Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

KISS

Heb. nāšaq seems to be onomatopoetic, reflecting an inspiratory bilabial sound; Gk. philéō, kataphiléō (“to love”) point to kissing as generally a physical expression of heartfelt affection.

In the OT kissing serves as an expression of greeting (Gen. 29:11, 13; 33:4; 45:15; 48:10; Exod. 4:27) usually involving family members, of friendship (1 Sam. 20:41; 2 Sam. 15:5; 19:39), and of erotic love (Prov. 7:13; Cant. 1:2; 8:1). It appears to refer to kissing the lips or some other area of the face, although the direct object “lips” appears only once (Prov. 24:26; cf. Cant. 1:2, “of the mouth”).

In the biblical world kissing the feet is an expression of obeisance. Such a kiss is described as “licking the dust” (Ps. 72:9-11; Isa. 49:23; Mic. 7:16-17); in the latter passage the kiss of obeisance is called also “eating the dust,” an expression that appears in the humiliation of the primordial serpent (Gen. 3:14). The humiliated nation of Judah is asked to “put his mouth in the dust” (Lam. 3:29-30).

The remaining OT instances of kissing involve an apostate prayer gesture (1 Kgs. 19:18; Job 31:27; Hos. 13:2), greeting the king upon enthronement (1 Sam. 10:1), and metaphors and similes based upon the kiss of greeting (Ps. 85:10[MT 11]; Prov. 27:6).

In the NT the holy kiss was a symbol of the fellowship of all Christians (Rom. 16:16; 1 Cor. 16:20; 2 Cor. 13:12; 1 Thess. 5:26; 1 Pet. 5:14), and Jesus rebukes Simon for not greeting him with a kiss (Luke 7:45; cf. vv. 36-50). Precisely because it was taken for granted that persons close to each other would kiss upon meeting, Judas was able to employ his kiss of Jesus to identify Jesus to the chief priests. Judas’ deceitful kiss (Matt. 26:49; Mark 14:45; Luke 22:47) became thereby “the kiss of death.”

Bibliography. M. I. Gruber, Aspects of Nonverbal Communication in the Ancient Near East, 2 vols. Studia Pohl 12 (Rome, 1980); W. Klassen, “Musonius Rufus, Jesus and Paul: Three First-Century Feminists,” in From Jesus to Paul, ed. P. Richardson and J. C. Hurd (Waterloo, Ont., 1984), 185-206; C. Nyrop, The Kiss and Its History (1901, repr. Detroit, 1968).

Mayer I. Gruber

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

KISS

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)