'Yoke' in the Bible

But by your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother. But it shall be [that] when free yourself you shall tear off his yoke from your neck.

I [am] Yahweh, your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, from being their slaves; and I broke the bars of your yoke, and I caused you to walk erectly.

"This [is] the decree of the law that Yahweh has commanded, saying, 'Speak to the {Israelites} and let them take to you a red heifer without a physical defect, on which a yoke {has not been placed}.

{And then} the nearest city to the slain one, the elders of that city shall take a heifer of the herd that has not been worked with [in the field], that has not pulled a yoke,

then you shall serve your enemies, whom Yahweh will send against you [under conditions of] famine, in thirst, in nakedness, and in lack of everything; and he shall place a yoke of iron on your neck {until he has destroyed you}.

So then, {prepare} one new utility cart and two milking cows that have never had a yoke on them, and you must harness the cows to the utility cart and then turn their calves from following them to their stall.

So he took a yoke of oxen and cut them into pieces and sent [them] throughout all the territory of Israel by the hand of the messengers, saying, "Whoever [is] not going out after Saul and after Samuel, so will it be done to his oxen." Then the fear of Yahweh fell on the people and they went out as one man.

"Your father made our yoke heavy; now lighten the hard labor of your father and the heavy yoke which he placed on us, and we will serve you."

He said to them, "What [are] you advising that we should reply to this people who spoke to me by saying, 'Lighten the yoke your father put on us.'"

Then the youngsters who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, "Thus you shall say to this people who spoke to you: 'Your father made our yoke heavy, but you lighten [it] for us,' you shall say to them, 'My little finger is thicker than my father's loins.

So then, my father loaded a heavy yoke on all of you, but I will add to your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions!'"

He spoke to them according to the advice of the youngsters, saying, "My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add onto your yoke; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions."

So he returned from after him, and he took a pair of oxen and slaughtered them, and with the yoke of the oxen he boiled the flesh and gave it to the people and they ate. Then he arose and went after Elijah and served him.

"Your father made our yoke heavy. Now, therefore, lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, and we will serve you."

And he said to them, "What do you advise that we should say in return to this people, who said to me, 'Lighten the yoke that your father has put upon us'?"

Then the young men who had grown up with him said to him, "Thus you should say to this people who have said to you, 'Your father made our yoke heavy, so you yourself should lighten [it] for us.' Thus you should say to them, 'My little finger [is] thicker than the loins of my father.

So now, my father laid upon you a heavy yoke, but I myself will add to the yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I myself [will do so] with scorpions.'"

And he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, "I will make your yoke heavy, and I myself will add to it. My father disciplined you with whips, but I [will do so] with scorpions."

For you have shattered the yoke of its burden and the stick of its shoulder, the rod of its oppressor, on the day of Midian.

And this shall happen: on that day, he will remove his burden from your shoulder and his yoke from your neck, {and a yoke will be destroyed because of fat}.

to break Assyria in my land, and I will trample him down on my mountains; and he shall remove his yoke from them, and he shall remove his burden from his shoulders."

I was angry with my people; I profaned my inheritance, and I gave them into your hand. You did not {give} them mercy; on [the] aged you made your yoke very heavy.

Is this not [the] fast I choose: to release [the] bonds of injustice, to untie [the] ropes of [the] yoke, and to let [the] oppressed go free, and {tear} every yoke to pieces?

Then you shall call, and Yahweh himself will answer. You shall cry for help, and he will say, 'Here I [am]!' If you remove from among you [the] yoke, the {finger-pointing} and {evil speech},

"For from long ago you have broken your yoke, you tore to pieces your bonds. And you said, 'I will not serve!' But on every high hill and under every leafy tree you [were] lying down [as] a prostitute.

Let me go to the great, and let me speak with them, for they know the way of Yahweh, the law of their God." However, they together have broken [the] yoke, they have torn to pieces [the] bonds.

"But it will be [that] the nation or kingdom that will not serve him, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put his neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the sword, and with the famine, and with the plague," {declares} Yahweh, "until I have destroyed it with my hand.

But the nation that will bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and will serve him, yet will I leave it on its land," {declares} Yahweh, "and they will till it, and they will live in it." '"

And I spoke words like these to Zedekiah, the king of Judah, {saying}, "Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.

"Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, {saying}, 'I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.

And Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, and all the exiles from Judah who went [to] Babylon, I [will] bring back to this place,' {declares} Yahweh, 'For I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.'"

Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet and broke it.

Then Hananiah said before the eyes of all the people, {saying}, "Thus says Yahweh, 'This is how I will break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, {within two years}, from the neck of all the nations.'" And Jeremiah the prophet went on his way.

And the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah after Hananiah the prophet broke the yoke from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet, {saying},

"Go, and you must say to Hananiah, {saying}, 'Thus says Yahweh, "You have broken yoke bars of wood, but you have made in place of them yoke bars of iron."

For thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, "I have put a yoke of iron on the neck of all these nations, to serve Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and they will serve him, and I have even given the animals of the open field to him." '"

And it will happen on that day,' {declares} Yahweh of hosts, 'I will break his yoke from your neck and your bonds I will tear to pieces. And strangers will no longer let him work as a slave.

My rebellion was bound [as] a yoke, with his hand it was fastened together; it was put on my neck [and] caused my strength to fail. The Lord gave me into the hands [of those whom] I cannot withstand.

[It is] good for a man who carries the yoke of his childhood.

And at Tahpanhes the day will become dark when I break the yoke of Egypt, and in it the majesty of its strength will come to an end. A cloud will cover it, and its daughters will go into captivity.

And the tree of the field will give its fruit, and the land will give its produce, and they will be on their land {safely}, and they will know that I [am] Yahweh when I break their yoke, and I will deliver them from the hand of the ones enslaving them.

I drew them {with human ties}, with the bands of love. I was to them like one who lifted up a yoke on their jaws, [though] I bent down to them [and] let them eat.

And now, I will break his yoke from upon you; I will snap your bonds."