Boyd’s Bible Dictionary:
(buzum). To lean on, implied great intimacy (John 13:23). Figuratively, Paradise (Luke 16:23; 23:43).
Concise Bible Dictionary:
Used symbolically for the seat of deep affection. John speaks of the Lord Jesus as the only begotten Son “in the bosom of the Father” (John 1:18). The tender and sacred relationship which husband and wife have to each other is also called the “bosom” (Deut. 28:54, 56). This to an Israelite would give force to the description of Lazarus being carried into ABRAHAM’S Bosom (Luke 16:22-23). By means of a loose garment and a girdle, many things are constantly carried by Orientals in the bosom, even such as a lamb (Isa. 40:11: Compare Luke 6:38).
From Manners and Customs of the Bible:
Luke 6:38. Good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom.
The term “bosom” frequently refers, in Oriental usage, to the folds of the garment as they extend beyond and droop over the girdle. This part of the dress is also called the “lap.”‘ See 2 Kings 4:39, and see also note on Neh. 5:13 (#380). It is used as a receptacle for various articles, as pockets are used with us; though some things are deposited there which we would not put into our pockets. Fathers sometimes carried their children here. See Numbers 11:12 and note on Isaiah 49:22 (#522). Here also the shepherd carried the lambs. See 2 Sam 12:3; Isaiah 40:11. To this custom of making a receptacle of the folds of the dress there are frequent allusions. See Job 31:33; Psalm 79:12; 89:50; 129:7; Proverbs 6:27; 17:23; 21:14; Isaiah 65:6.
This is the custom referred to in the text; though we are not authorized to infer, as some have strangely done, that grain and other articles that are measured in the way suggested in the text were literally carried in the bosom. The figure is double, and the design is to express the reflex benefits of good deeds; they will come back in full measure to bless the giver.
Related Books and Articles: