Question

What are the significance of seeds?

Answer 1

In Old Testament times, the seed was vital because of the importance of agriculture for survival. One example of this is the story of Joseph (son of Jacob), which describes how Joseph saves the people of Egypt from a famine by advising them to plant plenty of seed in order to store grain for use in a future drought. Also, the growth of seed, watered by rain and nurtured by the sun, both of which God was believed to be providing, is seen as showing the goodness of God. This can be seen, for example, in Zechariah 8:12, ‘The seed will grow well … the ground will produce its crops, and the heavens will drop their dew.'Seed as ‘descendants'The word ‘seed' is also very much associated with the creation of new life within a family. ‘The seed of Abraham' refers to all his descendants. (See also Big ideas: Creation, creativity, image of God)