Harvest Stories & Pairings
What Does the Bible Say About Honey? Milk, Honeycomb and Sweet Words
Al Safa HoneyOctober 17, 20265 min read
Honey runs all through the Bible. It marks a promised land, turns up in a riddle, feeds a prophet in the wilderness, and becomes the measure for anything good and sweet. Here are the best-known verses, quoted from the King James Version, and what they tell us about how people valued honey thousands of years ago.
A land flowing with milk and honey
The most famous honey phrase in the Bible comes from Exodus 3:8, where the people are promised "a land flowing with milk and honey". The phrase is repeated many times through the books of Moses and the prophets.
It is a picture of plenty: pasture rich enough for herds, and enough flowers and fruit for sweetness. Many scholars note that the Hebrew word for honey, devash, could also mean syrup made from dates or figs, so the promise may include both bee honey and fruit honey. Either way, honey stood for abundance.
Samson, the lion and the bees
In Judges 14, Samson returns to the lion he had killed and finds "a swarm of bees and honey in the carcase of the lion". He scoops out the honey, eats it as he walks, and shares it with his parents.
He turns the moment into a riddle for his wedding guests: "Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness." The answer, which the guests eventually pry out of his bride, is "What is sweeter than honey? and what is stronger than a lion?"
Jonathan's taste of honey
In 1 Samuel 14, Jonathan, tired from battle, dips the end of his staff into a honeycomb in the woods and eats. The text says "his eyes were enlightened", a vivid way of describing the lift a hungry, exhausted person feels after something sweet.
It is one of the oldest written descriptions of honey as quick, welcome food on a long day.
Sweeter than honey: the Psalms and Proverbs
Honey is the Bible's favorite measure of sweetness. Psalm 19:10 calls God's judgments "sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb", and Psalm 119:103 says, "How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!"
Proverbs uses honey for wisdom and kind speech. Proverbs 24:13 says, "My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste." Proverbs 16:24 adds, "Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones."
Proverbs also counsels moderation. Proverbs 25:16 warns, "Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith." Good advice for any jar.
Wild honey and honeycomb in the Gospels
In the New Testament, John the Baptist lives in the wilderness on a famously simple diet. Matthew 3:4 says "his meat was locusts and wild honey", honey gathered straight from wild bees.
After the resurrection, Luke 24:42 records the disciples giving Jesus "a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb" in the King James wording. Honey here is everyday food, shared at a table.
What these verses share
Across all of them, honey means the same few things: abundance, sweetness, energy and something good to be shared. Raw honey from the comb was the honey of every one of these stories, eaten as it came, with nothing added.
We share these passages with respect for what they mean to many of our customers. Honey is a food, not a medicine, and it should never be given to a baby under one year old.
The ritual
Honey and Bread at the Table
The simplest way honey has been eaten for thousands of years.
- 1Warm a slice of good bread or flatbread.
- 2Spread it with a spoonful of raw honey, or a piece of honeycomb if you have one.
- 3Share it. Proverbs would also suggest stopping at one or two.
Questions we get asked
- What does the Bible say about honey?
- Honey appears throughout the Bible as a sign of abundance and sweetness: the land "flowing with milk and honey" (Exodus 3:8), Samson's riddle (Judges 14), John the Baptist's "locusts and wild honey" (Matthew 3:4), and Psalms and Proverbs that call God's words and wisdom sweeter than honey.
- Where in the Bible does it say "eat honey, for it is good"?
- Proverbs 24:13: "My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste."
- What does "a land flowing with milk and honey" mean?
- It describes a rich, fertile land with plenty of pasture and sweetness. The Hebrew word devash can mean bee honey or fruit syrup, so the phrase may include both.
- Did John the Baptist eat honey?
- Yes. Matthew 3:4 and Mark 1:6 say he ate locusts and wild honey in the wilderness.
Al Safa Honey is a food producer, not a medical provider. Nothing here is medical advice or a treatment for any condition — speak with your own doctor about your health, and never give honey of any kind to an infant under one year of age.
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