DVASH - HONEY

2 days ago

4 min read

So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.

Exodus 3: 8 (NIV)

(1)

INTRODUCTION

Beep! Beep! Beep! The alarm clock sang. It kept on ringing and ringing until a very groggy hand finally reached from underneath the bedsheets and theatrically smacked on top of it. Soon after, a head began to emerge from those same bedsheets, with a heavy sigh escaping the suddenly freed mouth. Dragging the rest of his body out of bed, David began with his morning routines. Exiting his bathroom fully dressed about 15 minutes later, he exited his bedroom in searh for the kitchen. His growling stomach needed attention before he was even willing to contemplate tackling today's schedule. Picking between scrambled eggs and pancakes was never easier, as his sweet tooth won the conversation by a landslide. 15 minutes or so later, a stack full of pancakes was ready to be devoured. Ah, but there was still one thing missing. Honey. Yes, you heard me right - honey, and not maple syrup. David was not a fan of maple syrup; honey was his go-to. Drizzling a good amount was a must - and voila! Now the day can truly begin.

Honey. With all the different sweeteners, sugary baked goods, and candies out there, we tend to forget these delicacies weren't so easy to find in the old days. Honey was one way common people sweetened their lives. In Hebrew, honey is called dvash. It can speak of both honey produced by bees and silan, a nectar extract from fruits like dates. The latter might even be the more commonly referenced product in the Bible.

LAND OF MILK AND HONEY

Exodus 3: 8 (NIV)

To the promised land the Israelites marched. Escaping Egypt was their plan. Through the scorching heat of the desert led the path. Perhaps there were other ways too, but the Most High picked this particular one. And He always had a reason for that.

The land God had in mind for the Israelites was a land filled with milk and honey. On one side, the Israelites were promised they would be able to get milk through shepherding, and on the other side, the land would provide them with honey through farming. It was a land He Himself watered and looked after. A land depended on God's goodness and vigilance. Similarly were to be His people. Always dependent on His providence. (2)

THE HEBREW WORD DVASH

The Hebrew word for honey is dvash. It appears 55 times in the Bible. In all but two occasions, it refers to fig or date honey/syrup. In actually, when it appears in the Bible, it almost always speaks of date honey. To the Arabs, it is known by the word dibs. The few times the word dvash speaks of bee honey, it is of a wild variety. (3)

The inclusion of honey among the seven characteristic products of the land listed in Deuteronomy 8:8 further confirms the above statement. It indicates that, like all the others, it too derives from the soil. (3)

To go even further, bees' honey was not actually a sign of blessing for the land, though one finding it was considered fortunate. It was when the land was desolate that bees could proliferate and bee honey was more abundant. (3)

Rabbis themselves identify the biblical dvash with dates, but nowadays use the word for bee honey. (3)

JOHN THE BAPTIST, YESHUA, AND HONEY

The two most well-known characters from the New Testament, John the Baptist and our Savior Yeshua HaMashiach, both had a connection with honey. John the Baptist was an ascetic who only ate wild thistle and honey. He ate bee honey, to be more precise. Yeshua, on the other hand, was given honeycomb alongside fish to prove that he truly was resurrected.

In general, honey symbolizes abundance, delight, and the richness of God's provision. It is very nourishing and energy-giving, just as the Word of God is. It is actually often used metaphorically to describe the pleasantness and desirability of wisdom and God's words. (4)

CONCLUSION

Honey has always been a delicacy, a staple inside every household. The Hebrew word for honey is dvash. While nowadays we always first think of bees' honey, in the Bible the word dvash almost always referred to the nectar from dates or figs. Bees' honey was actually not a sign of blessing for the land. It was in times of desolation when bees proliferated most. Yet still, finding bee honey was considered great luck. In general, honey symbolizes abundance, delight, and the richness of God's provision. It is often used metaphorically to describe the pleasantness and desirability of wisdom and God's words.