Healthy Foods of The Bible

 

  Looking for a healthy biblical diet? If you want to eat healthy, start by opening your bible to Deuteronomy 8:8, and you will find that the Israelites if they would listen, stumbled onto something. I call them the seven "antioxidants" of the bible. Keep in mind that the “number seven” means spiritual completeness. God brought them to a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills; A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey. (Deuteronomy 8:8). Lets break it down a little and see what our Heavenly Father instructed them to eat.

  Wheat: 100% whole wheat is refined as little as possible and can contain as much as 30% of your recommended daily fiber intake. It is also high in manganese and magnesium. (Increases energy level and lowers your risk of type-2 diabetes and gallstones). 

  Barley: High in fiber and is good for the intestinal health. (It can also lower cholesterol and reduce your risk of colon cancer, typr-2 diabetes and is also know to reduce symptoms of arthritis).

  Vines: Grapes is a vine fruit and contains flavonoids and pycnogenols, which can help reduce the risk of blood clots and protect your body from damaging free radicals. (These antioxidants provide protection against cardiovascular disease).

  Figs: Figs are high in potassium, dietary fiber, and are a good source of calcium. (They can help in weight loss, help control blood pressure and help preserve bone density). 

  Pomegranates: Another super food rich in antioxidants, especially in juice form. Helps prevent LDL (bad) cholesterol from doing its damage. It also helps to prevent blood clots by keeping platelets from clumping together. (Pomegranates also help reduce the risk of breast cancer and lessens the symptoms of arthritis).

  Olive oil: Besides the fact that olive oil is the oil of our people; “The anointing oil,” olives and extra-virgin olive oil contains many antioxidants that may protect against the oxidation of LDL cholesterol compounds. High in monounsaturated fatty acids, know as the “healing fats” because they lower the effects of bad cholesterol while raising good cholesterol levels. (Olive oil is high in vitamin E, and can help protect against colon cancer, and can help fight gastritis and other stomach ailments). 

  Honey: Raw honey, besides being a natural sweetener, is alive with antioxidants and is also considered to be an anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal substance. It can have tumor-fighting properties, and may help prevent colon cancer. Just a spoonful of honey a day can increase antioxidant levels in the blood, and is said to be the healthiest sweetener for type-2 diabetics, agave nectar also. (Honey can also have wound-healing and muscle-regenerating properties). 

  Breads and grains: Here is a interesting healthy recipe that was used in biblical days for bread that God instructed the prophet Ezekiel. Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof. (Ezekiel 4:9). (If you are wondering what “fitches” are, it is “spelt” a healthy species of wheat). Try Ezekiel 4:9 Bread that is all organic sprouted grains.

  Now that we have completed the seven “antioxidants” of the bible, lets continue with some other foods of the bible that can keep us healthy, vigorous, and add extra years to your life. You may even ask, how did they live so long back in biblical days? Well, think about it for a minute. They didn’t have all the pollution back then that we have today. The air was cleaner, the waters were clearer and cleaner, the food crops had less toxins and no pesticides when grown. Most of all, they ate less. They also ate more nutritious “home made” food back then than we do today. Everything we eat today is super-sized and processed. Not good for a healthy diet. So, with that being said, lets continue on.    

  Fruits, Nuts, vegetables and herbs: “Also known as the miracle foods of the bible.” Very important for a healthy body. They taste great and have many nutritional and healing properties. 

  Fruits are mentioned in (Leviticus 19:10, Deuteronomy 23:24), among other scriptures which speak of the grape vines. Grapes, as we mentioned above are a very good antioxidant food and even a little wine now and then can help heal the body. (Numbers 20:5) mentions the figs and Pomegranates, and as mentioned above are another food with many benefits. (Nehemiah 13:5), also speaks of the grapes, but mentions oil which is another good healer. Olive oil is not only “the oil of our people” used for anointing, but is very healthy for you. (Songs of Solomon 2:5), mentions apples. We have all heard the saying, “an apple a day keeps the doctor away.”

  Nuts are mentioned in (Genesis 43:11) and (Numbers 17:8) as nuts and almonds. Some of the most healthy nuts for you are almonds, walnuts, and pistachios.

  Vegetables are mentioned in (Genesis 1:29, and Numbers 11:5), for some vegetables, but the best place in the bible that I like is in the book of Daniel. (Daniel 1:11-17), explains that Daniel requested a diet of vegetables and water to be fed to Hananiah, Mishael, Azariah, and Himself. The word we are looking for here is “Pulse” Strong’s Hebrew dictionary #H2235 which is “Zeroa Zeraon” from #H2232, something sown, that is, a vegetable as food.

  Herbs are mentioned in the bible many times, but lets start in (Amos 7:14), which tells us that Amos himself was an “herb” man, and gatherer of sycamore fruit. (Sycamore trees are similar to fig trees and the fruit is like a fig). A few more places in the bible where herbs are mentioned are (Psalm 104:14), where it says herbs are for the service of man. (Exodus 16:31, Numbers 11:7), mentions Coriander. (Exodus 30:23, Revelations 18:13), mentions Cinnamon. (Isaiah 28:25, Matthew 23:23), mentions Cumin. I am going to finish off here with “garlic.” Mentioned in (Numbers 11:5), it is a member of the onion and leeks family, but no one knows exactly what it is. It’s a vegetable, an herb and a spice. It’s a food and a medicine. Garlic is used extensively in herbal medicine and is considered by many to be a herbal “wonder drug.” Garlic can have powerful antioxidant effects and help to protect the body against damaging free radicals. Any way you look at it, herbs are a very important part of a healthy diet.

  Healthy Fish: We all know that eating fish can be good for you. It is a good anti-aging food and a great source of protein. Fish also contain healthy fats that will reduce your cholesterol and improve your health. Fish contain omega-3 fatty acids that help keep your heart healthy and can even improve your mood. The problem with fist is that it contains trace amounts of mercury. The FDA recommends eating fish with smaller amounts of mercury and not to eat more than two servings a week. So, what fish have the most mercury and the least mercury. A good rule of thumb is that larger fish have more mercury in them than smaller fish. Below is a list of some fish you might want to eat or avoid. Try to stay away from some bottom feeders and scavenger fish such as catfish and carp. Seafood and shellfish such as shrimp, lobster, crab, clams, oysters, squid etc. are also scavengers and high in cholesterol.

  Lowest Mercury Fish: Flounder, haddock, trout, white fish, herring, lake perch, pollock, salmon, sardine, and my favorite Tilapia, also know as the Jesus fish. (Matthew 15:36, John 21:11-13).

  Moderate Mercury Fish: Bass, cod, halibut, mahi mahi, ocean perch, snapper, tuna (Canned chunk light).

  High Mercury Fish: Bluefish, grouper, sea bass, tuna (Canned albacore, yellow fin).

  Highest Mercury Fish: Marlin, orange roughy, shark, swordfish, tilefish, tuna (Ahi).

  Healthy and unhealthy animals: Now, lets get down to the animal meats that we should not eat and ones that are safe for us to eat for a healthy body. We are going right to the Old Testament in the bible for our reference. (Leviticus 11:1-47). I know what many are thinking. That only pertains to the Jewish people. And modern day Christians are going to say that we should not judge anyone for what they eat. (Colossians 2:16, 1 Timothy 4:3-4). But lets back up a little to (Colossians 2:14-15). It says that when Christ was crucified, that the ordinances (pertaining to sacrificial laws), where taken out of the way and nailed to the cross. He openly triumphed over them. The sacrificial laws are gone, but God’s health laws still remain. Just as the ten commandments still remain. And in (1 Timothy 4:3), it says “meats which God had created to be received.” Certain animal foods were not created to be received, but they are still good because they were created to clean up the earth; (1 Timothy 4:4), where it says every creature of God is good. Now with that being said, lets take a look at what our Heavenly Father suggest what we should and should not eat pertaining to animals. I am not going to cover all the animals, but just the most common ones that people eat today.

  Lets start with (Leviticus 11:3), where it says that it alright to eat any animal with cloven hooves which chews its cud. This would pertain to eating red meat such as beef, lamb, and veal. (Stick to the lean meats for healthy eating). We should not eat anything that creeps of the ground, such as snake, snails, etc. (Leviticus 20:25). Now here is another one that we should not eat and I know most people are not going to like it. “It’s called the other white meat.” The swine! Good old “porky pig” has cloven hooves, but it does not chew the cud. It is a scavenger with no sweat glands and was put here to clean up the toxins on the earth. Pigs will eat anything, and the poisonous toxins build up in the fat of the pig and remain there. Simple put, Pork will make you sick over time and is hard on the stomach. Stick to eating chicken and turkey for your white meats, and if you need to have bacon or sausage in the morning, try a good (organic), turkey bacon, or Beyond Breakfast Sausage. (It is a plant base sausage and tatse great).

  Dairy products: Dairy foods can provide essential calcium and protein, but they can also be high in (artery-clogging) saturated fat and cholesterol. Try to keep your dairy to a minimum and choose wisely when eating dairy products.  Also, when choosing eggs, try to eat a good quality egg. When it comes to milk, Almond Milk is a good healthy substitutes. (Taste good and it's good for you).

  Now as I end with the dairy products, let me bring to your attention and keep in mind that the bible does speak of “milk” and “meat” also in a spiritual sense. The following scriptures; (1 Corinthians 3:2, Hebrews 5:12, 1 Peter 2:2), speak of “milk” in the word as a new Christian would be fed in the word. Just a babe if you will. After they are brought up on the “milk” you would then start to feed  them the “meat” of the word as you would a more mature Christian. The point being, a good teacher will always feed you “meat” of the word that will make you grow strong in the word. “Stay healthy in body, soul, and spirit.”


Keep The Faith,
Barton