the Week of Proper 28 / Ordinary 33
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Bible Dictionaries
Vine
People's Dictionary of the Bible
or Vine. The first mention of the vine occurs in Genesis 9:20-21. It was cultivated in Egypt. Genesis 40:9-11; Psalms 78:47. The vines of Palestine were celebrated both for luxuriant growth and for the immense clusters of grapes which they produced, which were sometimes carried on a staff between two men, as in the case of the spies. Numbers 13:23. Special mention is made in the Bible of the vines of Eshcol, Numbers 13:24; Numbers 32:9, of Sibmah, Heshbon, and Elealeh, Isaiah 16:8-10; Jeremiah 48:32, and of Engedi. Song of Solomon 1:14. To dwell under the vine and fig tree is an emblem of domestic happiness and peace, 1 Kings 4:25; Psalms 128:3; Micah 4:4; the rebellious people of Israel are compared to "wild grapes," "an empty vine," "the degenerate plant of a strange vine," etc. Isaiah 5:2; Isaiah 5:4; Jeremiah 2:21; Hosea 10:1. It is a vine which our Lord selects to show the spiritual union which subsists between himself and his members. John 15:1-6. The vine trailed on the ground or upon supports. This latter mode of cultivation appears to be alluded to by Ezekiel. Ezekiel 19:11-12. The vintage, which formerly was a season of general festivity, began in September. The towns were deserted; the people lived among the vineyards in the lodges and tents. Comp. Judges 9:27; Isaiah 16:10; Jeremiah 25:30. The grapes were gathered with shouts of joy by the "grape gatherers," Jeremiah 25:30, and put into baskets. See Jeremiah 6:9. They were then carried on the head and shoulders, or slung upon a yoke, to the "wine-press." The vineyard, which was generally on a bill, Isaiah 5:1; Jeremiah 31:5; Amos 9:13, was surrounded by a wall or hedge in order to keep out the wild boars. Psalms 80:1-19; Psalms 13:1-6, jackals and foxes. Numbers 22:24; Nehemiah 4:3; Song of Solomon 2:15; Ezekiel 13:4-5; Matthew 21:33. Within the vineyard was one or more towers of stone in which the vine-dressers lived. Isaiah 1:8; Isaiah 5:2; Matthew 21:33. The vat, which was dug, Matthew 21:33, or hewn out of the rocky soil, and the press, were part of the vineyard furniture. Isaiah 6:2.
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Rice, Edwin Wilbur, DD. Entry for 'Vine'. People's Dictionary of the Bible. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/rpd/v/vine.html. 1893.
