Frugality and Abstinence of the Patriarchs
The frugal diet of the antediluvian patriarchs. The more common opinion of the Fathers and Doctors is that men up to the flood ate herbs and fruits, abstaining from meat and wine from religious scruple, not by precept. This frugality contributed to their extraordinary lifespan of 900 years.
Chapter I (The Six Days of Creation)
-
Verse 29: Behold I Have Given You Every Herb for Food
— The common opinion of the Fathers is that men up to the flood ate herbs and fruits, abstaining from meat and wine from religious scruple, not by precept; this frugality increased their lifespan to 900 years.
"the more common opinion of the Fathers and Doctors is that men up to the flood were so frugal in their food that they ate herbs and fruits, but abstained from meat and likewise from wine"