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and this week we will discuss "Naso". our Biblical Hebrew newsletter is happy to present you the Jewish weekly portion of the week, which is read during prayer services on the Sabbath.
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Dear friends,
Food has always been a central part of human culture. Different cultures are differentiated by their cooking, seasoning, eating habits and dietary laws. Today we will discuss a few different stories in the Bible from which we can learn about the cooking and eating practices in biblical times. We will discuss a typical lavish meal in comparison to a typical everyday meal, and finally we will discuss food as a symbol of a high status.
Abraham and the Angels
In Genesis 18, three angels come to Abraham to inform him that his wife Sarah is going to have a son. Sarah and Abraham were already very old, and Sarah initially did not believe this news and laughed. However, that part of the story can be discussed at another time. I would like to focus on the feast that Abraham made for his guests. Abraham is known for his hospitality thanks to this story, and both Muslims and Jews, all the sons of Abraham, hold hospitality as an important virtue because of their father Abraham.
Abraham and the Three Angels, Gustave Doré
When the angels arrive, Abraham asks them to stay for a meal and rest. He presents it as though it is going to be a very simple meal: "Let me bring a morsel of bread, so that you can refresh yourselves, and then you may pass on" (Genesis 18:5).
However, Abraham has no intention of serving his guests only bread. He quickly goes to Sarah's tent and tells her to knead dough and bake cakes. He then runs to his herd and brings a choice calf, giving it to his servant who hastens to prepare it. He then brings butter and milk and serves the meal to the angels, who eat it under a tree.
Clearly we can learn much about Abraham's character from his generous hospitality towards total strangers (only after the meal does he find out that they are bringing him a message from God). We can also learn that the food made was considered tasty and special: meat, milk products, and cakes. It is interesting to note that while Abraham and a male servant tend to the meat, it is Sarah who bakes the cakes. Kneading and baking are two cooking tasks distinctly performed by women in the Bible.
Jacob and Esau
In Genesis 25 we hear of the twins, Jacob and Esau, who were born to Isaac and Rebecca. The disagreements between the two began already in the womb, and the many movements caused by their fighting drove Rebecca to seek the counsel of God. She was then informed of the great rivalry that would prevail between the two. Esau was born first, thus entitled to the rights of the first born, and Jacob was born right after him, holding on to his brother's heel, apparently trying to get in front of him and come out first. The two brothers had very different interests, and Jacob continued to yearn for the rights of the first born.
One day, Esau returns exhausted from the field and finds Jacob brewing a red lentil stew. He asks for some, and Jacob agrees to give him food in return for the rights of the firstborn. Esau agrees, eats his stew and bread and leaves. We are then told that he despises his birthright.
We can look at this description as an authentic indication of what an everyday meal looked like in biblical times: a cooked stew and filling bread were apparently a regular meal, something Jacob cooked for an everyday occasion, unlike the lavish meal Abraham made for the angels.
Solomon's excessive eating habits
While the previous meals discussed represent what normal people probably ate, either for special occasions or for an everyday meal, we will now discuss excessive eating habits, the reports of which are supposed to be a symbol of status.
King Solomon was an extremely powerful king, who strengthened his father's kingdom, enlarged it, and built the Temple for God in Jerusalem.
At the beginning of the description of Solomon's rule, we hear all about his great power, his unbelievable wisdom, and also the unbelievable quantities of food he consumed. We are told that:
"Solomon's provision for one day was thirty cors of fine flour and sixty cors of meal: ten fat oxen, twenty pasture-fed cattle, and a hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks and fatted fowl" (1 Kings 5:2-3).
Obviously, this description of the large quantities of food consumed by Solomon gives us an indication of his status: an important man must eat large quantities of expensive food, daily. It may also be part of the Bible's criticism towards Solomon, who did not obey by all the rules given to kings and in old age was even tempted to idolatry by his Egyptian wife.
Have a great week!
The Biblical Hebrew Online Team.
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| Weekly Biblical Hebrew Verbs |
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Root: לו"ש
Transcription: Lwsh
Literal Meaning: To knead
The kneading of dough was strictly a feminine task in biblical times. Other than Sarah whom we discussed, we hear of more women kneading dough: when King Saul is about to lose his kingdom, he illegally goes to a medium (another feminine task) in order to try and ask the dead prophet Samuel what is to happen. After he hears the grave news of the fate awaiting him, he faints, and the medium quickly makes a meal in order to revive him, including kneading dough for unleavened bread (1 Samuel 28). In another case mentioning the kneading of dough, the prophet Jeremiah scolds the people for their idolatry, mentioning the task each member of the family is in charge of in order to make cakes for the queen of heaven, a pagan idol: the children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough.
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Root: זי"ד
Transcription: zyd
Literal Meaning: To stew, to act rebelliously
The original meaning of the verb is to cook a stew, the word stew, נָזִיד, being from the same root. However, the more commonly used meaning is that of acting in rebellion, usually towards God. This meaning is perhaps similar to the English expression of "cooking something" in the meaning of plotting.
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Good Day Brethren in Christ
I have been reading your news letter - Classical News Letter and it has been an utmost beneficial to me at least in sharing with my colleague in church.
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