Topical Bible: The Dead: Mourning For, often by Hired Mourners

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Topical Encyclopedia

In ancient Israelite culture, mourning for the dead was a significant and communal event, often involving elaborate rituals and expressions of grief. The practice of mourning was deeply rooted in the social and religious fabric of the community, reflecting both personal loss and collective sorrow. Mourning customs were not only expressions of grief but also served to honor the deceased and provide comfort to the bereaved.

Biblical Context and Practices

The Bible provides numerous accounts of mourning practices, highlighting the depth of sorrow experienced by those who have lost loved ones. Mourning often included weeping, wailing, wearing sackcloth, and sitting in ashes. These acts were outward expressions of inner grief and were sometimes accompanied by fasting and prayer.

One notable aspect of mourning in biblical times was the employment of professional mourners. These individuals, often women, were hired to lament and wail at funerals, amplifying the expressions of grief. This practice is mentioned in several biblical passages, indicating its prevalence in ancient Near Eastern cultures.

Scriptural References

Jeremiah 9:17-18 provides insight into the role of hired mourners: "This is what the LORD of Hosts says: 'Consider and call for the mourning women to come. Send for the most skillful among them. Let them come quickly and take up a lament over us, that our eyes may overflow with tears and our eyelids may stream with water.'"

In this passage, the prophet Jeremiah calls for professional mourners to lament over the impending destruction of Jerusalem. The mourners' role was to lead the community in expressing collective grief, emphasizing the severity of the situation and the depth of the nation's sorrow.

Another reference is found in Amos 5:16 : "Therefore this is what the LORD, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says: 'There will be wailing in all the public squares and cries of 'Alas! Alas!' in all the streets. The farmer will be called to mourning and the mourners to wailing.'"

Here, the prophet Amos describes a scene of widespread lamentation, where professional mourners are summoned to lead the people in expressing their anguish over divine judgment.

Cultural and Religious Significance

The use of hired mourners underscores the communal nature of mourning in biblical times. Mourning was not solely a private affair but a public demonstration of loss that involved the entire community. The presence of professional mourners ensured that the expressions of grief were both intense and appropriate to the occasion.

These practices also reflect the belief in the importance of honoring the dead and providing a proper farewell. Mourning rituals served to acknowledge the reality of death, the pain of separation, and the hope of eventual reunion in the afterlife.

Conclusion

The biblical portrayal of mourning, including the use of hired mourners, highlights the depth of human sorrow and the communal response to death. These practices, deeply embedded in the cultural and religious life of ancient Israel, reveal the significance of mourning as both a personal and collective experience.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Jeremiah 9:17,18
Thus said the LORD of hosts, Consider you, and call for the mourning women, that they may come; and send for cunning women, that they may come:
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Amos 5:16
Therefore the LORD, the God of hosts, the LORD, said thus; Wailing shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the farmer to mourning, and such as are skillful of lamentation to wailing.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

In Death and after Death
... Graves in fields or in the open were often marked by ... while the other and longer period
of mourning that followed ... So long as the dead body was actually in the ...
/.../edersheim/sketches of jewish social life/chapter 10 in death and.htm

"Lazarus, Come Forth"
... This question had often been asked by the Pharisees, who ... that by raising Lazarus
from the dead He might ... Among the mourning friends were relatives of the family ...
/.../white/the desire of ages/chapter 58 lazarus come forth.htm

The Death and the Raising of Lazarus - the Question of Miracles ...
... otherwise - and in similar circumstances it often does seem ... at Nain and again gave
life to the dead. ... now in Jud??a, the hired mourners - both mourning-men (for ...
/.../edersheim/the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter xxi the death and.htm

The Touch of Faith and the Touch of Christ
... music and the shrill shrieks of Eastern mourning, which met ... that the little girl
was not really dead, but only ... as men count death, and, as has often been the ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture b/the touch of faith and.htm

The Healing of the Woman - Christ's Personal Appearance - the ...
... over death, with which Jesus had entered the house of mourning. ... so He would tell
it them, as so often in like ... it to us, that the damsel was not dead, but only ...
/.../the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter xxvi the healing of.htm

The Raising of the Young Man of Nain - the Meeting of Life and ...
... Nain ere the evening, when so often funerals took ... great multitude' that followed
the dead, with lamentations, wild chaunts of mourning women, [2668 ...
/.../edersheim/the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter xx the raising of.htm

Homilies on the Epistle to the Hebrews.
... once or twice a year, many often, the solitaries ... xxiii, xxxii, sung at, [2874]386;
hired mourners if admitted ... prayed yet raised Himself from the dead, [2966]404 ...
/.../homilies on the gospel of st john and hebrews/homilies on the epistle to.htm

Notes
... The earliest inscriptions are often roughly scratched on plaster ... handfuls of earth
upon a body discovered dead. ... not wear the black robes of mourning while they ...
//christianbookshelf.org/prudentius/the hymns of prudentius/notes.htm

Abraham, his Trial in Egypt; his Humility
... Church-discipline, to be preceded by mourning and prayer ... 656]388; the acclamations
of mock the dead, [657]ib ... evil men, [765]400; threatens often without punishing ...
/.../abraham his trial in egypt.htm

The Close of the Theban Empire --(Continued)
... The prescribed gold ring was often replaced by one ... in the morning from the house
of mourning, and proceeded ... and is applied naturally to the dead person, who ...
/.../chapter ithe close of the.htm