Jim Campbell, DMin, explores the diet of Holy Land residents and describes what it would have been like to dine with Jesus. – In the Holy Land, a variety of foods were available. Principal crops included wheat, barley, olives, and grapes; lentils, fava beans, and chickpeas; and onions, leeks, and garlic.
- Fruits such as olives, grapes, date palms, apples, watermelon, pomegranates, figs, and sycamores made life sweeter (a low-quality fig eaten mainly by the poor).
- In addition to raising sheep, goats, and cattle, the people fished in the Mediterranean and Sea of Galilee.
- The primary beverage was wine made from grapes.
Every morning began with a light breakfast of bread or fruit. Every day, the mother kneaded and baked bread as one of her primary responsibilities. People in the Holy Land consumed a light lunch of bread, grain, olives, and figs at midday. The main meal was consumed in the evening.
Dinner was a stew from a single pot served in a communal bowl. Bread was used as a spoon to consume the stew. The stew could consist of a thick porridge of vegetables, lentils, or chickpeas with herbs. Fish was served more frequently than meat, especially when the family had an important guest. The wealthy kept lambs and calves in stalls so that they could be fattened for feasting (Luke 15: 23–30).
Every meal was a sacred occasion where the presence of God was anticipated and welcomed. The people understood that although they had earned their daily sustenance, God provided them with everything they had. Always, fellowship during a meal was fellowship before God.
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What was Jesus’ preferred meal?
4. JESUS’ FAVORITE FOOD WAS FISH – Okay. This is an extreme case. However, there does appear to be a great deal of fish in the accounts of His life in the New Testament. First, He chose to call His followers “fishermen.” He could have contacted butchers or farmers, but Why? Since He enjoys fish! Two, after His resurrection and prior to His ascension, He shares a significant meal with His disciples, possibly the final meal, and what did they eat? Yup.
P. Benoit also agrees that Jesus ate the fish — not because his glorified body needed to eat, but because with ‘pedagogical condescension’, he wanted to prove to his disciples that he could eat and was not a mere phantom (Passion et Résurrection du Seigneur, p.
What was bread like in the time of Jesus?
Bread has been the staple food and a symbol of life in all cereal-producing countries, but especially in the Middle East, the birthplace of agriculture. Osiris was revered in Ancient Egypt as the god of vegetation and rebirth. He instructed the people on how to cultivate wheat and make flour and bread.
- Alongside wine and olive oil, the Greeks regarded bread as a “product of civilization.” According to the Bible, Adam and Eve were expelled from paradise.
- God sentenced Adam to work and earn his living “through the sweat of his brow” (Genesis 3, 18-19).
- People transitioned from food gathering to agriculture.
This required skill, knowledge, and technique, and the perfect result was bread. Similar to the inhabitants of the Middle East and Mediterranean regions, biblical characters consumed bread prepared in a variety of ways. Bread made with wheat, barley, spelt, or millet may be seasoned with oil or herbs.
- In addition to simple round and flat bread, there were galettes and grape or honey cakes.
- Matzah, also known as “bread of haste,” is the unleavened bread that the Hebrews took with them when fleeing their oppression as slaves in Egypt.
- Nomads consumed unleavened bread because it was quickly prepared.
- In contrast, leavened bread, or hametz, was consumed by sedentary people and therefore represented perseverance and consistency.
Life-sustaining, bread was the quintessential food. frequent references to food in its entirety.
What Did Jesus Drink and Eat? By Sandy Middleton Due to the increased interest in food and drink during the upcoming holiday season, I deemed it appropriate to write an article about what Jesus ate and drank. As a devout Jew, Jesus would have adhered to the dietary regulations outlined in Leviticus 11:11.
- Regardless of the laws, Jesus’ diet would have been limited by what was available.
- Jesus ate the foods of the poor because he himself was poor.
- He probably only consumed food twice a day, in the morning and evening.
- Some of the following article will be speculative and based on educated guesses of the foods known to grow in the geographic region of Israel, but we can actually learn from the Bible which foods Jesus consumed.
For instance, Luke 24:41–43 states: “41 And while they still did not believe for joy and were astonished, he asked them, “Have you any food here?” And they gave him a portion of grilled fish and honeycomb. And he took it and ate in front of them.” Therefore, we are certain that Jesus consumed fish and honey.
Another verse mentions Jesus with fish; John 21:9-10 contains this verse. “9. As soon as they arrived on land, they saw a fire of coals with fish and bread placed on it.10. Jesus says to them, “Bring the fish you have just caught.”” Jesus consumed seafood from the Sea of Galilee. In local archaeological excavations, the remains of freshwater fish such as carp and St.
Peter’s fish (tilapia) have been identified. However, there is evidence that the supply of fish was not always abundant and that transporting fish would have been difficult, resulting in prohibitive prices. Fish was frequently dried, smoked, or salted, which solved the availability problem by preserving large catches for times of scarcity.
- Jesus likely ate bread, as it was a staple of the ancient diet, which consisted of coarse, whole-grain barley bread that likely became rancid and moldy if not consumed daily.
- The poor ate barley bread because it was used to feed livestock and horses.
- Wealthier individuals would have used wheat or millet to bake bread.
(Jesus called Himself “The Bread of Life,” and according to the Bible, barley bread was distributed during the feeding of the multitude.) According to the Mishnah, the first significant written collection of Jewish oral traditions, the wife’s duties include grinding flour and baking bread, as well as washing clothes, preparing food, caring for children, etc.
Using small hand-mills made of coarse stone, grinding grain was typically a laborious task performed at home by women. Typically, these mills left a grit residue in the bread. In fact, the regulations of the Mishnah permit a minimum level of impurity of ten percent in purchased goods, so we can assume that there was frequently more impurity in the flour than this.
Indeed, teeth on skeletons from the time of Jesus are worn down from years of eating coarse bread. Jesus most likely did not consume fresh bread every day, as it would have required numerous hours of foraging and expensive fuel to bake daily. Normal people baked once per week, while professional bakers in villages baked once every three days, and only urban bakers baked more frequently.
- To prevent bread from spoiling, it was frequently dried in the sun and then dipped in a liquid to make it edible.
- Note: despite careful drying, bread could still become moldy, but it was frequently consumed.) Additionally, figs would be a food option (Jesus attempted to eat figs from a fruitless fig tree on the road to Jerusalem).
Additionally, grapes, raisins, vinegar, and wine were also consumed (Jesus called Himself “The True Vine,” and a sponge soaked in wine vinegar was offered to Jesus while He was on the cross). Jesus most likely consumed lamb (lamb is a key component of the Passover Feast), olives, and olive oil (the “sop” used to dip the bread in during the Last Supper probably contained olive oil).
The region also produced pomegranates, apples, pears, apricots, peaches, melons, and dates, all of which would have been consumed by Jesus. A mosaic from the fourth century depicts Christ flanked by pomegranates. Jesus likely consumed eggs from ducks, hens, geese, quail, partridges, and pigeons, as well as vegetables, beans, and pulses (legumes such as chickpeas).
Miqpeh was the name given to lentil stews that consisted primarily of a solidified mass, which occurs when cooked lentils are allowed to cool. These solid chunks of food were easier for poor families with limited eating utensils to pick up by hand. Garlic was frequently used to flavor miqpeh, and cabbage was sometimes added.
- There were also bean, lentil, onion, garlic, cucumber, and leek stews available.
- The Bible mentions mustard, dill, cumin, cinnamon, mint, and salt as seasonings.
- Remember Jesus’ parable about the mustard seed in Mark 4:31.) Jesus probably consumed water, wine, and milk for hydration (from goats and sheep).
Lastly, we cannot forget dessert, which was likely consumed infrequently. Jesus would have consumed almonds, pistachios, and honey, date, and raisin-filled baked goods for dessert. In conclusion, it is evident that Jesus ate mostly seasonal, fresh produce: What Did Jesus Drink and Eat?
What does the Bible say about coffee?
While not unreasonable, this is a question with limited scope for investigation. Depending on your sources, the origins of coffee date back to the 9th century, around 850 A.D., and the legend of Ethiopian goat herder Kaldi, who observed his flock becoming more active after consuming coffee cherries from a local shrub.
This prompted Kaldi to experiment, and the rest, according to the legend, is coffee history. Jesus, however, is believed to have lived between 6-4 B.C. and 30-36 A.D., making it unlikely that his lips and a clay mug of coffee ever came into contact. However, this does not preclude a theological wit from attempting to make a connection.
enter Michael Svigel. In 2004, Svigel, now Department Chair and Professor of Theological Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary, presented a paper to a regional gathering of evangelical scholars and scholar-want tobes that, in his own words, “constructed an argument for the incorporation of coffee into worship as a sacrament by appealing to biblical, theological, historical, and experiential grounds” that was “completely illegitimate.” Despite the tongue-in-cheek nature of Svigel’s thesis, which he jokes ended his career as a “respectable” theologian, his paper was a lot of fun.
- Then, did Jesus consume coffee? No, says Svigel.
- In his discussion of coffee as a means of grace — the things through which God is said to give grace, such as blessings or conversion — Svigel argues that Jesus is already “the spiritual source of that grace” and is therefore excluded from his argument.
Other exclusions, according to him, include anyone who is not a confirmed Christian, which “demonstrates that coffee should be considered sacramental.” Why is there coffee on the biblical table? Svigel argues that the Old and New Testaments contain multiple references to coffee.
In Isaiah 51 and 52 of the Old Testament, the reader is exhorted to “Awake! Awake!” and “Put on strength!” This theme is expanded upon in Isaiah 51:17, which mentions “trembling” and “draining.” Various passages, according to Svigel, seem to indicate that it is God’s will for people to be awake, and the command to drink “from the hand of the Lord, the cup.
of trembling” — etc. — highlights the means by which people should awaken: by consuming a beverage received with “thanksgiving,” which translates to ejucaristiva (eucharistia) in Greek. Since “eucharist” is a sacramental term in theology, “the beverage in question is obviously regarded as a sacrament,” writes Svigel.
God’s will is for people to be awake and alert, not groggy and sleepy, he concludes. The means He provides for accomplishing His will in the lives of His people appears to be the trembling beverage. Thus, coffee is viewed as the instrument of God’s grace for carrying out His divine will. Svigel asserts that the word “coffee” appears multiple times in the New Testament.
He makes reference to the use of the Greek word kovfino and argues that the translation of kovfino and kofinos as “basket” or “baskets” is inaccurate. He says the word should have been stuvri in that instance. The substitution for kovfino, which “sounds a lot like our English word for coffee,” is “convincing evidence” of the intended meaning.
- In Matthew 14:20, in verse 20 (following the famous feast of fish and bread in verse 19), after eating, Svigel insists suppers “took up twelve coffees” rather than baskets, given the use of kovfino in the text.
- Svigel argues that coffee makes more sense because, as “everyone knows,” drinking coffee after a meal fosters fellowship (nowhere does Svigel refer to the accepted coffee timeline of Kaldi and his goats).
When coffee is considered as a means of waking up the believer and then keeping him or her alert, all of the practical difficulties associated with rising early and seeking the Lord are eliminated. Coffee has a very positive effect on a believer’s prayer life.
In some instances, it is essential. What about hymns extolling coffee’s virtues? According to Svigel (and others), there are none, but Lutheran composer Johann Sebastian Bach came “extremely close” in an Aria of Lieschen from his famous “Kaffeekantate,” which was first performed in Leipzig, Germany, between 1732 and 1735.
Be certain to listen for yourself (exclamations of “coffee! coffee!” are audibly audible at times). There are various translations and interpretations of the libretto. Discover Magazine published the following article, which is among the most amusing this author has ever encountered, in part because it compares coffee deprivation to shriveled goat meat — possibly a reference to Kaldi’s original inspiration: Father, please don’t be so harsh! / If I am unable to consume / My bowl of coffee three times per day, I will shrivel up like a piece of roasted goat.
What did a typical biblical meal consist of?
Characteristics – The ancient Israelite’s daily diet consisted primarily of bread, cooked grains, and legumes. Every meal was served with bread. The role of vegetables in the diet was minor but significant. Typically, legumes and vegetables were consumed in stews.
- The Israelites consumed goat and sheep’s milk in the spring and summer, along with butter and cheese.
- Honey from both bees and dates was also consumed.
- The most commonly consumed fruits were figs and grapes, while dates, pomegranates, and other fruits and nuts were consumed less frequently.
- In addition to wine, occasionally other fermented beverages were also produced.
Meat, typically goat and sheep, was reserved for special occasions such as celebrations, festival meals, and sacrificial feasts by the majority of Israelites. The wealthy consumed meat more often. Olives were primarily utilized for their oil, which was consumed raw and cooked in meats and stews.
Depending on availability, wild animals, birds, eggs, and fish were also consumed. Most of the food consumed was fresh and in season. It was necessary to consume fruits and vegetables as they ripened and before they went bad. The need to store as much food as possible was necessitated by the climate, which caused unpredictable harvests and necessitated hard, well-timed labor to produce enough food.
Thus, grapes were processed into raisins and wine, olives were transformed into oil, figs, beans, and lentils were dried, and grains were stored for year-round consumption. The biblical description of the provisions Abigail brought to David’s group exemplifies an Israelite meal: bread loaves, wine, slaughtered sheep, parched grain, raisins, and fig cakes ( 1 Samuel 25:18 ).
Normal Meals – We typically consume three main meals per day. The biblical diet did not consist of breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Only two regular meals are mentioned in the Bible. According to Exodus 16:12, they were consumed both morning and evening. Between 9 a.m.
And noon, a light breakfast consisting of bread, fruits, and cheese was consumed. The first meal of the day was a simple “morning snack” consisting of bread, olives, onion, and any other seasonal fruit or vegetable. A heavy breakfast was a source of criticism (Ecclesiastes 10:16). If there was a midday meal, it was eaten in the fields or at home at noon and consisted of bread soaked in wine with a handful of dried corn, a pottage of broken bread in a bowl, or bread and grilled fish (John 21:9, 13).
Evening meal, or supper, was the most important meal of the day. It consisted of a heartier meal eaten after work when the weather was cooler and in a more relaxed setting (Ruth 3:2-7; Luke 17:7-8). Meat, vegetables, butter, and wine comprised the evening meal.
