Before Jacob died, he described his ninth son
Issachar as a strong donkey lying down between two burdens. In other
words, Jacob saw that Issachar could be a strong fighter but his
love of comfort could cause him to settle for the easy way out.
The tribe symbol of Issachar was therefore a
strong donkey carrying two burdens. What were these two burdens?
They were their own burden and the burden of others. In Galatians
6:2-5, Paul told us to carry our own burdens, and to bear the
burden's of others. In doing so, we fulfill the law of Christ. For
all the law is fulfilled in one word: "Love
your neighbours as yourself" (Galatians 5:14). These two
burdens are essentially to love ourselves and to love others.
The sons of Issachar were strong in the LORD.
They were able to carry the burdens of God’s Word. And these burdens
of the Word of God were not burdensome because they were carried in
the hearts. This was the love of God that all His people kept and
obeyed His commandments. And His commandments were not burdensome (1
John 5:3). The sons of Issachar knew this truth. They had hidden the
Word of God in their hearts so that they would not sinned against
Him. Because they had written the Word of God in their hearts, they
were wise people. They knew what to do in every circumstance. They
lived their lives based on the Word, pleasing both man and God.
To most human eyes, the donkey is a dumb animal.
Its King James name was very degrading and indecent. They used the
word "ass." But the Bible viewed the donkey as a special and
precious animal. Issachar was not offended when his father depicted
him as one.
Donkeys were among the first animals to be tamed
by man. They were a great necessity in the Bible lands. Wild donkeys
were headstrong and untamed. But the domesticated donkeys were
obedient and submissive.
Donkeys were about 4 feet high. They were usually
gray, reddish-brown or white. The long-suffering donkeys often won
the affection of their households. They were decorated with beads
and bright ribbons. Their roles were to serve their masters. They
trampled seed, turned the millstones to grind grain, and pulled the
plow.
Donkeys were great for transportation. Donkey
caravans were the trains and trucks of the ancient times. These
animals could carry great weight in spite of their small size. They
were more economical to own as they consumed only a fraction of the
feed required by horses. Donkeys were safe and comfortable to ride.
Both the rich and the poor rode them. They were obedient to their
masters.
In Psalm 32:9, we are instructed not be like the
horse or like the mule, which have no understanding. They must be
harnessed with bit and bridle, or else they will not obey. The mule
is not a donkey. It is the offspring of a male donkey (jack) and
female horse (mare). The mule had the surefootedness and endurance
of the donkey, and the size and strength of the horse. This
crossbreeding was outlawed among the Jewish people (Leviticus
19:19). But from the time of Jewish kings, mules were imported and
increasingly used by the Israelites (2 Samuel. 18:9; 1 Kings 1:33;
18:5). In Ezra 2:66, the Israelites brought 245 mules with them when
they returned from their captivity in Babylon.
But donkeys were special in the eyes of God. He
gave them some remarkable privileges when He gave His commandments
through Moses at Mount Sinai:
- Donkeys were to be redeemed by the sacrifice of a lamb,
which was the same price required for men. "But every firstborn
of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb; and if you will not
redeem it, then you shall break its neck. And all the firstborn
of man among your sons you shall redeem." (Exodus 13:13)
- Donkeys were listed among the valuable possessions not to be
coveted. "You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall
not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his
female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is
your neighbor’s." (Exodus 20:17)
- Donkeys were to be properly looked after. "And if a man
opens a pit, or if a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and
an ox or a donkey falls in it, the owner of the pit shall make
it good; he shall give money to their owner, but the dead animal
shall be his." (Exodus 21:33-34)
- Thieves found stealing donkeys must pay double for their
sin. "If the theft is certainly found alive in his hand, whether
it is an ox or donkey or sheep, he shall restore double."
(Exodus 22:4)
- Donkeys were to be properly treated even by the enemies of
their owners. "If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going
astray, you shall surely bring it back to him again. If you see
the donkey of one who hates you lying under its burden, and you
would refrain from helping it, you shall surely help him with
it." (Exodus 23:4-5)
- Donkeys were protected by the Sabbath law. "Six days you
shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that
your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female
servant and the stranger may be refreshed." (Exodus 23:12) Jesus
used this illustration when He was accused of breaking the law
by healing a woman on the Sabbath: "Hypocrite! Does not each one
of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and
lead it away to water it? So ought not this woman, being a
daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound-- think of it-- for
eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?" (Luke
13:15-16)
Throughout the whole Bible, donkeys played some
important roles in God’s redemptive plans and purposes:
- Abraham saddled a donkey in his journey to sacrifice his son
Isaac (Genesis 22:3).
- The brothers of Joseph used donkeys to carry the sacks of
grains from Egypt (Genesis 42:27).
- Moses set his family on a donkey to return back to Egypt
(Exodus 4:20).
- God used a donkey to speak to the evil prophet Balaam
(Numbers 22:21-34).
- Samson used a fresh jawbone of a donkey to destroy 1,000
enemies (Judges 15:15-16).
- Saul came to Samuel seeking help to locate his lost donkeys.
Saul found his donkeys, and Samuel found his king (1 Samuel
9:1-27).
- Isaiah foretold the birth of Christ in Isaiah 1:2-3: "Hear,
O heavens, and give ear, O earth! For the LORD has spoken: "I
have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled
against Me; the ox knows its owner and the donkey its master’s
crib; but Israel does not know, my people do not consider."" The
donkey was smarter than Israel. The donkey knew his Master’s
manger but His people did not.
The greatest story in the Bible about a donkey
was the one that Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem. He called
for a donkey, and not a horse! He was the King of King and Lord of
Lords. Shouldn’t He deserve the best? Shouldn’t He deserve some
royal treatment? Yet Jesus chose to be humble. He identified Himself
with the common people. When Jesus entered Jerusalem, He revealed
His peaceful mission by riding a young donkey rather than a prancing
war-horse. The Messiah, riding upon a donkey, offered forgiveness
and peace with God, whereas Christ mounted upon a horse implied war
and judgment.
"Now when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to
Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples,
saying to them, "Go into the village opposite you, and immediately
you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and
bring them to Me. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say,
‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them." All
this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the
prophet, saying: "Tell the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is
coming to you, lowly, and sitting on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a
donkey.’"" (Matthew 21:1-5) This fulfilled what the prophet had
spoken in Zechariah 9:9: "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you;
He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a
colt, the foal of a donkey."
This lowly donkey had the greatest privilege of
all. He was bearing the Son of God on his back. He was carrying the
Lord instead of the Lord carrying him. Why was this donkey so
honored? Simply because he was available, humble and willing to do
hard work.
Issachar was not embarrassed when his father
Jacob equated him and his descendants to donkeys. They were
distinguished for their ability and readiness to work hard, even
under bad conditions and intense oppressions. They were known for
their quiet, patient and industrious spirits. They were fitted and
inclined to work and serve. They became a band of slaves or
servants.
The donkeys were very sensible. If their loads
were too heavy, weighing them down, they would simply sit down and
refuse to go on. In Numbers 22:23, we read about a donkey that saw
the Angel of the LORD and refused to go on. His master, Balaam,
tried to strike her to get her back on the road. But the donkey
refused to conform in spite of the harsh beatings.
Hereby is a lesson we can learn from this amazing
creature: "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I
will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I
am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)
Though Issachar was carrying two burdens, he was able to balance
them properly. At times, when the loads were too heavy, he would
come to his Master, and cast them down at the feet of His Master.
Like the lowly donkey, Jesus was both meek and
mild. The donkey carried the burdens of others. Christ carried the
burdens of our sins. Donkeys served the will of their masters. Jesus
came to do the work that His Father had commissioned Him to do.
The donkey had many Christ-like attributes such
as humility, patience, courage, gentleness and peace. The donkey had
been honored with the nickname "Christopher" or "Christ-Bearer."
This name was given in reference to the donkey that carried Christ
in His triumphal entry into Jerusalem. During the early days of
Christianity, many teachers of the Gospel received this nickname to
show that they carried the burden of the teachings of Christ. They
had His attitude of humility, poverty and patience.