Topical Encyclopedia
Ploughing, an essential agricultural practice in biblical times, is frequently mentioned throughout the Scriptures. It involves turning over the soil to prepare it for sowing seeds, ensuring that crops can grow effectively. This practice is not only significant for its agricultural implications but also holds metaphorical and spiritual meanings within the biblical text.
Agricultural ContextIn ancient Israel, ploughing was a critical task for farmers, as it prepared the land for planting and ensured a good harvest. The plough, typically drawn by oxen, was used to break up the hard ground, making it receptive to seeds. The importance of ploughing is evident in the agricultural laws and practices described in the Old Testament. For instance, in
Deuteronomy 22:10, the Israelites are instructed, "Do not plow with an ox and a donkey yoked together," highlighting the care and orderliness expected in their agricultural practices.
Symbolic and Spiritual SignificancePloughing is often used metaphorically in the Bible to describe spiritual preparation and readiness. In
Hosea 10:12, the prophet calls the people to repentance and righteousness, saying, "Sow for yourselves righteousness and reap the fruit of loving devotion; break up your unplowed ground, for it is time to seek the LORD, until He comes and showers righteousness upon you." Here, the act of ploughing symbolizes the preparation of one's heart to receive God's word and blessings.
The New Testament also uses ploughing as a metaphor for commitment and dedication to the Kingdom of God. In
Luke 9:62, Jesus states, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God." This passage emphasizes the need for unwavering focus and commitment in following Christ, likening the Christian journey to the steady and forward-focused task of ploughing.
Cultural and Historical InsightsPloughing in biblical times was labor-intensive and required cooperation between man and beast. The use of oxen was common, as they were strong and capable of pulling the plough through the tough soil. The process of ploughing was often a communal activity, with families and neighbors working together to prepare the fields.
The timing of ploughing was crucial, as it needed to be done before the rainy season to ensure that the seeds would germinate and grow. This agricultural cycle is reflected in the biblical calendar and the various feasts and festivals that coincide with planting and harvest times.
Moral and Ethical TeachingsThe Bible also uses ploughing to convey moral and ethical teachings.
Proverbs 20:4 warns, "The sluggard does not plow in season; at harvest time he looks, but nothing is there." This proverb underscores the importance of diligence and timely effort, teaching that neglecting one's responsibilities leads to lack and want.
In the broader biblical narrative, ploughing serves as a reminder of the partnership between human effort and divine provision. While humans are called to work the land and prepare it, it is ultimately God who provides the growth and the harvest. This principle is echoed in
1 Corinthians 3:7, "So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow."
In summary, ploughing in the Bible is a multifaceted concept that encompasses practical agricultural practices, spiritual readiness, and moral teachings. It serves as a powerful metaphor for the preparation and dedication required in both physical and spiritual endeavors.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
(
vb. n.) of Plough.
Strong's Hebrew
2758. charish -- a plowing, plowing time... plowing time, ground. From charash;
ploughing or its season -- earing (time), ground.
see HEBREW charash. 2757, 2758. charish. 2759 . Strong's Numbers.
Library
Ploughing in Canaan.
...PLOUGHING IN CANAAN. In...Ploughing the land, sowing the seed, reaping the
harvest, and winnowing the grain are often referred to. Our...
Spiritual Farming. --No. 2Ploughing.
... III. SPIRITUAL FARMING."NO. 2.PLOUGHING....Ploughing is as necessary as sowing; that
is to say, the land must be stirred and prepared for the seed....
God's Slaves
... very inconsiderate master, who has only another kind of duty to lay upon the shoulders
of the servant that has come in after a long day'sploughing and feeding...
After This, Celsus, Desirous of Maintaining that Providence...
... by labour and suffering earn a scanty and toilsome subsistence, [3999] while all
things are produced for them without their sowing andploughing." He does not...
The Sluggard in Harvest
... a great drone, for he prefers the chimney-corner to the field, even although it
cannot have been very cold if the weather was open enough to admit ofploughing...
A Sermon of the Reverend Father Master Hugh Latimer, Preached in...
... Ye may not be offended with my similitude, in that I compare preaching to the labour
and work ofploughing, and the preacher to a ploughman: ye may not be...
The Husbandman and his Operations
... Does not the end need them all? Is not one purpose going steadily forward through
ploughing, sowing, reaping, threshing?...Ploughing, which is preparation;...
A String of Pearls
... examination comes on. It is useless to beginploughing when your neighbours
are driving their reaping machines into the fields. 'There is...
The Sluggard's Reproof
... When he reached the place he saw all the monks at work tilling the ground,ploughing
or trimming the vines round the monastery, so he very solemnly observed as...
The Testament of Abraham. Version I.
... and went down to Abraham to the oak of Mamre, and found the righteous Abraham in
the field close by, sitting beside yokes of oxen forploughing, together with...
Thesaurus
Ploughing (14 Occurrences)... Noah Webster's Dictionary (vb. n.) of Plough. Multi-Version Concordance
Ploughing (14 Occurrences). Luke 17:7 But which of you who
...Ploughing-time (1 Occurrence)
Ploughing-time.Ploughing,Ploughing-time. Ploughman . Multi-Version
ConcordancePloughing-time (1 Occurrence). Exodus...
Plough (11 Occurrences)
... First referred to in Genesis 45:6, where the Authorized Version has "earing," but
the Revised Version "ploughing;" next in Exodus 34:21 and Deuteronomy 21:4...
Grain-cutting (19 Occurrences)
... (BBE). Exodus 34:21 Six days let work be done, but on the seventh day take your
rest: atploughing time and at the grain-cutting you are to have a day for rest....
Ploughman (2 Occurrences)
... Ploughman (2 Occurrences). Isaiah 28:24 Is the ploughman for everploughing? does
he not get the earth ready and broken up for the seed? (BBE DBY YLT)....
Cutting (178 Occurrences)
... Genesis 45:6 For these two years have been years of need, and there are still five
more years to come in which there will be noploughing or cutting of grain....
Yoked (10 Occurrences)
... to Baal Peor." (See RSV). Deuteronomy 22:10 Do not do yourploughing with
an ox and an ass yoked together. (BBE NIV). 1 Samuel 6:7...
Yokes (6 Occurrences)
... 1 Kings 19:19 And he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was
ploughing with twelve yokes before him, and he with the twelfth; and Elijah...
Lengthened (4 Occurrences)
... like grass. (DBY NAS). Psalms 129:3 The ploughmen wereploughing on my back;
long were the wounds they made. (See NAS). Jeremiah 6...
Grounded (5 Occurrences)
... 3:26, etc.); other words are chelqah, "portion," "field" (2 Samuel 23:12, the Revised
Version (British and American) "plot"); charish, "ploughing" (1 Samuel 8...
Resources
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