Topical Encyclopedia
In the biblical context, tools are instruments used by humans to perform tasks, particularly in agriculture, construction, and craftsmanship. The Bible references various tools, highlighting their significance in daily life and their symbolic meanings in spiritual teachings.
Agricultural ToolsAgriculture was a central part of life in biblical times, and tools were essential for farming. The plow is one of the earliest and most significant agricultural tools mentioned. In
1 Samuel 13:20-21, the Israelites went down to the Philistines to sharpen their plowshares, mattocks, axes, and sickles, indicating the importance of these tools for survival and prosperity. The plow is also used metaphorically in
Isaiah 2:4, where it is prophesied that swords will be beaten into plowshares, symbolizing peace.
Construction ToolsConstruction tools are frequently mentioned in the context of building altars, temples, and other structures. In
Exodus 20:25, God instructs the Israelites not to use tools on the stones of His altar, emphasizing the sanctity and simplicity of worship. The building of Solomon's Temple involved numerous tools, as described in
1 Kings 6:7, where it is noted that no hammer, chisel, or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built, highlighting the precision and reverence involved in its construction.
Craftsmanship ToolsCraftsmanship was highly valued, and tools were essential for artisans. In
Exodus 31:3-5, God fills Bezalel with His Spirit, giving him wisdom, understanding, and knowledge in all kinds of craftsmanship, including the use of tools to work in gold, silver, and bronze. This passage underscores the divine inspiration and skill involved in craftsmanship.
Symbolic Use of ToolsTools are often used symbolically in the Bible to convey spiritual truths. In
Jeremiah 23:29, God's word is compared to a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces, illustrating the power and effectiveness of divine truth. Similarly, in
Proverbs 27:17, the sharpening of iron by iron is used as a metaphor for the mutual edification and improvement of individuals through relationships.
Moral and Ethical ImplicationsThe use of tools also carries moral and ethical implications. In
Deuteronomy 27:5, the Israelites are commanded to build an altar to the Lord without using iron tools, signifying purity and the avoidance of human pride in worship. This reflects the broader biblical theme of humility and reliance on God rather than human strength or ingenuity.
ConclusionThroughout the Bible, tools are depicted as essential for human activity, reflecting the creativity and industriousness bestowed upon humanity by God. They serve not only practical purposes but also convey deeper spiritual lessons, reminding believers of the importance of diligence, skill, and reliance on divine guidance in all endeavors.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
TOOLStoolz: In the Bible, references to the handicrafts are almost entirely incidental, and not many tools are named. The following article aims to give a list of those mentioned, together with those that must have existed also. For detailed description and the Hebrew and Greek terms employed, see the separate articles.
(1) The percussion tool was the hammer, used for splitting or trimming stone, beating metals, and in wood-carving, as well as for driving nails, tent pins, etc. Several words are translated "hammer," but the distinction between them is very vague and in some cases the propriety of the translation is dubious. Certainly no such distinction is made as that between "hammer" and "mallet," nor were separate names given to the different hammers used in the various crafts (compare, e.g.,Judges 4:211 Kings 6:7;Isaiah 44:12Jeremiah 10:4 -all for maqqabhah).
SeeHAMMER.
(2) Of cutting tools, the simplest was of course the knife. InExodus 20:25, however, the knife ("sword," English Versions of the Bible "tool") appears as a stone-cutter's implement and is without doubt a chisel. But the hatchet ofPsalm 74:6 may be a knife.
SeeHATCHET;KNIFE.
For ax, again, various words are employed in a way that is quite obscure to us and apparently with meanings that are not fixed. So garzen inDeuteronomy 20:19 is certainly an ax, but in the Siloam Inscription (ll 2, 4) it is a pickax (see MATTOCK). The various words translated "ax" (the Revised Version (British and American) "axe") must also somewhere include the word for adz, but the specific term, if there were any such (ma'atsadh(?)), is unknown. But the adz is a very ancient tool and must certainly have existed in Palestine.
SeeAX (AXE), AX-HEAD.
The saw was used both for wood and for stone (1 Kings 7:9), in the latter case being employed in connection with water and sand. But sawing stone was a very laborious process, and this was one reason why the ancients preferred stone in large blocks. These were quarried by the use of heavy hammers and wedges.
SeeSAW.
The plane (maqtso`ah) ofIsaiah 44:13 should be translated chisel. Chisels, of course, are almost as old as humanity, and were used on both wood and stone and doubtless also on metals. In particular, with a broad chisel and an adz the surface of wood may be finished very smoothly, and these two implements took the place of the plane. For wood-carving the concave chisel (gouge) may have been invented.
The pencil ofIsaiah 44:13 is probably a stylus, for engraving as well as for marking out lines. For engraving on gems (Exodus 28:9, etc.) particularly delicate instruments of this kind must have been used.
SeeLINE;PENCIL.
(3) Among the boring tools, only the awl appears (Exodus 21:6Deuteronomy 15:17), an instrument primarily for the use of workers in leather. Holes in wood or stone were made by a drill, often worked with the aid of a drawn bow, through the string of which the drill was passed.
SeeAWL.
(4) Blunted tools were of course sharpened on stones, as everywhere. In1 Samuel 13:21 English Versions of the Bible speaks of sharpening with a file, but the text of the verse is hopelessly corrupt and the translation mere guesswork. But files of some sort (stone?) must of course have been used by metal-workers.
SeeFILE.
(5) Measuring tools were the line and the rod (see REED), and the latter must also have been used as a straight-edge. The compasses ofIsaiah 44:13 were for drawing circles, but doubtless served for measuring also. SeeCOMPASSES. Plumb-line ('anakh inAmos 7:7, a symbol of the searching moral investigation which would be followed by a precise and exact judgment; compare mishkoleth, "plummet,"2 Kings 21:13Isaiah 28:17) and plummet ('ebhen bedhil, "a stone of tin,"Zechariah 4:10, used by Zerubbabel in testing the completed walls) were likewise necessities and had existed from a very early period. Tools of some sort must have been used in addition by builders in drawing plans, but their nature is unknown.
SeeLINE.
(6) The tools for holding and handling work (vises, tongs, pincers, etc.) are never alluded to (the King James Version inIsaiah 44:12 is wrong; see TONGS). For moving larger objects no use was made of cranes, and lifting was done by the aid of inclined planes and rollers; but blocks of stone weighing hundreds of tons could be handled in this way.
The material of the Hebrew tools was either iron or bronze. The former was introduced at least by the time of David (2 Samuel 12:31), but the mention of iron as a material is often made in such a way (Amos 1:3, etc.) as to show that it was not to be taken for granted. In fact, iron was hard to work and expensive, and bronze probably persisted for a while as a cheaper material. Stone tools would be used only by the very poor or as occasional makeshifts or for sacred purposes (Joshua 5:2).
For the agricultural tools see AGRICULTURE.
See alsoCARPENTER;CRAFTS; POTTER; SMITH, etc.
Burton Scott Easton
Strong's Hebrew
240. azen -- implements,tools... 239, 240. azen. 241 . implements,
tools. Transliteration: azen Phonetic
Spelling: (aw-zane') Short Definition:
tools. Word Origin
...2790. charash -- to cut in, engrave, plow, devise
... A primitive root; to scratch, ie (by implication) to engrave, plough; hence (from
the use oftools) to fabricate (of any material); figuratively, to devise (in...
Library
The Arrest of the Body
... And the fatal day came, the fatal day for the Hand, when he who bore it made a new
discovery. It was the discovery ofTools....Tools are external Hands....
Conversion
... Suppose a workman has power and skill with his hands alone to fashion a certain
article, but you put into his hands the worst oftools you can find; you know...
The Builders
... wage is lower. A race of giants they were, handsome, magnificently built,
and well skilled in the use of their simpletools. In the...
The Dilemma in which I am Placed is of Your Making: it is Brought...
... in which I am placed is of your making: it is brought out, not from the resources
of dialectics, of which you are ignorant, but from among thetools of the...
A Methodist Isaac Newton
... He observed the clockmaker'stools and the manner how he took it in pieces and put
it together again; when he came home, he first made himselftools, and then...
Practical Righteousness
... Yes! and I have seen canoe-paddles carved by South Sea Islanders with no better
tools than an oyster-shell and a sharp fish-bone, which in the minuteness and...
The Programme of Christianity
... When He made the earth He made a rough ball of matter and supplied it with a multitude
oftools to mould it into form"the rain-drop to carve it, the glacier...
Elucidations.
... The process was like that of the artist who has first to make his owntools.
He does many things, and resorts to many contrivances...
God, when one Believes in Him as You and I Do...
... masters and slaves, nobles and serfs, of citizens and bondmen or subjects disinherited
and enslaved, considered as living furniture, astools and laughing...
The Release of Saint George.
... "I cannot free you from this prison by magic power; but I will give youtools with
which you may free yourselves, and then you will set more value on your...
Thesaurus
Tools (3 Occurrences)... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia
TOOLS. toolz: In the Bible, references to the
handicrafts are almost entirely incidental, and not many
tools are named.
...Tool (13 Occurrences)
... like, used in the manual arts, to facilitate mechanical operations; any instrument
used by a craftsman or laborer at his work; an implement; as, thetools of a...
Crafts (2 Occurrences)
... which in no respect is less striking than that of Egyptian contemporaries in this
handicraft." Jewelry, weapons, votive images, various utensils,tools of many...
Iron (104 Occurrences)
... It seems more likely that steeltools were used. After the discovery of
iron, it was evidently a long time in replacing bronze....
Tooth (7 Occurrences)
Ruler (329 Occurrences)
... angels of the devil (Matthew 25:41; Matthew 12:45) or Satan, the prince of this
world (John 12:31), participate in his power; they are histools, their sphere...
Writing (194 Occurrences)
... Other instruments are: the varioustools for modeling, molds, stencils, dies, stamps,
needles, engravingtools, compass, instruments for erasure, for the...
Libraries
... inspiration of the Bible (compare BOOK) has given the fact new significance and
makes an understanding of the nature of a library one of the besttools for the...
Finding (57 Occurrences)
... 2. (n.) That which is found, come upon, or provided; esp. (pl.), that which a
journeyman artisan finds or provides for himself; astools, trimmings, etc....
File (1 Occurrence)
... The Hebrew (petsirah phim) signifies "bluntness of edge," and is so rendered in
the Revised Version, margin. SeeTOOLS. Multi-Version Concordance...
Resources
Should a Christian use social media/networking tools (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, etc.)? | GotQuestions.orgWhat is the Blue Letter Bible? | GotQuestions.orgWhat is StudyLight.org? | GotQuestions.orgTools: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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