In biblical contexts, the term "wafer" refers to a thin, unleavened bread used in various religious rituals and offerings. The concept of wafers is primarily found in the Old Testament, where they are associated with specific sacrificial practices and ceremonial observances.

Old Testament References

1. Exodus 29:2 · In the instructions for the consecration of Aaron and his sons as priests, God commands the use of unleavened bread, cakes mixed with oil, and wafers spread with oil. These wafers are part of the offerings presented at the ordination ceremony: "And from fine flour make unleavened bread, cakes mixed with oil, and wafers spread with oil."

2. Leviticus 2:4 · The wafer is mentioned as part of the grain offering, which could be presented in various forms, including baked in an oven. The passage specifies: "If you bring an offering of grain baked in an oven, it must consist of fine flour: unleavened cakes mixed with oil or unleavened wafers spread with oil."

3. Leviticus 7:12 · In the context of the peace offering, wafers are again highlighted. The peace offering could be accompanied by unleavened cakes mixed with oil and unleavened wafers spread with oil: "If he offers it in thanksgiving, then along with the sacrifice of thanksgiving he shall offer unleavened cakes mixed with oil, unleavened wafers spread with oil, and cakes of well-kneaded fine flour mixed with oil."

4. Numbers 6:15 · As part of the Nazirite vow, offerings included unleavened bread, cakes, and wafers. The text states: "together with their grain offerings and drink offerings, and a basket of unleavened cakes made of fine flour mixed with oil and unleavened wafers spread with oil."

Symbolism and Significance

Wafers in the biblical context are significant for their use in religious rituals, symbolizing purity and dedication to God. The unleavened nature of the wafers underscores the importance of holiness and separation from sin, as leaven often symbolizes sin and corruption in biblical literature. The use of oil in the preparation of wafers further signifies anointing and the presence of the Holy Spirit.

Cultural and Religious Context

In ancient Israelite culture, the preparation and presentation of wafers were acts of worship and obedience to God's commandments. These offerings were integral to the sacrificial system, which served as a means for the Israelites to maintain a covenant relationship with God. The meticulous instructions for making wafers reflect the broader biblical theme of approaching God with reverence and adherence to His prescribed ways.

New Testament Connections

While the New Testament does not explicitly mention wafers, the concept of unleavened bread carries forward into Christian practice, particularly in the observance of the Lord's Supper or Communion. The unleavened bread used in this sacrament is reminiscent of the Passover meal and the purity required in worship, drawing a parallel to the Old Testament use of wafers in sacrificial offerings.

In summary, wafers in the Bible are emblematic of purity, dedication, and the sacredness of worship, serving as a tangible expression of faith and obedience to God's commands.Wafer

A thin cake made of fine flour, Exodus 16:31, and used in carious offerings, anointed with sweet oil, Exodus 29:2,23; Le 2:4; 7:12; Numbers 6:15.

1. (n.) A thin cake made of flour and other ingredients.

2. (n.) A thin cake or piece of bread (commonly unleavened, circular, and stamped with a crucifix or with the sacred monogram) used in the Eucharist, as in the Roman Catholic Church.

3. (n.) An adhesive disk of dried paste, made of flour, gelatin, isinglass, or the like, and coloring matter, -- used in sealing letters and other documents.

4. (v. t.) To seal or close with a wafer.

WAFER

wa'-fer.

See BREAD.

7550. raqiq -- thin cake, wafer
... 7549, 7550. raqiq. 7551 . thin cake, wafer. Transliteration: raqiq Phonetic
Spelling: (raw-keek') Short Definition: wafers. ... cake, wafer. ...
/hebrew/7550.htm - 6k

6838. tsappichith -- a flat cake, wafer
... 6837, 6838. tsappichith. 6839 . a flat cake, wafer. Transliteration: tsappichith
Phonetic Spelling: (tsap-pee-kheeth') Short Definition: wafers. ... wafer. ...
/hebrew/6838.htm - 6k

3561. kavvan -- a cake, sacrificial cake
... cake. From kuwn; something prepared, ie A sacrificial wafer -- cake. see HEBREW
kuwn. 3560, 3561. kavvan. 3562 . Strong's Numbers.
/hebrew/3561.htm - 6k

The Holy Things are not to be Sent into Other Dioceses at the ...
... He starts from the fact that, with the Greeks as well as the Latins, the wafer intended
for communion is generally called sancta or hagia even before the ...
/.../schaff/the seven ecumenical councils/canon xiv the holy things.htm

A Word from the Beloved's Own Mouth. "And Ye are Clean. " --John ...
... This utterance of our Saviour to His disciples has been as a wafer made with honey
to our taste, and we doubt not it may prove equally as sweet to others. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/spurgeon/till he come/a word from the beloveds.htm

A New Year's Benediction
... from it, and then desire my people to remember it through the year as a staff of
support in their time of trouble, as some sweet morsel, a wafer made with honey ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 6 1860/a new years benediction.htm

The Downfall, 1616-1621.
... the services; and, in open defiance of the law of the land, the priests drove
Protestants with dogs and scourges to the Mass, and thrust the wafer down their ...
/.../hutton/history of the moravian church/chapter xiv the downfall 1616-1621.htm

Who was Nicholas?
... and more than all, that he should teach an ordained priest, who had power to bind
and loose, and to work the great miracle which changed the wafer and the wine ...
/.../bevan/three friends of god/chapter iv who was nicholas.htm

The Brandenburg Confessions.
... rejects the Lutheran doctrine of the ubiquity of Christ's body, and exorcism in
baptism as a superstitious ceremony, and the use of the wafer instead of the ...
/.../ 70 the brandenburg confessions.htm

Now Follows the Practice of Piety in Dying for the Lord.
... 21. That Christ's flesh was made of the seed of David, by incarnation; not
of a wafer cake by transubstantiation (Romans 1:3.). 22. ...
/.../bayly/the practice of piety/now follows the practice of.htm

The Lawful and Unlawful Use of Law.
... To tremble before a consecrated wafer is spurious reverence. To bend before
the Majesty of Right is Christian reverence. Thirdly. ...
/.../robertson/sermons preached at brighton/xix the lawful and unlawful.htm

Marah; Or, the Bitter Waters Sweetened
... Secondly, these evils assume varied shapes. You noticed that for the first three
days in the wilderness they found no wafer; that is one trial. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 17 1871/marah or the bitter waters.htm

A Jealous God
... has been moved with indignation like that of Paul on Mars' Hill, when he saw the
city wholly to idolatry; I have seen thousands adore the wafer, hundreds bow ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 9 1863/a jealous god.htm

Wafer (3 Occurrences)
... 4. (vt) To seal or close with a wafer. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. WAFER.
wa'-fer. See BREAD. Multi-Version Concordance Wafer (3 Occurrences). ...
/w/wafer.htm - 8k

Cake (25 Occurrences)
... any size or shape. 3. (n.) A thin wafer-shaped mass of fried batter; a
griddlecake or pancake; as buckwheat cakes. 4. (n.) A mass ...
/c/cake.htm - 17k

Seal (47 Occurrences)
... 3. (n.) Wax, wafer, or other tenacious substance, set to an instrument, and impressed
or stamped with a seal; as, to give a deed under hand and seal. ...
/s/seal.htm - 38k

Unleavened (51 Occurrences)
... Exodus 29:23 and one loaf of bread, one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer
out of the basket of unleavened bread that is before Yahweh. ...
/u/unleavened.htm - 24k

Yeast (48 Occurrences)
... (See NIV). Exodus 29:23 and one loaf of bread, one cake of oiled bread, and one
wafer out of the basket of unleavened bread that is before Yahweh. (See NIV). ...
/y/yeast.htm - 21k

Oiled (2 Occurrences)
... Oiled (2 Occurrences). Exodus 29:23 and one loaf of bread, one cake of oiled bread,
and one wafer out of the basket of unleavened bread that is before Yahweh. ...
/o/oiled.htm - 7k

Basket (40 Occurrences)
... Exodus 29:23 and one loaf of bread, one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer
out of the basket of unleavened bread that is before Yahweh. ...
/b/basket.htm - 27k

Wafers (6 Occurrences)

/w/wafers.htm - 8k

Mixed (96 Occurrences)
... (WEB BBE NAS RSV NIV). Exodus 29:23 and one loaf of bread, one cake of oiled bread,
and one wafer out of the basket of unleavened bread that is before Yahweh. ...
/m/mixed.htm - 40k

Shoulder (72 Occurrences)
... 8:26 And out of the basket of unleavened bread, that was before the LORD, he took
one unleavened cake, and a cake of oiled bread, and one wafer, and put them ...
/s/shoulder.htm - 37k

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