Wine. This Is Appendix 27
From The Companion Bible.
There are eight Hebrew words
translated wine. A careful observation of their use will tell us all that
there is to be known on the subject.
Yayin, from the root yayan, to
ferment, used of every sort of wine. The word occurs 142
times, and includes fermented wine of all kinds.
- The first occurrence is :
- Genesis 9:
21. "Noah
planted a vineyard and drank yayin and was
drunken."
- Genesis 14:
18.
"Melchizedek... brought forth bread and wine."
1 Samuel
25:36,
37. Nabal drank yayin and "was very
drunken."
- Isaiah 28:
1. "The
drunkards of Ephraim ... are overcome (that is to say, knocked down)
with yayin."
- Jeremiah 23:
9. "I am
like a drunken man, and like a man whom yayin hath
overcome".
- It is perfectly certain, therefore, from these passages, that
yayin was fermented, and was intoxicating.
- Yayin was also used for sacred purposes and for
blessing :
- Genesis 49:
12. "His
(Judah's) eyes shall be red with yayin, and his teeth
white with milk."
- Amos 9:
13. "I
will bring again the captivity of my people, and they shall plant
vineyards and drink the yayin therof." (verse
14 is No. V.)
- Ecclesiastes 9:
7. "Drink
thy yayin with a merry heart, for God now accepteth thy
works."
- The Nazarite, at the expiration of his vow, drank
yayin. See Numbers 6:
13 -20. It was used
at the Feasts of Jehovah (Deuteronomy 14:24 -26), and was
poured out as a drink-offering to Jehovah (Exodus 29:40. Leviticus
23:13. Numbers
15:5).
- Tirosh, from yarash, to possess =
must, or new wine, so called because it gets possession of the brain. It
occurs thirty-four times in the Old Testament.
- Hosea 4:
11.
"Whoredom and yayin and tirosh take
away the heart" (that is to say, they blunt the feelings,
derange the intellect).
- Some say that tirosh means grapes, and
is used as solid food, because in Genesis
37:
28 we read of
"tirosh and corn". We might as well say
that when we speak of "bread and water", that water is
also a solid, because bread is a solid. On the contrary,
"tirosh and corn" means liquids and
solids, by the figure of Synecdoche (of Genus),
Appendix 6.
- Proverbs 3:
10. "Thy
presses shall burst out with tirosh."
- Isaiah 62:
8. "The
sons of the stranger shall not drink thy tirosh."
- Joel 2:
24. "The
fats (vats) shall overflow with tirosh and oil."
- Micah 6:
15. "Thou
shalt tread ... tirosh, but shalt not drink
yayin."
- Chemer, from chamar, to ripen. Hence
used of strong red wine. It occurs eight times.
- Deuteronomy 32:
14. "The
pure chemer of the grape."
- Isaiah 27:
2, 3. "A
vineyard of chemer. I the Lord do keep it".
- Ezra 6:
9. Cyrus and
Artaxerxes commanded that chemer should be given to the
people of Israel for the service of the God of Heaven.
- The Rabbins called it neat wine, because, unmixed
with water, it disturbs the head and brain.
- Shekar = strong drink (from shakar, to get
drunk), a very intoxicating drink made from barely, honey, or
dates.
- Numbers 28:
7. "In
the holy place shalt thou cause the shekar (strong wine)
to be poured unto the Lord for a drink offering."
- Deuteronomy 14:
-25, 26. "Thou
... shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose: and
thou shalt bestow that money for whatever thy soul lusteth after, for
oxen, or for sheep, or for yayin (wine), or for
shekar (strong drink), or for whatsoever thy soul
desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the Lord thy God, and thou
shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household".
- 'Asis (from 'asas, to tread)
new or sweet wine of the vintage year.
- Isaiah 49:
26. "They
shall be drunken with their own blood, as with 'asis
(sweet wine)".
- The drinking of this was held out by God as a blessing conferred
by Him. Joel 3:
17, 18. Amos
9:13.
- Sob'e any kind of strong intoxicating drink: from
sab'a, to drink to excess, become drunk: occurs twice.
- Isaiah 1:
22. "Thy
silver is become dross, thy sob'e (wine) mixed with
water".
- Hosea 4:
18. "Their
sob'e (drinking bout or
carouse) is over" (Authorized Version their drink
is sour (margin, gone). Revised Version margin
their carouse is over).
- Mimsak, mixed or spiced wine.
- Proverbs 23:
30. "They
that tarry long at the yayin; they that go seek
mimsak (mixed wine). "
- Isaiah 65:
11. "That
prepare a table for Fortune, and that fill up mingled wine
(mimsak) unto Destiny" (Revised Version).
- Shemarim, from shamar, to keep, preserve, lay
up; hence, old wine, purified from the lees and
racked off.
- Psalm 75:
8. "But
the Shemarim (dregs), all the wicked of the earth shall
wring them out, and drink them."
- Isaiah 25:
6. "Wines
on the lees."
- Zephaniah 1:
12. "I
will ... punish the men that are settled on their
Shemarim (lees)".
- Jeremiah 48:
11. "Moab
... hath settled on his lees."
N.B. The word translated "flagons of
wine" is 'ashishah from 'ashash, to
press; hence a hardened syrup made of grapes, a sweet cake of dried grapes
or pressed raisins. it occurs in 2 Samuel
6:19. 1 Chronicles
16:3. Song
2:5. Hosea
3:1.
With these data it will be seen that
the modern expression, "unfermented wine", is a
contradiction of terms. If it is wine, it must have
fermented. If it has not been fermented, it is not wine, but a syrup.
Leaven is sour dough, and not wine. It is that which
causes the fermentation. There can be no leaven after the
process of fermentation has ceased.
|