Plowshare
/PLOW-share/
Summary
The plowshare was the cutting blade of the plow, famously used in prophetic imagery of peace and war.
☩Agricultural Tool
The plowshare was the iron point or blade that cut the soil. During the Philistine oppression, Israelites had to go to Philistine smiths to sharpen their plowshares and other iron tools—a policy designed to prevent Israel from making weapons.
Key verses:1 Samuel 13:19-21
☩Prophetic Symbol
The most famous reference is Isaiah's vision of peace when nations 'shall beat their swords into plowshares'—weapons transformed into agricultural tools, warfare replaced by peaceful pursuits. Joel inverts this imagery, calling for plowshares to be beaten into swords as God summons nations to judgment.
Key verses:Isaiah 2:4Micah 4:3Joel 3:10