Many bulls have compassed me - Men with the fierceness and fury of bulls. Compare Isaiah 51:20; Psalms 68:30.
Strong bulls of Bashan - The country of Bashan embraced the territory which was on the east of the Jordan, north of Gilead, which was given to the half tribe of Manasseh: compare Genesis 14:5 with Joshua 12:4-6. It was distinguished as pasture land for its richness. Its trees and its breed of cattle are frequently referred to in the Scriptures. Thus in Deuteronomy 32:14, “rams of the breed of Bashan” are mentioned; in Isaiah 2:13, Zechariah 11:2, “oaks of Bashan” are mentioned in connection with the cedars of Lebanon; in Amos 4:1, “the kine of Bashan” are mentioned. The bulls of Bashan are here alluded to as remarkable for their size, their strength, and their fierceness; and are designed to represent men that were fierce, savage, and violent. As applied to the Redeemer, the allusion is to the fierce and cruel men that persecuted him and sought his life. No one can doubt that the allusion is applicable to his persecutors and murderers; and no one can show that the thought indicated by this phrase also may not have passed through the mind of the Redeemer when on the cross.