The "Donkey in a Ditch" Principle: A Quick Look

When we came into an understanding of the relevance of the Torah in our lives as Believers, the writings of the Apostles began to make sense more than ever. It became easier to identify and understand Hebraic idioms and references. In addition, the fact that Yeshua was Jewish and lived a Jewish life became apparent. After reading the ‘New Testament’ in light of the Torah, we were then confronted with the task of finding modern application of Yeshua’s instructions and teachings. At the congregation we attended we were introduced to some principles that were based on Messiah’s interpretation and application of the Torah. One of these is the “Donkey in a Ditch” principle. I don’t remember this principle ever clearly explained by the congregation’s leadership but the implicit understanding by the congregation was something like this:

If you find yourself in a situation that requires immediate attention it is permissible to miss the Sabbath Convocation and break the commandment to Rest (Lev 23:3) in order to address the situation. And, the individual determines the validity of the situation.

Members of the congregation used this principle to justify attending family gatherings, graduation ceremonies, weddings, and birthday parties. Some worked on their houses, their cars, or their yard. But is this really what the “Donkey in a Ditch” principle is about? Is the “Donkey in a Ditch” principle even Biblical?

After a quick search on Study Light I did not find the exact phrase ‘Donkey in a Ditch’ in the Gospels however, I am quite certain that this phrase originated from the following verse in the Gospel of Luke:

Then He answered them, saying, "Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?"
- Luke 14:5 (NKJ)

Here is the verse in context:

1 Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely.
2 And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy.
3 And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"
4 But they kept silent. And He took him and healed him, and let him go.
5 Then He answered them, saying, "Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?"
6 And they could not answer Him regarding these things.
- Luke 14:1-6 (NKJ)

Whether the Pharisees were trying to setup Yeshua or not by putting this guy with dropsy in front of Him, the point is that He healed the guy on Shabbat. He likened healing this guy to pulling a donkey or an ox out of a well. If the animal isn’t pulled out of the well, it will surely die. If saving the life of an animal is something worth ‘breaking a sweat over’ on Shabbat, how much more should we care for a person! We can surmise from this passage that healing someone from a condition that diminishes his or her quality of life is permissible on Shabbat; and if on Shabbat someone fell in a well, if it is a matter of life and death, there should be no uncertainty that they are to be rescued.

There is a passage in the Gospel of Matthew that is very similar to the passage we just looked at in Luke. It takes place on Shabbat but this time the setting is in a synagogue and there is a man with a withered hand. The people in the synagogue ask Yeshua if it is lawful to heal on Shabbat (Mat 12:10). He responds by saying:

“Which one of you who has a sheep, if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out? Of how much more value is a man than a sheep! So it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” - Matthew 12:11,12 (ESV)

He then proceeds to heal the withered hand and the people conspire to kill Him so He leaves. (I guess for these people it was permissible on Shabbat to kill someone. Ha!) In this passage we see Yeshua compare rescuing a sheep out of a pit with healing a man’s withered hand. If the sheep was left in the pit it would die but if the man lived with a withered hand, he would not die; rather his quality of life would be diminished. The withered hand was not a life or death situation but, because the man is more precious in the eyes of God, healing him on Shabbat is good; it is lawful. It is lawful to save someone’s life on Shabbat as well as heal them when they are experiencing non-life threatening illnesses or physical conditions.

So based on this brief look at these two passages, what is the “Donkey in a Ditch” principle? I define the “Donkey in a Ditch” principle like this: on Shabbat is permissible to save someone’s life as well as heal them from illnesses, physical conditions and demonic oppression. It’s as simple as that. Going to a wedding ceremony is not a “Donkey in a Ditch” scenario. Taking a child to a soccer tournament is not a “Donkey in a Ditch.” If you are not remembering and observing Shabbat, call it what it is and don’t try to justify it with the ol’ “it’s a donkey in a ditch” excuse.

When I was a young believer, still learning all this Torah stuff, I claimed that digging out and repairing the water main to our home was a “Donkey in a Ditch.” In my mind it was a life or death situation—we can’t live with out water! I believed it diminished our quality of life—how would we shower? Besides, my neighbor who was a plumber was only available to help me on Saturday and he wasn’t going to charge me anything! However, I did have to go out and rent a jackhammer. The real problem was that I didn’t want to take off from work on Monday to take care of the busted pipe. We had vacation plans and using one of my vacation days would have interrupted our plans. Wahh!

We need to ask ourselves, is there a good reason to miss the Sabbath Convocation and break the commandment to Rest (Lev 23:3)? Life or death situations are a given. I’m talking about another justifiable reason to miss Shabbat. What about a funeral? Paying respects to someone that has passed away is a good reason to miss Shabbat, right? Think of someone who is really close to you. Would you miss Shabbat to go to his or her funeral? Consider this…

According to the account in the Gospel of Luke Yeshua died on Friday afternoon. This means that Shabbat was quickly approaching. What did His disciples do with His body? Did they consider this a “Donkey in a Ditch” that took priority over the commandment to rest? Did they stop everything in order to bury Him? Keep in mind this is Yeshua we’re talking about here. The Master! The Messiah! The Son of God! This is what His disciples did:

50 And a man named Joseph, who was a member of the Council, a good and righteous man
51 (he had not consented to their plan and action), a man from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, who was waiting for the kingdom of God;
52 this man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.
53 And he took it down and wrapped it in a linen cloth, and laid Him in a tomb cut into the rock, where no one had ever lain.
54 It was the preparation day, and the Sabbath was about to begin.
55 Now the women who had come with Him out of Galilee followed, and saw the tomb and how His body was laid.
56 Then they returned and prepared spices and perfumes.

And on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared.
 - Luke 23:50-24:1 (NAS)

Did you catch that? Just hours after Yeshua died "on the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment." They kept the Sabbath. This passage gives us a glimpse of the significance of Shabbat in the lives of the disciples of Yeshua. They didn’t even miss it in order to arrange a proper burial for their Messiah.

Again, we need to ask ourselves, is there a good reason to miss the Sabbath Convocation and break the commandment to Rest (Lev 23:3)?

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