Articles
Goad
I was recently doing a word study and came across the word goad. Although this word is
not used very often in the Bible, it is interesting how it is used. The word “goad” is defined by
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary as: 1. (n.) A pointed instrument used to urge on a
beast; hence, any necessity that urges or stimulates. 2. (v.t.) To prick; to drive with a goad;
hence, to urge forward, or to rouse by anything pungent, severe, irritating, or inflaming; to
stimulate.
A goad is often used to direct an animal, such as an ox, to go where you want it to and to
stay true as it pulls the plow across the field. You have probably heard someone talk about a
cattle prod. Even in our modern times they are still being used. In Ecclesiastes, the writer
compares the goad to words given by a teacher to motivate. “The Teacher searched to find just
the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true. The words of the wise are like goads,
their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails —given by one shepherd. Be warned, my son,
of anything in addition to them” (Eccl. 12:10-12). Today, the Bible is for teaching, and at times,
to goad us onto the right path.
The goad can also be a 10 foot long pole used by a plowman. This pole has a metal
pointed tip to prod, and on the other end a flattened piece of metal used to scrape off the plow
when the soil sticks. The Bible even tells us how much it cost to put a new point on a goad. “The
price was two-thirds of a shekel for sharpening plow points and mattocks, and a third of a shekel
for sharpening forks and axes and for repointing goads” (1 Sam 13:21). There is one case in the
Bible where a judge uses a goad to kill the enemies of Israel. “After Ehud came Shamgar ...who
struck down 600 Philistines with an oxgoad. He too saved Israel” (Jdgs. 3:31). God uses the
right tools at His disposal for the job at hand. Jesus describes Himself as our Shepherd and He
has the tools to lead us. If we are doing well, we will follow His voice (John 10:4). If not, we are
reminded that God’s discipline, His goad, is there to bring us back to the correct path (Heb. 12:4-
12; Matt. 7:13-14). ~B Tolbert
