John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible (1746-1763):
"The ancient allegorical sense of the ass and colt is not to be despised: that the ass may signify the Jews, who had been used to bear the burdensome rites and ceremonies of the law; and the colt, the wild and untamed Gentiles, and the coming of Christ, first to the one, and then to the other:..."
Johann Albrecht Bengel's Gnomon (1734?):
"The colt had never carried any one before. Jesus had never been carried before by any animal, except perhaps at a very tender age. He took the mother from the village for a short way."
The Pulpit Commentary (Nineteenth Century):
"...the ass represents the Jewish people, which had long borne the yoke of the Law; the colt adumbrates the Gentiles, as yet unbroken," whereon never man sat." Christ called them both, Jew and Gentile, by his apostles. Loose them, and bring them unto me. He speaks with authority, as One able to make a requisition and command obedience."
All of these commentators are from long ago and I haven't included the ones that disagree with the above symbolism. So just take it all with a grain of salt. I haven't found any present-day commentators who have backed up these ideas.
The mare and the colt can be tied to Genesis Chapter 49 when Jacob blessed each of his sons before dying. To Judah, he said (vv. 10-15) ...
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler's staff from between his feet,
until tribute comes to him;
and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
11 Binding his foal to the vine
and his donkey's colt to the choice vine,
he has washed his garments in wine
and his vesture in the blood of grape
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 labor.
* or saddlebags
I'm going to wrap up the discussion on the colt because it's clear that I could spend at least all week on it, but at this point, it's getting more and more complicated as I dig so deep that I'm in over my head.
I did want to point out how movies of biblical events can mess with our recollection of what the Bible truly says. When I started this investigation into the donkey, I thought, AHA! Jesus rode the donkey into Jerusalem, presenting Himself as the Messiah, facing His sacrificial death, just like Isaac rode on a donkey as Abraham took them to where he would sacrifice his only son, and just like Mary rode on a donkey as she entered Bethlehem where Jesus became flesh. BUT, the Bible doesn't say any of that. Abraham prepared a donkey for the journey, but it doesn't say that Isaac rode it. And the Bible doesn't say anything about Mary riding a donkey on her journey to Bethlehem. For all we know, she and Joseph walked the whole way. I only share this to caution everyone to always return to scripture instead of taking for granted what we think we know.
I hope you've enjoyed this glimpse into an often overlooked but significant creature of Holy Week. Join me in continuing prayers of praise and thankfulness to our Lord and Savior, the King above all Kings.
On Wednesday before His death, Christ was in the temple. The chief priests and elders question Him as to His authority and He puts a question back to them that they can't answer that basically questions their authority...
*********
Please join me during this Holy Week in praising our Lord and Savior, and thanking Him and our Father for the sacrifice they endured for each and every one of us.
I'll post daily reminders on:
#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #ResurrectionSunday #Easter #colt #mare #donkey #symbolism #peace #sacrifice
