Cutting-instruments in the Bible refer to various tools and weapons used for cutting, shaping, or dividing materials. These instruments were essential in daily life, agriculture, construction, and warfare in biblical times. The Bible provides numerous references to different types of cutting-instruments, each serving specific purposes.

1. Axes and Hatchets:

Axes and hatchets were commonly used for chopping wood and clearing land. In Deuteronomy 19:5, the accidental death of a neighbor is described when "a man goes into the forest with his neighbor to cut wood, and his hand swings the axe to cut down the tree, but the iron head slips from the handle and strikes his neighbor so that he dies." This passage highlights the use of axes in forestry and the potential dangers associated with their use.

2. Swords:

Swords were prominent as weapons of war and symbols of power. They are frequently mentioned throughout the Bible. In 1 Samuel 17:51, David uses Goliath's own sword to behead him after defeating the giant: "David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine’s sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword." Swords were not only tools of battle but also instruments of divine judgment, as seen in Revelation 19:15, where the sword is depicted as coming from the mouth of Christ to strike down the nations.

3. Knives:

Knives were versatile tools used for various purposes, including sacrifices, circumcision, and food preparation. Genesis 22:6-10 describes Abraham taking a knife to sacrifice his son Isaac, demonstrating the knife's role in religious rituals. In Exodus 4:25, Zipporah uses a flint knife to circumcise her son, highlighting its use in covenantal practices.

4. Sickles:

Sickles were agricultural tools used for harvesting grain. In Joel 3:13, the sickle is used metaphorically to describe the harvest of judgment: "Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full; the vats overflow—so great is their wickedness!" The sickle symbolizes both the gathering of crops and the execution of divine justice.

5. Chisels and Engraving Tools:

Chisels and engraving tools were used in craftsmanship and construction. In Exodus 31:4-5, Bezalel is described as being filled with the Spirit of God to "devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings, and in the carving of wood, so as to perform in every inventive work." These tools were essential for creating the intricate designs of the Tabernacle and other sacred objects.

6. Plowshares:

Plowshares were agricultural implements used for tilling the soil. In Isaiah 2:4, a prophetic vision of peace is described where "they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will no longer take up the sword against nation, nor will they train anymore for war." This transformation of weapons into tools of agriculture symbolizes the coming of a peaceful era under God's reign.

Cutting-instruments in the Bible serve as practical tools for daily life and powerful symbols in spiritual and prophetic contexts. They reflect the ingenuity and resourcefulness of ancient peoples while also conveying deeper theological truths about judgment, sacrifice, and redemption.

The Sources of Hope
... The shining lancets and cruel cutting instruments that the surgeon lays out
on his table before he begins the operation are very dreadful. ...
/.../maclaren/romans corinthians to ii corinthians chap v/the sources of hope.htm

Chapter iv
... In both cases the meaning is much the same, with this major difference: the one
lets the man devise only cutting instruments, the other, all kinds of ...
//christianbookshelf.org/leupold/exposition of genesis volume 1/chapter iv.htm

Cutting-instruments (1 Occurrence)
Cutting-instruments. Cutting, Cutting-instruments. Cutting-off .
Multi-Version Concordance Cutting-instruments (1 Occurrence). ...
/c/cutting-instruments.htm - 6k

Grain-crushers (2 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 12:31 And he took the people out of the town and put them to work with
wood-cuttinginstruments, and iron grain-crushers, and iron axes, and at brick ...
/g/grain-crushers.htm - 7k

Wood-cutting (2 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 12:31 And he took the people out of the town and put them to work with
wood-cuttinginstruments, and iron grain-crushers, and iron axes, and at brick ...
/w/wood-cutting.htm - 7k

Instruments (136 Occurrences)
... Genesis 4:22 And Zillah gave birth to Tubal-cain, who is the father of every maker
of cuttinginstruments of brass and iron: and the sister of Tubal-cain was ...
/i/instruments.htm - 41k

Cutting (178 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 12:31 And he took the people out of the town and put them to work with
wood-cuttinginstruments, and iron grain-crushers, and iron axes, and at brick ...
/c/cutting.htm - 46k

Setteth (116 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 12:31 and the people who 'are' in it he hath brought out, and setteth to
the saw, and to cuttinginstruments of iron, and to axes of iron, and hath ...
/s/setteth.htm - 35k

Priced (5 Occurrences)
... inside and out, from base to crowning stone, and outside to the great walled square,
of highly priced stone, cut to different sizes with cutting-instruments. ...
/p/priced.htm - 8k

Brick-making (2 Occurrences)
... 2 Samuel 12:31 And he took the people out of the town and put them to work with
wood-cuttinginstruments, and iron grain-crushers, and iron axes, and at brick ...
/b/brick-making.htm - 7k

Buildings (28 Occurrences)
... inside and out, from base to crowning stone, and outside to the great walled square,
of highly priced stone, cut to different sizes with cutting-instruments. ...
/b/buildings.htm - 14k

Brazen (42 Occurrences)
... varied bronze objects. Among the most common are nails, lamps, hand mirrors,
locks, cuttinginstruments, etc. Within comparatively ...
/b/brazen.htm - 25k

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