Scenes From the Promised Land

Rejoice! The Vats Overflow With Oil

THE prophet Joel exhorted the ‘sons of Zion to be joyful and rejoice in Jehovah.’ He used olive oil in describing their joy and prosperity: “The threshing floors must be full of cleansed grain, and the press vats must overflow with new wine and oil.”​—Joel 2:23, 24.

Had you lived in Israel in Bible times, you would have been delighted to have close to your house, or in your fields, an olive tree such as shown above.a It would have made your life easier, more pleasant. Why would an olive tree be so important?​—Compare Judges 9:8, 9.

First, take a good look at your tree. Olive trees may live for centuries, some over a thousand years, so an examination would likely show a gnarled, ash-colored trunk. Your tree might be up to 20 feet [6 m] high, certainly not as towering as a cedar or as graceful as a palm. Its evergreen leaves, with a silvery sheen, provide shade year round. Still, you would not value your tree primarily for its looks or its shade. Far from it.

The fruit is the thing, those thousands of green or black olives! That is what would make the olive tree a key to life and activities in Israel. The tree is covered with light flowers in May, in preparation for the olive berries. (Job 15:33) As these mature, they may change from yellowish green to dark brown or black.

Harvesting the olives in October/​November was hard work. You would beat the tree with sticks so that the ripe fruit would fall onto cloths spread below. (Deuteronomy 24:20) The olives would be washed before processing, such as by soaking in brine to remove their normally bitter taste. What next?

That would depend on how you wanted to enjoy or profit from your rich harvest. You could eat the olives raw, or you could pickle them so that your family would have a tasty supply for many months. Olives could be a major part of the diet, a meal perhaps consisting of some flavorful olives along with barley cakes.

Probably, though, you would put most olives through the steps needed to obtain that extremely useful and valuable commodity​—olive oil. You could get various grades of oil, using these in many ways. First, you could lightly beat or press the ripe olives in a mortar or even tread them underfoot. (Micah 6:15) That produced the finest oil, now called extra virgin, which was fitting for the lamps that lighted the tabernacle. (Exodus 25:37; 27:20, 21) Imagine how you would cherish a supply of this choice oil to use in cooking for special occasions!

Olives, even those of poorer quality, could be put in a press to squeeze much more oil from the pulp, though of lower grade. The pulp is about 50 percent oil. Different-style presses could be used, but one is illustrated here. Whole or partially crushed olives were put in a cylindrical base. A millstone, turned by an ass or a human, rolled over them, forcing out the oil, which ran off and was collected in jars.​—Matthew 18:6.

Olive oil might be likened to liquid gold​—it was so highly valued and its uses so many. One tree could produce a year’s supply of oil for a family of five or six. It would be a principal part of their diet, being easily digested and high in energy. (Compare Jeremiah 41:8; Ezekiel 16:13.) You might perfume some oil and use it as a cosmetic or pour some on the head of a guest in a gesture of hospitality. (2 Samuel 12:20; Psalm 45:7; Luke 7:46) You could use it as a soothing medicine on wounds.​—Isaiah 1:6; Mark 6:13; Luke 10:34.

That would not exhaust your uses for a rich supply of olive oil. You could also use it to light your home, to be part of an offering to God, or as a commodity for profitable trading. Yes, in Bible times the olive tree was a most valuable plant, so Joel could fittingly use it to represent prosperity and joy.​—Deuteronomy 6:11; Psalm 52:8; Jeremiah 11:16; Matthew 25:3-8.

[Footnotes]

[Picture Credit Line on page 24]

Pictorial Archive (Near Eastern History) Est.