Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

SMITH

The number of specialists who worked with metals must have increased dramatically with the introduction of bronze and iron in the late 4th and late 2nd millennium b.c., respectively. Long before copper and tin were alloyed to produce bronze, copper was used to forge various implements, and work in silver and gold developed along with the more utilitarian metals. The ancient metallurgists and artisans contributed much to the rise of alchemy and early chemistry, and their skills were vital to the rise of ancient Near Eastern civilizations. The smith produced a full array of tools and weapons, along with tack for horses and draft animals, parts for vehicles (including chariots), and fittings on furniture. Where soil chemistry and other conditions allow, archaeological excavations recover large numbers of metal artifacts, objects that were used in many aspects of ancient life.

In a narrative that explains the origin of many components of human culture, Tubal-cain is identified as an early smith “who forged all kinds of tools out of bronze and iron” (Gen. 4:22). Later, the Philistines attempted to maintain a monopoly on producing tools and weapons, and thereby prohibit the flow of weapons into the hands of the Israelites, by denying the Israelites skilled blacksmiths (1 Sam. 13:19-21). The Hebrews did have a number of objects made by blacksmiths, however, such as the standard inventory of agricultural implements in the early Iron Age (i.e., plowshares, mattocks, axes, sickles, and forks; cf. 1 Sam. 13:20-21).

The prophet Isaiah wrote a remarkable satire on idolatry that included a description of the blacksmith’s and carpenter’s role in fashioning idols by means of human strength and technology (Isa. 44:9-20). Reference is made to the smith’s work in casting metal and shaping or forging his product by means of his furnace, hammer, and muscles (Isa. 44:10, 12; cf. v. 19; 54:16). The tools of the smith are mentioned in Sir. 38:28, where work at the forge is contrasted with that of the scribe or scholar. Jer. 6:29 mentions the bellows by which high temperatures were achieved in smelting furnaces; the common Akkadian term for “smith” actually meant “blower” of the bellows.

Gerald L. Mattingly

Prayer Tents Bible References - Prayer Tents

SMITH

Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000)