(Please read part 1 first)

Exodus 13:13 (KJV)
13 And every firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb; and if thou wilt not redeem it, then thou shalt break his neck: and all the firstborn of man among thy children shalt thou redeem.
     So why was the neck to be broken if the donkey was not redeemed? First of all, as an unclean creature, the donkey was not a creature of sacrifice. If the donkey were a clean animal like the sheep, the firstling might have been offered as a blood sacrifice and God would have blessed the giver. But since he was unclean according to the Law, his blood could never make atonement for sin.

This perfectly portrays man, who is born sinful, and is therefore unable to redeem himself in any way. He could give his life a thousand times over, if that were possible, and could never atone for one sin of his own, much less the sins of another. This is why mans’ attempts at self-improvement are deemed self righteousness.

Isaiah 64:6 (KJV)
6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
    The breaking of the donkeys neck was death as a reject, not as a sacrifice, thus typifying God’s judgement on those who reject his offer of redemption.

     The neck in this context depicts the will of man. To control the donkey you control his head. Whichever way the head is turned the body should follow. But an unbroken donkey will stiffen his neck and go wherever he wants. This is why God called Israel a “stiff-necked people”. Mans’ biggest problem, even today, is his stiff neck. God has given man the choice, either to voluntarily surrender his will to God and be redeemed, or to have his will broken in awful judgement.

Matthew 21:44 (KJV)
44 “And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder”.
     The stone here is Jesus, and to fall on him is to come in brokeness, accepting his salvation through repentance and faith. To be ground to powder is eternal death in hell. Just like the donkey, God’s ultimatum is redemption or death. Which will we choose?

       

Mankind Like the Donkey (2)

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