In biblical times, the knife was an essential tool and weapon, serving various purposes in daily life, religious rituals, and significant events. The Hebrew word often translated as "knife" is "ma'akelet," which appears in several key passages throughout the Scriptures.

Sacrificial Use:
One of the most notable mentions of a knife in the Bible is in the context of sacrifice. In Genesis 22:6, Abraham takes a knife with him as he prepares to sacrifice his son Isaac in obedience to God's command: "Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac. He himself carried the fire and the knife, and the two of them walked on together" . This passage highlights the knife's role in the sacrificial system, a central aspect of worship and covenantal obedience in the Old Testament.

Circumcision:
The knife also played a crucial role in the rite of circumcision, a sign of the covenant between God and Abraham's descendants. In Exodus 4:25, Zipporah, Moses' wife, uses a flint knife to circumcise their son: "But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin, and touched it to Moses’ feet. 'Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,' she said" . This act underscores the knife's importance in fulfilling divine commands and maintaining the covenant relationship with God.

Military and Personal Use:
Knives were also used as weapons in personal and military contexts. In Judges 3:16, Ehud, a judge of Israel, fashions a double-edged sword, which can be understood as a type of large knife, to deliver Israel from Moabite oppression: "Now Ehud had made himself a double-edged sword a cubit long, which he strapped to his right thigh under his cloak" . This account illustrates the knife's role in executing justice and delivering God's people.

Symbolic and Metaphorical Use:
The knife is sometimes used metaphorically in Scripture to convey deeper spiritual truths. In Proverbs 23:2, the wise are cautioned against gluttony: "and put a knife to your throat if you possess a great appetite" . Here, the knife symbolizes self-control and the need to restrain one's desires.

Craftsmanship and Daily Life:
In addition to its religious and military uses, the knife was a practical tool in craftsmanship and daily life. It was used for cutting materials, preparing food, and other domestic tasks. The skill of a craftsman with a knife is implied in passages like Isaiah 44:12, where the blacksmith's work is described.

Throughout the Bible, the knife is depicted as a multifaceted instrument, integral to the spiritual, cultural, and practical aspects of life in ancient Israel. Its presence in key biblical narratives underscores its significance in the unfolding of God's redemptive plan.Knife

1. The knives of the Egyptians, and of other nations in early times, were probably only of hard stone, and the use of the flint or stone knife was sometimes retained for sacred purposes after the introduction of iron and steel.
2. In their meals the Jews, like other Orientals, made little use of knives, but they were required both for slaughtering animals, either for food or sacrifice, and for cutting up the carcass. (Leviticus 7:33,34; 8:15,20,25; 9:13; Numbers 18:18; 1 Samuel 9:24) etc.
3. Smaller knives were in use for paring fruit (Josephus) and for sharpening pens. (Jeremiah 36:23)
4. The razor was often used for Nazarite purposes, for which a special chamber was reserved in the temple. (Numbers 6:5,9,19; Ezekiel 5:1), etc.
5. The pruning-hooks of (Isaiah 18:5) were probably curved knives.
6. The lancets of the priests of Baal were doubtless pointed knives. (1 Kings 18:28)

(1.) Hebrews hereb, "the waster," a sharp instrument for circumcision (Joshua 5:2, 3, lit. "knives of flint;" Comp. Exodus 4:25); a razor (Ezek. 5:1); a graving tool (Exodus 20:25); an axe (Ezek. 26:9).

(2.) Hebrews maakeleth, a large knife for slaughtering and cutting up food (Genesis 22:6, 10; Proverbs 30:14).

(3.) Hebrews sakkin, a knife for any purpose, a table knife (Proverbs 23:2).

(4.) Hebrews mahalaph, a butcher's knife for slaughtering the victims offered in sacrifice (Ezra 1:9).

(5.) Smaller knives (Hebrews ta'ar, Jeremiah 36:26) were used for sharpening pens. The pruning-knives mentioned in Isaiah 18:5 (Hebrews mizmaroth) were probably curved knives.

1. (n.) An instrument consisting of a thin blade, usually of steel and having a sharp edge for cutting, fastened to a handle, but of many different forms and names for different uses; as, table knife, drawing knife, putty knife, pallet knife, pocketknife, penknife, chopping knife, etc..

2. (n.) A sword or dagger.

3. (v. t.) To prune with the knife.

4. (v. t.) To cut or stab with a knife.

KNIFE

nif:

(1) ma'akheleth, literally, an instrument for eating; but used of large knives for slaying animals, cutting up a carcass or a sacrificial victim (Genesis 22:6, 10 Judges 19:29 Proverbs 30:14).

(2) cherebh, rendered generally "sword," but in Joshua 5:2, 3 of stone knives for circumcision (compare Exodus 4:25), probably of similar knives in 1 Kings 18:28, used by Baal prophets in gashing themselves. In Ezekiel 5:12 the King James Version, "knife," probably better the Revised Version (British and American), "sword."

(3) ta`ar, usually rendered "razor," in combination with ha-copher, "knife of the writer," or "penknife" (Jeremiah 36:23).

(4) machalaphim, "slaughter-knives" (Ezra 1:9).

(5) sakkin, Aramaic, "knife" (Proverbs 23:2). Early knives were commonly made of sharp stones, especially of flint, later of bronze and iron. The-former remained in use in religious ceremonies long after the latter were in common use.

Knives were not generally used at meals, meats being cut into bits before served, and bread being. broken into fragments. Herod used a knife for paring apples, and attempted suicide with the instrument (Josephus, Ant, XVII, vii, 1; BJ, I, xxxiii, 7).

Edward Bagby Pollard

3162. machaira -- a short sword or dagger
... sword. Probably feminine of a presumed derivative of mache; a knife, ie Dirk;
figuratively, war, judicial punishment -- sword. see GREEK mache. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3162.htm - 7k7915. sakkin -- a knife
... 7914b, 7915. sakkin. 7916 . a knife. Transliteration: sakkin Phonetic
Spelling: (sak-keen') Short Definition: knife. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/7915.htm - 6k

3979. maakeleth -- a knife
... 3978, 3979. maakeleth. 3980 . a knife. Transliteration: maakeleth Phonetic
Spelling: (mah-ak-eh'-leth) Short Definition: knife. ...
/hebrew/3979.htm - 6k

4252. machalaph -- a knife
... 4251, 4252. machalaph. 4253 . a knife. Transliteration: machalaph Phonetic
Spelling: (makh-al-awf') Short Definition: duplicates. ... knife. ...
/hebrew/4252.htm - 6k

4211. mazmerah -- a pruning knife
... a pruning knife. Transliteration: mazmerah Phonetic Spelling: (maz-may-raw') Short
Definition: hooks. ... pruning-hook. From zamar; a pruning-knife -- pruning-hook. ...
/hebrew/4211.htm - 6k

2719. chereb -- a sword
... tool (1). axe, dagger, knife, mattock, sword, tool. From charab; drought;
also a cutting instrument (from its destructive effect), as ...
/hebrew/2719.htm - 6k

8593. taar -- a razor, sheath
... Word Origin from arah Definition a razor, sheath NASB Word Usage knife (1), razor
(5), sheath (7). penknife, razor, scabbard, shave, sheath. ...
/hebrew/8593.htm - 6k

6864. tsor -- a hard pebble, flint
... flint, sharp stone. From tsuwr; a stone (as if pressed hard or to a point); (by
implication, of use) a knife -- flint, sharp stone. see HEBREW tsuwr. ...
/hebrew/6864.htm - 6k

The Pruning Knife
... THE PRUNING KNIFE. Already Ye Are Clean Because of the Word I Have Spoken Unto
You"John 15..3. What is the pruning knife of this heavenly Husbandman? ...
/.../the true vine meditations for a month on john 151-16/the pruning knife.htm

The "Little Knife" Insurrection
... VI. THE "LITTLE KNIFE" INSURRECTION. China ... 1853. Mr. Talmage writes fully
concerning it. THE "LITTLE KNIFE" INSURRECTION. Jan.25, 1853. ...
/.../fagg/forty years in south china/vi the little knife insurrection.htm

A Look Ahead
... And full well He knew that only the knife could help many. And ... But there's
more than knife; there's fulness of life following. He ...
/.../gordon/quiet talks on following the christ/1 a look ahead.htm

Whether the Rite of Circumcision was Fitting?
... But, in cutting, we use an iron knife more commonly than a stone knife. Therefore
circumcision should not have been performed with a stone knife. ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether the rite of circumcision.htm

Whether the Judgment of the Intellect is Hindered through ...
... action, so the end of natural science is that which is perceived principally through
the senses"; for the smith does not seek knowledge of a knife except for ...
/.../christianbookshelf.org/aquinas/summa theologica/whether the judgment of the.htm

Shall we Go?
... And then you suddenly find a knife, a sharpedged knife, being held out across the
road, by an unseen hand back in the bushes. The cutting edge is toward you. ...
/.../gordon/quiet talks on following the christ/shall we go.htm

Cast Your Eye Round the Room in which You Sit...
... among the tribes. Let me suppose that you see a knife on the table, a stick
in the corner, or a fire on the hearth. About each of ...
/.../chesterton/whats wrong with the world/chapter 17 cast your eye.htm

A Little Sermon to School-Girls.
... have not had the advantages which enable them to know how to conduct themselves
gracefully in society; how to dress themselves; how to use knife, fork, napkin ...
/.../a little sermon to school-girls.htm

Of Miracles which were Wrought that the World Might Believe in ...
... pain; yet, among the many folds of the gut, one had escaped the operators so entirely,
that, though they ought to have laid it open with the knife, they never ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 8 of miracles which were.htm

To Queen Giovanna of Naples (Written in Trance)
... The soul treats itself with great cruelty when of its own accord it puts the
knife with which it can be killed in the hands of its foe. ...
/.../benincasa/letters of catherine benincasa/to queen giovanna of naples.htm

Knife (10 Occurrences)
... 26:9). (2.) Hebrews maakeleth, a large knife for slaughtering and cutting
up food (Genesis 22:6, 10; Proverbs 30:14). (3.) Hebrews ...
/k/knife.htm - 13k

Pen-knife (1 Occurrence)
Pen-knife. Penknife, Pen-knife. Penned . Multi-Version Concordance
Pen-knife (1 Occurrence). Jeremiah 36:23 And it came ...
/p/pen-knife.htm - 6k

Tools (3 Occurrences)
... See HAMMER. (2) Of cutting tools, the simplest was of course the knife. ... But
the hatchet of Psalm 74:6 may be a knife. See HATCHET; KNIFE. ...
/t/tools.htm - 14k

Razor (8 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary. 1. (n.) A keen-edged knife of peculiar shape, used in
shaving the hair from the face or the head. 2. (n.) A tusk of a wild boar. Int. ...
/r/razor.htm - 10k

Penknife (1 Occurrence)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary (n.) A small pocketknife; formerly, a knife used for making
and mending quill pens. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. PENKNIFE. ...
/p/penknife.htm - 7k

Pen (16 Occurrences)
... the book. In Jeremiah 36:23 it says that the king cut the roll with the
penknife (literally, the scribe's knife). This whole scene ...
/p/pen.htm - 14k

Cutteth (37 Occurrences)
... Judges 19:29 and cometh in unto his house, and taketh the knife, and layeth hold
on his concubine, and cutteth her in pieces to her bones -- into twelve pieces ...
/c/cutteth.htm - 18k

Knewest (11 Occurrences)

/k/knewest.htm - 10k

Knit (11 Occurrences)

/k/knit.htm - 10k

Taketh (398 Occurrences)
... Genesis 22:6 And Abraham taketh the wood of the burnt-offering, and placeth on Isaac
his son, and he taketh in his hand the fire, and the knife; and they go on ...
/t/taketh.htm - 35k

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