life sheppard looks after his sheep. he herds them, he takes care of them, he protects them from wolves etc etc etc.....similiar to what my Father is doing to me :) God loves talking in figures and speech, so He chose some specific animals to represent His Love.

god has a little lamb
little lamb, little lamb
god has that little lamb
and the lamb he loves is me :)

lolx baa-aa~~~

Answer 10

Both white