Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

GOAT

Indication of their importance as domesticated animals in biblical times is the occurrence of seven different Hebrew and three Greek words for “goat” in the Bible. Beyond the general term ʿēz (pl. ʿizzîm) for female goats, four Hebrew words specifically refer to the he-goat (śāʿîr, tayiš, ʿattûḏ [pl. only], and ṣāpîr), one to a young he-goat (gĕḏî), and one to the wild goat (ʾaqqô). The Greek words refer to a kid (eríphion), a young kid (ériphos), and a he-goat (trágos).

The common domestic goat in Palestine is Capra hircus. Goats are distinguished from their sheep cousins, with whom they are usually kept, by the latter’s coats of hair (usually black [cf. 1 Sam. 19:13] or grey, but sometimes white, brown, or any combination thereof), and their flat, twisted horns. While generally not as desirable as sheep for meat, goats are a more hardy animal, less discriminating in the vegetation they will eat, and thus tend to appear in greater numbers in herds living in more marginal environments. Indeed, the ratio of goat bones to sheep bones can give archaeologists some insight into ancient local environmental conditions in antiquity. Unfortunately, the grazing habits of goats over many centuries has had a major negative impact on the vegetation of Palestine, both in the decline of several important plant communities and in inhibiting their rejuvenation.

Goat by-products have long been familiar features among Palestine’s desert people from the biblical periods down to the present and include milk (Prov. 27:27), cheese, goatskin bottles for water and wine (e.g., Mark 2:22), and goat’s hair clothes, pillows, and tents (Exod. 26:7; 35:26; 1 Sam. 19:13; Heb. 11:37). While adult goats have poor meat, young kids make a desirable meal (Judg. 6:19; 13:15-23). Beyond their subsistence role in ancient Israelite and Jewish society, goats, especially he-goats, played an important cultic role, serving as the key sacrifice in various religious ceremonies (e.g., Num. 7:16).

Randall W. Younker

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

GOAT

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)