In biblical times, gatherers played a significant role in the agrarian society of ancient Israel. The term "gatherers" can refer to those who collected various resources, such as food, wood, or other materials necessary for daily life and religious practices. The concept of gathering is deeply embedded in the biblical narrative, reflecting both physical and spiritual dimensions.

Agricultural Gatherers

The primary context for gatherers in the Bible is agricultural. The Israelites were commanded to gather the harvest of their fields, vineyards, and orchards. This activity was not only essential for sustenance but also for fulfilling religious obligations. In Leviticus 23:22 , God instructs the Israelites: "When you reap the harvest of your land, you are not to reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the LORD your God." This command highlights the social responsibility of gatherers to provide for the needy, emphasizing the communal aspect of gathering.

Gatherers of Manna

In the wilderness, the Israelites experienced God's provision through the gathering of manna. Exodus 16:4 states, "Then the LORD said to Moses, 'Behold, I will rain down bread from heaven for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test whether or not they will follow My instructions.'" The daily gathering of manna was a test of obedience and reliance on God's provision, teaching the Israelites to trust in Him for their daily needs.

Spiritual Implications

Gathering also carries spiritual connotations in the Bible. In the New Testament, Jesus uses the imagery of gathering to describe the Kingdom of God. In Matthew 13:30 , in the Parable of the Weeds, He says, "Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters, 'First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat into my barn.'" This parable illustrates the final gathering at the end of the age, where the righteous and the wicked will be separated.

Gatherers in Worship

The act of gathering is also significant in the context of worship. The Israelites were instructed to gather for festivals and religious observances. Deuteronomy 16:16 commands, "Three times a year all your men must appear before the LORD your God at the place He will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles." These gatherings were times of communal worship, reflection, and celebration of God's faithfulness.

Conclusion

Gatherers in the Bible are depicted as integral to both the physical sustenance and spiritual life of the community. Whether collecting food, participating in religious festivals, or symbolizing the gathering of souls, the act of gathering reflects a deep reliance on God's provision and a commitment to communal responsibility.1219. batsar -- to cut off, make inaccessible, enclose
... off, make inaccessible, enclose NASB Word Usage cut off (1), fortified (24), fortify
(2), gather (3), gathered (1), gatherer (1), gatherers (2), impenetrable (1 ...
/hebrew/1219.htm - 6k

5955. oleloth -- a gleaning
... Word Origin from alal Definition a gleaning NASB Word Usage gatherers (1), gleaning
(1), gleanings (4). gleaning of the grapes, grape-gleanings. ...
/hebrew/5955.htm - 6k

Jesus Fights Wrong in the Temple
... Which of the two did as his father wished?" They answered, "The first." Jesus said
to them, "I tell you that tax-gatherers and sinners will enter the Kingdom ...
/.../sherman/the childrens bible/jesus fights wrong in the.htm

Jesus Makes Even Wrong-Doers his Friends
... Now while Jesus was eating dinner in Levi's house, many tax-gatherers and
sinners sat down with Jesus and his disciples. The scribes ...
/.../sherman/the childrens bible/jesus makes even wrong-doers his.htm

Matthew the Publican Called from the Custom-House. --Familial ...
... took the disciples to task for their free and (as they thought) unspiritual mode
of life, in eating and drinking with degraded sinners and tax-gatherers. ...
/.../section 141 matthew the publican.htm

And after Such Statements, Showing his Ignorance Even of the ...
... the apostles, he proceeds thus: "Jesus having gathered around him ten or eleven
persons of notorious character, the very wickedest of tax-gatherers and sailors ...
/.../origen/origen against celsus/chapter lxii and after such.htm

The Christian Conception of Life Has Already Arisen in Our Society ...
... of their own or a foreign country; judges and prosecutors who do not like to try
and to condemn criminals; priests, who abjure deception; tax-gatherers who try ...
/.../the kingdom of god is within you/chapter xi the christian conception.htm

The Mosaic Law the Fountain of all Ethics, and the Source from ...
... And in the vintage it prohibited the grape-gatherers from going back again on what
had been left, and from gathering the fallen grapes; and the same ...
/.../clement/the stromata or miscellanies/chapter xviii the mosaic law the.htm

Travelling in Palestine --Roads, Inns, Hospitality, Custom-House ...
... The Publicani, or those who held from them, employed either slaves or some of the
lower classes in the country as tax-gatherers"the publicans of the New ...
/.../sketches of jewish social life/chapter 4 travelling in palestineroads.htm

Self-Inspection.
... The Publican was the tax-gatherer, and as the tax-gatherers in those days were often
hard men, and exacted more than was due to the State, that they might ...
/.../the village pulpit volume ii trinity to advent/xlviii self-inspection.htm

The Friend of Sinners
... of company. They were not innkeepers, as the word means now; they were
a kind of tax-gatherers: but not like ours in England. For ...
/.../kingsley/the good news of god/sermon xxxiii the friend of.htm

On the Incarnation of Christ.
... of His advent; and after His ascension into heaven, made His holy apostles, men
ignorant and unlearned, taken from the ranks of tax-gatherers or fishermen, but ...
/.../origen/origen de principiis/chapter vi on the incarnation of.htm

Gatherers (2 Occurrences)
... Multi-Version Concordance Gatherers (2 Occurrences). Jeremiah 49:9 If grape gatherers
came to you, would they not leave some gleaning grapes? ...
/g/gatherers.htm - 7k

Tax-gatherers (16 Occurrences)
Tax-gatherers. Tax-gatherer, Tax-gatherers. Tax-gathers .
Multi-Version Concordance Tax-gatherers (16 Occurrences). ...
/t/tax-gatherers.htm - 11k

Grape-gatherers (2 Occurrences)
Grape-gatherers. Grapegatherers, Grape-gatherers. Grape-gleanings .
Multi-Version Concordance Grape-gatherers (2 Occurrences). ...
/g/grape-gatherers.htm - 7k

Notorious (16 Occurrences)
... Matthew 9:11 The Pharisees noticed this, and they inquired of His disciples, "Why
does your Teacher eat with the tax-gatherers and notorious sinners?" (WEY). ...
/n/notorious.htm - 11k

Eating (151 Occurrences)
... Matthew 9:11 and the Pharisees having seen, said to his disciples, 'Wherefore with
the tax-gatherers and sinners doth your teacher eat?' (See NAS). ...
/e/eating.htm - 38k

Drinking (114 Occurrences)
... Mark 2:16 But when the Scribes of the Pharisee sect saw Him eating with the sinners
and the tax-gatherers, they said to His disciples, "He is eating and ...
/d/drinking.htm - 38k

Party (47 Occurrences)
... WEY). Luke 3:12 There came also a party of tax-gatherers to be baptized,
and they asked him, "Rabbi, what are we to do?" (WEY). Luke ...
/p/party.htm - 20k

Seeing (442 Occurrences)
... (DBY). Matthew 9:11 And the Pharisees seeing it, said to his disciples, Why
does your teacher eat with tax-gatherers and sinners? (DBY). ...
/s/seeing.htm - 34k

Gleanings (8 Occurrences)
... Jeremiah 49:9 If gatherers have come in to thee, They do not leave gleanings, If
thieves in the night, They have destroyed their sufficiency! (YLT NAS RSV). ...
/g/gleanings.htm - 9k

Wine-drinker (2 Occurrences)
... Matthew 11:19 the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Lo, a man,
a glutton, and a wine-drinker, a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners, and ...
/w/wine-drinker.htm - 7k

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