Who lost what?

[heartstrings]

I was researching sheep this morning and came across this.... http://confidentfaith.com/blog/the-problem-with-sheep-2/ One thing that jumped out at me was that he says that poor dumb "sheep" get "lost". But I think the sheep in Matthew, Luke and the Book of Jeremiah were right where they wanted to be.  Understand that a sheep's natural home is the mountains and hills (Matthew 18, Luke 15, Jeremiah 50:6). But the Bible never points out the stupidity of sheep. On the contrary, the sheep's only "sin" is that it goes "astray". Also contrary to this article, sheep do run very fast, leap high in the air, use their heads to butt, in order to defend themselves. Some of mine, even the females, have horns and these aren't for ornamentation. If a male sheep is in the "rut", he will attack and can hurt or even kill a person.

As for intelligence, no, sheep are not geniuses but neither are most ungulate animals including cows. In fact, my llama seems to be one of the stupidest critters on my farm. Look into my llama's gaze and you can tell there's not much going on. But I have observed sheep do stuff like attack a big sheep dog as soon as they saw me grab and hold its collar; they observed an opportunity, approached when they normally kept their distance, and took advantage of the dog as sure as I'm breathing. Again, the whole "beef" the Bible has with sheep, is that they go astray. Likewise we, by far the most intelligent creatures in all of God's Creation, do likewise.

Matthew's account

12How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray? 13And

 

Luke's

And he spake this parable unto them, saying, 4What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

 

 

[heartstrings]

Another thing I'm curious about is whether sheep will drink "running water" or not; some say they prefer running water http://oklahoma4h.okstate.edu/aitc/lessons/extras/facts/wool.html and some say no http://confidentfaith.com/blog/the-problem-with-sheep-2/ . I have a strong pump and an extension cord that I believe will reach the pasture. So stay tuned.

[Ukulelemike]

Good post. I had always bought into the whole 'dumb sheep' thing, until I married a lady with sheep and goats, and realized they aren't stupid at all. Both sheep and goats will search out a weakness in a fence and will exploit it until they get through. And, as that video you shared showed, they are quite tough when necessary. I would honestly pity the poor dog, no matter the breed, that ended up on the wrong end of a serious butt.

We had a couple wethered goats that had lost their fear of dogs, and at their new home, they actually worked as watch-goats, and fearlessly chased dogs off the property.

Also, for anyone who ever hunted wild sheep or goats, (like antelope), they are some of the hardest prey to hunt down because they are very canny.

However, what sheep and goats ARE, if they are kept in a home heard, is needy-they need the shepherd to meet their needs, food, water and protection. And bottle-fed? Man, they are the most needy-they want to be with you all the time. I have a couple bottle-fed bucks, both full-sized, but whenever I am in their pen, they follow me, and demand to be petted and scratched and loved on. Just like puppies. And I think this is ideally the kind of sheep the Lord wants us to be, like bottle babies, not only needing Him, but WANTING Him.

[WellWithMySoul]

Big smiles!  Yay!  Thank you so much for posting these things about "sheep"!  We raised lambs for 11 years, and the Lord taught me sooo much thru them!  All I can do is smile when I think of those critters.  Jesus was called the "Lamb of God" - and Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd" - and David said, "The LORD is my shepherd...", and there are lots more references.  Hmmm...I can't seem to swallow that the Lord Jesus created something "stupid".  It is our own sin that makes us "BAA'd"!  Praise God for sending the Son to be the ultimate and complete "sacrifice" (that perfect, unblemished "lamb") to pay the wage for our absolute sin-depravity, and that if we are in Him...new creatures.  What a gift!  "Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me..." - raising lambs taught me a lot about the "rod" and the "staff".  I've been knocked down from behind by a lamb, but that lamb didn't know me yet.  In time with firmness when needed, yet always motivated with care...the lambs always got to know my voice and would respond with trust.  Even "wayward" lambs eventually came around.  Just think of how we have the perfect Shepherd!  I could tell many a story about my experiences with lambs, but every one of them is a wonderful lesson and picture of our dear Saviour's love, gentleness, His justice, and His grace!  

[John81]

From what I've read from various shepherds who have wrote about such things, there seems to be some big differences between the varieties of sheep. One author specifically pointed to this and said when considering the biblical passages on sheep it helps to consider the specific sheep of that area rather than other varieties we may be more used to.

[heartstrings]

Of the wool breeds, I've owned "Gulf Coast Natives" and "Florida Cracker" sheep, both of which were developed here in the Southeast, presumably from colonial and/or Spanish stock. One wooly ram I had would let you walk up, grab him pet him, and had no fear of people whatsoever, but the evil rascal would knock you down if you turned your back on him so I'm almost certain he was bottle fed. He was registered and I loaned him out to another farm. The owner called me later, upset that he was chasing her aggressively and said that she was afraid of him. I told her under no circumstances to go in the paddock with "Hornsby" and that I would be over to pick him up, I pulled up with my trailer, walked into the paddock and Hornsby just stood there nonchalantly as I walked up grabbed him by one horn and walked him to the trailer; no fear whatsoever. But this was what made him dangerous.

 I've also owned a few Katahdin crosses, and maybe a Tunis. The rest of my sheep are "Amercan Blackbelly", which were developed from three very different breeds: The Caribbean "Barbados Blackbelly", which possibly originated from West African stock, gave them their distinct "antelope" markings. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbados_Blackbelly_sheep  The second breed was the French Rambouillet http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/sheep/rambouillet/ , which is a wool breed with curling horns in the males. The third is the Wild Mouflon, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mouflon from which it is believed that all domestic sheep descended from in the first place. Some of my "American Blackbellies" are wild as bucks and others eat out of my hand and let me pet them. But I can tell you, from experience, that probably 90% or more of my "semi wild" animals would be fit for a petting zoo if I had the time to spend with them. It just takes gentleness and patience.

This is our American Blackbelly ram, bred from Barbados Blackbelly, Rambouillet, and Wild Mouflon. He's afraid of people, but incredibly destructive to inanimate objects such as fences and trees. I do not turn my back on him without one eye over my shoulder at all times.

https://scontent-atl.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/284357_582887571744047_1227554233_n.jpg?oh=4a1f67d37d61a59d6b73173811737fcc&oe=55863C41

[heartstrings]

I have another theory which I have stated before.

A physical "rod and staff", unlike the metaphorical ones mentioned in psalm 23, would really be a "comfort" to a literal shepherd. The "rod" is an instrument of judgment and power and the "staff" is used for "support". A physical staff is used, among other things,  to steady a shepherd as he traverses over treacherous hillside paths and stony terrain and it is inevitable that a rod would be a shepherd's only protection against a belligerent ram. I use one for this myself and all the ram has to do is see me raise my stick and he will stand down.

Literal sheep, including mine, give their lives for the shepherd. I know because about 20 or so of mine did so last year. In Bible times, as now, they were regularly slaughtered by the thousands. The "Good Shepherd", on the other hand, does the opposite and "gives his life for the sheep". I think it is possible that some of the other things. like the "rod and staff" are opposites as well. 

[1Timothy115]

I thought you were going to talk about Hillary's emails