H7214 H7214
Wild ox, aurochs (Bos primigenius); a powerful wild bovine symbolizing untamable strength.
The re'em is the now-extinct wild ox or aurochs, a massive bovine whose horns and ferocity made it a potent symbol of strength in ancient Israel. Numbers 23:22 and 24:8 compare God's power delivering Israel to the horns of a re'em. Deuteronomy 33:17 likens Joseph's might to a firstborn bull with re'em horns. Job 39:9-10 asks rhetorically whether anyone can domesticate the wild ox. The Septuagint's monokerōs ('unicorn') is a famous mistranslation that persisted through the Vulgate. Spanish 'búfalo' and French 'buffle' approximate the sense, though the actual referent is the aurochs, not the water buffalo.
Senses
1. wild ox, aurochs — The wild ox or aurochs (Bos primigenius), a large, fierce, untamable bovine now extinct, used as a symbol of overwhelming strength. God's power is compared to its horns (Num 23:22; 24:8), Joseph's tribal might is likened to its gore (Deut 33:17), and Job 39:9-10 uses its wildness to illustrate creatures beyond human control. Psalm 22:22 and 29:6 employ it in imagery of danger and power. The LXX's monokerōs ('unicorn') is a well-known mistranslation. Spanish 'búfalo' and French 'buffle' approximate the animal, while German leaves it untranslated in some occurrences, reflecting the difficulty of identifying the exact species. 9×
AR["البَقَرُ-الوَحْشِيُّ", "الثَّوْرَ-الْوَحْشِيَّ", "الثَّوْرُ-الْوَحْشِيُّ", "الثِيرَانِ-الوَحْشِيِّ", "الرِّئْمِ", "الّثِيرَانِ-الْوَحْشِيَّةِ", "رِئمٍ", "كَالثَّوْرِ-الْوَحْشِيَّ"]·ben["বন্য-গরুর", "বন্য-মহিষের", "বন্য-মহিষেরা", "বন্য-ষাঁড়ের", "বন্য-ষাড়", "বন্য-ষাড়কে", "রেমের", "সেই-বন্য-ষাড়ের-মতো"]·DE["[ראמים]", "[רים]", "[רים]", "wie-ein-wild-Ochse", "wild-Ochse", "wild-Ochsen"]·EN["like-a-wild-ox", "the-wild-ox", "wild-ox", "wild-oxen"]·FR["[ראמים]", "buffle", "comme-buffle", "wild-boeuf", "רים", "רים"]·heb["כ-ראם", "ראם", "ראמים"]·HI["जंगली-बैल", "जंगली-बैल-का", "जंगली-बैल-की", "जंगली-बैलों-के", "जंगली-साँड़", "जंगली-साँड़-को", "जंगली-साँड़ों-के", "जंगली-सांड़-के", "जैसे-जंगली-बैल"]·ID["banteng-liar", "lembu liar", "lembu-liar", "seperti-lembu-liar"]·IT["[ראמים]", "bue-selvaggio", "bufalo", "wild-bue"]·jav["banteng", "banteng-liar", "kados-banteng-liar", "kebo-wana", "sapi-liar"]·KO["들소-같이", "들소-의", "들소가", "들소들-의", "들소들이", "들소를", "들소의"]·PT["boi-selvagem", "bois-selvagens", "búfalo", "búfalos", "como-de-boi-selvagem", "o-boi-selvagem"]·RU["буйвол", "буйвола", "буйволов", "буйволы", "дикого-быка", "как-у-буйвола"]·ES["búfalo", "búfalos", "como-de-búfalo"]·SW["kama-nyati", "nyati"]·TR["yaban-okuzleri", "yaban-öküzlerinin", "yaban-öküzmü", "yaban-öküzü", "yaban-öküzü-gibi", "yaban-öküzünün", "yabangibi"]·urd["بیلوں-کے", "جنگلی-بیل", "جنگلی-بیل-کو", "جنگلی-بیل-کی-طرح", "جنگلی-بیل-کے", "جنگلی-بیلوں-کے"]
Related Senses
H6629 1. flock, sheep/goats (small livestock) (274×)H1241 1. cattle, herd (bovine livestock) (183×)H0352a 1. ram (male sheep) (156×)H6499 1. young bull, bullock (130×)H3532 1. lamb, young male sheep (105×)H2543 1. donkey (male ass) (96×)H7794 1. ox, bull (79×)H7462b 1. shepherd (agent noun) (76×)H5795 1. she-goat(s), female goat(s) (68×)H7462b 2. to shepherd, tend, pasture (60×)H1581 1. camel (domestic animal) (54×)H0738b 1. lion (46×)G4263 1. sheep (39×)H5739 1. flock or herd of livestock (38×)H5695 1. calf, young bull (35×)H0738a 1. lion (large predatory feline) (34×)H0860 1. female donkey (34×)H3611 1. dog (animal) (32×)H3715a 1. young lion, lion cub (31×)G0721 1. Lamb (29×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† רְאֵם n.m. Jb 39:10 wild ox (Assyrian rêmu DlHWB 603 (ראם), HoughtonTSBA v (1877), 336 ff., and illustr. bef. p. 33 SchrKGF 135 ff., 530 HomNS 257 ff., 410, 436 f. Dr Dt 33:17; on strength and ferocity, PlinNH viii. 21; Aramaic רְאֵמָא, רֵימָא, רֵימָנָא, ܪܰܝܡܳܐ (LagBN 58); Arabic رِىْٔمٌ is white antelope, antilope leucoryx; 𝔊 (erron.) μονόκερως (Is 34:7 ἁδροί), 𝔙 unicornis, and (oftener)…