Job 39:9

Unicorn. Hebrew rem, elsewhere re’em, occurring 9 times in the Old Testament. From the various descriptions of this animal it is thought to designate the wild ox (see Numbers 23:22; 24:8; Deuteronomy 33:17; Psalm 22:21; 29:6; 92:10). The wild bull often found on Assyrian monuments was known as rimu. The animal was probably similar to those which Caesar found in Gaul and which he described as follows: “These uri are scarcely less than elephants in size, but in their nature, color and form are bulls. Great is their strength and great their speed. Nor do they spare man nor beast, when once they have caught sight of him... Even when they are young, they cannot be habituated to man and made tractable. The size and shape of their horns are very different from those of our oxen” (De bello Gallico vi. 28). It is commonly believed that the contrast between the wild ox and the tame ox in verses 9-12 is comparable to the contrast between the wild ass and the tame ass in verses 5-8.

Serve thee. The tame ox would pull the plow, but the wild ox could not be used for such purposes.

By thy crib. The wild ox could not be kept in a domestic environment. His nature was different. Who endowed him with such different characteristics, even though outwardly he might resemble his tame brother? The answer is — God.