Dear Ask a Scholar:
Is it possible that the Hebrew word "tirosh" sometimes means "fruit", not "wine"?
Answered by Nehama R. Bersohn, lecturer in Hebrew language, Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies at Columbia University, from which she holds a Ph.D in Hebrew and Jewish history. She has also taught at Princeton and the University of Pennsylvania
In most cases Tirosh is a new wine before it has fermented. However, in Isaiah ch.65 verse 8 some commentators read it as very ripe grapes (not any fruit) rather than new wine. (The complete Hebrew dictionary by Reuven Alcalay).
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