חמץ, Num. vi, 3; Ruth ii, 14; Psalm lxix, 21; Prov. x, 26; xxv,
20; ὄξος, Matt. xxvii, 48; Mark xv, 36; John xix, 29, 30; an acid
produced by a second fermentation of vinous liquors. The law of the
Nazarite was that he should “separate himself from wine and strong
drink, and should drink no vinegar of wine, nor vinegar of strong drink,
nor any liquor of grapes.” This is exactly the same prohibition that was
given in the case of John the Baptist, Luke i, 15, οἶνον καὶ σίκερα οὺ
μὴ ϖίῃ, _wine and sikera he shall not drink_. Any inebriating liquor,
says Jerom, is called _sicera_, whether made of corn, apples, honey,
dates, or other fruits. One of the four prohibited drinks among the
Mohammedans in India is called _sakar_, which signifies inebriating
drink in general, but especially date wine. From the original word,
probably, we have our term cider or sider, which among us, exclusively
means the fermented juice of apples. Vinegar was used by harvesters for
their refreshment. Boaz told Ruth that she might come and dip her bread
in vinegar with his people. Pliny says, ”_Aceto summa vis in
refrigerando_.” [There is the greatest power in vinegar, in cooling.] It
made a very cooling beverage. It was generally diluted with water. When
very strong, it affected the teeth disagreeably, Prov. x, 26. In
Proverbs xxv, 20, the singing of songs to a heavy heart is finely
compared to the contrariety or colluctation between vinegar and nitre;
untimely mirth to one in anxiety serves only to exasperate, and as it
were put into a ferment by the intrusion.
The Emperor Pescennius Niger gave orders that his soldiers should drink
nothing but vinegar on their marches. That which the Roman soldiers
offered to our Saviour at his crucifixion, was, probably, the vinegar
they made use of for their own drinking. Constantine the Great allowed
them wine and vinegar alternately, every day. This vinegar was not of
that sort which we use for salads and sauces; but it was a tart wine
called _pesca_, or _sera_. They make great use of it in Spain and Italy,
in harvest time. They use it also in Holland, and on shipboard, to
correct the ill taste of the water.
20; ὄξος, Matt. xxvii, 48; Mark xv, 36; John xix, 29, 30; an acid
produced by a second fermentation of vinous liquors. The law of the
Nazarite was that he should “separate himself from wine and strong
drink, and should drink no vinegar of wine, nor vinegar of strong drink,
nor any liquor of grapes.” This is exactly the same prohibition that was
given in the case of John the Baptist, Luke i, 15, οἶνον καὶ σίκερα οὺ
μὴ ϖίῃ, _wine and sikera he shall not drink_. Any inebriating liquor,
says Jerom, is called _sicera_, whether made of corn, apples, honey,
dates, or other fruits. One of the four prohibited drinks among the
Mohammedans in India is called _sakar_, which signifies inebriating
drink in general, but especially date wine. From the original word,
probably, we have our term cider or sider, which among us, exclusively
means the fermented juice of apples. Vinegar was used by harvesters for
their refreshment. Boaz told Ruth that she might come and dip her bread
in vinegar with his people. Pliny says, ”_Aceto summa vis in
refrigerando_.” [There is the greatest power in vinegar, in cooling.] It
made a very cooling beverage. It was generally diluted with water. When
very strong, it affected the teeth disagreeably, Prov. x, 26. In
Proverbs xxv, 20, the singing of songs to a heavy heart is finely
compared to the contrariety or colluctation between vinegar and nitre;
untimely mirth to one in anxiety serves only to exasperate, and as it
were put into a ferment by the intrusion.
The Emperor Pescennius Niger gave orders that his soldiers should drink
nothing but vinegar on their marches. That which the Roman soldiers
offered to our Saviour at his crucifixion, was, probably, the vinegar
they made use of for their own drinking. Constantine the Great allowed
them wine and vinegar alternately, every day. This vinegar was not of
that sort which we use for salads and sauces; but it was a tart wine
called _pesca_, or _sera_. They make great use of it in Spain and Italy,
in harvest time. They use it also in Holland, and on shipboard, to
correct the ill taste of the water.