Tag Archives: agriculture

Sheaves in the field

Posted on October 12, 2015 | 1 comment

Joseph had a dream in which he was elevated above his brothers. It involved something common in an agrarian society — binding sheaves in the field.

Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they hated him even more. He said to them, “Hear this dream that I have dreamed: Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf.” His brothers said to him, “Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are you indeed to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words. (Genesis 37:5-8 ESV)

The following photos were made in the region of Samaria, and near the ancient city of Samaria. The first shows sheaves that have been gathered in the field.

Sheaves in the field near Samaria. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Sheaves in the field near Samaria. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

The next photo is a cropped closeup in which you can see the strings binding some of the sheaves.

Closeup to show the string around the sheaf of grain. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Closeup to show the string around some of the sheaves. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Possibly the best known instance of sheaves in the Bible is the story of the young Moabite woman named Ruth. She requested permission to pick up what was left after the reapers went through the field of Boaz.

She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.’ So she came, and she has continued from early morning until now, except for a short rest.” Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women.
(Ruth 2:7-8 ESV)

And that’s how the story of King David begins…

Entrepreneurs take advantage of the Biblical stories. This store, which I did not visit, is located in the vicinity of the traditional Shepherd’s fields near Bethlehem. The salesmen are just waiting for the next bus load of tourists.

Boaz Field store in Bethlehem. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Boaz Field souvenir store near Bethlehem. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Since childhood I have loved to sing Knowles Shaw’s spiritual song, “Bringing in the Sheaves.” By the time of my childhood we already had a mechanized way of baling the hay, but the lesson was easy to understand.

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A sower went out to sow…

Posted on April 26, 2015 | 1 comment

One of the best known parables of Jesus is the parable of the sower and the soils. Note the account recorded in Mark.

 Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” (Mark 4:1-9 ESV)

Jesus used this simple, easily understood illustration to teach about the word of God and the hearts of men. Read the full account in Matthew 13:3-23, Mark 4:1-20, and Luke 8:5-15.

A few years ago I was traveling in the vicinity of Hebron in late August and saw these fields that had been plowed and readied for planting. I assume the crop would be barley or wheat. I was standing on the road. You can see the rocks (be sure the soil is rocky), the weeds (if not thorns), and the good ground. In the time of Jesus seed would be broadcast, scattered by hand. Seed would fall on all the areas, but only that which fell on good ground would bring forth an acceptable crop. Many of the fields in the central mountain range north of Bethlehem are much smaller, but each field has the four elements of good soil, rocks, thorns, and road. How would you describe your heart?

A field showing good soil, rocks, and weeds. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

A field showing good soil, rocks, and weeds. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

For photos of the area where Jesus likely taught this and other parables, see this post on The Cove of the Sower here.

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Passing through the grainfields on the Sabbath

Posted on April 13, 2015 | 2 comments

All three Synoptic Gospels record the incident of Jesus and His disciples passing through the grainfields on a Sabbath.

On a Sabbath, while he was going through the grainfields, his disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands. But some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” (Luke 6:1-2 ESV; See also Matthew 12:1-8; Mark 2:23-28)

I thought I would put together some photos to help you visualize what happened here. First, we have a photo of a wheat field below Mount Tabor. The photo is made looking north west from near the site of ancient En-dor. The area is famous as the home of the medium visited by King Saul (1 Samuel 28:7).

Wheat field with view NW to Mount Tabor. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Wheat field with view NW to Mount Tabor. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Now, imagine the disciples taking ripe grain in their hands.

Picking heads of grain. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Picking heads of grain. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

And then rubbing the heads to separate the grain from the chaff.

Rubbing grain to separate the grain from the chaff. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Rubbing grain to separate the grain from the chaff. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

The Mosaic law allows for plucking standing grain with the hand, but not using a sickle.

If you go into your neighbor’s standing grain, you may pluck the ears with your hand, but you shall not put a sickle to your neighbor’s standing grain. (Deuteronomy 23:25 ESV)

The sickle pictured below was excavated at Tell Beit Mirsim and dates to the Iron Age sometime between 925-701 B.C. It is displayed in the James L. Kelso Bible Lands Museum at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary.

Sickle from the Iron Age at Tell Beit Mirsim. Kelso Bible Lands Museum, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Sickle from the Iron Age at Tell Beit Mirsim. Kelso Bible Lands Museum, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

The Pharisees were claiming that what the disciples were doing was work prohibited on the Sabbath, but Jesus used the event to teach two important facts.

  • The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.
  • The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.

The last two photos of grain in the hand were made in the vicinity of Mount Nemrut in eastern Turkey. Larger images, suitable for use in teaching, are available by clicking on the photos.

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Posted in Archaeology, Bible Places, Bible Study, Culture, Israel, Old Testament, Photography, Travel

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Regarding the Visualizing Isaiah series

Posted on May 5, 2014 | 2 comments

The response to the Visualizing Isaiah series has been good by my estimation. Numerous readers have written that they enjoyed/profited by the series. Several bloggers have linked to the series and a few have re-blogged almost all of them to their readers.

This was an ambitious project. First, there was the responsibility to understand Isaiah well enough to make appropriate comments. Second, the selection of good photos was quite a task. I often looked through photos from various Bible sites and/or several museums with Ancient Near Eastern collections to locate what I thought was the right image. Some chapters offered numerous possibilities; others were a bit more difficult.

Hopefully I will be able to continue the series later. At this time I must take a break because I will be traveling in the Bible world most of May. I do plan to post something most days to indicate where I am traveling.

I trust that the Isaiah series has illustrated how you can enhance your study and teaching with visuals. You may say, “but I haven’t been to all of those places.” But you can search this blog for illustrations. Some time back we provided illustrations for the entire book of Acts. You can go to your Pictorial Library of Bible Lands collection and find the photos you need. Or, search the Bible Places Blog, or the Holy Land Photos’ Blog, or the vast collection at Holy Land Photos, or David Padfield’s collection here.

For my next series, I plan to select a shorter book such as Philemon or Jude.

Just in case some of you are looking ahead to Isaiah 41, I will include an image to help with verses 15-16.

Behold, I make of you a threshing sledge, new, sharp, and having teeth; you shall thresh the mountains and crush them, and you shall make the hills like chaff; you shall winnow them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the tempest shall scatter them. And you shall rejoice in the LORD; in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.  (Isaiah 41:15-16 ESV)

Winnowing at Shechem. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Winnowing at Shechem. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

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Posted in Bible Lands, Bible Places, Bible Study, blog, Book of Acts, New Testament, Old Testament, Photography, Travel, Turkey

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Visualizing Isaiah 28: the threshing sledge

Posted on April 1, 2014 | 2 comments

Toward the end of Isaiah 28 several agricultural illustrations are used. Notice the references to the threshing sledge in verses 27 and 28.

Dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge, nor is a cart wheel rolled over cumin, but dill is beaten out with a stick, and cumin with a rod. Does one crush grain for bread? No, he does not thresh it forever; when he drives his cart wheel over it with his horses, he does not crush it. (Isaiah 28:27-28 ESV)

A threshing sledge was made of wood with sharp stones placed in the bottom. The sledge was pulled around and around over stalks of wheat or barley to cut the stalks into small pieces. The sledge was pulled by oxen or another animal. A young man, with perhaps some weights would be placed on top of the sledge to make it more efficient. The photo below shows an antique threshing sledge at Aphrodisias, Turkey.

Threshing sledge with most of cutting stones gone. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Threshing sledge with most of cutting stones gone. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

The next photo shows another sledge with many of the stones still in place. Every time the sledge went over the grain the pieces became smaller.

A threshing sledge with most of the cutting stones gone. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

A threshing sledge with many of the cutting stones in place. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

The entire process of threshing, winnowing, and sifting, is shown in the art by Balage at Archaeology Illustrated.

Araunah's threshing floor. Art by Balage, Archaeology Illustrated.

Araunah’s threshing floor. Art by Balage, Archaeology Illustrated.

 

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Almonds growing in the Jezreel Valley

Posted on July 24, 2013 | Leave a comment

The photo below shows almonds growing in the Jezreel Valley in late April.

Almonds growing in the Jezreel Valley. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Almonds growing in the Jezreel Valley. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

During the days of a severe famine in the land of Canaan, Israel (Jacob) agreed to allow his youngest son Benjamin to go to Egypt at the request of the man who was in charge of dispensing food. That man was Joseph, the son of Israel. Jacob agreed to allow Benjamin to go with his older brothers. He also told the boys to take some of “the best products of the land” including almonds.

Then their father Israel said to them, “If it must be so, then do this: take some of the choice fruits of the land in your bags, and carry a present down to the man, a little balm and a little honey, gum, myrrh, pistachio nuts, and almonds. (Genesis 43:11 ESV)

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A pleasant stop in Samaria

Posted on April 21, 2013 | 7 comments

It was still raining quite a bit in the north of the country yesterday, but we enjoyed some good visits. The morning was clear for the visit to Beth Shean (Beth-shan). We approached the overlook of the Jezreel Valley from Jezreel in a light drizzle.

From that spot one gets a view of Jezreel Valley, Mount Gilboa, the Hill of Moreh, and the spring below Jezreel. We discussed Gideon and the Midianites, the Ahab and Jezebel and their deaths, Naboth’s Vineyard, Elijah and the prophets of Baal, the coming of Jehu. What a great visual backdrop this provided!

We were able to travel along the central mountain range through Samaria. This is not always possible when traveling in the country. The road up to the Hill of Samaria is in bad repair (what a shame), but our driver was able to negotiate the ruts and get us to the top.

I have eaten several times before at the Samaria Restaurant in Sebastia. It is located across from the Roman agora of ancient Samaria. The owner, Mahmud Ghazal is a pleasant person. He studied at the University of Alabama, with a degree from UAB. If you are able to go to Samaria I suggest you try this restaurant, and then visit his shop.

There is a nice wall exhibit in the restaurant showing some of the antiques from the area – from the not too distant past. Take a look.

Antiques at the Samaria Restaurant, Sebastia, Palestine. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Antiques at the Samaria Restaurant, Sebastia, Palestine. Most of these have to do with agricultural practices. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Most of these antiques have to do with agricultural practices that were common in Bible times. On the right you have a wooden plow with a metal plow point. On the left is a threshing sledge. On the right you see two winnowing forks and a sickle. I don’t have the time to list biblical references for all of these items. Many of them we have discussed before on this blog.

The rain let up long enough for us to have a good visit of the archaeological ruins of ancient Samaria.

We also stopped at Jacob’s Well, drove up on Mount Gerizim for a view of the area below. Then we continued to our hotel in Jerusalem.

Rain was forecast for Jerusalem today, so we went through the Wilderness of Judea and drove along the Dead Sea to Masada. There were large crowds at Masada. Some of them probably had the same idea we did and changed their plan to be in a dry place for the day.

Hopefully the skies will be clear tomorrow. We are having a great learning experience, and a great time, anyway.

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Posted in Bible Lands, Bible Places, Bible Study, Israel, New Testament, Old Testament, Photography, Travel

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The fig tree

Posted on September 12, 2011 | Leave a comment

When the children of Israel came to the end of the period of Wilderness Wandering, the LORD reminded them of the wonderful land into which He was bringing them.

“For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing forth in valleys and hills; a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey; a land where you will eat food without scarcity, in which you will not lack anything; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. (Deuteronomy 8:7-9 NAU)

The fig is the first fruit tree specifically named in the Bible. Adam and Eve used the leaves of the fig tree to make coverings (loincloths) for themselves when they learned their condition before God.

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. (Genesis 3:7 NAU)

During the past two weeks we noticed ripe figs in several places in Israel and the West Bank. The photo below of the ripe figs was taken at Tel Balata (= Shechem).

Ripe figs at Shechem, Early September. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Ripe figs at Shechem, Early September. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

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Contemplating the power of a single grain

Posted on June 1, 2011 | Leave a comment

Last Sunday evening I heard a good sermon based on John 12:24-26.

Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. (John 12:24 ESV)

This simple statement by Jesus is followed by a difficult lesson.

Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him. (John 12:25-26 ESV)

A grain of wheat must fall into the earth and die before it can produce fruit. Depending on the circumstances the grain can produce thirty-, sixty-, or a hundredfold (Matthew 13:8).

Wheat ready for harvest at En Dor. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Wheat ready for harvest at En Dor. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

A single grain of wheat must die in order to produce much fruit. Jesus spoke of the necessity of His own death, and taught the tough lesson of giving up one’s life to serve Him.

Note the comment by William Hendriksen.

The illustration was very clear, especially at the moment when it was spoken, not more than a few days before the (religious and) harvest feast of Passover. The kernels or seeds had been entrusted to the soil. As seeds they had died. But by means of this very process of dissolution they had brought forth an abundant harvest. If a seed is not sown, it remains alone, producing no fruit. So also if Jesus does not die, he will remain alone, without spiritual fruit (souls saved for eternity). His death, however, will result in a rich, spiritual harvest. (New Testament Commentary : Exposition of the Gospel According to John).

We have included a larger image suitable for use in teaching. It is available by clicking on the image above.

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Fields white for harvest

Posted on May 20, 2011 | 2 comments

Many biblical accounts contain information not easily understood without some knowledge of the history and culture of the time. Such is true in the account of Jesus traveling through Samaria in John 4. You probably recall that He met the woman of Samaria when she came to the well to draw water.

While His disciples were in the city buying food Jesus taught the Samaritan woman. She then went into the city and began to tell the men that she had met this man who knew her intimate life.

When the disciples returned to Jesus He said,

Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. (John 4:35 ESV)

This is one of those statements with a literal meaning as well as a spiritual one. What did he mean by four months? Four months separate the sowing and the harvesting. Barley harvest could begin around April 15. Wheat harvesting begins six weeks later in late May or early June. In May the fields would be white unto harvest. This helps to date the episode in John 4 to December or January, depending on whether the crop was barley or wheat.

When Jesus said the fields were white for harvest He was speaking of a spiritual harvest. The disciples did not know that He and the woman had already sowed the seed. They would reap the harvest. It is not inappropriate to see the harvesting in the two days Jesus stayed there teaching (John 4:39-43), or in the later events of Acts 8:39-43.

The photo below was made from En-Dor, looking north to Mount Tabor. The wheat fields are almost ready for harvesting.

Wheat ready for harvest at En-Dor near Mount Tabor. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Wheat ready for harvest at En-Dor near Mount Tabor. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Under some light the fields even have a white appearance, as you see in the photo below.

Wheat ready for harvest near En-Dor and Mount Tabor. May 13. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

Wheat white for harvest. May 13. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

These little tips, scattered here and there in Scripture, reveal much about the daily life and culture of Bible times.

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