“But the firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb. And if you will not redeem him, then you shall break his neck” (Exodus 34:20)

According to the law, every firstborn animal belongs to the Lord, but since the donkey was unclean, it couldn’t be presented as a sacrifice. What then? Should it be allowed to go free from the law? By no means. God doesn’t allow any exceptions. The firstborn donkey belongs to Him, but He will not accept it; He will not ignore the law, but at the same time, He’s not pleased with the victim. The only way of resolving the dilemma is redemption - the creature must be saved by the substitution of a lamb in its place; or if it isn’t redeemed, it must die.

This, of course, speaks of our need of Christ. That unclean animal is you; you are the property of the Lord who made you and preserves you, but you are so sinful that God will not, cannot, accept you; and it has come to this, the Lamb of God must stand in your stead, or you will die eternally.

Let all the world know of your gratitude to the spotless Lamb who’s already bled for you, and redeemed you from the curse of the law.

I’m sure the Jews sometimes compared the donkey with the lamb, and asked which one should die, and chose the lamb, because it was worth less than the donkey. But what about us? It’s good for saints to feel the full force of the exchange made on their behalf. When you compare the value of your soul with the value of Christ, you should have died. But in your case, Christ died.

“Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! … Who redeems your life from destruction” (Psalm 103:1-4).

The breaking of the neck of the donkey was a momentary pain, but Christ redeemed you from eternal fire. Praise Him!

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