Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

BULL

An adult male bovine. The bull is a very common figure in the religions of the ancient Near East. In Egypt the Apis bull, a personification of the Nile, was the sacred animal of Osiris. A bull with a sun disk and ankh between its horns, similar to bulls found in Egypt, has been discovered in Tyre. This could suggest Egyptian influence in the use of the bull in Syria-Palestine. The Bull of Heaven appears in Mesopotamian mythology as a vehicle for the gods’ judgment. In Canaanite religious practice the bull was often used as a symbol for either Baal or El. In Hazor a pair of bulls has been found with feet on their backs, interpreted as a representation of Baal. Similar depictions exist of Adad, often seen as a Mesopotamian representation of Baal.

The main role of the bull in Israelite worship was as an object of sacrifice, offered at occasions such as festivals (i.e., Passover, Sukkoth) or as purification offerings (Lev. 4, 16; ; cf. Heb. 9:13; 10:4). Sometimes the reason for the sacrifice is left unspecified (i.e., Ezra 6:9).

Israelite and ancient Near Eastern usage of bull imagery collided in a pair of incidents involving bulls. Exod. 32:4 reports the fashioning of golden calves, or bulls, by Aaron at the request of the people. 1 Kgs. 12:28 reports the establishment of golden bulls by Jeroboam at Bethel and Dan.

The Bull (Heb. ʾāḇîr or “Mighty One”) of Jacob is an epithet for God (Gen. 49:24; Ps. 132:2, 5; Isa. 49:26; 60:16). Twelve bulls supported the bronze sea at the Jerusalem temple (1 Kgs. 7:25).

Matthew A. Thomas

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

BULL

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)