Bulls (TaO/)oi)and fat beasts (trirnrrd)! are men- tioned only in Mt 22^. They form samples of the rich dainties prepared for the marriage feast of the king's son, and illustrate the magnificent scale of the entertainment which those summoned to partake so insolently sjnirned. Similarly the fatted calf (6 yu.6(rxos 6 <riTeu7-As), which appears only in the parable of the Prodigal Son (Lk 15-^- -'• *'), indicates an unusual feast, made to celebrate an unusual joy. The fatted calf is contrasted with the kid, the customary repast, which Oriental hospitality provides ^o this day. The elder brotlier complains that he has never been allowed to ofl'er his friends the entertainment which his father is wont to pro- vide for any chance visitor ; while for the graceless prodigal is killed the fatted calf, which is destined only for high festivals. The bulls and fatlings in the parable of the Marriage Feast, and the fatted calf in the parable of the Returning Prodigal, alike stand for the lavish generosity of God's love, which the Scribes and Pliarisees could not ap- preciate, even when ofiered to themselves, the kind's invited guests, much less when those prodigals, the publicans and sinners, were likewise embraced therein.
3. Of smaller cattle, goats and sheep are men- tioned.
Goats (fpi0os, ipi<piov, lit. 'kid,' a meaning re- tained in Lk 15""; in LXX the word='goati' as well as 'kid') appear only in the picture of the Last Judgment (Mt 25'-'-), where they are con- trasted with sheep. The point of the contrast lies in the colour rather than the character of the animals, the sheep being pure white, while the goats are covered with long jet-black hair. So in the Song of Solomon (4') the locks of the beloved are compared to ' a flock of goats that appear from Mt. Gilead.' The Son of Mnn si i all separate all the nations 'as a slic]ilirr(l sr|.,-n:ili'( h tlie sheep from the -oats,' aii.l tli.' siinil^' i- .|uite true to pastoral lifr. Tristnii.i (.\./^ IIi.^l. p. 8'.)) says that slioep and goats ii.isture togellier, but never trespass on eiiuli' other's <loiiiains; they are folded together, but they ilo not mix ; they may be seen to enter tlie f(jld in company, but once inside they are kept separate.
The Syrian goat, Capra inambriea, is the most common breed in Palestine. It is distinguished by long pendant ears, stout recurved horns, and long black silky hair. Flocks of goats are most frequent in hilly districts from Hebron to Lebanon, where their habit of browsing on young trees tends to deforest the country.
*The word 'cattle Ms used to tr. Opi/^f^utTcc in Jn 4^-. The word is also found in the AV of Lk 17?.
t Wyclif, following the Vulg. altilia, ( (fowls)' ; but fatted cattle are probably i
ANIMALS
A kid {lpi<pos, some MSS ipiifuoi') is mentioned in the parable of tlie Prodigal Son (Lk Id^^). The kid formed the ordinary dish at an Eastern feast, as lambs were preserved for the sake of wool, and were, as a rule, slain only in sacrifice. For the contrast between the kid and the fatted calf see above, s. 'fatted calf.' There is no other direct mention of the goat in the Gospels, though the wine-bottles (do-Koi) referred to in Mt 9" (|| Mk 2", Lk 5*"-) were doubtless made of goat-skin. These bottles were made by cutting off the head and legs, and drawing the carcass out by the neck, and then tying the neck, legs, and vent, and tanning the skin, with the hairy side out (Post, in Hastings' DB ii. 195).
Tlie word for sheep (TrpS^aTov) is to be found in the Gospels no fewer than 36 times, while words connected with sheep, e.g. iroi/xfrj, ttoI/j-viov, ' a flock,' are not infrequent. Sheep were so often in the thoughts of Jesus that we have postponed fuller consideration of the.se passages to § iv.
Of the two words for lamb, one, dixvos, is applied only to our Lord, whom John the Baptist twice describes as ' the Lamb of God,' adding in one cjvse 'which taketh away the sin of the world' (Jn l--^- '■^j. The title implies sacrifice.
\\Tiethor the Baptist was thiukin? nf the Paschal lamb or of the lamb daily offered in the temple matters little. In Jesus he saw 'the reality of which all animal sacrifice was the symbol' (M.arrus Dods). No doubt the patience of the lamb is implied in the title, as unfolded in Is 53' ' as a lamb before its shearer is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.' The purity of the lamb, without spot and without fault, on which St." Peter dwells (I P 11-'), is also involved. But the idea of redemption through sacritice is fundamental in the Baptist's words.
The second word for ' lamb ' occurs in two forms, ipms (ace. pi.) and dpvlov. The diminutive form is found only in .Tn 21", where our Lord bids Peter feed Ilis lambs. 'Lambs' is used instead of 'sheep,' to bring out more strongly tlie appeal to care, and the consequent complete confidence in Peter (M. Uods). In the Apocalypse our Lord is c;Uled ' the Lamb ' (to applof) no fewer than 21 times. The form apva^ is confined to Lk 1 (fi ' Behold, I send you forth as lambs into the midst of wolvc-.'