of animals, at times designated as “firstlings.”—Gen. 4:4.

From earliest times the firstborn son held an honored position in the family and was the one who succeeded to the headship of the household. He inherited a double portion of the father’s property. (Deut. 21:17) Reuben was seated by Joseph at a meal according to his right as firstborn. (Gen. 43:33) But the Bible does not always honor the firstborn by listing sons according to birth. The first place is often given to the most prominent or faithful of the sons rather than to the firstborn.—Gen. 6:10; 1 Chron. 1:28; compare Genesis 11:26, 32; 12:4.

The firstborn came into considerable prominence at the time that Jehovah delivered his people from slavery in Egypt. Among the Egyptians, the firstborn were dedicated as sacred to the sun-god Amon-Ra, the supposed preserver of all the firstborn. The tenth plague that Jehovah brought upon the Egyptians served to discredit this god and showed up his inability to protect the firstborn. By obeying God’s instructions concerning the slaying of a lamb and the splashing of its blood on the doorposts and upper part of the doorway of their houses, the Israelites did not lose their firstborn in death, whereas all the firstborn of the Egyptians, both of man and beast, were slain. (Ex. 12:21-23, 28, 29) Evidently the firstborn son of each household is meant in most cases and not the head of the household, who may have been a firstborn. Pharaoh himself was probably a firstborn and yet his life was not taken. However it may be that not every Egyptian household had a literal firstborn son (the married couple being childless or the firstborn son having already died), and in view of the statement at Exodus 12:30, “there was not a house where there was not one dead,” the destruction could have included the chief one in the house occupying the position of firstborn.

Since the firstborn sons among the Israelites were those in line to become the heads of the various households, they represented the entire nation. Jehovah, in fact, referred to the whole nation as his “first-born,” it being his firstborn nation because of the Abrahamic covenant. (Ex. 4:22) In view of his having preserved their lives, Jehovah commanded that “every male first-born that opens each womb among the sons of Israel, among men and beasts,” be sanctified to him. (Ex. 13:2) Thus, the firstborn sons were devoted to God.

Later Jehovah took the male Levites, evidently aside from the 300 Levite firstborn (compare Numbers 3:21, 22, 27, 28, 33, 34 with 3:39), in place of the firstborn sons of Israel, from those one month old and upward. A ransom price of five shekels had to be paid to Aaron and his sons for each of the 273 in excess of the Levites. Also, Jehovah took the domestic animals of the Levites in place of the firstborn domestic animals of the other tribes. (Num. 3:40-48) From that time forward, a firstborn son was to be presented to Jehovah at the tabernacle or temple after the period of the mother’s uncleanness and be redeemed by the payment of the estimated value for those from a month up to five years old, “five silver shekels by the shekel of the holy place.”—Lev. 12:1-3; 27:6; Num. 18:15, 16.

The firstborn males of clean animals, such as the bull, lamb or goat, were not to be redeemed. Such a bull was not to be worked nor the lamb sheared. Instead, they were to be presented to Jehovah as a sacrifice at the tabernacle or temple on the eighth day after birth. (Ex. 22:30; Num. 18:17; Deut. 15:19, 20) If, however, the animal had a bad defect it was not to be sacrificed to Jehovah but was to be eaten at one’s place of dwelling.—Deut. 15:21-23.

The firstborn of an ass, an unclean animal, could not be presented as a sacrifice and, therefore, was to be redeemed or bought back by substituting a sheep in its place. Otherwise, its neck was to be broken, since it belonged to Jehovah and was not to be used by man. (Ex. 13:12, 13; 34:19, 20) However, Leviticus 27:27 reads: “If it is among the unclean beasts and he must redeem it according to the estimated value, he must then give a fifth of it in addition to it. But if it should not be bought back, it must then be sold according to the estimated value.” Some commentators view this text as a modification of the regulation concerning the redeeming of an ass. Apparently, though, Leviticus 27:27 deals with a different matter. Rather than referring to an unclean animal, such as an ass, the words “if it is among the unclean beasts” may denote an animal that was unclean in the sense of being unfit for sacrifice because of being blemished.

David, who was the youngest son of Jesse, was called by Jehovah the “first-born,” due to Jehovah’s elevation of David to the preeminent position in God’s chosen nation and his making a covenant with David for a dynasty of kings. (Ps. 89:27) In this position David prophetically represented the Messiah.—Compare Psalm 2:2, 7 with 1 Samuel 10:1; Hebrews 1:5.

Jesus Christ is shown to be “the first-born of all creation” as well as “the first-born from the dead.” (Col. 1:15, 18; Rev. 1:5; 3:14) On earth he was the firstborn child of Mary and was presented at the temple in accordance with Jehovah’s law. (Luke 2:7, 22, 23) The apostle Paul speaks of the followers of Jesus Christ who have been enrolled in the heavens as “the congregation of the first-born.”—Heb. 12:23.

At Job 18:13 the expression “first-born of death” is used to denote the most deadly of diseases.—See BIRTHRIGHT; INHERITANCE.

FIRSTFRUITS

Jehovah required of the nation of Israel that the firstfruits be offered to him, whether it be of man, animal or of the fruitage of the ground. (Ex. 22:29, 30; 23:19; Prov. 3:9) Devoting the firstfruits to Jehovah would be an evidence of the Israelites’ appreciation for Jehovah’s blessing and for their land and its harvest. It would be an expression of thankfulness to the Giver of “every good gift.”—Deut. 8:6-10; Jas. 1:17.

Jehovah commanded the nation, representatively, to offer firstfruits to him, especially at the time of the Festival of Unfermented Cakes. Then, on Nisan 16, the high priest waved before Jehovah at the sanctuary some of the firstfruits of the grain harvest, a sheaf of barley, the first crop of the year based on the sacred calendar. (Lev. 23:5-12) Again, at Pentecost, fifty days later, the firstfruits of the wheat harvest in the form of two leavened loaves made of fine flour were presented as a wave offering.—Lev. 23:15-17.

Besides these grain offerings by the high priest on behalf of the nation, the Israelites were required to bring the firstfruits of all their produce as offerings. Every firstborn male of man and beast was sanctified to Jehovah, being either offered or redeemed. (See FIRSTBORN, FIRSTLING.) The firstfruits of coarse meal were to be offered in the form of ring-shaped cakes. (Num. 15:20, 21) Fruitage of the soil was also put in baskets and taken by the Israelites to the sanctuary (Deut. 26:1, 2), where they then recited certain words recorded at Deuteronomy 26:3-10. The words were actually an outline of the nation’s history from their entering into Egypt to their deliverance and their being brought into the Promised Land.

It is said that the custom arose whereby each locality would send a representative with the firstfruits contributed by the inhabitants of the district in order that not all would have to undergo the inconvenience of going up to Jerusalem each time that the firstfruits were ripe. The quantity of these firstfruits to be offered was not fixed by the Law, it apparently being left to the generosity and appreciative spirit of the giver. However, the choicest portions, the best of the firstfruits, were to be offered.—Num. 18:12; Ex. 23:19; 34:26.

In the case of a newly planted tree, for the first three years it was considered impure as though uncircumcised. In the fourth year all its fruit became holy to Jehovah. Then, in the fifth year, the owner could gather in its fruit for himself.—Lev. 19:23-25.

Contributions of firstfruits to Jehovah by the twelve non-Levitical tribes of Israel were used by the priests and Levites, since they received no inheritance in the land. (Num. 18:8-13) The faithful offering of the firstfruits brought pleasure to Jehovah and a blessing to all parties involved. (Ezek. 44:30) A failure to bring them would be counted by God as robbing him of his due and would bring his displeasure. (Mal. 3:8) In Israel’s history at times this practice was neglected, being restored in certain periods by rulers zealous for true worship. In King Hezekiah’s reformation work, he held an extended celebration of the Festival of the Unfermented Cakes, and on this occasion Hezekiah instructed the people to fulfill their duty with respect to the contribution of firstfruits and tithes. Cheerfully the people responded by bringing in great quantities of the firstfruits of the grain, new wine, oil and honey and all the produce of the field, from the third month to the seventh. (2 Chron. 30:21, 23; 31:4-7) After the restoration from Babylon, Nehemiah led the people in taking an oath to walk in Jehovah’s law, including the bringing to him of firstfruits of every sort.—Neh. 10:29, 34-37.

FIGURATIVE AND SYMBOLIC USE

Jesus Christ was spiritually begotten at the time of his baptism, and resurrected from the dead to life in the spirit on Nisan 16, 33 C.E., the day of the year on which the firstfruits of the first grain crop were presented before Jehovah at the sanctuary. He is, therefore, called the firstfruits, being actually the first firstfruits to God. (1 Cor. 15:20, 23; 1 Pet. 3:18) The faithful followers of Jesus Christ, his spiritual brothers, are also a firstfruits to God, but not the primary firstfruits, being similar to the second grain crop, the wheat, which was presented to Jehovah on the day of Pentecost. They are numbered as 144,000 and are called the ones “bought from among mankind as a first fruits to God and to the Lamb” and “a certain first fruits of his creatures.”—Rev. 14:1-4; Jas. 1:18.

The apostle Paul also speaks of the faithful Jewish remnant who became the first Christians as being “first fruits.” (Rom. 11:16) The Christian Epaenetus is called the “first fruits of Asia for Christ” (Rom. 16:5), and the household of Stephanus “the first fruits of Achaia.”—1 Cor. 16:15.

Since the anointed Christians are begotten by the spirit as sons of God with the hope of resurrection to immortality in the heavens, they are said during their lifetime on earth to “have the first fruits, namely, the spirit . . . while we are earnestly waiting for adoption as sons, the release from our bodies by ransom.” (Rom. 8:23, 24) Paul says that he and fellow Christians with hopes of life in the spirit have “the token of what is to come, that is, the spirit,” which he also says is “a token in advance of our inheritance.”—2 Cor. 5:5; Eph. 1:13, 14; see FESTIVAL; OFFERINGS.

FISH

These and other water animals were brought into existence by God on the fifth creative day. (Gen. 1:20-23) Although not authorized to use fish for food until after the Flood, man was from the beginning to have these creatures in subjection. (Gen. 1:28; 9:2, 3) But instead of exercising proper dominion over the animals, some men became “empty-headed” in their reasonings and came to venerate the creation. (Rom. 1:20-23) For example, the Babylonian Ea, a god of the waters, was depicted as a man covered with the body of a fish; the Syrian Atargatis was a fish goddess; and in Egypt not only were certain kinds of fish viewed as sacred but even mummified fish have been found there. Such fish worship was, of course, prohibited in God’s law to Israel.—Deut. 4:15-18.

It was most appropriate that Jesus Christ, the “Son of man” (Matt. 17:22), who was to have even the fish in subjection, on two occasions demonstrated his power by filling the nets of his apostles with miraculous catches of fish. (Ps. 8:4-8; Heb. 2:5-9; Luke 5:4-7; John 21:6) Jesus also exercised his dominion when, faced with the paying of the temple tax, he instructed Peter: “Go to the sea, cast a fishhook, and take the first fish coming up and, when you open its mouth, you will find a stater coin. Take that and give it to them for me and you.”—Matt. 17:24-27.

FISH AS FOOD

Fish, a highly nutritious and easily digestible food, evidently was an important item in the diet of the Egyptians as well as of the enslaved Hebrews, for in the wilderness the mixed crowd and the sons of Israel longed for the fish they used to eat in Egypt. (Num. 11:5) The Egyptian economy therefore suffered heavily when the fish in the Nile died as a result of Jehovah’s turning Egypt’s waters into blood.—Ex. 7:20, 21.

Fish continued to be an important food to the Israelites once they were established in the Promised Land. One of the gates of Jerusalem was called the “Fish Gate,” suggesting that a fish market was located there or nearby, (2 Chron. 33:14) In a later period, as mentioned by Nehemiah, the Tyrians sold fish at Jerusalem even on the sabbath.—Neh. 13:16.

Commonly prepared by broiling or salting and drying, fish were often eaten along with bread. Likely the fish used by Jesus in miraculously feeding 5,000 men and later 4,000 men, besides women and children, were dried and salted. (Matt. 14:17-21; 15:34-38) After his resurrection Jesus ate some broiled fish to prove to his apostles that they were not seeing a spirit, and on another occasion he prepared a breakfast of bread and fish cooked over a charcoal fire.—Luke 24:36-43; John 21:9-12.

FISH OF PALESTINE

With the exception of the Dead Sea, fish are plentiful in the inland waters of Palestine. Among the varieties encountered there are bream, carp, perch and the unusual mouth-breeding fishes, such as Chromis simonis. The male of Chromis simonis takes the eggs, about 200 in number, into his mouth, the young remaining there for several weeks after being hatched.

Certain kinds of fish live even in the salt springs near the Dead Sea, but these soon die if placed in water from the sea itself. The reason for this has been ascribed to the presence of a large percentage of magnesium chloride in the Dead Sea. The swift current of the Jordan, particularly at flood stage, sweeps many fish into the Dead Sea, where stupefied fish become food for birds of prey or where their dead bodies are washed up on the shore and eaten by carrion birds. In sharp contrast with this, the prophet Ezekiel, in vision, saw a stream issuing forth from Jehovah’s temple that healed the waters of the Dead Sea, giving rise to a flourishing fishing industry.—Ezek. 47:1, 8-10.

CLEAN AND UNCLEAN

Although King Solomon’s wisdom embraced the field of natural history, including a knowledge of the fishes (1 Ki. 4:33), not once is a specific kind of fish named in the Scriptures. However, the Law did make a distinction between clean and unclean water animals. Only water animals having fins and scales were ceremonially clean for food, this ruling out such creatures as catfish, eels, lampreys, rays, sharks and the Crustacea, many of which live on sewage and decaying matter, and are often the cause of typhoid and paratyphoid fevers. (Lev. 11:9-12) Israelite fishermen therefore had to separate the fine fish from those unsuitable for food, a point highlighted in Jesus’ illustration of the dragnet.—Matt. 13:47, 48.

THE FISH THAT SWALLOWED JONAH

In spite of the fact that the Son of God himself testified to the truthfulness of the account about