( חמת , ḥēmeth ( Genesis 21:14 margin), נאד , n'ōdh (Judges 4:19 "'bottle") נבל , nēbhel , נבל , nebhel (1 Samuel 10:3 margin), ( אוב , 'ōbh ) (Job 32:19 ); ἀσκός , askós (Matthew 9:17; Mark 2:22; Luke 5:37; compare ἀσκοπυτίνη , askoputı́nē , Judith 10:5, the Revised Version (British and American) "leathern bottle")): These words are all used to designate skins for the containing of liquids, nēbhel , however, being the most common in the case of wine. The Israelite, like the modern Arabic and Syrian, used mainly the skin of the goat and the sheep, but the skins of the ox and the camel have also been put to this purpose. The skin is removed from the animal by drawing it over the body from the neck downward, half the skin on each of the limbs being also retained. It is then tanned, the hair cut close, turned inside out, and has all the openings save one closed with cords, when it is ready for use. The reference to "a wineskin in the smoke" in Psalm 119:83 is generally explained on the supposition of its being hung there for mellowing purposes, but this can scarcely be accepted, for wine is never left for any length of time in the skin on account of its imparting a disagreeable flavor to the contents. The explanation of the New Testament passages is that the new wine, still liable to continue fermenting to a small extent at least, was put into new, still expansible skins, a condition that had ceased in the older ones. See WINE .
The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE) was edited by James Orr, John Nuelsen, Edgar Mullins, Morris Evans, and Melvin Grove Kyle and was published complete in 1939. This web site includes the complete text.
WikipediaThe ISBE is a classic Bible reference compiled from nearly 10,000 entries written by over 200 different Bible scholars and teachers. In addition to the encyclopedia articles, all of the major words of the Bible are represented and defined.
The historical, cultural, and linguistic information in the ISBE can be of great value in Bible study and research.
But as with any writings of men, the careful student of the Bible must always compare them with Scripture. As you use this helpful study resource, remember that only God's word is pure.
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