Foods of the Bible
A complete guide to what people ate in Scripture, from the grains and fruit of the Promised Land to the fish and bread of the Gospels.
Food runs through the whole of Scripture. The Bible opens with a garden full of fruit and closes with the tree of life bearing fruit every month, and almost every chapter in between is touched by a meal, a harvest, a fast or a feast. Understanding what people actually ate brings those pages to life.
The story begins in Eden, where God gives every seed-bearing plant and fruit tree for food (Genesis 1:29). It moves through the Promised Land, described again and again as a place flowing with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8), and on into the Gospels, where Jesus shares bread and fish, dines with tax collectors, and turns a wedding's water into wine. The food of the Bible is real food: simple, seasonal, and grown close to home.
Most of it was plant-based by necessity. Bread, olive oil and wine formed the daily core, fruit and legumes filled out the table, and meat appeared mostly at feasts and sacrifices. The single best summary of that diet is the famous list of seven foods used to describe the land itself.
"A land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey."Deuteronomy 8:8
Deuteronomy 8:8
The Seven Species
These seven foods are how Scripture describes the abundance of the Promised Land. In Jewish tradition they became known as the seven species, and they remain the heart of biblical eating.
Grains, vines and fruit
The First Five
- Wheat - the grain of fine bread, a sign of plenty and the harvest
- Barley - the hardy grain of the poor and of the first spring harvest
- Grapes - the vine, eaten fresh, dried as raisins and pressed for wine
- Figs - sweet fruit eaten fresh or pressed into cakes for travel
- Pomegranates - prized for their seeds and used to adorn the temple
Oil and sweetness
The Final Two
- Olive oil - pressed from olives for food, lamps, anointing and trade
- Honey - sweetness from bees and, in this context, the thick syrup of dates
Because the seventh food is the rich "honey" of the land, dates are often counted alongside the bees' honey as part of the seven species.
Grains and Bread
Bread was the most basic food of the Bible, so central that the word often simply means food. Most loaves were made from wheat, the finer grain, or barley, which was cheaper and ripened first; the boy's five barley loaves fed the crowd in John 6:9. Spelt also appears among the grains gathered for Ezekiel's bread (Ezekiel 4:9). Bread was eaten daily, broken by hand, and so tied to life that Jesus taught his followers to pray, "Give us this day our daily bread" (Matthew 6:11).
Grain was also eaten roasted or parched straight from the field, as Boaz offered Ruth (Ruth 2:14). Whether leavened or, at Passover, unleavened, bread sat at the center of nearly every meal. See our Ezekiel bread recipe for a loaf built from these same grains and legumes.
Legumes
Lentils, beans and other pulses were the everyday protein of ordinary households. The most famous is the red lentil stew Jacob cooked, for which Esau traded his birthright (Genesis 25:29-34). When David fled Jerusalem, friends brought him beans, lentils and roasted grain to keep him fed (2 Samuel 17:28). Cheap, filling and easy to store dry, legumes were a quiet backbone of the biblical table. Our red lentil stew follows that ancient pot.
Fruit and Nuts
Fruit gave the biblical diet its sweetness. Figs and grapes were eaten fresh in season and dried for the rest of the year, pressed into fig cakes and raisin clusters for travel and trade (1 Samuel 25:18). Pomegranates were so admired that their shape decorated the high priest's robe and the temple pillars (Exodus 28:33-34). Dates supplied syrup and energy, and almonds appear early, sent as a gift to Egypt (Genesis 43:11) and shaped into the lamps of the tabernacle (Exodus 25:33-34). Try our fig and honey flatbread to taste two of these together.
Olives and Olive Oil
The olive tree was one of the most valuable plants in the land. Its fruit was cured and eaten, but above all it was pressed for oil, which was used for cooking, for fueling lamps, for anointing kings and priests, and as a costly trade good. Oil was so essential that a widow's small jar of it became the means of her rescue (2 Kings 4:1-7), and the olive branch carried by Noah's dove became a lasting sign of peace and renewal (Genesis 8:11).
Honey and Other Sweeteners
With no refined sugar, sweetness in the Bible came from fruit and from honey. The land itself is described over and over as "flowing with milk and honey" (Exodus 3:8). Samson found a swarm and ate honey from a lion's carcass (Judges 14:8-9), Jonathan tasted wild honey on the end of his staff (1 Samuel 14:27), and John the Baptist lived on locusts and wild honey in the wilderness (Matthew 3:4). Date syrup and concentrated grape juice offered further sweetness for cooking.
Fish and Meat
Meat was eaten less often than we might assume, reserved largely for feasts, hospitality and sacrifices, as when the father killed the fattened calf for his returning son (Luke 15:23). The dietary law of Leviticus 11 allowed only clean animals: cud-chewing, split-hoofed creatures such as lamb, goat and cattle, and water creatures with fins and scales. Pork and shellfish were excluded. Fish was the more common protein, especially around the Sea of Galilee, where several disciples fished for a living and Jesus shared grilled fish with them on the shore (John 21:9-13). Our grilled fish recipe draws on that meal.
Milk and Curds
Milk from goats and sheep was a treasured part of the diet, captured in the very phrase used for the Promised Land. Because fresh milk spoiled quickly in the heat, it was usually soured into curds and a yogurt-like dish. Abraham set curds and milk before his three visitors (Genesis 18:8), and Jael gave the weary Sisera milk and curds to drink (Judges 5:25). Butter and soft cheeses came from the same source.
Herbs and Spices
Herbs and spices seasoned plain food and carried meaning of their own. Jesus noted that the Pharisees carefully tithed their mint, dill and cumin (Matthew 23:23), and Isaiah describes farmers harvesting cumin and coriander, the seed compared to the manna in the wilderness (Exodus 16:31). Hyssop was used both in cooking and in ritual cleansing (Exodus 12:22). These small flavors turned simple grains, legumes and vegetables into a varied and satisfying table.
Quick Reference
Biblical Foods at a Glance
| Food | Reference | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Wheat | Deuteronomy 8:8 | Grain of fine bread; one of the seven species |
| Barley | Ruth 2:17 | Hardy grain of the poor and the first harvest |
| Spelt | Ezekiel 4:9 | Ancient grain used in mixed-grain bread |
| Lentils | Genesis 25:34 | Jacob's red stew; everyday plant protein |
| Beans | 2 Samuel 17:28 | Brought to David alongside lentils and grain |
| Figs | 1 Samuel 25:18 | Eaten fresh or pressed into cakes for travel |
| Grapes | Deuteronomy 8:8 | Eaten fresh, dried as raisins, pressed for wine |
| Pomegranates | Exodus 28:33-34 | Prized fruit; adorned the temple and priestly robe |
| Dates | 2 Chronicles 31:5 | Source of the thick "honey" of the land |
| Almonds | Genesis 43:11 | Sent as a gift; shaped the tabernacle lamps |
| Olives & oil | Deuteronomy 8:8 | Food, lamp fuel, anointing and trade |
| Honey | Judges 14:8-9 | Sweetener from bees and dates |
| Fish | John 21:9-13 | Common protein, especially around Galilee |
| Lamb & goat | Leviticus 11:1-8 | Clean meat for feasts and sacrifices |
| Milk & curds | Genesis 18:8 | From goats and sheep; usually soured |
| Herbs & spices | Matthew 23:23 | Mint, dill, cumin, coriander and hyssop |
Free Download
Eat the Foods of the Bible for a Month
Our free 4-week Biblical Meal Plan turns these ancient foods into real meals: every breakfast, lunch and dinner mapped out, with a combined shopping list and a Scripture for each day.
Common Questions
What are the seven foods of the Bible?
The seven species are the foods Deuteronomy 8:8 uses to describe the Promised Land: wheat, barley, grapes (the vine), figs, pomegranates, olive oil and honey, which in this context is widely understood as the thick honey of dates. Together they stand for a land of abundance.
What food is mentioned most in the Bible?
Bread is the food mentioned most often. It was the daily staple, made from wheat or barley, and the word stands in for food in general, as in the prayer for daily bread (Matthew 6:11). Jesus also called himself the bread of life (John 6:35).
Is honey a biblical food?
Yes. Honey is one of the seven species of Deuteronomy 8:8, and Canaan is repeatedly called a land flowing with milk and honey (Exodus 3:8). Samson found honey in a lion's carcass (Judges 14:8-9), and John the Baptist ate locusts and wild honey (Matthew 3:4).
What meat did people eat in the Bible?
People ate clean animals as defined in Leviticus 11: lamb, goat, beef and certain birds, along with fish that have fins and scales. Meat was eaten mostly at feasts and sacrifices rather than daily. Pork and shellfish were forbidden under the dietary law.
What did people drink in the Bible?
Water was the everyday drink, drawn from wells and springs. Wine was common at meals and celebrations (John 2:1-11), and milk from goats and sheep was valued. People also drank curdled milk and, on occasion, a vinegar-and-water mixture known as wine vinegar.
This is a guide to the foods themselves; for the ingredients in detail, see the full Ingredients Guide. To explore how these foods appear in the life of Christ, read what did Jesus eat, learn about the plant-based Daniel Fast, or jump straight into the kitchen with our recipes.