The Healing Powers of Honey Read Online Free Page A

from the everyday world.
    Not only did the sound and sight of bees in our yard captivate me, but on summer nights honey-glazed chicken sizzling on the barbeque pit was an attraction, too. The scent of a fresh-baked apple pie sweetened with clover honey—cooling on the kitchen counter—wasn’t to be ignored, either. After dinner, I’d take a dip in the next-door neighbor’s swimming pool. It may not have been Greece, but it was home. My dad sold insurance, not bees or honey. But honey bees in the suburbs were part of my life, as they were noticed in other people’s worlds in the 20th century and long ago.
    Back in the days of the ancient past, benefits of honey used for medicinal purposes varied from physical stamina to mental well-being. The versatile healing powers of honey were put to work by Egyptian physicians as far as 5,000 years ago, and its medical uses have also been noted in the Old World from traditional Chinese medicine to Indian Ayurveda. 2
    HOLY HONEY HISTORY TIDBITS
    Honey is mentioned countless times in the Bible. The phrase “milk and honey” was used at least 21 different places to describe the fertility and prosperity of the Promised Land, in contrast to the desert, which did not flow with water, milk, or honey.
    Honey is one of the Bible’s good-for-you healing foods. Here are some interesting biblical references to honey—and what they may mean. These were gleaned from a variety of sources, all leading to the Bible:
    Honey as in the Land of Milk and Honey
    â€¢ “Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you.” (Exodus 33:3, New International Version)
    â€¢ “If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us.” (Numbers 14:8)
    Honey, a Healing Gift
    Not only will you find passages of the Holy Bible with references to the Promised Land, but in Genesis 43:11 Jacob sends honey as a gift to Joseph, the governor of Egypt. And in Kings 14:3 Jeroboam requests his spouse to give the gift of honey to the prophet Ahijah, with promise of its healing powers for their son who was allegedly blind. 3
    Honey, the Symbol of Good Health
    â€¢ “Now the men of Israel were in distress that day, because Saul had bound the people under an oath, saying, Cursed be any man who eats food before evening comes, before I have avenged myself on my enemies! So none of the troops tasted food. The entire army entered the woods, and there was honey on the ground. When they went into the woods, they saw honey oozing out, yet no one put his hand to his mouth, because they feared the oath. But Jonathan had not heard that his father had bound the people with the oath, so he reaches out the end of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it into the honeycomb. He raised his hand to his mouth, and his eyes brightened” (1 Samuel 14:24–27).
    Honey, the Ultimate Food
    â€¢ “Butter and honey shall he eat” (Isaiah 7:15).
    â€¢ “The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey” (Exodus 16:31).
    â€¢ “The day Christ rose from the dead and appeared before His Disciples, He asked for food. They gave him broiled fish and a honeycomb” (Luke 24:42).
    â€¢ “My son, eat honey because it is good, and the honeycomb which is sweet to your taste” (Proverbs 24:13).
    With all of this being put on today’s kitchen table how can you go wrong by adding a little honey in your diet? Honey is praised by people during the ups and downs of biblical times, but the golden nectar doesn’t end there....
    ODE TO THE SWEET GIFT OF HONEY
    Not only is golden honey found in the Old Testament, but it’s noted in Greek mythology, too. Remember, Zeus, the legendary son of Cronos, in Greece? Zeus was an almighty god of the