{"id":9123,"date":"2007-03-24T15:28:04","date_gmt":"2007-03-24T20:28:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=9123"},"modified":"2019-09-06T15:40:44","modified_gmt":"2019-09-06T20:40:44","slug":"are-there-medicinal-foods","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-there-medicinal-foods\/","title":{"rendered":"Are there medicinal foods?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t

Question:<\/h2>\n

In my readings and Bible studies, I have seen that there is mention of certain items of food that were to be included in the Passover meal. In particular, I am wondering about ‘bitter herbs’. Do you know, or does the Bible clarify, what these herbs were? And why would they be included in the meal? Did ‘bitter herbs’ have something to do with being a type of medicine?<\/p>\n

Also, I am wondering about this. The bitter herbs were present in the Passover meal, before Jesus, so this food would have been included during the last Passover meal that Jesus ate. Would the herbs have been beneficial to Him, just before being whipped, and beaten?<\/p>\n

The reason I ask has to do with my own diet. In addition to other physical problems, etc, I also am having trouble with food. Items I used to be able to eat with gusto and joy, now are tearing me up. I am having to monitor daily what I can eat, and what does not work today when it did yesterday.<\/p>\n

Also, this inquiry includes any information you may have concerning what I like to call ‘medicine food’.<\/p>\n

When I was young, a kid, and a young adult, I did not eat certain things, like onion. As I grew older, I developed a taste for onion, but in the last few years, I have noticed that certain things are happening. When I eat onion, usually raw, it seems to make me feel better. I do not seem to get colds or flu as often as others, and when I do feel something of this sort coming on, I include onion in my diet, and it just seems like the cold or flu are not as bad, or even just last a short time. As a result of watching and recording what this food does for me, I have come to call it a ‘medicine food’, for me at least.<\/p>\n

Would this type of situation be related to foods that God gave us to eat? I guess what I am asking is, did God specify to the people during the Old Testament times, any kind of certain food that is for medicine, or to guard against illness?<\/p>\n

In the New Testament, it does talk about wine being used as a medicine, and I believe you covered this in one of your articles. If this also relates to my question, how so?<\/p>\n\t

Answer:<\/h2>\n

We don’t know exactly what herbs were used for the Passover, other than that God specified that they were to be bitter in taste. Likely it was to remind the Jews of their bitter times while slaves in Egypt (Exodus 1:14; Deuteronomy 16:3). The Bible mentions no other properties to these herbs and to suppose anything more is merely speculation and going beyond what God revealed.<\/p>\n

There are medicinal plants, plant products, and practices mentioned in the Bible. See\u00a0Notes on Medicinal Products<\/a>. However, God did not require or specify certain foods to be in the Israelite diet to guard against illness.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Question: In my readings and Bible studies, I have seen that there is mention of certain items of food that were to be included in the Passover meal. In particular, I am wondering about ‘bitter herbs’. Do you know, or does the Bible clarify, what these herbs were? And why would they be included in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[20],"tags":[241,645],"class_list":["post-9123","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-food","tag-medication"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13394,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/isnt-it-true-that-jesus-did-not-have-to-eat-the-passover-lamb-because-he-had-no-sin\/","url_meta":{"origin":9123,"position":0},"title":"Isn’t it true that Jesus did not have to eat the Passover lamb because he had no sin?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 16, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I recently read your\u00a0article\u00a0\"Was Jesus a\u00a0Vegetarian?\". There is only a few things I would like to comment on. First thing, I eat fish and am not in any way involved with PETA. But Jesus would not have had to eat the Passover lamb, the lamb was killed as an\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1030,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/was-jesus-a-vegetarian-did-jesus-eat-meat\/","url_meta":{"origin":9123,"position":1},"title":"Was Jesus a Vegetarian? Did Jesus Eat Meat?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 1, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton On March 17, 1999, the Omaha World-Herald reprinted a hilarious article by Bill Broadway of the Washington Post. It seems the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have launched a campaign to claim that Jesus was a vegetarian. Billboards stating \"Jesus was a vegetarian.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/scan0011-6-300x296.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3058,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-believe-jesus-was-a-vegetarian\/","url_meta":{"origin":9123,"position":2},"title":"I believe Jesus was a vegetarian","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 30, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I don\u2019t follow PETA but believe that Jesus was a vegetarian. As a Jew, Jesus would have followed the Old Testament or Torah faithfully. In Genesis, a vegetarian diet is laid out for us all.\u00a0Genesis 1:29, \"And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":21911,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-can-animals-be-used-for-food-but-not-men\/","url_meta":{"origin":9123,"position":3},"title":"Why can animals be used for food, but not men?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 3, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: If\u00a0\"Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs\" according to\u00a0your post on PETA's statement that Jesus did not eat meat - what prevents people from eating each other?\u00a0 I am a vegetarian who eats fish.\u00a0 I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":50234,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/jewish-feasts-and-festivals\/","url_meta":{"origin":9123,"position":4},"title":"Jewish Feasts and Festivals","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 29, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"by Kyle Campbell via\u00a0Truth Magazine In order to fully understand the Jewish religion and people, and to gain a greater perspective of a number of events in the New Testament, one needs to study the Jewish feasts and festivals. The Jewish feasts and festivals were scheduled at specific times in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":39843,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-cant-figure-out-when-jesus-ate-the-passover-meal\/","url_meta":{"origin":9123,"position":5},"title":"I can’t figure out when Jesus ate the Passover meal","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 6, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Before last night I was convinced that Thursday was the date of the crucifixion. But after discussing it with another preacher, I'm not so sure. 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