Bottle

Boyd’s Bible Dictionary:

(little boot). Primitive bottles, either of skin or earthenware (Gen. 21:14¹⁴And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba. (Genesis 21:14); Jer. 19:1¹Thus saith the Lord, Go and get a potter's earthen bottle, and take of the ancients of the people, and of the ancients of the priests; (Jeremiah 19:1); Matt. 9:17¹⁷Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved. (Matthew 9:17)); of different sizes and shapes. Tear bottles used (Psa. 56:8⁸Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book? (Psalm 56:8)).

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Concise Bible Dictionary:

There are six Hebrew words translated “bottle” in the Old Testament. Among the descendants of Judah there were some described as “potters” (1 Chron. 4:23²³These were the potters, and those that dwelt among plants and hedges: there they dwelt with the king for his work. (1 Chronicles 4:23)); and from the relics found in the tombs of Egypt it is evident that bottles were very early made of earthenware; and small ones of glass; though then, as now in the East, especially for larger vessels and for those to be carried about, skins were used (Josh. 9:4, 13⁴They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up; (Joshua 9:4)
¹³And these bottles of wine, which we filled, were new; and, behold, they be rent: and these our garments and our shoes are become old by reason of the very long journey. (Joshua 9:13)). They are made of goats’ skins: the head, the legs and the tail are cut off, and the body drawn out. In the New Testament the word is ἀσκός, and signifies a “wineskin,” or “skin-bag.” Hence new wine must be put into new skins, which are more or less elastic (Matt. 9:17¹⁷Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved. (Matthew 9:17); Mark 2:22²²And no man putteth new wine into old bottles: else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is spilled, and the bottles will be marred: but new wine must be put into new bottles. (Mark 2:22); Luke 5:37-38³⁷And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. ³⁸But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved. (Luke 5:37‑38)). The Lord was teaching that the new principles of the kingdom would not suit the old forms of Judaism: everything must be new.

“218. Rent Bottles” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:

Joshua 9:4⁴They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up; (Joshua 9:4). Wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up.

Bottles made of skins when they get old are liable to be torn. The rents are repaired by sewing the broken edges together, by letting in a piece of leather, by putting in a round piece of wood, or by gathering up the rent place like a purse.

For a description of skin bottles, see note on Matthew 9:17¹⁷Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved. (Matthew 9:17) (#651).

“450. Shriveled Bottles” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:

Psalm 119:83⁸³For I am become like a bottle in the smoke; yet do I not forget thy statutes. (Psalm 119:83). I am become like a bottle in the smoke.

Bottles made of skin (see note on Matt. 9:17¹⁷Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved. (Matthew 9:17)) are often hung up in Oriental tents. Here the smoke from the tent fire can freely act upon them, since there is no chimney to carry it away. Skins of wine were sometimes hung in the smoke to give the wine a peculiar flavor. When skin bottles are long exposed to smoke, they become hard, shriveled, and unsightly. This is the foundation of the striking figure of the text.

“545. Earthen Bottles” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:

Jeremiah 19:1¹Thus saith the Lord, Go and get a potter's earthen bottle, and take of the ancients of the people, and of the ancients of the priests; (Jeremiah 19:1). Thus saith the Lord, Go and get a potter’s earthen bottle.

It is evident from this and other passages that it is a mistake to suppose that all Eastern bottles were made of skin. Ancient bottles of earthenware of various shapes are to be found in the museums, and are often depicted on the monuments. In 1 Kings 14:3³And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child. (1 Kings 14:3), bakbuk, here rendered bottle, is spoke of as a “cruse” in which honey was kept.

“546. Bottles Broken” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:

Jeremiah 19:10¹⁰Then shalt thou break the bottle in the sight of the men that go with thee, (Jeremiah 19:10). Then shalt thou break the bottle in the sight of the men that go with thee.

This action, so symbolical of utter destruction, is still used in the East to denote the same thing. Dr. Thomson says, “The people of this country have the same custom of breaking a jar when they wish to express their utmost detestation of any one. They come behind or near him and smash the jar to atoms, thus imprecating upon him and his alike hopeless ruin” (The Land and the Book, vol. 2, p. 497).

“651. Skin Bottles” From Manners and Customs of the Bible:

Matthew 9:17¹⁷Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved. (Matthew 9:17). Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.

The use of bottles made from the skins of animals is very ancient, and is still practiced in the East. The skins of goats and kids are commonly taken for this purpose, and are usually so fashioned as to retain the figure of the animal. In preparing the bottle, the head and feet are cut off, and the skin stripped whole from the body. The neck of the animal sometimes makes the neck of the bottle; in other cases one of the fore-legs is used as all aperture through which the liquid may be poured out. The thighs serve as handles; by attaching straps to them the bottle can be fastened to the saddle, or slung over the shoulder of the traveler. The Arabs tan the skins with Acacia bark and leave the hairy side out. For a large party, and for long journeys across the desert, the skins of camels or of oxen are used. Two of these, when filled with water, make a good load for a camel. They are smeared with grease to prevent leakage and evaporation. These water-skins, large and small, are much better than earthen jars or bottles for the rough experiences of Oriental traveling. Earthen bottles are, however, sometimes employed in domestic use. See note on Jeremiah 19:1¹Thus saith the Lord, Go and get a potter's earthen bottle, and take of the ancients of the people, and of the ancients of the priests; (Jeremiah 19:1) (#545). The “bottle” which Hagar carried into the wilderness, and from which she gave Ishmael drink, was probably a kidskin. See Genesis 21:14¹⁴And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-sheba. (Genesis 21:14). A similar scene is represented in the engraving, from an ancient Assyrian sculpture. Skin-bottles were also used for milk (Judges 4:19¹⁹And he said unto her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him drink, and covered him. (Judges 4:19)) and for wine (1 Sam. 16:20²⁰And Jesse took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son unto Saul. (1 Samuel 16:20).) In the text and its parallels allusion is made to this use of skins. When the skin is green. it stretches by fermentation of the liquor and retains its integrity; but when it becomes old and dry, the fermentation of the new wine soon causes it to burst.

For the mode of repairing skin-bottles when broken, see note on Joshua 9:4⁴They did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine bottles, old, and rent, and bound up; (Joshua 9:4) (#218).