In primitive times the mistress of the house pre- sided over the cooking of the food, as the master of the house charged himself with the slaughtering of the animals required (Gen. xviii, 6, 8; Judg. vi, 19; comp. II. xxiv, 622, and Odyss. ii, 300). Among the Egyp- tian*, servants who were professional cooks took charge of preparing the food (Wilkinson, Anc. Egypt, ii, 382 sq.); and in later times among the Hebrews similar functionaries were employed, both male and female {r\-z:i, 1 Sam. ix, 23, 24 ; Hn^-J, 1 Sam. viii, 13). The culinarj'^ utensils were l^'nB, a deep pan (Numb, xi, 8 ; Judg. vi, 19 ; 1 Sam. ii, 14) ■, ^^Ip. ; '^''^ ; 1=1^ [Cal- dron] ; ITS, a basin or pan (Exod. xxx, 18 ; 1 Sam. ii, 14 ; bsO ; '^T\h'J, ; ?;& ; t^iri'C, an iron pan ; nrn"?"?- ^ frying-pan (Lev. ii, 5-7; vii, 9); DiRan, pans (1 Chron. ix, 31) ; 'Jh_)'2, a fork or Jksk-hook with which flesh was drawn from the pot (1 Sam. ii, 13, 14), and perhaps the flesh separated from the bones in the pot (Jlich. iii, 3) ; C'^'^S, a word of douljtful signifi- cancj', rendered by the Soii^^^i'rpoTroctc (Lev. xi, 34), by the ^yr. place ofjwts, byGesenius range for pots, hy Ftirst hearth for cooking, consisting of two rows of stones meeting at an angle, by Kosenmiiller a place in the hearth under which was Are, and on the surface of which wore orifices, over which pots were placed, and by Knobel an earthenware stew-pan (Ravius, De re cibaria vet. Jleb, Traj. ad Rhen. 1768 ; Pareau, A7iiiq.
Hehr. p. 388 sq. ; Jahn, Archaologie, I, ii, 167 sq. ; Wilkinson, Anc. Egyptians, ii, chap. 5-7). — Kitto, s. v. See Cook.
Food, Spiritual, "an expression found in two places in the ' Order for the Holy Communion' in the English Church service, to signify the sustenance which the soul receives from the sacrifice of the flesh and blood, that is, the offering up of the life of tlie Son of man (' for the blood,' says Moses, 'is the life') to atone for the sins of the world, and to redeem us form everlasting death. Some have maintained from those words of our Lord, 'This is my body,' that the literal, material flesh and blood of Christ are, in some sense, received in the communion ; while others see clearly that the Church of England, at least, lias taken special pains to guard against and exclude such a notion, both in the above passages, and by the language of the 38tli Article of Religion. The opponents of the ' material' view contend also that literal flesh and blood 'cannot be sphitually received,' or 'refresh the soul.' " — Eden, Churchman's Diet. s. v. See Transubstantiation.
Fool (represented by several Hebrew and Greek words, especially b33, nahaV , u(ppojv). The "fool" of Scripture is not an idiot, but an absurd person ; not one who does not reason at all, but one who reasons wrong ; also auj^ one whose conduct is not regulated bjf the dictates of reason and religion (Psa. xiv, 1). Foolishness, therefore, is not a negative condition, but a condition of wrong action in the intellectual or sen- tient being, or in both (2 Sam. xiii, 12, 13 ; Psa. xxxviii, 5). In the book of Proverbs, however, "foolishness" appears to be sometimes used for lack of understand- ing, although more generally for perverseness of will. The phrase "Thou fool" (Matt, v, 22) implies not only angrj- temper, by which such se\ere language is prompted, but a scornful, contemptuous feeling, utter- ly inconsistent with the love and meekness which characterize disciples of Christ, and of course exposing the individual who is under its influence to eternal punishment. See Wisdom.
Fools, Feast of. See Feast of Fools.
Foot (properh' PS"!, re' gel, ttovc). Of the various senses in which the word "foot'' is used in Scripture, the following are the most remarkable. Such phrases as the "slipping" of the foot, the "stumbling" of the foot, " from head to foot" (to express the entire body), and "footsteps" (to express tendencies, as when we say of one that he walks in another's footsteps), re- quire no explanation, being common to most lan- guages.
The extreme modesty of the Hebrew language, which has perhaps seldom been sufficienth' appreci. ated, dictated the use of the word "feet" to express the parts and the acts which it is not allowed to name. Hence such phrases as the "hair of the feet," the "water of the feet," "between the feet," "to open the feet," " to cover the feet," all of which are sufficiently intelligilde, except perhaps the last, which certainly does not mean "going to sleep," as some interpreters suggest, but "to dismiss the refuse of nature."
" To be under any one's feet" denotes the subordina- tion of a subject to his sovereign, or of a servant to his master (Psa. viii, 6 ; comp. Heb. ii, 8 ; 1 Cor. xv, 26) ; and was doubtless derived from the symbolical action of conquerors, who set their feet upon the neck or bodj' of the chiefs whom they had vanquished, in token of their triumph. This custom is expressly mentioned in Scripture (Josh, x, 23), and is figured on the monu- ments of Egypt, Persia, and Rome. See TRitTMim.