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Bible Dictionaries
Bull
Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary
or the male of the beeve kind; and it is to be recollected that the Hebrews never castrated animals. There are several words translated "bull" in Scripture, of which the following is a list, with the meaning of each:
שור , a bove, or cow, of any age. תאו , the wild bull, oryx, or buffalo, occurs only Deuteronomy 14:5; and in Isaiah 51:20 , תוא , with the interchange of the two last letters. אבירי , a word implying strength, translated "bulls," Psalms 22:12; Psalms 50:13; Psalms 68:30; Isaiah 34:7; Jeremiah 46:15 . בקר , herds, horned cattle of full age. פר , a full grown bull, or cow, fit for propagating. עגל , a full grown, plump young bull; and in the feminine, a heifer. תור , Chaldee taur, and Latin taurus; the ox accustomed to the yoke: occurs only in Ezra 6:9; Ezra 6:17; Ezra 7:17; Daniel 4:25, 32, 33; 22:29, 30.
This animal was reputed by the Hebrews to be clean, and was generally made use of by them for sacrifices. The Egyptians had a particular veneration for it, and paid divine honours to it; and the Jews imitated them in the worship of the golden calves or bulls, in the wilderness, and in the kingdom of Israel. The wild bull is found in the Syrian and Arabian deserts. It is frequently mentioned by the Arabian poets, who are copious in their descriptions of hunting it, and borrow many images from its beauty, strength, swiftness, and the loftiness of its horns. They represent it as fierce and untameable; as being white on the back, and having large shining eyes.
Bulls, in a figurative and allegorical sense, are taken for powerful, fierce, and insolent enemies, Psalms 22:12; Psalms 68:30 .
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Watson, Richard. Entry for 'Bull'. Richard Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/wtd/b/bull.html. 1831-2.
