Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:28–30
President Howard W. Hunter noted: “This invitation and promise is one of the most oft-quoted of all scripture and has been of untold comfort and reassurance to millions. Yet there were those among his hearers that day whose vision was so limited that they could see only a carpenter’s son speaking of a wooden yoke—a yoke which, from time to time, he had undoubtedly hewn and shaped from heavy wooden timbers for the oxen of these same men who were listening. . .
“In biblical times the yoke was a device of great assistance to those who tilled the field. It allowed the strength of a second animal to be linked and coupled with the effort of a single animal, sharing and reducing the heavy labor of the plow or wagon. A burden that was overwhelming or perhaps impossible for one to bear could be equitably and comfortably borne by two bound together with a common yoke. His yoke requires a great and earnest effort, but for those who truly are converted, the yoke is easy and the burden becomes light” (“Come unto Me,” Ensign, Nov. 1990).
Word Origin: Yoke
Hebrew: The Hebrew word for “yoke” is ʿōl (עֹל). This is a wooden crosspiece on the neck of oxen for pulling or plowing. Throughout the Old Testament, the yoke was a symbol of heavy burdens, hard labor, and oppression under an unyielding master, such as the oppressors of Israel like Babylon and Assyria. For example, God broke Israel’s yoke of slavery in Egypt (Lev. 26:13).
Greek: The Greek word for “yoke” zugos (ζυγός), literally refers to the wooden bar that joins two work animals to pull a plow or load, symbolizing unity and shared effort. Figuratively, it signifies a state of servitude or a binding obligation, as in a law or a relationship.
So why would the Savior use this illustration of a yoke, which represented heavy burdens, hard labor, and oppression? There is a twist, one scholar points out: “Oxen, the strongest of the livestock, were placed in a yoke (see Isaiah 9:4) in order to harness their power for pulling loads such as a wagon or plow. Often two oxen were yoked together. An older, more experienced ox would be teamed up (yoked) with a younger, less experienced ox” (Benner, The Ancient Hebrew Language and Alphabet, 121).
Benner also noted: “When reading the Bible it is better to have an Ancient Hebrew perception of Elohiym rather than our modern western view. The word el was originally written with two pictographic letters, one being an ox head and the other a shepherd staff [אל / el and אלוה / e-lo-ah]. The ox represented strength and the staff of the shepherd represented authority. First, the Ancient Hebrews saw Elohiym as the strong one of authority. The shepherd staff was also understood as a staff on the shoulders, a yoke. Secondly, the Ancient Hebrews saw Elohiym as the ox in the yoke. When plowing a field two oxen were placed in a yoke, one was the older more experienced one, and the other was the younger and less experienced. The younger would then learn from the older. The Hebrews saw Elohiym as the older experienced ox and themselves as the younger that learns from him” (Ancient Hebrew Dictionary, 66–7).
The younger ox learns to walk in step with the experienced ox, stopping when it stops and pulling when it pulls, following its turns and watching its feet. This helps the younger animal learn the task. The yoke itself functions as a tool for direction and guidance, similar to a shepherd’s staff.
It appears that in Hebrew the idea of being yoked with God through covenant is how we learn of Him and learn from Him. This concept helps us understand why in Matthew 11:29 the Savior says, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me”.
“Entering into a covenant relationship with God binds us to Him in a way that makes everything about life easier. … Yoking yourself with the Savior means you have access to His strength and redeeming power.”
President Russell M. Nelson
Covenants: How We Take Upon Us the Yoke
Anciently, a covenant yoked two parties together. If the covenant was kept, there would be blessings; if broken, there would be curses (Deuteronomy 28). The God of the Hebrews was like an older ox bound to his people through a covenant. The Hebrew word for “oath” a-lah (אלה) explicitly means “the yoking together of two parties”.
Elder David A. Bednar noted: “Entering into and keeping sacred covenants yokes us to and binds us with the Lord. This means we trust in Him, rely on Him, and pull our load with Him during the journey of life. Our best efforts cannot be compared with His. But when we are yoked to and with the Savior, we can receive the cleansing, enabling, and additional powers of His Atonement in our lives” (“Bound to the Savior through Covenants,” For the Strength of Youth, Feb 2022, 5).
Appropriately, the Kirtland Temple had prominently displayed sacrament tables in the shape of a yoke for oxen. These tables likely served as a tangible symbol connecting the sacred covenants and ordinances, particularly those associated with the sacrament, to the concept of the yoke of Christ.
Jeff Lindsay observed: “Ancient yokes were often simple, primarily a single beam borne on the back or neck of the load bearer. Humans in servitude were sometimes connected to a staff or rod that acted like a yoke, so the image of oppression and slavery in the scriptures can be represented with terms like staff, rod, and yoke, as in Isaiah 9:4: ‘For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor.’ The irony of being free from such oppression by taking up a different yoke is worthy of contemplation, as is the greater irony of the Master himself, the one who wishes to guide us under his light yoke. He, the Master, accepted the role of the Servant of all and took upon himself the heaviest, most painful yoke imaginable in a process that included literally bearing a yoke, or rather, the beam of the cross that he carried to Golgotha (John 19:7).
“That process also included being nailed to that yoke, his shoulders heaving for every painful breath under a weight far greater than the weight of his dying body alone. On that final yoke, on that cross, he completed the divine work of bearing the burden of all our sins to free us from the weight. And now he gently urges us to take up his light yoke and his light burden and move forward under his guidance, that we might learn of him and enter into his majestic rest enabled by the Atonement” (“The Yoke of Christ: A Light Burden Heavy with Meaning,” Interpreter, 18:15).
Blessings for Being Yoked to Christ
Let’s look closely at the Savior’s words in Matthew 11:
“Come unto me” a phrase representing the doctrine of Christ and yoking ourselves to Christ (see “Merism: Language of Totality”).
“all ye that labour” Labour in Greek is kopaio (κοπιάω). The Greek tense describes people who have carried this weight constantly for a long time. Their work was tough, exhausting, and never-ending. Their alarms wake them up, text messages and emails pile up. They rush to get the kids up and off to school, complete their to-do lists with constant interruptions. They skip lunch to get things done, and end their work day by rushing kids to soccer or piano. Then they’re supposed to read “Come, Follow Me”, prepare a Sunday School lesson, and minister to people in the ward. They are putting their whole effort into life.
“heavy laden” Comes from the Greek word phortidzo, (φορτίζω) meaning a typical life burden. It’s a military term and referred to each soldier’s mandatory pack. It was normal for soldiers to carry such a weight. How far the soldier traveled determined the weight of the packs and bags. A shorter trip means a lighter load. However, the pack’s weight would be greater with a longer trip.
“I will give you rest” In the Greek New Testament, the word for “rest” as found in Matthew 11:28 is anapauō (ἀναπαύσω). President Joseph F. Smith said: “The rest here referred to is not physical rest, for there is no such thing as physical rest in the Church of Jesus Christ. Reference is made to the spiritual rest and peace which are born from a settled conviction of the truth in the minds of men. We may thus enter into the rest of the Lord today, by coming to an understanding of the truths of the gospel” (Gospel Doctrine, 126).
The “rest of the Lord” is a multifaceted concept that signifies a profound spiritual state and relationship with God, encompassing peace, security, and ultimately, eternal life and “the fulness of his glory” (Doctrine and Covenants 84:24). “The temple and its priesthood ordinances and covenants, of course, are aimed at preparing mortals to enter into the Lord’s presence and rest. As Alma said in Alma 13:16 referring to the high priesthood, ‘these ordinances were given after this manner, that thereby the people might look forward on the Son of God, … it being his order, and this that they might look forward to him for a remission of their sins, that they might enter into the rest of the Lord’” (“The Yoke of Christ: A Light Burden Heavy with Meaning”).
“Take my yoke” The Greek word for “take” is airos (αἶρος), meaning to deliberately lift or to deliberately take up. It can refer to carrying something away. In the New Testament, for example, it is used to describe disciples taking up baskets of food. The fact that Jesus used the word airos implies that one must deliberately receive the Savior’s invitation to be yoked together so He can help you pull the plow.
“my yoke is easy” The Greek word for easy is chrestos (χρηστός), meaning pleasurable, delightful, or comfortable. This word only appears seven times in the New Testament, and it has different meanings. Sometimes it was used to describe things and meant to be comfortable and well suited. But it usually characterized a person as kind, gracious, and moral.
“my burden is light” The Greek word “light” is elaphron (ἐλαφρόν) meaning “light,” “easy,” or “nimble”. It is only used twice in the New Testament (see 2 Corinthians 4:17 where the Apostle Paul refers to “our light and momentary affliction”). This is in juxtaposition to heavy laden in verse 28.
Illustration
“Brigham Young University professor Dr. Gaye Strathearn, who shared a touching story of when she found rest on the Sabbath Day—and not by taking a long nap on the couch.
“Dr. Strathearn was called to serve as stake Young Women president in her area in Australia, and her first Sunday was a busy one. She left home at 8 a.m. and had a full day of ward conferences, presidency meetings, and a last-minute teaching assignment at a fireside. When she finally arrived home at 9 p.m., she was exhausted.
“‘It was nighttime and I decided to take my dog for a walk. We were just walking in the dark and, all of a sudden, this feeling enveloped my entire being—I felt the love of God. And it caused me to express out loud, ‘I love this gospel. I love being a part of it. I love being, even in this small way, invited to be an instrument in His hands.’ And I spoke this out loud—like, Who’s hearing me? It’s my dog; he didn’t care.
“‘But really, it was my pouring out of gratitude to God. Because on that day, I wasn’t ‘still’ in the sense of doing nothing. But I was still seeking in terms of seeking the rest of God, the opportunity to have this connection with Him. And those things don’t happen to me every Sunday, not even close. But the times when they do happen, they just reverberate in my soul. And I think that’s what God wants and hopes that we will experience on the Sabbath day, both as individuals, as families, and collectively as a community: that we’re open and still enough to hear what He wants to say to us’” (Linder, “What we may be misunderstanding about the Savior’s command to ‘take my yoke upon you,’” Latter-day Saint Life).
