​Mat 26:26-28.  "And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins."  (KJV)

Bread and wine,  since earliest times,  have played a significant role in man's diet.  Every culture has a  version of these two foods, and  when served together, they comprise a complete meal:  the bread fills and the wine refreshes.   
 
From the Author* of Psalm 104:15: "And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart."  (*Author unknown.  Probably  David or Solomon.)
 
​Modern historians estimate that bread came into existence as early as 30,000, 14,000, or  11,000 years ago.   But a more conservative date with good supporting evidence  is that a type of unleavened bread was in common use at  8, 000 years ago.  The Mesopotamians and the Egyptians are believed to be the  first cultures to pound grain into meal, mix it with water, and cook the subsequent paste into a flat cake.
 
From James M.  Freeman D.D.:  "Orientals, in general, are great eaters of bread.  It has been computed that three persons in four live entirely upon it, or else upon such compositions as are made of barley or wheat flour.  No doubt the term " bread " was often used to denote food in general; but this was because bread was more generally used than any other article of diet.  When Joseph's brethren had
cast him into the pit, "they sat down to eat bread." Genesis 37: 25.  When Moses was in Midian he was invited to "eat bread." Exodus 2: 20.  The witch of Endor  set a morsel of bread " before Saul and his servants."   ("Handbook of Bible  Manners and Customs",  #85,  1 Samuel 28: 22-25,  p. 51.  Published,   New York  1872.)
 
From John Ashton:  "And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah and said: 'Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.' And to this day in Syria cakes are made upon the hearth, and the breaking of bread together is a token of amity and protection extended by the stronger to the weaker."  ("The History of Bread", p. 37-38.  Published, London 1904.)
 
From Sir John Chardin:  "The country people (Mt. Caucus)  dwell in wooden huts: of which every family has four or five;  in the biggest of which they make a fire  and sit round about it.  The women grind the corn as they have occasion for bread,  which they bake in round stones a foot or thereabouts in diameter, and some two or three fingers in depth.  These stones they make very hot, put in the dough, and then cover it with hot ashes, and live coals over that: and in some places they bake it in the embers only.  To which purpose they sweep the hearth very clean, lay the dough upon it ,and then cover it with ashes and live coals as before. Nevertheless, the crust is very white, and the bread very good."   ( "The travels of Sir John Chardin into Persia and the East Indies",  p. 108, 167-168.  Published, London 1686.)
 
Wine is not as old as bread.   Sometime  between 6000 to 9000, the Chinese turned rice  into a beverage that  they allowed to ferment.  Near the same time, the countries of  Armenia, Turkey Georgia, Iran, and Egypt developed the method of storing  juice  squeezed from grapes or other fruit in clay jars that they sealed and buried in the ground for later use.  During this storage time, fermentation took place.  When the preserved juice was exhumed,  water was often added to lessen the bitterness before the mixture was consumed as a  beverage.   
 
The wine mentioned in the Bible was both pure fresh juice (new wine or sweet wine) and the preserved, fermented beverage.  Mixed or mingled wine had honey or other spices added for flavor.   Strong drink was either old highly fermented wine or an intoxicating beverage made from a grain or other fruits.
 

 
From John Hawkesworth:  "The only article of trade in this (Madeira) island is wine, and the manner in which it is made is so simple, that it might have been used by Noah, who is said to have planted the first vineyard after the flood: the grapes are put into a square wooden vessel, the dimensions of which are proportioned to the size of the vineyard to which it belongs; the servants then, having taken off their stockings and jackets, get into it, and with their feet and elbows, press out as much of the juice as they can: the stalks are afterwards collected, and being tied together with a rope, are put under a square piece of wood, which is pressed down upon them by a lever with a stone tied to the end of it."  ("A New Voyage Round the World in the years 1768, 1769, 1770, and 1771 by Capt. James Cook, etc.", p. 4.  Printed by James Rivington, London 1774.)
 
From John Baptista Tavernier:   "The games (servants) are they  that make the wine,  and to make it more sweet and pleasant, they take away the stalks, and never press anything but the  mere Grape."  ("The Six Voyages of John Baptista Tavernier",  Book 1, Chapter 8, p. 41.  Published,  London 1678.)
 
From Alexander A. Know:  " Do not let the man whose soul is heavy if he does not fare sumptuously every day, try a ramble in Algeria, but let no one be deterred under the idea that he will not get enough to eat, and of wholesome food.   As a rule, the bread is good, and there is plenty of fruit.  The wine of the country, heavily dashed with St. Galmier (mineral water) (which you will find in most places, and of which you can always take a small supply with you), serves well enough for drink."
("The New Playground or Wanderings in Algiers",  p. 215.  Published, London 1881.)
 
Once domesticated, grains and grapes became the most important food source to man.  Grains and grapes were abundant at their harvest times, both could be stored in various forms for lengthy periods, and both were easily converted into a form of food that man could consume.   Bread and wine were passed out as gifts of hospitality, sold and traded in the marketplace, and used as money.  Later, bread and wine took on symbolic meanings.
 
From Moses:  "And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most-high God.   And he blessed him, and said, blessed be Abram of the most-high God, possessor of heaven and earth: ." ( Genesis14: 18-19.  King James Version) 
 
From Sir John Chardin:  They keep their wine as they do in Mingrelia (Georgia).  I lodged every night at some countryman’s house. . .They gave us hens eggs, pulse, wine, bread, and over-cloyed us with fruit.  (And) every neighboring house brought us a great pitcher of wine, a pannier of fruit, and a basket of bread…which we never asked them what was to pay, nor would my guide permit me to give them any gratuity." ( "The travels of Sir John Chardin into Persia and the East Indies",  p. 108, 167-168.  Published, London 1686.)
 
 From John Baptista Tavernier:  " Kerman (Iran) is a large city, which has been often ruined by being several times taken and re-taken; nor is there anything handsome in it , but only one house and a garden , upon which the last Kans have bestowed a vast expense to make the place delightful.  They make there a fort of Earthenware which comes very near to Porcelain  and looks as neat and as fine.  As soon as I arrived , I went to visit the Kan , who made me very welcome , and gave order to the games (servants) to furnish me with bread and wine pullets and pigeons."   ("The Six Voyages of John Baptista Tavernier",  Book 1, Chapter 8, p. 41.  Published,  London 1678.)
 
From Dr. Frederick Hasselquist M.D.:  Jerusalem, April 12, Good Friday.  "At six o'clock we went into the little convent, which the Latins have beside the church, through which they go into the vestry room.  Here we supped, which was the miserablest meal I ever eat : it consisted of a head of lettuce ; the deficiency was to be made up with bread and wine,   two material articles for the refreshment and sustenance of man, and which the Monks always had (been) very good (at providing). To be more at liberty, which is hard to obtain in a cloister, I went with a Jesuit, who was a pilgrim, into another chamber, where we were refreshed with Hebron wine, and excellent bread, baked with oil, that we might support a whole, night and day's fatigue in beholding the ceremonies."  (" Voyages and Travels in the Levant in the years 1749-1752", p.132 .   Published,  London 1776.)
 
 From Monsieur Jean De Thevenot:  "None but slaves sell wine at Tunis, it is all white, and grows in great plenty in the country about, but they put lime to it to make it intoxicate.  They sell their wine cheap, and it is the custom, that if you go to a tavern and call for a quart of wine they will set bread before you, and three or four dishes of meat. . .with salads and other appurtenances, and when you are to go, you only pay for the wine, and at a reasonable rate too."  ("Travels into the Levant",  Part 1, Chapter 91,  p.277.  Published,  London 1687.)
 
From Edmund Bohun Esq.:  " Lesina, Pharia, (is) an Island on the Coast of Dalmatia, under the Venetians (that is) thirteen German miles long, and almost three in breadth.  In the northeast part of the Island, which (the) Sclavonians call Huar. . .It has a good haven at the south end of the isle.  It is deep enough, too, for ships of any rate; and bread and wine are cheap."   ("A Geographical Dictionary of all the Present and Ancient Names …of the Whole World",  Heading: LE - Lesina, Pharia.  Published, London 1866.)
​

Bread and Wine as a DEATH RITUAL
 From Rev. J .R. Pitman:  " The wise man here refers to the parental or sepulchral entertainments which were anciently much in vogue in the eastern and other countries, and particularly amongst idolaters, whose notion was, that the souls of the departed wandered about their sepulchers, and wanted a proper sustenance ; and that it was a pious office to place bread and wine over their graves for their support and refreshment.  The learned Spencer thinks that the Baalim,  or hero-gods of the ancients, were designed to be honored and propitiated by dedications or presentations of this kind, particularly Isis and Osiris.  Epiphanius has a passage which expressly mentions this superstitious custom: the eatables, says he, they burn, and the wine they consume by way of libation ; in this they do the deceased no good, and injure themselves.  What he farther adds is very particular,—that when they bring these accommodations they call upon the dead person by name, for whom the feast is designed,  'Arise, such a one, eat, drink, and rejoice.'  They were so extravagantly credulous as to believe the dead took pleasure in these repasts, and that the phantoms came to eat and drink voluptuously, whilst their relations feasted on the rest of the sacrifice, and ate in common, sitting round the pit or hearth, discoursing of the virtues of the person they came to lament."   ("A critical Commentary on the Old and New Testament and the Apocrypha", Vol. 3,  p. 526.  Published, London 1822.
 
From Colonel Charles W. Wilson:  "Very near Hiram's Tomb, (Tyre, Lebanon), to the southward, is the little village of Hanaway.  (It is) surrounded by orchards and olive yards, with many tombs in the sides of the hills.  In these tombs have recently been discovered many interesting specimens of Phoenician or at least pre-Roman glass.  In a sepulcher, which this year was opened by a charcoal-burner in digging up an old tree root, a complete set of funereal glass was found, undisturbed as when first placed in the newly-occupied tomb, which was a very small niche just large enough for a body and about four feet high, hewn at the foot of a rock against which earth and rubbish had accumulated.  At each of the four corners of the tomb was a lachrymatory (tear bottle), much larger than the ordinary or later Roman ones and with a very long neck.  At the upper part of the tomb were placed two flat dishes, one about six inches (and) the other twelve inches in diameter, for the meat and bread offerings for the dead, and a glass flask of antique and graceful shape for the wine."  ("Picturesque Palestine, Sinai and Egypt",  Vol.  2.  p. 63.  Published,  New York 1881.)
 
 Bread and Wine as a SALARY
 From Herodotus:  "The Egyptians are divided into seven classes, severally entitled priests, warriors, cowherds, swineherds, hucksters, interpreters, and pilots.   So many classes there are, each named after its vocation.   The warriors are divided into Kalasiries and Hermotubies, and they belong to the following provinces (for all divisions in Egypt are made according to provinces).  The whole military force, consisting of 410,000 men,  was divided into two corps, the Kalasiries and Hermotybies.  They furnished a body of men to do the duty of royal guards, 1000 of each being annually selected for that purpose; and each soldier had an additional allowance of five minse of bread, with two of beef, and four arusters of wine, as daily rations, during the period of his service."    ("Histories",  Book ii, p. 163, 166,168.  Written 430 B.C.  Published as Volume 1 of the Loeb Classical Library edition, 1920.)
 
 From John Pinkerton:  " We went northward between the mountains, and turning west came to the large convent of Nea-moni (Island of Chios, Greece) about two leagues to the west of the city ; it is situated on a hill in the middle of the mountains ; this convent was founded, or the church built by the Emperor Constantine Omonomilos …there are two hundred persons in the convent, twenty-five of which are priests, fifty stavroforoi, or cross bearers, who are those who have taken the strict vow, and ought never to eat flesh ; and four or five of the megalofkema, whose vow is so strict that they can have no employ in the convent, or elsewhere ; and though they ought to have no property, yet this is permitted, because they are obliged to pay their poll tax. They admit caloyers (monks of St. Basil) here for a sum of  money, who may go and live on their own farms, and are entitled to a certain portion of bread and wine, though absent; so that the convent is served."   ("A General Collection of the Best and Most Interesting Voyages and Travels in all Parts of the World", p. 624.  Published, London 1811.)
 
 
 Bread and Wine as a RELIGIOUS RITUAL
 From Rev. J.E. Riddle:  Oblation:  An offering or sacrifice.  " In the primitive Church, at the administration of the Lord's Supper communicants were required to bring certain oblations, irpoacpopai, or presents  of bread and wine.  These were sometimes presented by persons who did not communicate.  The bread and wine were enveloped in a white linen cloth called  fago;  the wine being contained in a vessel called ' ama' or  amula.  After the deacon had said, ' Let us  pray,' the communicants carried their offerings towards the altar, which were usually taken by a deacon, and, having been delivered or presented to the bishop, were laid upon the altar, or upon a separate table provided for their reception. This custom of offering oblation ceased generally during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries." ("Manual of Christian Antiquities", p. 586.  Published, London 1843.)
 
So why did Christ choose bread and wine to be the symbols of his body and blood at the last supper? 
 
In the introductory verse, Christ has chosen the two universally accepted sources of complete nourishment to man as symbols for Himself,  and in doing so creates a  compelling comparison and inference.   Bread and wine were abundant, came in many forms, were easy to obtain, fully satisfied man's hunger, and were meant to be shared.  So the same can be said of Christ and his sacrifice.  As our generous host, His love is abundant, comes in many forms, is easy to obtain, completely satisfies man's hunger, and is meant to be shared.
 
Today, as in all the past centuries, bread and wine are still the most recognized of all foods.  They continue to be a  mainstay of man's diet.  Whether as part of an everyday meal or a symbolic element of a religious ceremony,  they remain a continual daily reminder of Christ.

Text: Psalms 56:8 "Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in the book?"

The Biblical phrase,  "put thou tears into a bottle", is thought be a reference to lachrymatories or tear bottles that were an important part of the burial ceremony among the ancients. Such bottles were used to collect and preserve the tears of those who mourned. Also, records were often kept so as  to remember or verify who  actually came, participated and contributed in this grieving ritual.

From James Morier:  "In some of the mournful assemblies, it is the custom for a priest to go about to each person, at the height of their grief, and with a swab (cloth or cotton wad) in hand, carefully collect the falling tears and then squeeze the liquid into the bottle. These tears are preserved, and sometimes recorded, with the greatest of care.

Some Persians believe that in the agony of death, when all medicines have failed, a drop of tears so collected and put into the mouth of a dying person will revive them. Thus the reason for collecting and bottling tears. ("Second Journey through Persia", p. 179: Published 1818.)

The Greeks and Roman also performed this funeral ritual. Some scholars believe that Tacitus was referring to the tear-collecting when he said:  "At my funeral let no tokens of sorrow be seen, no pompous mockery of woe. “

Modern archaeologists have found a number of these tear bottles in ancient tombs. They are  made from a variety of materials that include  glass, pottery, agate, sardonyx, sometimes skin and occasionally crude baked clay.  Most are broad at the bottom with long slender necks and funnel-shaped mouths

From Johannes Van Cotovicus:  “The grave of M. Tullius Cicero was dug up in the island of Zacynthus, A. D. 1544, in which were found two glass urns; the larger had ashes in it, the lesser water: the one was supposed to contain his ashes, the other the tears of his friends: and as this was a custom with the Romans.” (Itinerarium Hiersolymitanum et Syriacum. Published1596)

There is less evidence that the Jews collected tears. However, there is a saying in their language that indicates is they had a knowledge or some relationship to the practice.  The translated Hebrew phrase "tears into thy bottle" refers to "crying" and a "skin bottle".

The introductory text is symbolic. Here, David is reminding God that He has been a witness to David's exile (wanderings), that David is grief stricken (tears in bottle) over that exile, and that his grief is verifiable and real (book).


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