In biblical times, entertainments and feasts were significant social and religious events that required careful preparation. These gatherings were often marked by hospitality, celebration, and communal participation, reflecting the cultural and spiritual values of the people.

Old Testament Examples

1. Feasts and Celebrations: The Old Testament provides numerous examples of feasts that required extensive preparation. One notable instance is the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which followed the Passover. In Exodus 12:18, the Israelites were instructed to remove all leaven from their homes and prepare unleavened bread as part of the observance: "In the first month, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day, you are to eat unleavened bread."

2. King Solomon's Banquet: King Solomon's reign was marked by prosperity and grand celebrations. In 1 Kings 4:22-23, the daily provisions for Solomon's household are detailed, highlighting the extensive preparations for his banquets: "Solomon’s provisions for a single day were thirty cors of fine flour, sixty cors of meal, ten fat oxen, twenty pasture-fed cattle, a hundred sheep, and goats, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fattened poultry."

3. Esther's Banquet: In the Book of Esther, Queen Esther prepared a banquet for King Xerxes and Haman as part of her strategic plan to save her people. Esther 5:4-5 records her invitation: "If it pleases the king, let the king and Haman come today to the banquet I have prepared for him." This event underscores the importance of careful planning and timing in hosting significant gatherings.

New Testament Examples

1. The Wedding at Cana: In the New Testament, the wedding at Cana is a prominent example of a social gathering that required preparation. In John 2:1-10, Jesus performs His first miracle by turning water into wine, highlighting the cultural importance of hospitality and the potential for divine intervention in human affairs. The presence of wine and the role of the master of the banquet indicate the careful planning involved in such events.

2. The Parable of the Great Banquet: Jesus often used parables to convey spiritual truths, and the parable of the great banquet in Luke 14:16-24 illustrates the preparations made for a feast. The host sends out invitations and prepares a lavish banquet, symbolizing the kingdom of God and the invitation extended to all: "A certain man prepared a great banquet and invited many guests."

3. The Last Supper: The Last Supper, as described in the Gospels, was a carefully prepared Passover meal shared by Jesus and His disciples. In Luke 22:8-13, Jesus instructs Peter and John to make the necessary preparations: "Go and prepare for us to eat the Passover." This event not only required logistical arrangements but also held profound theological significance as the institution of the Lord's Supper.

Cultural and Spiritual Significance

In biblical times, entertainments and feasts were more than mere social gatherings; they were expressions of community, covenant, and divine blessing. The preparations for these events often involved meticulous attention to detail, reflecting the host's commitment to hospitality and the importance of the occasion. Whether in the context of a royal banquet, a wedding celebration, or a religious feast, the preparations made for entertainments in the Bible underscore the values of generosity, fellowship, and reverence for God's provision.Genesis 18:6,7
And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes on the hearth.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Proverbs 9:2
She has killed her beasts; she has mingled her wine; she has also furnished her table.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Matthew 22:4
Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatted calves are killed, and all things are ready: come to the marriage.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Luke 15:23
And bring here the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry:
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Herodotus and Xenophon.
... and the military spectacles, there were certain literary entertainments provided,
which ... The king was thus deceived, and made no preparations to resist the ...
/.../abbott/cyrus the great/chapter i herodotus and xenophon.htm

A Common Mistake and Lame Excuse
... chopped off next morning, danced and flirted, and sat at entertainments, just as
if ... as if they were never going to embark, and made no preparations for the ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture a/a common mistake and lame.htm

The Case of Spiritual Decay and Languor in Religion
... there will scarce be a reflection made, how little ... been unnecessarily straitened
in your preparations, you will ... for company, and the entertainments which often ...
/.../the rise and progress of religion in the soul/chapter xxii the case of.htm

The Journey of the Three Holy Kings to Bethlehem
... began to break, and they made all preparations for their ... He had a golden image made
of a lamb, or ... endeavored to distract him with all kinds of entertainments. ...
/.../emmerich/the life of the blessed virgin mary/xiii the journey of the.htm

The visit to Media.
... At one of the entertainments which Astyages gave in his ... and frequented haunt for
wild beasts, made it unsafe ... him, and Cyrus began to make preparations for his ...
//christianbookshelf.org/abbott/cyrus the great/chapter iii the visit to.htm

Of the Incapacity of an Unregenerate Person for Relishing the ...
... you intended all these pompous preparations only to ... entertainments of heaven, while
these entertainments and these ... you consider where that change must be made? ...
/.../practical discourses on regeneration/discourse v of the incapacity.htm

Conclusion --Repent Ye, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand.
... he answered with the foolish intonation peculiar to soldiers; "and if he made off,
I ... would have no fortune, and she could not have her entertainments and her ...
/.../the kingdom of god is within you/chapter xii conclusionrepent ye for.htm

The Greatness of the Soul,
... Heathen philosophers, at the head of whose formidable array stand Plato and Aristotle,
had exhausted their wit, and had not made the world a whit the wiser by ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the greatness of the soul.htm

The Medes and the Second Chaldaean Empire
... From thence they made their way into the narrow ... the war against Assyria, the
preparations for it ... hunting expeditions, his banquets, and entertainments in the ...
/.../chapter iiithe medes and the.htm

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