Sheep were Frequently: Taken in Great Numbers in War
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In the biblical narrative, sheep hold significant economic and symbolic value, often representing wealth, sustenance, and sacrificial offerings. Throughout the Old Testament, sheep are frequently mentioned as spoils of war, reflecting their importance in ancient Near Eastern societies.

Biblical Instances

1. The Plunder of the Amalekites: In 1 Samuel 30, David and his men recover their families and possessions after the Amalekites raid Ziklag. Among the recovered items are large numbers of sheep and cattle. The text highlights the abundance of livestock taken as plunder: "David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. Nothing was missing, young or old, son or daughter, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back" (1 Samuel 30:18-19). The mention of livestock underscores their value as part of the spoils.

2. The Campaign Against the Midianites: In Numbers 31, Moses commands the Israelites to take vengeance on the Midianites. After the victory, the Israelites seize a vast amount of livestock, including sheep. The passage details the division of the spoils: "The plunder remaining from the spoils that the soldiers had taken was 675,000 sheep" (Numbers 31:32). This immense number illustrates the scale of wealth represented by sheep in ancient warfare.

3. The Conquest of the Amalekites by Saul: In 1 Samuel 15, King Saul is instructed by God to destroy the Amalekites completely, including their livestock. However, Saul spares the best of the sheep and cattle, which leads to his rejection as king. The narrative emphasizes the value placed on sheep: "But Saul and the army spared Agag and the best of the sheep and cattle, the fat calves and lambs—everything that was good. These they were unwilling to destroy completely, but everything that was despised and weak they totally destroyed" (1 Samuel 15:9). This incident highlights the temptation to retain valuable livestock despite divine commands.

Cultural and Economic Significance

In the ancient Near East, sheep were a primary source of wealth and sustenance. They provided wool, meat, and milk, making them essential to the agrarian economy. The acquisition of sheep in warfare not only increased a nation's wealth but also its capacity for trade and sustenance. The biblical accounts of sheep taken in war reflect this economic reality, as well as the broader cultural significance of livestock as symbols of prosperity and divine blessing.

Symbolic and Religious Implications

Sheep also hold a prominent place in the religious life of Israel. They are frequently used in sacrificial offerings, symbolizing atonement and devotion to God. The taking of sheep in war, therefore, had religious implications, as it could enhance a nation's ability to perform sacrifices and maintain religious observance. The biblical narrative often intertwines the economic and religious aspects of sheep, underscoring their multifaceted role in Israelite society.

In summary, the frequent mention of sheep taken in great numbers during wartime in the Bible underscores their critical role in the economic, cultural, and religious life of ancient Israel. These accounts reflect the broader historical context in which livestock were integral to both survival and spiritual practice.
Torrey's Topical Textbook
Judges 6:4
And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till you come to Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

1 Samuel 14:32
And the people flew on the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground: and the people did eat them with the blood.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

1 Chronicles 5:21
And they took away their cattle; of their camels fifty thousand, and of sheep two hundred and fifty thousand, and of asses two thousand, and of men an hundred thousand.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

2 Chronicles 14:15
They smote also the tents of cattle, and carried away sheep and camels in abundance, and returned to Jerusalem.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

The Jews Make all Ready for the War; and Simon, the Son of Gioras ...
... or cloisters, and beneath which was the sheep pool of ... he wrote his Antiquities, did
himself frequently he into ... upon their country when their males were gone up ...
/.../chapter 22 the jews make.htm

'Other Sheep'
... flame, though all the blasts from hell were to fan ... a man believe that Christ has
other sheep for whom ... one"our minds should be more frequently occupied with ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/maclaren/expositions of holy scripture i/other sheep.htm

Book 1.
... our captives, many of them in number, and frequently in time ... led such a wandering
life in feeding sheep, they were ... Now this man, as people were in great numbers ...
//christianbookshelf.org/josephus/against apion/book 1.htm

Festal Letters.
... rites under it, but have turned, as it were, unto the ... Jesus Christ; Who was led as
a sheep to the ... The Syriac translator must frequently have had before him the ...
/.../athanasius/select works and letters or athanasius/i festal letters.htm

One Argument which Has Been Much Relied Upon but not More than Its ...
... the publicans or tax-gatherers were, frequently at least ... in this manner; " "Taking
several sheep, some black ... altars, it may be presumed, were called anonymous ...
/.../paley/evidences of christianity/chapter vi one argument which.htm

Palestine under Pagan Kings.
... gifts of various kinds, flocks of sheep and horses ... Some of the thrones were of ivory,
adorned with ... Jehovah's rule is mentioned frequently in the inspired record ...
/.../headley/half hours in bible lands volume 2/palestine under pagan kings.htm

Funeral Oration on the Great S. Basil, Bishop of C??sarea in ...
... entreated him, crying out, "I own that you were in the ... been done, I do not say, by
the great Basil, who ... not to have allowed her claim, to have taken charge of ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/oration xliii funeral oration on.htm

The Memphite Empire
... Birds sing amid their branches, sheep wander in the ... should not be confounded, as
is frequently done, with ... These quarries were worked in very ancient times. ...
/.../chapter iithe memphite empire.htm

A Divided Heart
... Now these people, as frequently as not, know nothing whatever of ... we come to baptism
as though it were but an ... his place, has put himself among the sheep when he ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 5 1859/a divided heart.htm

The Eighteenth Theban Dynasty
... tribute paid by the vanquished are frequently recorded in ... imported from Northern
Syria, which were known by ... by Faucher-Gudin, from a photograph taken by Petrie ...
/.../chapter iiithe eighteenth theban dynasty.htm

Resources
What is the significance of sheep in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org

Who are the “other sheep” mentioned in John 10:16? | GotQuestions.org

What is sheep stealing? | GotQuestions.org

Sheep: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible ConcordanceBible DictionaryBible EncyclopediaTopical BibleBible Thesuarus
Subtopics

Sheep

Sheep Gate

Sheep Gate: An Ancient Gate of Jerusalem

Sheep Market

Sheep Market of Jerusalem

Sheep of Backsliders

Sheep of Lost Sinners

Sheep of the Defenselessness of Servants of God (Greek: Diakonoi)

Sheep of the Jews

Sheep of the People of Christ

Sheep of the Righteous

Sheep of the Wicked in Their Death

Sheep of Those Under God's Judgment

Sheep Tending

Sheep were Frequently: Cut off by Disease

Sheep were Frequently: Destroyed by Wild Beasts

Sheep were Frequently: Given As Presents

Sheep were Frequently: Given As Tribute

Sheep were Frequently: Taken in Great Numbers in War

Sheep: (In Patience and Simplicity) of Patience, of Christ

Sheep: (In Proneness to Wander) of Those Who Depart from God

Sheep: (Lost) of the Unregenerate

Sheep: (Separation from the Goats) the Separation of Saints

Sheep: (When Found) Restored Sinners

Sheep: Agile

Sheep: Also: Bozrah

Sheep: Also: Jacob's Management of

Sheep: Also: Kedar

Sheep: Also: Nebaioth

Sheep: Also: Sharon

Sheep: Being Covered With a Fleece

Sheep: Bleating of, Alluded To

Sheep: Clean and Used As Food

Sheep: Constituted a Great Part of Patriarchal Wealth

Sheep: False Prophets Assume the Simple Appearance

Sheep: Feasting at the Time of Shearing

Sheep: Females of, Called Ewes

Sheep: Figurative

Sheep: First Wool of, Given to the Priests

Sheep: Firstlings of, Could not be Dedicated As a Free-Will offering

Sheep: Firstlings of, not to be Redeemed

Sheep: Firstlings of, not to be Shorn

Sheep: Flesh of, Extensively Used As Food

Sheep: Flocks of Attended by Members of the Family

Sheep: Flocks of Attended by Servants

Sheep: Flocks of Conducted to the Richest Pastures

Sheep: Flocks of Fed in the Valleys

Sheep: Flocks of Fed on the Mountains

Sheep: Flocks of Fled from Strangers

Sheep: Flocks of Followed the Shepherd

Sheep: Flocks of Frequently Covered the Pastures

Sheep: Flocks of Guarded by Dogs

Sheep: Flocks of Kept in Folds or Cotes

Sheep: Flocks of Made to Rest at Noon

Sheep: Flocks of Watered Every Day

Sheep: Innocent

Sheep: Males of Called Rams

Sheep: Milk of, Used As Food

Sheep: Milk of, Used for Food

Sheep: Offered in Sacrifice by Abel

Sheep: Offered in Sacrifice by Abraham

Sheep: Offered in Sacrifice by Noah

Sheep: Offered in Sacrifice from the Earliest Age

Sheep: Offered in Sacrifice Under the Law

Sheep: Parable of the Lost

Sheep: Places Celebrated For: Bashan

Sheep: Places Celebrated For: Bozrah

Sheep: Places Celebrated For: Kedar

Sheep: Places Celebrated For: Nebaioth

Sheep: Remarkably Prolific

Sheep: Sagacious

Sheep: Shearing of

Sheep: Skins of, Made Into a Covering for the Tabernacle

Sheep: Skins of, Worn As Clothing by the Poor

Sheep: The First Fleece of, Belonged to the Priests and the Levites

Sheep: The Land of Bashan Adapted to the Raising of

Sheep: Time of Shearing, a Time of Rejoicing

Sheep: Tithe of, Given to the Levites

Sheep: Tribute (Taxes) Paid In

Sheep: Under Man's Care from the Earliest Age

Sheep: Washed and Shorn Every Year

Sheep: Wool of, Made Into Clothing

Sheep: Young of, Called Lambs

Related Terms

Sheep-shearing (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-cote (2 Occurrences)

Sheep's (3 Occurrences)

Sheep-gate (2 Occurrences)

Sheep-shearers (3 Occurrences)

Sheep-farmer (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-master (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-folds (4 Occurrences)

Sheep-traders (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-'gate (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-keeper (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-cotes (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-keepers (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-skins (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-market (1 Occurrence)

Sheep-fold (1 Occurrence)

Mountain-sheep (1 Occurrence)

He-sheep (1 Occurrence)

Sheepfold (3 Occurrences)

Sheepcote (2 Occurrences)

Bethesda (1 Occurrence)

Kine (24 Occurrences)

Shear (5 Occurrences)

Sheepshearing

Shearing (6 Occurrences)

Pen (16 Occurrences)

Market (24 Occurrences)

Sacrificeth (22 Occurrences)

Plundered (44 Occurrences)

Shepherds (55 Occurrences)

Striking (25 Occurrences)

Calves (34 Occurrences)

Cow (32 Occurrences)

7000 (3 Occurrences)

Bondwomen (10 Occurrences)

Baal-hazor (1 Occurrence)

Sheepmaster (1 Occurrence)

Sheepfolds (9 Occurrences)

Sees (135 Occurrences)

Keeper (72 Occurrences)

Attacks (45 Occurrences)

Donkeys (71 Occurrences)

Asses (68 Occurrences)

Keepers (78 Occurrences)

Cared (25 Occurrences)

Door (249 Occurrences)

Pushed (28 Occurrences)

Camels (52 Occurrences)

Value (138 Occurrences)

Kills (38 Occurrences)

Donkey (84 Occurrences)

Dark-colored (4 Occurrences)

Doorkeeper (8 Occurrences)

Menservants (19 Occurrences)

Pens (8 Occurrences)

Bleat (1 Occurrence)

Baalhazor (1 Occurrence)

Beeves (6 Occurrences)

Bleating (1 Occurrence)

Calls (62 Occurrences)

Calleth (261 Occurrences)

Curds (9 Occurrences)

Abandons (2 Occurrences)

Accountable (10 Occurrences)

Doesn't (300 Occurrences)

Straying (5 Occurrences)

Sells (14 Occurrences)

Suckling (19 Occurrences)

Stolen (28 Occurrences)

Scatters (12 Occurrences)

Spotted (9 Occurrences)

Speckled (9 Occurrences)

Snatches (5 Occurrences)

Sheepskin

She-asses (7 Occurrences)

Steals (7 Occurrences)

Abroad (120 Occurrences)

Accounted (32 Occurrences)

Sheep were Frequently: Given As Tribute
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