Bier

A bier is the frame or open coffin on which a dead body was laid and carried to the place of burial. In the ancient Israelite practice reflected in the Old Testament and New Testament, burial took place soon after death—typically the same day—and the body was wrapped in linen cloths and carried on an open bier in a procession to the tomb. Unlike the closed coffins used in Egypt, the Palestinian practice used an open stretcher or frame on which the wrapped body could be seen.

The most vivid New Testament reference to a bier is in Luke 7:14, where Jesus encountered the funeral procession of the only son of a widow of Nain and touched the bier, commanding the dead man to arise. The bearers stopped, the young man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. The touch of the bier—which would have made Jesus ceremonially unclean—was immediately superseded by the life-giving word of the one who is the resurrection and the life. The episode demonstrates the compassion of Christ toward widows and his authority over death, which the crowd recognized as the appearance of a great prophet.