Drawer of water

Drawer of water was a menial occupation in ancient Israel, involving the daily labor of hauling water from wells, springs, or cisterns to supply households, animals, and building projects. In Deuteronomy 29:11, "your woodcutters and your drawers of water" are listed as the lowest social strata within the covenant community—those who performed the most servile physical labor yet were equally included in the covenant assembly and its obligations.

The most detailed biblical episode involving drawers of water concerns the Gibeonites (Josh. 9:21–27). Having deceived Joshua into a peace treaty, the Gibeonites were condemned to serve as woodcutters and drawers of water for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD in perpetuity—a status that paradoxically connected the deceiving outsiders permanently to the sanctuary service. Joshua's pronouncement established a hereditary role that some identify with the Nethinim, the temple servants mentioned in Ezra and Nehemiah as assigned to assist the Levites in temple work.