The word sugar does not appear in the Bible. The closest reference is when the Lord says, “To what purpose [comes] there to Me . . . the sweet cane from a far country?” (Jeremiah 6:2020To what purpose cometh there to me incense from Sheba, and the sweet cane from a far country? your burnt offerings are not acceptable, nor your sacrifices sweet unto me. (Jeremiah 6:20)). People in the land of Israel apparently did not grow sugarcane but sent away for it. The natural sweetener they had in their own land was mostly a constant supply of honey, which is often referred to in the Bible.
We may be sure the Creator included sugarcane for our use when He caused vegetation to grow on the earth. In the many years since then, it has been grown in great quantities throughout the world.
In preparing sugar from canes, it is first ground in big rollers, squeezing out the sweet juice. This juice is treated to remove anything that might be harmful and then put in big tanks where the water is removed. This leaves sugar crystals to be further processed until it appears just as it comes to your kitchen table. Bakeries and candy makers are among the largest users - some buying tremendous quantities for their products.
Sugar is an important part of our diet. A grown person eats about one hundred pounds a year in candy, ice cream, cookies, cakes, pies and breakfast cereal. Its chief value to us, aside from a sweet taste, is how quickly it is digested and can raise energy levels for a tired or hungry person. But we have to be careful about how much we put into our bodies. Too much can be harmful, especially to teeth.
Other sources of sugar have been discovered over the years. The main one is the sugar beet, which is grown in fields and dug out of the ground just like a potato. It is processed in a refinery in much the same way as cane sugar. Looking at a sugar beet as it comes from the ground, it is hard to imagine the amount of sugar it will produce.
You are perhaps familiar with the sweet maple sap that comes from maple trees in some northern parts of North America. This is sometimes refined into dark sugar. There is also grape sugar with its special sweet taste, another called malt sugar, and sugar made from corn, sweet potatoes and even carrots.
In addition to enjoying God’s love and singing to Him, the psalmist exclaimed, “How sweet are Thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103103How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! (Psalm 119:103)). In another place he says, “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb” (Psalm 19:1010More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. (Psalm 19:10)).
The more we read God’s Word, the Bible, the sweeter we will find His loving words to us. Have you tasted that sweetness?
ML-07/10/2005