Why Do We Read Scripture in Church
Fifty-fifty if we oasis't had a adventure to explore Scripture much, nosotros sympathise that sheep tend to have good, heavenly connotations. And goats accept, well, the opposite. Also the goats of Mountain Gilead verse in Song of Solomon 4, nosotros don't really see goats having a positive connotation in Scripture.
For those of usa familiar with images of the occult, we frequently know that they will utilize a caprine animal, especially those in Satanism circles. And so why does the animal of a goat stand for the devil? Didn't he appear as a serpent in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3)?
In this article, nosotros'll explore the symbolism of goats in Scripture, what Scripture has to say near goats versus sheep, and why Satan is ultimately a caprine animal.
What Do Goats Symbolize in Scripture?
Goats represent a number of things in Scripture, only to go to the source, nosotros need to explore one of the most famous Jewish Holidays: Yom Kippur, otherwise known every bit The Twenty-four hours of Atonement.
During this holiday, 2 goats would be used (Leviticus 16). I, the azazel goat, would take all the sins symbolically placed on it when the loftier priest laid easily on information technology. Once the sins "were placed" they would drive the goat out into the desert, thus driving out Israel's sins into the desert. For more information on the two goats used during Yom Kippur, check out this article here.
The goat hither, the azazel caprine animal, represented Satan, or evil. No wonder Jesus found Satan out in the desert (Matthew 4:ane-11). Deserts stand for cursed places, devoid of God's approving. God's blessing oftentimes comes through the form of pelting.
Azazel is a much debated topic, but many believed it to be a desert demon or force of evil out in the desert.
Autonomously from the scapegoat azazel, where practise we find goat symbolism in Scripture?
Aside from the Matthew parable nosotros will discuss in a moment about the goats on the left and the lambs on the right, Scripture doesn't accept many explicit negative connotations for goats. For those, we have to explore what they hateful in paganism.
The Norse religions used goats in worship, including Thor's chariot being driven by horses. Pan, the Greek satyr, had temples. And, of course, we tin't forget Baphomet who makes an appearance during the Center Ages and has stuck around since.
Even if we exclude goats and how they've played a office in infidel worship, we do demand to observe how the scapegoat plays a large role in Yom Kippur and essentially personifies evil.
Sites of religions of the occult glorify the goat for this reason, because of what it represents.
What Well-nigh Baphomet?
We've oftentimes heard of goats being associated with witchcraft and Satan himself. The Bible never seems to have many good things to say most this creature (Matthew 25:31-46), so information technology should come up every bit no surprise that one of the statues of the Satanic temple, known equally Baphomet, has a goat's caput. The Baphomet is a caprine animal-like homo that was originally created in 1856 by Éliphas Lévi as an occultic symbol of balance. It became expressly associated with Satanism when it appeared as a depiction of the devil in a tarot carte deck.
The Baphomet was later adopted as an identifying symbol by the movement of Satanism at large. (excerpt provided by Christianity.com: Baphomet)
How Are Goats Different than Sheep?
The Bible does seem to draw distinctions between these two livestock, especially in a parable that nosotros will talk over in the next section.
So what actually differs these ii from i another?
Apart from the fact they await unlike, the characteristics of these animals may hint at the reasons why believers are sheep and unbelievers are goats.
Sheep are dependent on their shepherd. They accept a reputation for not topping the lists of the virtually intelligent animals, but they do trust and depend on their shepherd. Goats on the other hand take a reputation for self-reliance and stubbornness. This could, perhaps, reflect the worldly idea of leaning on 1's cocky for back up and guidance, rather than God.
Goats also have destructive tendencies. As the commodity in the previous paragraph linked says, "Shepherds protect sheep from their environment, whereas goatherds protect the environment from their goats."
Nosotros can draw an obvious parallel that Christians seek to usher in Shalom as we await for the arrival of Christ. Non-believers, instead, head down paths of destruction, whether intentional or not.
Physiologically sheep and goats do look somewhat similar.
If we didn't accept the savvy of a shepherd, we may mix up the 2. That's why this article also argues that perhaps the sheep and the goats in Scripture not only represent believers and unbelievers, just believers and imposters. We hear countless stories of and then-called "Christians" who divide churches, commit apostasy, and lead a great many away from the faith.
That's why we must decide the difference between these two. Considering although the 2 animals look similar, they human action very differently.
What Does the Bible Say about Goats?
I desire to highlight 1 passage in particular that often makes people call back of sheep vs. goats.
When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he volition sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another every bit a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come up, you who are blest by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for y'all from the foundation of the earth. For I was hungry and you lot gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me. – Matthew 25:31-46
The "goats" in this passage feel eternal judgment. The sheep enter eternal life. Nosotros practice accept to make note that the 2 must be separated, meaning the sheep could not tell the goats apart from the sheep. Scripture ofttimes talks about this separation in a number of ways, such as the wheat from the chaff, the weeds from the wheat, etc.
Daniel also has a vision of a caprine animal (Alexander the Nifty, Daniel 8), that conquers and wreaks destruction. The Bible does not use this symbol lightly. Alexander ushered in Hellenism that sought to destroy the Jewish earth and everything they stood for.
4 Reasons Satan Is a Goat
From the in a higher place research, we can derive four reasons why Satan is represented as a goat.
1. Pagan Religions Utilise Goat Imagery
As we mentioned before, anything from Norse religions to Greek incorporated goats as objects of worship. Now, in Satanist circles, they worship Baphomet and often glorify imagery of goats, as goats represent stubbornness and evil.
ii. Goats Exemplify Cocky-Reliance and Destruction
A shepherd has command over his flock, a goat herder does not. If a goat herder doesn't keep a vigilant eye on his goats, he may let them to impairment the other animals, such as cases of goats chewing off horse'south tails.
They escape enclosures and destroy landscaping.
3. The Goats Scatter the Sheep
As we noted in the Matthew passage in a higher place, God has to split up the sheep and goats. That means goats have infiltrated the church and Christian circles.
Imposter Christians can appear as physiologically shut to a sheep for a while, but in the stop, a goat is a goat and a sheep is a sheep.
4. Jewish Religious Practices Equate Goats with Evil
Yom Kippur would place all the sins on a scapegoat and bulldoze it out into the desert, the azazel goat. Azazel represented evil. It represented a desert demon or desert evil of some sort.
Determination
The harmful anti-gospel of the goats may catch u.s. past surprise. It may inquire us to rely on ourselves and practice stubbornness. Information technology may glorify destructive behaviors.
And if we don't exercise vigilance, nosotros may observe that the goat gospel looks well-nigh identical to the sheep 1. Therefore, we must turn to the Shepherd and trust in his words and guidance.
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Source: https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/bible-study/why-satan-shows-up-as-a-goat-in-scripture.html
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