In biblical times, presses were essential tools used primarily for extracting juice from grapes and olives, which were abundant in the ancient Near East. These presses are frequently mentioned in the Bible, symbolizing both physical abundance and spiritual truths.

Grape Presses:

Grape presses, or winepresses, were used to extract juice from grapes to produce wine, a staple in the diet and culture of the Israelites. The process involved treading grapes in a large vat, often hewn from rock, where the juice would flow into a lower basin. This imagery is vividly depicted in Isaiah 63:2-3 : "Why are Your clothes red, and Your garments like one who treads the winepress? 'I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples no one was with Me.'"

Winepresses also serve as a metaphor for divine judgment. In Revelation 14:19-20 , the imagery of a winepress is used to describe God's wrath: "So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the grapes of the earth, and he threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press, rising as high as the horses’ bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia."

Olive Presses:

Olive presses were used to extract oil from olives, a critical commodity in ancient Israel for cooking, lighting, and anointing. The process involved crushing olives in a stone basin and then pressing them to extract the oil. Olive oil was a symbol of blessing and anointing, as seen in Psalm 23:5 : "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows."

The Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus prayed before His crucifixion, is named after an olive press, as "Gethsemane" means "oil press" in Aramaic. This setting underscores the pressing weight of the suffering Jesus was about to endure, as described in Matthew 26:36-39 .

Symbolism and Spiritual Significance:

Presses in the Bible often symbolize the process of transformation and purification. Just as grapes and olives are crushed to produce wine and oil, believers may undergo trials and tribulations to produce spiritual fruit and anointing. This concept is echoed in Romans 5:3-4 : "Not only that, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."

In summary, presses in the Bible are not only practical tools but also rich in symbolic meaning, representing both the blessings of God and the processes of judgment and refinement.3342. yeqeb -- wine vat
... Word Origin from an unused word Definition wine vat NASB Word Usage presses
(1), vats (3), wine press (3), wine presses (3), wine vat (6). ...
/hebrew/3342.htm - 6k

1660. gath -- a wine press
... press. Word Origin from an unused word Definition a wine press NASB Word Usage
wine press (4), wine presses (1). winepress fat. Probably ...
/hebrew/1660.htm - 6k

The Twenty-Ninth Chapter: How we must Call Upon and Bless the Lord ...
... BOOK THREE. INTERNAL CONSOLATION The Twenty-Ninth Chapter: How We Must Call
Upon and Bless the Lord When Trouble Presses. The Disciple ...
/.../kempis/the imitation of christ/the twenty-ninth chapter how we.htm

Psalm LXXXI.
... 1. For a Title this Psalm hath, "Unto the end for the presses, on the fifth of the
Sabbath, a Psalm to Asaph himself." Into one title many mysteries are heaped ...
/.../augustine/exposition on the book of psalms/psalm lxxxi.htm

How Love Effects the Union of the Soul with God in Prayer.
... caresses, how for its part it concurs in this union between its mother and itself:
for it also, as much as it possibly can, squeezes and presses itself to its ...
/.../francis/treatise on the love of god/chapter i how love effects.htm

Psalm VIII.
... To the end, for the wine-presses, a psalm of David himself. ... 1. He seems to say nothing
of wine-presses in the text of the Psalm of which this is the title. ...
/.../augustine/exposition on the book of psalms/psalm viii.htm

Contemplation
... be transformed. So man presses on towards God, and the method of his journey
is a concentration of all his spiritual powers. By ...
//christianbookshelf.org/rolt/dionysius the areopagite/v contemplation.htm

An Admirable Exhortation of S. Paul to the Ecstatic and Superhuman ...
... [347] Yes, Theotimus, nothing so much presses man's heart as love; if a man know
that he is beloved, be it by whom it may, he is pressed to love in his turn. ...
/.../francis/treatise on the love of god/chapter viii an admirable exhortation.htm

"Free. "
... What does the poor fugitive do? What does he do? He redoubles his exertions and
presses on, on, on, on. ... On he presses. He is now nearing the boundary line. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/moody/moodys anecdotes and illustrations/free.htm

That Sometimes Lighter vices are to be Left Alone, that More ...
... But since, when the sickness of two vices attacks a man, one presses upon him more
lightly, and the other perchance more heavily, it is undoubtedly right to ...
/.../leo/writings of leo the great/chapter xxxviii that sometimes lighter.htm

Seeking Richly Rewarded
... No wonder; since he has found the Lord, or rather has been found of him, and yet
he still presses on to apprehend him of whom he has been already apprehended. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 60 1914/seeking richly rewarded.htm

"Nothing is Impossible to Industry, "Said one of the Seven Sages ...
... He gets no bread, but he stays and presses, and waits and gains. Sheer importunity
succeeds where all other pleas and influences had failed. ...
/.../bounds/purpose in prayer/chapter vi nothing is impossible.htm

Presses (12 Occurrences)
...Presses (12 Occurrences). 2 Corinthians 11:28 Besides those things that are outside,
there is that which presses on me daily, anxiety for all the assemblies. ...
/p/presses.htm - 10k

Wine-presses (4 Occurrences)
Wine-presses. Winepresses, Wine-presses. Wines . Multi-Version
Concordance Wine-presses (4 Occurrences). Job 24:11 Who ...
/w/wine-presses.htm - 7k

Oil (281 Occurrences)
... The Scriptural references correspond so nearly to the methods practiced in Syria
up to the present time, and the presses uncovered by excavators at such sites ...
/o/oil.htm - 60k

Wine (282 Occurrences)
... Joel 2:24, "their vats;3:13, "the fats;" Proverbs 3:10, "Thy presses shall burst
out with new wine [tirosh];" Haggai 2:16; Jeremiah 48:33, "wine-presses;" 2 ...
/w/wine.htm - 68k

Olive (61 Occurrences)
... It was called "beaten," or "fresh oil" (Exodus 27:20). There were also oil-presses,
in which the oil was trodden out by the feet (Micah 6:15). ...
/o/olive.htm - 37k

Tread (60 Occurrences)
... (YLT). Job 24:11 They make oil within the walls of these men. They tread wine presses,
and suffer thirst. ... Nobody will tread out wine in the presses. ...
/t/tread.htm - 26k

Shouts (34 Occurrences)
... of the fruitful field; and in the vineyards there shall be no singing, neither shall
there be shouting; no treader shall tread out wine in the presses; I have ...
/s/shouts.htm - 15k

Press (57 Occurrences)
... 15. (vi) To urge with vehemence or importunity; to exert a strong or compelling
influence; as, an argument presses upon the judgment. 16. ...
/p/press.htm - 46k

Pressed (65 Occurrences)
... Susa. (WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS YLT). Psalms 38:2 For your arrows have pierced
me, your hand presses hard on me. (See NAS). Isaiah ...
/p/pressed.htm - 25k

Winepresses (5 Occurrences)

/w/winepresses.htm - 8k

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