Wine; Wine Press – Winter-House

Wine; Wine Press

win, win'-pres:

I. Terms.

1. Wine:

(1) (~yayin), apparently from a non-Tsere root allied to Greek oinos, Latin vinum, etc. This is the usual word for "wine" and is found 141 times in Massoretic Text.

(2) chemer, perhaps "foaming" (Deuteronomy 32:14 and Massoretic Text Isaiah 27:2 (but see the English Revised Version margin)); Aramaic chamar (Ezra 6:9; Ezra 7:22; Daniel 5:1,Daniel 5:2,Daniel 5:4,Daniel 5:23).

(3) tirosh. Properly this is the fresh grape juice (called also mishreh, Numbers 6:3), even when still in the grape (Isaiah 65:8). But unfermented grape juice is a very difficult thing to keep without the aid of modern antiseptic precautions, and its preservation in the warm and not over-cleanly conditions of ancient Palestine was impossible. Consequently, tirosh came to mean wine that was not fully aged (although with full intoxicating properties (Judges 9:13; Hosea 4:11; compare Acts 11:13)) or wine when considered specifically as the product of grapes (Deuteronomy 12:17; Deuteronomy 18:4, etc.). The Septuagint always (except Isaiah 65:8; Hosea 4:11) translates by oinos and the Targums by chamar. the King James Version has "wine" 26 times, "new wine" 11 times, "sweet wine" in Micah 6:15; the Revised Version (British and American) "vintage" in Numbers 18:12; Micah 6:15 (with the same change in Nehemiah 10:37,Nehemiah 10:39 the Revised Version margin; Isaiah 62:8 the English Revised Version margin). Otherwise the English Revised Version has left the King James Version unchanged, while the American Standard Revised Version uses "new wine" throughout.

(4) Two apparently poetic words are `acic (the Revised Version (British and American) "sweet wine," Isaiah 49:26; Amos 9:13; Joel 1:5; Joel 3:18, "juice"; Song of Songs 8:2), and cobhe' ("wine," Isaiah 1:22; "drink," Hosea 4:18 (margin "carouse"); Nahum 1:10).

(5) For spiced wine three words occur: mecekh, Psalms 75:8 (English Versions of the Bible "mixture"); mimcakh, Proverbs 23:30 ("mixed wine"); Isaiah 65:11 (the Revised Version (British and American) "mingled wine"); mezegh, Song of Songs 7:2 (the Revised Version (British and American) "mingled wine"); compare also yayin hareqach, Song of Songs 8:2 ("spiced wine").

(6) mamethaqqim, literally, "sweet," Nehemiah 8:10.

(7) shekhar (22 times), translated "strong drink" in English Versions of the Bible. Shekhar appears to mean "intoxicating drink" of any sort and in Numbers 28:7 is certainly simply "wine" (compare also its use in parallelism to "wine" in Isaiah 5:11,Isaiah 5:22, etc.). In certain passages (Leviticus 10:9; Numbers 6:3; 1 Samuel 1:15, etc.), however, it is distinguished from "wine," and the meaning is not quite certain. But it would seem to mean "drink not made from grapes." Of such only pomegranate wine is named in the Bible (Song of Songs 8:2), but a variety of such preparations (made from apples, quinces, dates, barley, etc.) were known to the ancients and must have been used in Palestine also. The translation "strong drink" is unfortunate, for it suggests "distilled liquor," "brandy," which is hardly in point.

See DRINK, STRONG.

(8) In the Apocrypha and New Testament "wine" represents oinos, with certain compounds, except in Acts 2:13, where the Greek is gleukos, "sweet," English Versions of the Bible "new wine."

See also BLOOD; DRINK; FLAGON; FRUIT; HONEY.

2. Wine Press:

(1) Properly speaking, the actual wine press was called gath (Judges 6:11, etc.), and the receiving vat ("fat") yeqebh (Numbers 18:27, etc.), but the names were interchangeable to some degree (Isaiah 16:10; Job 24:11; compare Isaiah 5:2, the Revised Version (British and American) text and margin) and either could be used for the whole apparatus (see GATH and compare Judges 7:25; Zechariah 14:10). In Isaiah 63:3 the Hebrew has purah, "wine trough" a word found also in Haggai 2:16 where it seems to be a gloss (so, apparently, the American Standard Revised Version).

(2) In the Apocrypha (Sirach 33:16) and in the New Testament 21:33; Revelation 14:19,Revelation 14:20 (twice); 19:15) "winepress" is lenos; in Mark 12:1 hupolenion, by which only the receiving vat seems to be meant (the Revised Version (British and American) a pit for a winepress").

II. Wine-Making.

1. The Vintage:

For the care of the vine, its distribution, different varieties, etc., see VINE. The ripening of the grapes took place as early as June in the Jordan valley, but on the coast not until August, while in the hills it was delayed until September. In whatever month, however, the coming of the vintage was the signal for the villagers to leave their homes in a body and to encamp in booths erected in the vineyards, so that the work might be carried on without interruption. See TABERNACLES, FEAST OF. It was the great holiday season of the year and the joy of the vintage was proverbial (Isaiah 16:10; Jeremiah 25:30; Jeremiah 48:33; compare Judges 9:27), and fragments of vintage songs seem to be preserved in Isaiah 27:2; Isaiah 65:8. The grapes were gathered usually by cutting off the clusters (see SICKLE), and were carried to the press in baskets.

2. Wine Presses:

Many of the ancient wine presses remain to the present day. Ordinarily they consisted of two rectangular or circular excavations, hewn (Isaiah 5:2) in the solid rock to a depth of 2 or 3 feet. Where possible one was always higher than the other and they were connected by a pipe or channel. Their size, of course, varied greatly, but the upper vat was always wider and shallower than the lower and was the press proper, into which the grapes were thrown, to be crushed by the feet of the treaders (Isaiah 63:1–3, etc.). The juice flowed down through the pipe into the lower vat, from which it was removed into jars (Haggai 2:16) or where it was allowed to remain during the first fermentation.

Many modifications of this form of the press are found. Where there was no rock close to the surface, the vats were dug in the earth and lined with stonework or cement, covered with pitch. Or the pressvat might be built up out of any material (wood was much used in Egypt), and from it the juice could be conducted into a sunken receptacle or into jars. Not infrequently a third (rarely a fourth) vat might be added between the other two, in which a partial settling and straining could take place. Wooden beams are often used either to finish the pressing or to perform the whole operation, and holes into which the ends of these beams fitted can still be seen. A square of wood attached to the beam bore down on the pile of grapes, while the free end of the beam was heavily weighted. In the simpler presses the final result was obtained by piling stones on the mass that remained after the treaders had finished their work.

3. Grading:

It is a general principle of wine-making (compare that "the less the pressure the better the product"; therefore the liquid that flowed at the beginning of the process, especially that produced by the mere weight of the grapes themselves when piled in heaps, was carefully kept separate from that which was obtained only under heavy pressure. A still lower grade was made by adding water to the final refuse the mixture to ferment. Possibly this last concoction is sometimes meant by the word "vinegar" (chomets).

4. Fermentation:

In the climate of Palestine fermentation begins almost immediately, frequently on the same day for juice pressed out in the morning, but never later than the next day. At first a slight foam appears on the surface of the liquid, and from that moment, according to Jewish tradition, it is liable to the wine-tithe (Ma`aseroth 1 7). The action rapidly becomes more violent, and while it is in progress the liquid must be kept in jars or in a vat, for it would burst even the newest and strongest of wine-skins (Job 32:19). Within about a week this violent fermentation subsides, and the wine is transferred to other jars or strong wine-skins (Mark 2:22 and parallel's), in which it undergoes the secondary fermentation. At the bottom of the receptacles collects the heavier matter or "lees" (shemarim, Psalms 75:8 ("dregs"); Jeremiah 48:11; Ze 1:12 in Isaiah 25:6 the word is used for the wine as well), from which the "wines on the lees" gather strength and flavor.

At the end of 40 days it was regarded as properly "wine" and could be offered as a drink offering (`Edhuyyoth 6 1). The practice after this point seems to have varied, no doubt depending on the sort of wine that was being made. Certain kinds were left undisturbed to age "on their lees" and were thought to be all the better for so doing, but before they were used it was necessary to strain them very carefully. So Isaiah 25:6, `A feast of wine aged on the lees, thoroughly strained.' But usually leaving the wine in the fermentation vessels interfered with its improvement or caused it to degenerate. So at the end of 40 days it was drawn off into other jars (for storage, 1 Chronicles 27:27, etc.) or wine-skins (for transportation, Joshua 9:4, etc.). So Jeremiah 48:11: `Moab has been undisturbed from his youth, and he has rested on his lees and has not been emptied from vessel to vessel. .... Therefore his flavor remains unchanged (or "becomes insipid") and his scent is unimproved (or "lacks freshness")'; compare Ze 1:12.

5. Storage:

Jars were tightly sealed with caps covered with pitch. The very close sealing needed to preserve sparkling wines, however, was unknown to the Hebrews, and in consequence (and for other reasons) such wines were not used. Hence, in Psalms 75:8, "The wine foameth," the allusion must be to very new wine whose fermentation had not yet subsided, if indeed, the translation is not wrong (the Revised Version margin "The wine is red"). The superiority of old wine to new was acknowledged by the Hebrews, in common with the rest of the world (Sirach 9:10; Luke 5:39), but in the wines of Palestine acetous fermentation, changing the wine into vinegar, was likely to occur at any time. Three years was about the longest time for which such wines could be kept, and "old wine" meant only wines that had been, stored for a year or more (Bab. Bath. 6 3).

See also CRAFTS, II, 19.

III. Use of Wine.

1. Mixed Wine:

In Old Testament times wine was drunk undiluted, and wine mixed with water was thought to be ruined (Isaiah 1:22). The "mixed" or "mingled wines" (see I, 1, (5), above) were prepared with aromatic herbs of various sorts and some of these compounds, used throughout the ancient world, were highly intoxicating (Isaiah 5:22). Wine mixed with myrrh was stupefying and an anesthetic (Mark 15:23). At a later period, however, the Greek use of diluted wines had attained such sway that the writer of 2 Maccabees speaks (15:39) of undiluted wine as "distasteful" (polemion). This dilution is so normal in the following centuries that the Mishna can take it for granted and, indeed, R. Eliezer even forbade saying the table-blessing over undiluted wine (Berakhoth 7 5). The proportion of water was large, only one-third or one-fourth of the total mixture being wine (Niddah 2 7; Pesachim 108b).

NOTE.

The wine of the Last Supper, accordingly, may be described in modern terms as a sweet, red, fermented wine, rather highly diluted. As it was no doubt the ordinary wine of commerce, there is no reason to suppose that it was particularly "pure."

2. Wine-Drinkinig:

Throughout the Old Testament, wine is regarded as a necessity of life and in no way as a mere luxury. It was a necessary part of even the simplest meal (Genesis 14:18; Judges 19:19; 1 Samuel 16:20; Isaiah 55:1, etc.), was an indispensable provision for a fortress (2 Chronicles 11:11), and was drunk by all classes and all ages, even by the very young (Lamentations 2:12; Zechariah 9:17). "Wine" is bracketed with "grain" as a basic staple (Genesis 27:28, etc.), and the failure of the winecrop or its destruction by foreigners was a terrible calamity (Deuteronomy 28:30,Deuteronomy 28:39; Isaiah 62:8; Isaiah 65:21; Micah 6:15; Zechariah 1:13, etc.). On the other hand, abundance of wine was a special token of God's blessing (Genesis 27:28; Deuteronomy 7:13; Amos 9:14, etc.), and extraordinary abundance would be a token of the Messianic age (Amos 9:13; Joel 3:18; Zechariah 9:17). A moderate "gladdening of the heart" through wine was not looked upon as at all reprehensible (2 Samuel 13:28; Esther 1:10; Psalms 104:15; Ecclesiastes 9:7; Ecclesiastes 10:19; Zechariah 9:15; Zechariah 10:7), and while Judges 9:13 represented a mere verbal remnant of a long-obsolete concept, yet the idea contained in the verse was not thought shocking. "Drink offerings," indeed, were of course a part of the prescribed ritual (Leviticus 23:13, etc.; see SACRIFICE), and a store of wine was kept in the temple (tabernacle) to insure their performance (1 Chronicles 9:29). Even in later and much more moderate times, Sirach writes the laudation of wine in 31:27, and the writer of 2 Maccabees (see above) objects as strongly to pure water as he does to pure wine. Christ adapted Himself to Jewish customs (Matthew 11:19 parallel Luke 7:34; Luke 22:18), and exegetes usually suppose that the celebrated verse 1 Timothy 5:23 is meant as a safeguard against ascetic (Gnostic?) dualism, as well as to give medical advice.

On the temporal conditioning of the Biblical customs, the uncompromising opposition of the Bible to excess, and the non-applicability of the ancient attitude to the totally different modern conditions, see DRUNKENNESS.

The figurative uses of wine are very numerous, but are for the most part fairly obvious. Those offering difficulty have been discussed in the course of the article. For wine in its commercial aspect see TRADE.

Burton Scott Easton

Winebibber

win'-bib-er: In Proverbs 23:20, cobhe yauin; in Matthew 11:19 = Luke 7:34, oinopotes, of habitual wine-drinkers. The accusation was falsely brought against Jesus of being "a gluttonous man and a winebibber," because, unlike John, He ate and drank with others.

Winefat; Wine Press; Winevat

win'-fat, win'-pres, win'-vat.

See CRAFTS, II, 19; VINE; WINE.

Winevat

See WINEFAT, WINEVAT.

Wings

wingz (kanaph; pterux): Biblical references to the wings of birds are common, especially in Psalms, many of them exquisitely poetical. Often the wings of an eagle are mentioned because they are from 7 to 9 feet in sweep, of untiring flight, and have strength to carry heavy burdens: so they became the symbol of strength and endurance. Ancient monuments and obelisks are covered with the heads of bulls, lions, different animals, and men even, to which the wings of an eagle were added to symbolize strength. Sometimes the wings of a stork are used to portray strong flight, as in the vision of Zechariah: "Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there came forth two women, and the wind was in their wings; now they had wings like the wings of a stork; and they lifted up the ephah between earth and heaven" (5:9). The wings of a dove symbolized love. Wings in the abstract typified shelter, strength or speed, as a rule, while in some instances their use was ingenious and extremely poetical, as when Job records that the Almighty used wings to indicate migration: "And stretcheth her wings toward the south" (39:26). In Psalms 17:8 there is a wonderful poetical imagery in the plea, "Hide me under the shadow of thy wings." In Psalms 18:10 there is a reference to "the wings of the wind." And in 55:6 the Psalmist cries, "Oh that I had wings like a dove!" The brightness and peace of prosperous times are beautifully described in Psalms 68:13, the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her pinions with pale green gold.' The first rays of dawn are compared to "the wings of the morning" (139:9). Solomon was thinking of the swiftness of wings when he said, "For riches' certainly make themselves wings, like an eagle that flieth toward heaven" (Proverbs 23:5). So also was Isaiah in 40:31, "They that wait for Yahweh shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faint." In Malachi 4:2 the King James Version, there is a beautiful reference, "But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings." the Revised Version (British and American) changes "his" to "its." Wings as an emblem of love were used by Jesus in the cry, "O Jerusalem .... how often would I have gathered thy children .... as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings" (Matthew 23:37).

Gene Stratton-Porter

Wink

wink (razam, literally, "to roll the eyes"): The act or habit of winking was evidently considered to be evil both in its motives and in its results. The idea of its facetiousness, prevalent in our day, is nowhere apparent in the Scriptures. It is mentioned frequently, but is always associated with sin, in the Old Testament especially in the sense of conceit, pride, and rebellion against God: "Why doth thine heart carry thee away? and what do thy eyes wink at, that thou turnest thy spirit against God" (Job 15:12,Job 15:13 the King James Version). So also Psalms 35:19: "Neither let them wink with the eye that hate roe without a cause." "A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with froward mouth. He winketh with his eyes," etc. (Proverbs 6:12,Proverbs 6:13 the King James Version). "He that winketh with the eye causeth sorrow" (Proverbs 10:10). See Watkinson, Education of the Heart, "Ethics of Gesture," 194 ff.

In the New Testament the word is used to express the longsuffering patience and forgiveness of God toward erring Israel: "And the times of this ignorance God winked at" (Acts 17:30 the King James Version, hupereidon, "overlooked," and so translated in the Revised Version (British and American); compare The Wisdom of Solomon 11:23; Ecclesiasticus 30:11). The use of "winked" in this connection would in our day, of course, be considered in bad taste, if not actually irreverent, but it is an excellent example of the colloquialism of the King James Version.

Arthur Walwyn Evans

Winnowing

win'-o-ing.

See AGRICULTURE; FAN; THRESHING.

Winter

win'-ter (choreph, from charaph, "to inundate," "overflow"): The rainy season, also the autumn harvest season (Genesis 8:22; Psalms 74:17; Zechariah 14:8). It is also the time of cold (Jeremiah 36:22; Amos 3:15). The verb "to winter" occurs in Isaiah 18:6. Cethaw has the same meaning as Choreph (Song of Songs 2:11). cheimon, corresponds to choreph as the rainy season, and the verb paracheimazo, signifies "to pass the winter" (Acts 27:12), the noun from which is paracheimasia (same place).

See SEASONS.

Winter-House

(beth ha-choreph (Jeremiah 36:22; Amos 3:15)): See under SUMMER-HOUSE. The "winter-house" in Jeremiah is that of King Jehoiakim; mention is made of the fire burning in the brazier.