Beating out wheat in the wine press. Ordinarily in the East, wheat is threshed by being trodden out with oxen on a bare, hard piece of ground. It is usually in a prominent place, to get the wind for winnowing, and so could be easily seen by the [{494}] enemy. The wine press furnished a small, flat place where the little wheat they had could be threshed in secret.
Angel of the Lord. Any messenger from God, sometimes thought of in early times as being God himself in the form of a man.
Ophrah. A place in northern central Palestine, site not known.
Baal and Asherah. The Baals were the gods of the Canaanites. Each locality had its Baal (Lord), with an altar and a stone pillar, on some prominent place (the "high places" of the Bible). The asherah was a sacred tree or post standing near the stone pillar.
Jezreel. A beautifully situated town in northern central Palestine.
Pitchers. Jars in which were hidden torches. When the jars were broken with a crash, the torches suddenly flamed out in the darkness, and the noise and the unexpected light made a panic in the Midianite army.
SAUL.
Mizpah. A town on the east of Jordan. Probably the same place that is mentioned in the story of Jacob.
Ramah, "hill." A common name of places in Palestine.
Vial. A vessel in which was carried a sacred oil. A common way to honor a guest was to pour a little oil on his head. Kings and priests were set apart for their office by anointing with oil.