HEBREW WORD STUDY – DONKEY – CHAMOR חמר Cheth Mem Resh

HEBREW WORD STUDY – DONKEY – CHAMOR חמר Cheth Mem Resh

Numbers 16:15: “And Moses was very wroth, and said unto the LORD, Respect not thou their offering: I have not taken one donkey from them, neither have I hurt one of them.”

1Samuel 12:3: “Behold, here I [am]: witness against me before the LORD, and before his anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose donkey have I taken?”

“Further, the king my lord, asked if I have taken from him one man, one cow, one donkey.” King Shuwardata to the Pharaoh of Egypt – El-Amarana Letters 280-21-24

When Moses is falsely accused of abusing his leadership role he pleads with God saying he never took anyone’s donkey. When Israel rejected Samuel’s judgeship and demanded a king Samuel, in his resignation from the government of Israel asserts his integrity by saying that he never stole anyone’s donkey. Around the same time of Moses King Shuwardata, a minor king of a realm in Southern Palestine is accused of some scandalous behavior by the Pharaoh of Egypt and in a letter to the Pharaoh defends his integrity by saying he never sole anyone’s donkey.

In all these cases there is no evidence that these individuals were being accused of stealing anyone’s donkey. Obviously, if such high profile individuals like Moses, Samuel, and a king had stolen anyone’s donkey it would be well known. It is a little hard to hide a donkey. Besides that, if these leaders needed a donkey they could easily obtain one legally just because of their position of power. It would be a little like the United States President defending his integrity by saying he never stole anyone’s automobile.

Contrary to popular Sunday School teaching the camel as a beast of burden and transportation did not come into use until well into the Iron Age 1200 BC – 100 BC. Prior to that, it was the donkey that was the beast of burden and a means of transportation.

In the Western world, the donkey is a slow, dull, and foolish animal. But in ancient times they were honored for their strength and loyalty to their master, particularly in ancient Israel. In ancient Canaan, they were sacrificed to their Gods to win the favor of their Gods and buried beneath the foundation of their owner’s homes. The ruler of Shechem was honored with the name Chamor which is the Semitic word for a donkey. It was the donkey that was ridden with a saddle, not the horse. Horses were used for chariots because of their speed. But everyone from peasants to kings would ride a donkey. Horses became a symbol of war and ridden by warriors, they were the armored vehicles of their day where donkeys were more like the family automobile.

If you read the story of Joesph you find his brothers went to Egypt with pack donkeys to buy food and later in the story Joseph sent a caravan of ten donkeys carrying goods from Egypt. It wasn’t until later times in Israel that for unknown reasons the donkey started to take on the image of a lowly creature. The Mishnah Kiddushin which is dated at about 200-300 years after the birth of Christ states in 4:14:

“Donkey-drivers are most of them wicked, camel-drivers are most of them proper folk, sailors are most of them saintly, the best among physicians is destined for Gehenna, and the most seemly among butchers is a partner of Amalek.”

There are three words for donkey in the Hebrew. There is athon which is the female donkey, the one ridden by Balaam in Numbers 22. There is the ayir which is a young donkey found in I Samuel 9 and then there is the most common word the chamor. It sounds almost like the hee-haw of the donkey.

So back to my original question, why do Moses and Samuel defend their integrity by saying they never stole a donkey? Apparently, stealing a donkey is a Semitic cliché of saying: “I am innocent.” It took on this meaning because the word chamor for donkey is closely related to the root word chamed which means that which is desirable and is the word used for covet. Hence to say you have not stolen anyone’s donkey is to say that you have not even desired or coveted anyone’s donkey.

Moses knew that God looks on the heart and as Jesus said in Matthew 5:28 that if you look upon a woman to lust you have committed adultery in your heart. God looks upon the heart, not necessarily on our actions. C.S. Lewis said that when he had the flu that not only eating made him sick but just looking at food made him sick. He then went on to say; “Whosoever looketh upon a plate of ham and eggs hath already committed breakfast with it in his heart (or his glands).”

Exodus 20:17: “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor any thing that [is] thy neighbour’s.” This is the tenth commandment and the most difficult to obey for there is no tangible evidence of guilt when you secretly desire something that belongs to someone else. Only God knows your thoughts and yet just letting your desires grow can be the most harmful element in a relationship. You soon begin to despise the person who has something you don’t have. All the conflicts, violent protests, wars, and broken relationships can be traced to the donkey’s (chamor) play on the word chamed, the desire for something that does not belong to you.

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