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Shedding Light on Scriptures |
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Because we read scriptures without knowledge of the culture of the peoples in the age in which they were written, we often can't understand, or misunderstand, the meaning of scripture. Often times, on learning the culture surrounding a statement, we can even find the meaning to be the direct opposite of how we view it through the eyes of our culture. I think you will find the information on this page to be interesting and enlightening, and give you a whole new viewpoint of God's Word to us. It will be very helpful for you to read the scripture in totality to get the correct concept of what is said before you read the explanation, so get your Bible out and enjoy the excursion.
I will continually add to this page, so be sure to check back occasionally if this type of information interests you. |
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"Salute no man by the way"
Luke 10:4, II Kings 4:29 |
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In our way of thinking, this sounds pretty impolite on Jesus part until we understand what the salutation is, in actuality. This salutation can be heard every day in the villages of Palestine, even today. This is how it's done.
When a peasant meets an acquaintance, he rushes up to him & falls on his neck & kisses him on both cheeks. Then they each lay the right hand over the heart (meaning, "With my heart I love you."), then on their lips (saying, "With my lips I give you the kiss of friendship."), then slowly raise their hands to the forehead (meaning, "I esteem & respect you."), & then, clasp each other's hands. Next, they exchange greetings and inquire after each other's welfare. then they question each other wth complimentary speaches that take, at the very least, another half hour. It is even quite common for them to stand by the hour repeating the same words over & over, such as, "Is there peace with you?"; "Is there peace with thy house?" They then embrace & depart. Someone may be wanting to kill you, but will greet you in the same way.
When the Angel came to Mary to announce she would be the mother of Messiah, she was troubled in her mind because she wasn't sure if the salutation was flattery or sincere. |
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"Go not from house to house"
Luke 10:4-7 |
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There was & is, a very strict custom concerning strangers entering into a village or encampment. The people, one after another must invite him to eat with them. Although it involves much hypocrisy, any failure to observe this law of hospitality is violently resented by all the neighborhood & often leads to feuds. This hospitality consumes an enormous amount of time & leads to levity & gossip; not very conducive to getting the Gospel spread very far. |
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"Carry no scrip"
Luke 9:3 |
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The scrip is the whole skin of a kid, dried. It is fastened to the belt or a cord and is thrown over the shoulder under the outer garment. In it, the traveler will carry bread, figs, & olives enough to last on his journey. Jesus told his disciples not to carry it, but be fed by the house where they would stay, & that to be a house of honor.. |
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"Suffer me first to bury my father"
Matthew 8:21; Luke 9:59 |
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When Jesus said, "Let the dead bury the dead.", it appears to us very harsh & unsympathetic, but the Palestinian understands this burying the father business to be an exceedingly common excuse & the father is no doubt, alive & well. If you ask many natives today to do something they don't want to do, they will say, "I can't, my father is dead." |
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"The Lord hath made bare His arm"
Isaiah 52:10 |
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To understand the full meaning of this you would have to see the native, men & women, with their long, flowing sleeves tied together & flung over their shoulders, leaving their arms bare to work unhindered. |
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"He shall dwell between his shoulders"
Dueteronomy 33:12 |
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This refers to the Bible Land's hammock or cradle, made of camel's hair and used by the tent dwellers & village mothers to carry their babies. It is about two by two & one half feet, with a strong cord at either end so that it can be carried on the mother's shoulders with the cord passed across her forhead. She covers the child with her large white veil to protect it from the sun & flies. While she works, it is hung from a tree or home made tripod. |
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"Thy youth renewed like the eagles"
Psalm 103:5 |
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The eagle lives to a very great age. As he ages, his beak, claws & feathers deteriorate so that he can no longer function well. He then goes off to a mountain top and pecks a rock until his beak falls off. He loses his feathers because of fasting & pulling them out. When his beak grows back, he again takes food & his feathers grow back. He then goes forth with youthful beauty & strength, renewed. |
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"The eagle stirreth up her nest"
Deuteronomy 32:11 |
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The mother eagle watches her baby eaglets carefully; as they grow, she stirs up the nest a bit so they won't be content to lie in the nest. She then flutters over them to make them want to use their wings. When it is time, she pushes them out of the nest & flies down beneath, carefully watching so no harm will come to them. When she sees the little wings become tired, she swoops underneath them with her outstretched wings, catches them & carries them back to the nest. |
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"And David danced before the Lord"
II Samuel 6:14 |
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At the head of a great procession there would frequently be found a half naked buffoon dancing, going through gesticulations usual on such occasions. It was done in honor of the person for whom the procession was made, and was the office of a slave, only. |
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"Bathed his feet with tears"
Luke 7:38 |
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Many old books reference the custom of putting the tears of the whole family into a bottle & they have been found in large numbers in excavated tombs, They are made of thin glass, although the poor had simple pottery bottles. The had a broad base, slender neck & funnel shaped opening. Every member of the family had a tear bottle. When a member of the family dies, the relatives would come, & as they wept & wailed, tears flowing down their cheeks each person took his tear bottle & gathered tears from the faces of all present. The bottle was extremely sacred. It represented all their sorrows & bereavements. When a person died, his tear bottle was buried with him as one of his most sacred possessions. When the woman emptied her tear bottle to wash Jesus' feet, it was a tremendous sacrifice for her. She bestowed her most valuable possessions on him with great love & gratitude. |
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"Water on the hands of Elijah"
II Kings 3:11 |
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As Elisha poured water on the hands of Elijah, so it is done to this very day. Never is the water poured into a basin, but it is poured over the hands of the master by a servant. Washing of the feet was also a necessary service in a country where it is hot & dusty & sandals are worn. Thus, Jesus took the role of servant to his disciples to teach them to be a servant to each other. |
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"Cursing the fig tree'
Mark 11:12-14; 20-23 |
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One strange thing about the fig tree is that the fruit appears before the leaves. If the first fruit doesn't appear, there would be no other figs on the tree. As Jesus passed the tree, he looked for the small but sweet first fruit. It was a tree with leaves, it looked like a good tree, but was useless. It was a type of profession without productivity. It was common practice then, and still is in Bible lands, for travelers to be free to help themselves to thr fruit of trees. After harvest in September, the poor are allowed to enter the orchards and take whatever is left on the trees. Jesus taught his disciples a tremendous lesson when he cursed the fruitless tree that they wouldn't soon forget. |
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"Lying at the feet..."
Ruth 3:15 / Ezekiel 16:8 |
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Ruth, when reaping in the field of Boaz, uncovered his feet and lying crosswise, covered herself with his cloak or skirt. This custom is common through out the Middle East. By doing this, she placed herself under the protection of Boaz. Later she asked him to spread his skirt over her as an acknowledgment to her right to his protection. Boaz said, "I will do to thee all that you require, for all the city knows that you are a virtuous woman. If your kinsman will not take you to wife, I will." This custom was also referred to in Ezekiel 16:8. "I will spread my skirt over you, and you become mine." |
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