Flies of Scripture—Dead Flies and the apothecary's ointment—Gadflies and their attacks—Annoyance caused by the House-fly—Flies and ophthalmia—Siguor Pierotti's account of the Flies—The sovereign remedy against Flies—Causes of their prevalence.
NEXT we come to the Dipterous or two-winged insects, which are very sparingly mentioned in the Scriptures, and only one species is definitely named.
There are two Hebrew words which are translated as “fly."One is zebub, so familiar in the compound word Baal-zebub-i.e. “Lord of Flies." This word only occurs in two passages, one being the well-known proverb, "Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savor" (Eccl. 10:11Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savor: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. (Ecclesiastes 10:1)).
This passage requires a little explanation. By the word “apothecary” we must not understand a medical man, nor by the word “ointment “the mollifying substance used as an application for wounds. The ointment of Scripture signifies the various perfumed unguents used as scents and cosmetics for the living, as Part of the preparation of the dead for the grave, and as an essential accessory to Jewish ritual.
There ointments were most carefully made, and the person who prepared and sold them was called the apothecary. If, therefore, the unguents were carelessly stored, and the Flies permitted to enter, the perfume would be destroyed by the odor of their dead bodies.
The second passage is Isa. 7:1818And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. (Isaiah 7:18): “The Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt." No particular species of fly is here indicated; but it is evident that some peculiarly irritating and troublesome, not to say dangerous, insect is signified.
Many species of gadfly would produce that effect, and inflict direful torments' on those whom they assail. Even in England the gadflies are more than troublesome to human beings. In the New Forest I have been fairly driven back by the attack of the gadflies, which wounded me through a thick woolen coat, while they attacked the uncovered portions of the skin so fiercely that, before reaching shelter, my neck was bathed in blood.
Another word is arôb, which is applied to the flies which were brought upon Egypt in the great plague. It is probable that some different species is here signified, but there is no certainty in the matter. Any species, however, would be a sufficient plague if they exceeded the usual number which infest Egypt, and which at first make the life of a foreigner a burden to him. They swarm in such myriads, that he eats flies, drinks flies, and breathes flies.
Not the least part of the nuisance is, that they cluster in the eyes of those who are affected with the prevalent ophthalmia, which is so fertile a cause of blindness, and so convey the infection with them. A stranger is always struck with the appearance of the children, who have quantities of these pests upon and about their eyes, and yet seem perfectly unaffected by a visitation which would wellnigh drive a European mad.
Signor Pierotti writes feelingly on the subject:—" These insects sometimes cause no slight suffering in Palestine, as I can vouch from my own experience. However large or however small they may be, a rabid and restless foe, they attack alike, and make themselves insufferable in a thousand ways, in every season and place, in the house and in the field, by day and by night.
“Frequently in 1857 and 1860, while I was encamped near the tents of the Bedawîn, in the neighborhood of the Jordan, and to the south of Hebron, flies were brought in such numbers by the east wind that all, beasts and men, were in danger of being choked by them, as they crept into our ears, noses, and mouths, and all over our bodies. My servant and I were the first to fly from the pest, as we were spotted all over like lepers with the eruption caused by their bites: the Bedawîn themselves were not slow to follow our example.
“I am not the only person who has experienced this nuisance, for Eugene Roger, who traveled in Palestine during the seventeenth century, informs us that during his stay at Nazareth a swarm of small black flies, called bargash, invaded the plain of Esdraelon, where a tribe of Bedawîn, to the number of six hundred tents, were encamped, who suffered greatly from them.
“The flies, therefore, still infest Palestine as they did of old, except that they are not now so numerous as to compel the chiefs of the villages or tribes (answering to the kings of the Pentateuch and Joshua) to evacuate the country before them.
“The Philistines had a special deity whom they invoked against these pests, Baalzebub, the God of Flies, whose temple was at Ekron. The reason of this is evident at the present day, for the ancient country of the Philistines is infested with insect plagues, as I experienced together with his Excellency Surraya Pasha in the summer of 1859.
“As, however, we had no faith in Baalzebub, we were obliged to arm ourselves with fly-traps and stoical patience. Many travelers bring with them a perfect druggist's shop from Europe as a protection against these nuisances, and leave behind them this only efficacious remedy, patience. This I strongly recommend; it is very portable, very cheap, and equally useful in all climates.
“It is especially valuable in the case of the insects, as they are found everywhere in greater or fess numbers; especially in the dwellings, where they are nourished by the carrion that lies about, the heaps of rubbish, the filth of the streets, the leakage of cesspools and sewers, the dirt in the houses, the filthy clothing worn by the people, and the kind of food they eat. Though the country of Baalzebub is deserted and enslaved, the flies are still abundant and free, self-invited guests at the table, unasked assistants in the kitchen, tasting everything, immolating themselves in their gastronomic ardor, and forming en undesired seasoning in every disk.”