The Folded Napkin--Balderdash!
By Daniel Lancaster | Comments (6) April 12, 2009
At First Fruits of Zion, we have received a rash of email inquiries about the alleged, Jewish custom of folding a napkin in a particular way in order to indicate an intention to return to an unfinished meal. An email circulating on the internet is the source of the queries. The following is an excerpt:
"Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection? The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes. The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded, and was placed at the head of that stony coffin ... In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew this tradition. When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait just out of sight, until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished. Now if the master were done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, 'I'm done'. But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because the folded napkin meant, 'I'm coming back!'"
This entire explanation is a fabrication--pure balderdash. Not only was this so-called "Hebrew tradition" unknown to "every Jewish boy," it is completely unknown to the whole of Jewish literature and history. There is no such custom in ancient or modern Judaism regarding napkins. As far as I am aware, there is no such custom in Greek or Roman society either.
The word in John 20:7 which is translated as "napkin" in some older English versions of the Bible is better translated simply as "head-cloth." There is no association with a dinner napkin.
Four or five years ago, I was contacted by an old friend who was excited about another version of the same balderdash. He had been told that Jewish carpenters used to leave a folded head-cloth behind on a job-site to indicate that the carpentry job was not yet finished and that he would be returning. At the time, I puzzled over it, wondering who would make up balderdash like this, and what their motivation for doing so might be. I still haven't figured that out, but I am starting to wonder if apocrypha like this comes from unscrupulous Israel tour guides who are working their Christian groups for maximum tips.
I do not know the significance of the folded head-cloth. The Greek word (entulisso) is probably better understood as "wrapped together" or "rolled together" rather than "neatly folded." Based upon this, I might cautiously make a suggestion. Given that the Master's body was wrapped in linen along with seventy-five pounds of myrrh and aloes, I would suggest that the Gospel writer is trying to indicate that the head-cloth still retained its wrapped form, as if it was still wrapped about the head of the Master, forming a sort of empty chrysalis left behind when he rose from the slumber of death. To me, that would be far more significant than a strange and obscure allusion to a folded dinner napkin. Nevertheless, this is only a suggestion, and it is possible that the rolled up head-cloth is no more than a rolled up head-cloth.
Resurrection, 5769
D. Thomas Lancaster
http://ffoz.org/blogs/2009/04/the_folded_napkin--balderdash.html
At First Fruits of Zion, we have received a rash of email inquiries about the alleged, Jewish custom of folding a napkin in a particular way in order to indicate an intention to return to an unfinished meal. An email circulating on the internet is the source of the queries. The following is an excerpt:
"Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection? The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave clothes. The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was neatly folded, and was placed at the head of that stony coffin ... In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day. The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant, and every Jewish boy knew this tradition. When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait just out of sight, until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished. Now if the master were done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth, and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, 'I'm done'. But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because the folded napkin meant, 'I'm coming back!'"
This entire explanation is a fabrication--pure balderdash. Not only was this so-called "Hebrew tradition" unknown to "every Jewish boy," it is completely unknown to the whole of Jewish literature and history. There is no such custom in ancient or modern Judaism regarding napkins. As far as I am aware, there is no such custom in Greek or Roman society either.
The word in John 20:7 which is translated as "napkin" in some older English versions of the Bible is better translated simply as "head-cloth." There is no association with a dinner napkin.
Four or five years ago, I was contacted by an old friend who was excited about another version of the same balderdash. He had been told that Jewish carpenters used to leave a folded head-cloth behind on a job-site to indicate that the carpentry job was not yet finished and that he would be returning. At the time, I puzzled over it, wondering who would make up balderdash like this, and what their motivation for doing so might be. I still haven't figured that out, but I am starting to wonder if apocrypha like this comes from unscrupulous Israel tour guides who are working their Christian groups for maximum tips.
I do not know the significance of the folded head-cloth. The Greek word (entulisso) is probably better understood as "wrapped together" or "rolled together" rather than "neatly folded." Based upon this, I might cautiously make a suggestion. Given that the Master's body was wrapped in linen along with seventy-five pounds of myrrh and aloes, I would suggest that the Gospel writer is trying to indicate that the head-cloth still retained its wrapped form, as if it was still wrapped about the head of the Master, forming a sort of empty chrysalis left behind when he rose from the slumber of death. To me, that would be far more significant than a strange and obscure allusion to a folded dinner napkin. Nevertheless, this is only a suggestion, and it is possible that the rolled up head-cloth is no more than a rolled up head-cloth.
Resurrection, 5769
D. Thomas Lancaster
http://ffoz.org/blogs/2009/04/the_folded_napkin--balderdash.html
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