WHEAT

hwet

((1) chiTTah, the specific word for wheat (Genesis 30:14 Exodus 34:22, etc.), with puros (Judith 3:3; Sirach 39:26);

(2) bar, or bar (Jeremiah 23:28 Joel 2:24 Amos 5:11; Amos 8:6); in other passages translated "grain" or "corn";

(3) sitos (Matthew 3:12; Matthew 13:25, 29, 30 Luke 3:17; Luke 16:7; Luke 22:31, etc.) (for other words translated occasionally "wheat" in the King James Version see CORN; FOOD)): Wheat, usually the bearded variety, is cultivated all over Palestine, though less so than barley. The great plain of the Hauran is a vast expanse of wheat fields in the spring; considerable quantities are exported via Beirut, Haifa, and Gaza. The "wheat harvest" was in olden times one of the regular divisions of the year (Exodus 34:22 Judges 15:1 1 Samuel 12:17); it follows the barley harvest (Exodus 9:31, 32), occurring in April, May or June, according to the altitude.

E. W. G. Masterman