The other day, I read an ancient poem about teaching. Written nearly three millennia ago, this beautiful allegory from long ago and far away shows that people’s minds were as varied then as they are now.
The farmer knows just what to do,
for God has given him understanding.
A heavy sledge is never used to thresh black cumin;
rather, it is beaten with a light stick.
A threshing wheel is never rolled on cumin;
instead, it is beaten lightly with a flail.
Grain for bread is easily crushed,
so he doesn’t keep on pounding it.
He threshes it under the wheels of a cart,
but he doesn’t pulverize it.
The Lord Almighty is a wonderful teacher,
and he gives the farmer great wisdom.
Isaiah
Apple to Apple 