Topical Encyclopedia
Threshing-floors hold significant agricultural and symbolic importance in the biblical narrative. In ancient Israel, a threshing-floor was a flat, open area where harvested grain was separated from the chaff. This process involved spreading the sheaves on the floor and using oxen or threshing sledges to crush the grain, followed by winnowing to remove the chaff. Threshing-floors were typically located on elevated sites to take advantage of the wind for winnowing.
Biblical References and SymbolismThreshing-floors are mentioned numerous times throughout the Bible, often symbolizing judgment, purification, and divine encounter. One of the most notable references is found in the account of Ruth and Boaz. Ruth, a Moabite widow, approaches Boaz at the threshing-floor, seeking his protection and invoking the levirate marriage custom (
Ruth 3:6-9). This event not only highlights the social customs of the time but also foreshadows the lineage of King David and ultimately, Jesus Christ.
In
2 Samuel 24:18-25, the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite becomes the site where King David builds an altar to the LORD to halt a devastating plague. This location later becomes the site of Solomon's Temple, underscoring the threshing-floor's role as a place of divine encounter and worship.
The prophet Hosea uses the imagery of a threshing-floor to convey God's judgment and blessing: "Therefore they will be like the morning mist, like the early dew that vanishes, like chaff blown from a threshing-floor, or like smoke escaping through a window" (
Hosea 13:3). Here, the transient nature of chaff symbolizes the fleeting and insubstantial nature of Israel's unfaithfulness.
Cultural and Religious PracticesThreshing-floors were communal spaces, often shared by multiple families or communities. They were places of hard work but also of celebration, as the successful harvest was a cause for rejoicing. The process of threshing and winnowing was labor-intensive, requiring cooperation and skill.
In the religious context, threshing-floors were sometimes associated with offerings and sacrifices. The firstfruits of the harvest were often brought to the threshing-floor as an offering to God, acknowledging His provision and blessing. This practice is reflected in passages such as
Deuteronomy 16:13-15, which describes the Feast of Tabernacles, a time of thanksgiving and celebration at the end of the harvest.
Prophetic ImageryThe imagery of threshing is frequently used by the prophets to depict God's judgment and purification. In
Isaiah 41:15-16, God promises to make Israel a powerful instrument of judgment: "Behold, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff" . This metaphor emphasizes the transformative power of God's intervention.
Similarly, in the New Testament, John the Baptist uses the imagery of a threshing-floor to describe the coming judgment of Christ: "His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing-floor and to gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire" (
Matthew 3:12). This passage underscores the separation of the righteous from the wicked, a theme consistent with the symbolic use of threshing-floors throughout Scripture.
ConclusionThreshing-floors in the Bible serve as powerful symbols of judgment, purification, and divine encounter. They are places where the physical and spiritual realms intersect, reflecting the agricultural practices of ancient Israel while conveying profound theological truths. Through the imagery of threshing, the Bible communicates themes of justice, redemption, and the ultimate sovereignty of God over creation.
Strong's Hebrew
1637. goren -- threshing floor... Word Origin from an unused word Definition threshing floor NASB Word Usage
threshing floor (34),
threshing floors (2). barn, void place.
...147. iddar -- a threshing floor
... floors. Word Origin (Aramaic) of foreign origin Definition a threshing floor
NASB Word Usagethreshing floors (1). threshing floor....
Library
However, as we have Already Remarked, it Cannot but Distress us...
... sepulture for our dead, and the cry arose, "No are??"no burial-grounds for the
Christians," it came that their own are??, [449] theirthreshing-floors, were a...
No Man Hath Seen God at any Time; the Only Son...
... not worthy to loosen; he will baptize you with the [26] Holy Spirit and fire: [338]
who taketh the fan in his hand to cleanse histhreshing-floors, [Arabic, p...
It is a Ground for Thanksgiving that During the Last Three or Four...
... they shall have fulfilled that purpose, they shall themselves be set aside and be
made, because of their own evil, like the chaff of the summerthreshing-floors...
A Soldier who Spared his Enemy
... Now when David was told, "The Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are robbing
thethreshing-floors," he inquired of Jehovah, "Shall I go and attack...
The Events which Took Place in Jerusalem During the Reign of Nero.
... 3. And so great was the shamelessness and audacity of the high priests that they
dared to send their servants to thethreshing-floors to seize the tithes due...
We Shall Therefore Say, in the First Place, that if He who...
... there really is nevertheless such a great harvest of those who are gathered together
and conveyed into the everywhere existingthreshing-floors and Churches of...
A King's Strange Dream
... iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold were all broken in pieces and
became like the chaff which blows from the summerthreshing-floors, and the...
The Final Conflict.
... Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold broken to pieces
together, and became like the chaff of the summerthreshing-floors; and the...
Nebuchadnezzar's Dream
... Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces
together, and became like the chaff of the summerthreshing floors; and the...
Of the Effects of the Death of Christ, of his Triumph after It...
... a soul that fire must be sent which finds out thorns, and by its divine virtue stands
where they are and does not also burn up thethreshing-floors or standing...
Thesaurus
Threshingfloors (2 Occurrences)...Threshingfloors (2 Occurrences). 1 Samuel 23:1 Then they told David, saying, Behold,
the Philistines fight against Keilah, and they rob the
threshingfloors.
...Threshing-floors (2 Occurrences)
...Threshingfloors,Threshing-floors. Threshing-instruments . Multi-Version
Concordance...Threshingfloors,Threshing-floors. Threshing-instruments ....
Floors (12 Occurrences)
... 1 Samuel 23:1 David was told, "Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah,
and are robbing thethreshingfloors." (WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS...
Threshing-floor (36 Occurrences)
... Threshingfloor, Threshing-floor.Threshingfloors .... goren; halon; 'iddar, occurs
in Daniel 2:35): The location and method of makingthreshing-floors have already...
Keilah (16 Occurrences)
... It was a city with gates and bars (1 Samuel 23:7). The Philistines came against
it and commenced robbing thethreshing-floors. David...
Threshingfloor (18 Occurrences)
... thresh'-ing-flor (goren; halon; 'iddar, occurs in Daniel 2:35): The location and
method of makingthreshing-floors have already been described under AGRICULTURE...
Sheaves (13 Occurrences)
... The sheaves are piled about thethreshing-floors until threshing time, which
may be several weeks after harvest. It is an impressive...
Sheaf (11 Occurrences)
... The sheaves are piled about thethreshing-floors until threshing time, which
may be several weeks after harvest. It is an impressive...
Threshing (57 Occurrences)
... 1 Samuel 23:1 David was told, "Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah,
and are robbing thethreshingfloors." (WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS RSV...
Vats (5 Occurrences)
... (WEB JPS ASV DBY NAS RSV NIV). Joel 2:24 Thethreshingfloors will be full
of wheat, and the vats will overflow with new wine and oil....
Resources
What is the meaning of chaff in the Bible? | GotQuestions.orgWhat does the Bible say about halos? | GotQuestions.orgHow does God restore the years that the locusts have eaten (Joel 2:25)? | GotQuestions.orgBible Concordance •
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