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Plant

This unified study connects 5 installed resource categories without replacing their source records.

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  • Historical Reference: Nave’s Topical Bible — Public domain
  • Historical Reference: topics
  • Historical Reference: concordance
  • Historical Reference: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible lexical data / BDB-Strong mapping
  • Historical Reference: STEPBible TBESG (based primarily on Abbott-Smith)
  • Historical Reference: A Greek-English Lexicon to the New Testament
  • Historical Reference: Installed reference work
135Scriptures14Strong's20Lexicons2Topics184Occurrences30UNLEARN Studies

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Subject type
Subject
Strong’s
H5195, H5193, G3001, G5451, G5452, H5194, H7880, H5196, H8362, H8363
Hebrew
נָטִיעַ · nâṭîyaʻ
Greek
λάχανον · lachanon

Strong’s and original-language information

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible lexical data / BDB-Strong mapping

נָטַע

H5193
Transliteration
nâṭaʻ
Pronunciation
naw-tah'
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
58

Glosses

plant, fastened, plant(-er).

Lexicon definition

properly, to strike in, i.e. fix

specifically, to plant (literally or figuratively)

Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon

λάχανον

G3001
Transliteration
lachanon
Language
Greek
Part of speech
G:N-N
Indexed occurrences
4

Glosses

plant, herb

Lexicon definition

λάχανον, -ου, τό (λαχαίνω, to dig), [in LXX: Gen.9:3; 3Ki.21:2, Psa.37:2, Pro.15:17 (יֶרֶק, יָרָק) * ;] a garden herb, vegetable: Luk.11:42; usually in pl., Mat.13:32, Mrk.4:32, Rom.14:2.† SYN.: βοτάνη, q.v (AS)

Abbott-Smith Greek Lexicon

φυτεία

G5451
Transliteration
phuteia
Language
Greek
Part of speech
G:N-F
Indexed occurrences
1

Glosses

plant

Lexicon definition

φυτεία, -ας, ἡ (φυτεύω), [in LXX: 4Ki.19:29 (נָטַע), Mic.1:6, Eze.17:7 (מַטָּע) * ;] __1. a planting (Xen., al.; LXX). __2. = φύτευμα, that which is planted, a plant (Inscr.): Mat.15:13.† (AS)

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

φυτεύω

G5452
Transliteration
phyteúō
Language
Greek
Indexed occurrences
11

Glosses

plant

Lexicon definition

to set out in the earth, i.e. implant

figuratively, to instil doctrine

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

φυτεία

G5451
Transliteration
phyteía
Language
Greek
Indexed occurrences
1

Glosses

plant

Lexicon definition

trans-planting, i.e. (concretely) a shrub or vegetable

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

נֶטַע

H5194
Transliteration
neṭaʻ
Pronunciation
neh'-tah
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
4

Glosses

plant.

Lexicon definition

a plant

collectively, a plantation

abstractly, a planting

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

נְטָעִים

H5196
Transliteration
Nᵉṭâʻîym
Pronunciation
net-aw-eem'
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
1

Glosses

plants.

Lexicon definition

Netaim, a place in Palestine

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

שְׁתִל

H8363
Transliteration
shᵉthil
Pronunciation
sheth-eel'
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
1

Glosses

plant.

Lexicon definition

a sprig (as if transplanted), i.e. sucker

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

יֶרֶק

H3418
Transliteration
yereq
Pronunciation
yeh'-rek
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
8

Glosses

grass, green (thing).

Lexicon definition

properly, pallor, i.e. hence, the yellowish green of young and sickly vegetation

concretely, verdure, i.e. grass or vegetation

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

יָרָק

H3419
Transliteration
yârâq
Pronunciation
yaw-rawk'
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
3

Glosses

green, herbs.

Lexicon definition

properly, green

concretely, a vegetable

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

נָטַע

H5193
Transliteration
nâṭaʻ
Pronunciation
naw-tah'
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
58

Glosses

fastened, plant(-er).

Lexicon definition

properly, to strike in, i.e. fix

specifically, to plant (literally or figuratively)

Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Lexicon

מַטָּע

H4302
Transliteration
maṭṭâʻ
Pronunciation
mat-taw'
Language
Hebrew
Indexed occurrences
6

Glosses

plant(-ation, -ing).

Lexicon definition

something planted, i.e. the place (a garden or vineyard), or the thing (a plant, figuratively or men)

by implication, the act, planting

Concordance

Strong's Concordance

Plant

Indexed occurrences: 56

Source: Strong's Concordance · View data sources

Strong's Concordance

Plants

Indexed occurrences: 20

Source: Strong's Concordance · View data sources

All Scripture references135 references

Genesis 11

Genesis 1:11Genesis 1:12Genesis 1:29Genesis 1:30Genesis 2:5Genesis 2:8Genesis 3:18Genesis 9:3Genesis 9:20Genesis 21:15Genesis 21:33

Exodus 5

Exodus 9:22Exodus 9:25Exodus 10:12Exodus 10:15Exodus 15:17

Leviticus 1

Leviticus 19:23

Numbers 1

Numbers 24:6

Deuteronomy 8

Deuteronomy 6:11Deuteronomy 16:21Deuteronomy 20:6Deuteronomy 22:9Deuteronomy 28:30Deuteronomy 28:39Deuteronomy 29:23Deuteronomy 32:2

Joshua 1

Joshua 24:13

Judges 1

Judges 6:3

2 Samuel 1

2 Samuel 7:10

1 Kings 4

1 Kings 4:331 Kings 7:191 Kings 10:101 Kings 14:15

2 Kings 5

2 Kings 4:382 Kings 4:392 Kings 18:212 Kings 19:262 Kings 19:29

1 Chronicles 1

1 Chronicles 17:9

Job 11

Job 6:4Job 8:11Job 8:16Job 9:30Job 14:2Job 14:9Job 20:16Job 30:4Job 30:7Job 40:21Job 40:22

Psalms 11

Psalms 1:3Psalms 37:2Psalms 44:3Psalms 80:9Psalms 80:16Psalms 94:9Psalms 104:14Psalms 104:16Psalms 105:35Psalms 107:37Psalms 144:12

Proverbs 2

Proverbs 3:9Proverbs 31:16

Ecclesiastes 4

Ecclesiastes 2:4Ecclesiastes 2:5Ecclesiastes 3:2Ecclesiastes 12:11

Isaiah 15

Isaiah 5:2Isaiah 5:7Isaiah 17:10Isaiah 17:11Isaiah 28:25Isaiah 37:27Isaiah 37:30Isaiah 40:8Isaiah 40:24Isaiah 41:19Isaiah 44:14Isaiah 51:16Isaiah 61:11Isaiah 65:21Isaiah 65:22

Jeremiah 14

Jeremiah 1:10Jeremiah 2:21Jeremiah 11:17Jeremiah 12:2Jeremiah 18:9Jeremiah 24:6Jeremiah 29:5Jeremiah 29:28Jeremiah 31:5Jeremiah 31:28Jeremiah 32:41Jeremiah 35:7Jeremiah 42:10Jeremiah 45:4

Ezekiel 5

Ezekiel 16:7Ezekiel 17:22Ezekiel 17:23Ezekiel 28:26Ezekiel 36:36

Daniel 1

Daniel 11:45

Amos 6

Amos 5:11Amos 6:12Amos 7:1Amos 7:2Amos 9:14Amos 9:15

Jonah 4

Jonah 4:6Jonah 4:7Jonah 4:9Jonah 4:10

Micah 1

Micah 7:4

Zephaniah 1

Zephaniah 1:13

Matthew 2

Matthew 13:32Matthew 15:13

Mark 5

Mark 4:31Mark 4:32Mark 12:26Mark 14:3Mark 15:36

Luke 4

Luke 11:42Luke 12:27Luke 13:18Luke 20:37

John 2

John 12:3John 19:29

Acts 1

Acts 7:30

1 Corinthians 3

1 Corinthians 3:71 Corinthians 3:81 Corinthians 9:7

James 3

James 1:10James 1:11James 3:8

Revelation 1

Revelation 9:4

Topical Bible

Nave's Topical Bible

PLANTS

Entry:
Nave’s Topical Bible references for PLANTS.

Source: Nave's Topical Bible · View data sources

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Related UNLEARN Content30 items

Topic

PLANTS

Nave’s Topical Bible references for PLANTS.

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Dictionary

Anise

This word is found only in Matt. 23:23. It is the plant commonly known by the name of dill, the Peucedanum graveolens of the botanist. This name dill is derived from a Norse word which means to soothe, the plant having the carminative property of allaying pain. The common dill, the Anethum graveolens, is an annual growing wild in the cornfields of Spain and Portugal and the south of Europe generally. There is also a species of dill cultivated in Eastern countries known by the name of shubit. It was this species of garden plant of which the Pharisees were in the habit of paying tithes. The Talmud requires that the seeds, leaves, and stem of dill shall pay tithes. It is an umbelliferous plant, very like the caraway, its leaves, which are aromatic, being used in soups and pickles. The proper anise is the Pimpinella anisum.

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Balm

Contracted from Bal'sam, a general name for many oily or resinous substances which flow or trickle from certain trees or plants when an incision is made through the bark. (1.) This word occurs in the Authorized Version (Gen. 37:25; 43:11; Jer. 8:22; 46:11; 51:8; Ezek. 27:17) as the rendering of the Hebrew word tsori_ or _tseri, which denotes the gum of a tree growing in Gilead (q.v.), which is very precious. It was celebrated for its medicinal qualities, and was circulated as an article of merchandise by Arab and Phoenician merchants. The shrub so named was highly valued, and was almost peculiar to Palestine. In the time of Josephus it was cultivated in the neighbourhood of Jericho and the Dead Sea. There is an Arab tradition that the tree yielding this balm was brought by the queen of Sheba as a present to Solomon, and that he planted it in his gardens at Jericho. (2.) There is another Hebrew word, basam_ or _bosem, from which our word "balsam," as well as the corresponding Greek balsamon, is derived. It is rendered "spice" (Cant. 5:1, 13; 6:2; margin of Revised Version, "balsam;" Ex. 35:28; 1 Kings 10:10), and denotes fragrance in general. Basam also denotes the true balsam-plant, a native of South Arabia (Cant. l.c.).

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Bulrush

(1.) In Isa. 58:5 the rendering of a word which denotes "belonging to a marsh," from the nature of the soil in which it grows (Isa. 18:2). It was sometimes platted into ropes (Job. 41:2; A.V., "hook," R.V., "rope," lit. "cord of rushes"). (2.) In Ex. 2:3, Isa. 18:2 (R.V., "papyrus") this word is the translation of the Hebrew gome, which designates the plant as absorbing moisture. In Isa. 35:7 and Job 8:11 it is rendered "rush." This was the Egyptian papyrus (papyrus Nilotica). It was anciently very abundant in Egypt. The Egyptians made garments and shoes and various utensils of it. It was used for the construction of the ark of Moses (Ex. 2:3, 5). The root portions of the stem were used for food. The inside bark was cut into strips, which were sewed together and dried in the sun, forming the papyrus used for writing. It is no longer found in Egypt, but grows luxuriantly in Palestine, in the marshes of the Huleh, and in the swamps at the north end of the Lake of Gennesaret. (See [84]CANE.)

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Bush

In which Yahweh appeared to Moses in the wilderness (Ex. 3:2; Acts 7:30). It is difficult to say what particular kind of plant or bush is here meant. Probably it was the mimosa or acacia. The words "in the bush" in Mark 12:26; Luke 20:37, mean "in the passage or paragraph on the bush;" i.e., in Ex. 3.

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Calamus

The Latin for cane, Hebrew Kaneh, mentioned (Ex. 30:23) as one of the ingredients in the holy anointing oil, one of the sweet scents (Cant. 4:14), and among the articles sold in the markets of Tyre (Ezek. 27:19). The word designates an Oriental plant called the "sweet flag," the Acorus calamus of Linnaeus. It is elsewhere called "sweet cane" (Isa. 43:24; Jer. 6:20). It has an aromatic smell, and when its knotted stalk is cut and dried and reduced to powder, it forms an ingredient in the most precious perfumes. It was not a native of Palestine, but was imported from Arabia Felix or from India. It was probably that which is now known in India by the name of "lemon grass" or "ginger grass," the Andropogon schoenanthus. (See [90]CANE.)

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Cane

A tall sedgy plant with a hollow stem, growing in moist places. In Isa. 43:24; Jer. 6:20, the Hebrew word kaneh is thus rendered, giving its name to the plant. It is rendered "reed" in 1 Kings 14:15; Job 40:21; Isa. 19:6; 35:7. In Ps. 68:30 the expression "company of spearmen" is in the margin and the Revised Version "beasts of the reeds," referring probably to the crocodile or the hippopotamus as a symbol of Egypt. In 2 Kings 18:21; Isa. 36:6; Ezek. 29:6, 7, the reference is to the weak, fragile nature of the reed. (See [96]CALAMUS.)

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Coriander

Heb. gad, (Ex. 16:31; Num. 11:7), seed to which the manna is likened in its form and colour. It is the Coriandrum sativum of botanists, an umbelliferous annual plant with a round stalk, about two feet high. It is widely cultivated in Eastern countries and in the south of Europe for the sake of its seeds, which are in the form of a little ball of the size of a peppercorn. They are used medicinally and as a spice. The Greek name of this plant is korion or koriannon, whence the name "coriander."

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Cucumbers

(Heb. plur. kishshuim; i.e., "hard," "difficult" of digestion, only in Num. 11:5). This vegetable is extensively cultivated in the East at the present day, as it appears to have been in earlier times among the Hebrews. It belongs to the gourd family of plants. In the East its cooling pulp and juice are most refreshing. "We need not altogether wonder that the Israelites, wearily marching through the arid solitudes of the Sinaitic peninsula, thought more of the cucumbers and watermelons of which they had had no lack in Egypt, rather than of the cruel bondage which was the price of these luxuries." Groser's Scripture Natural History. Isaiah speaks of a "lodge" (1:8; Heb. sukkah), i.e., a shed or edifice more solid than a booth, for the protection throughout the season from spring to autumn of the watchers in a "garden of cucumbers."

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Cummin

(Heb. kammon; i.e., a "condiment"), the fruit or seed of an umbelliferous plant, the Cuminum sativum, still extensively cultivated in the East. Its fruit is mentioned in Isa. 28:25, 27. In the New Testament it is mentioned in Matt. 23:23, where our Lord pronounces a "woe" on the scribes and Pharisees, who were zealous in paying tithes of "mint and anise and cummin," while they omitted the weightier matters of the law." "It is used as a spice, both bruised, to mix with bread, and also boiled, in the various messes and stews which compose an Oriental banquet." Tristram, Natural History.

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Flax

(Heb. pishtah, i.e., "peeled", in allusion to the fact that the stalks of flax when dried were first split or peeled before being steeped in water for the purpose of destroying the pulp). This plant was cultivated from earliest times. The flax of Egypt was destroyed by the plague of hail when it "was bolled", i.e., was forming pods for seed (Ex. 9:31). It was extensively cultivated both in Egypt and Palestine. Reference is made in Josh. 2:6 to the custom of drying flax-stalks by exposing them to the sun on the flat roofs of houses. It was much used in forming articles of clothing such as girdles, also cords and bands (Lev. 13:48, 52, 59; Deut. 22:11). (See [215]LINEN.)

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Flowers

Very few species of flowers are mentioned in the Bible although they abounded in Palestine. It has been calculated that in Western Syria and Palestine from two thousand to two thousand five hundred plants are found, of which about five hundred probably are British wild-flowers. Their beauty is often alluded to (Cant. 2:12; Matt. 6:28). They are referred to as affording an emblem of the transitory nature of human life (Job 14:2; Ps. 103:15; Isa. 28:1; 40:6; James 1:10). Gardens containing flowers and fragrant herbs are spoken of (Cant. 4:16; 6:2).

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Fuller's soap

(Heb. borith mekabbeshim, i.e., "alkali of those treading cloth"). Mention is made (Prov. 25:20; Jer. 2:22) of nitre and also (Mal. 3:2) of soap (Heb. borith) used by the fuller in his operations. Nitre is found in Syria, and vegetable alkali was obtained from the ashes of certain plants. (See [224]SOAP.)

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Gourd

(1.) Jonah's gourd (Jonah 4:6-10), bearing the Hebrew name kikayon (found only here), was probably the kiki of the Egyptians, the croton. This is the castor-oil plant, a species of ricinus, the palma Christi, so called from the palmate division of its leaves. Others with more probability regard it as the cucurbita the el-keroa of the Arabs, a kind of pumpkin peculiar to the East. "It is grown in great abundance on the alluvial banks of the Tigris and on the plain between the river and the ruins of Nineveh." At the present day it is trained to run over structures of mud and brush to form boots to protect the gardeners from the heat of the noon-day sun. It grows with extraordinary rapidity, and when cut or injured withers away also with great rapidity. (2.) Wild gourds (2 Kings 4:38-40), Heb. pakkuoth, belong to the family of the cucumber-like plants, some of which are poisonous. The species here referred to is probably the colocynth (Cucumis colocynthus). The LXX. render the word by "wild pumpkin." It abounds in the desert parts of Syria, Egypt, and Arabia. There is, however, another species, called the Cucumis prophetarum, from the idea that it afforded the gourd which "the sons of the prophets" shred by mistake into their pottage.

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Hemlock

(1.) Heb. rosh (Hos. 10:4; rendered "gall" in Deut. 29:18; 32:32; Ps. 69:21; Jer. 9:15; 23:15; "poison," Job 20:16; "venom," Deut. 32:33). "Rosh is the name of some poisonous plant which grows quickly and luxuriantly; of a bitter taste, and therefore coupled with wormwood (Deut. 29:18; Lam. 3:19). Hence it would seem to be not the hemlock cicuta, nor the colocynth or wild gourd, nor lolium darnel, but the poppy so called from its heads" (Gesenius, Lex.). (2.) Heb. la'anah, generally rendered "wormwood" (q.v.), Deut. 29:18, Text 17; Prov. 5:4; Jer. 9:15; 23:15. Once it is rendered "hemlock" (Amos 6:12; R.V., "wormwood"). This Hebrew word is from a root meaning "to curse," hence the accursed.

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Herb

(1.) Heb. eseb, any green plant; herbage (Gen. 1:11, 12, 29, 30; 2:5; 3:18, etc.); comprehending vegetables and all green herbage (Amos 7:1, 2). (2.) Yarak, green; any green thing; foliage of trees (2 Kings 19:26; Ps. 37:2); a plant; herb (Deut. 11:10). (3.) Or, meaning "light" In Isa. 26:19 it means "green herbs;" in 2 Kings 4:39 probably the fruit of some plant. (4.) Merorim, plural, "bitter herbs," eaten by the Israelites at the Passover (Ex. 12:8; Num. 9:11). They were bitter plants of various sorts, and referred symbolically to the oppression in Egypt.

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Hyssop

(Heb. ezob; LXX. hyssopos), first mentioned in Ex. 12:22 in connection with the institution of the Passover. We find it afterwards mentioned in Lev. 14:4, 6, 52; Num. 19:6, 18; Heb. 9:19. It is spoken of as a plant "springing out of the wall" (1 Kings 4:33). Many conjectures have been formed as to what this plant really was. Some contend that it was a species of marjoram (origanum), six species of which are found in Palestine. Others with more probability think that it was the caper plant, the Capparis spinosa of Linnaeus. This plant grew in Egypt, in the desert of Sinai, and in Palestine. It was capable of producing a stem three or four feet in length (Matt. 27:48; Mark 15:36. Comp. John 19:29). __________________________________________________________________

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Lily

The Hebrew name shushan or shoshan, i.e., "whiteness", was used as the general name of several plants common to Syria, such as the tulip, iris, anemone, gladiolus, ranunculus, etc. Some interpret it, with much probability, as denoting in the Old Testament the water-lily (Nymphoea lotus of Linn.), or lotus (Cant. 2:1, 2; 2:16; 4:5; 5:13; 6:2, 3; 7:2). "Its flowers are large, and they are of a white colour, with streaks of pink. They supplied models for the ornaments of the pillars and the molten sea" (1 Kings 7:19, 22, 26; 2 Chr. 4:5). In the Canticles its beauty and fragrance shadow forth the preciousness of Christ to the Church. Groser, however (Scrip. Nat. Hist.), strongly argues that the word, both in the Old and New Testaments, denotes liliaceous plants in general, or if one genus is to be selected, that it must be the genus Iris, which is "large, vigorous, elegant in form, and gorgeous in colouring." The lilies (Gr. krinia) spoken of in the New Testament (Matt. 6:28; Luke 12:27) were probably the scarlet martagon (Lilium Chalcedonicum) or "red Turk's-cap lily", which "comes into flower at the season of the year when our Lord's sermon on the mount is supposed to have been delivered. It is abundant in the district of Galilee; and its fine scarlet flowers render it a very conspicous and showy object, which would naturally attract the attention of the hearers" (Balfour's Plants of the Bible). Of the true "floral glories of Palestine" the pheasant's eye (Adonis Palestina), the ranunuculus (R. Asiaticus), and the anemone (A coronaria), the last named is however, with the greatest probability regarded as the "lily of the field" to which our Lord refers. "Certainly," says Tristram (Nat. Hist. of the Bible), "if, in the wondrous richness of bloom which characterizes the land of Israel in spring, any one plant can claim pre-eminence, it is the anemone, the most natural flower for our Lord to pluck and seize upon as an illustration, whether walking in the fields or sitting on the hill-side." "The white water-lily (Nymphcea alba) and the yellow water-lily (Nuphar lutea) are both abundant in the marshes of the Upper Jordan, but have no connection with the lily of Scripture."

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Mandrakes

Hebrew dudaim; i.e., "love-plants", occurs only in Gen. 30:14-16 and Cant. 7:13. Many interpretations have been given of this word dudaim. It has been rendered "violets," "Lilies," "jasmines," "truffles or mushrooms," "flowers," the "citron," etc. The weight of authority is in favour of its being regarded as the Mandragora officinalis of botanists, "a near relative of the night-shades, the apple of Sodom' and the potato plant." It possesses stimulating and narcotic properties (Gen. 30:14-16). The fruit of this plant resembles the potato-apple in size, and is of a pale orange colour. It has been called the "love-apple." The Arabs call it "Satan's apple." It still grows near Jerusalem, and in other parts of Palestine.

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Meadow

(1.) Heb. ha'ahu (Gen. 41:2, 18), probably an Egyptain word transferred to the Hebrew; some kind of reed or water-plant. In the Revised Version it is rendered "reed-grass", i.e., the sedge or rank grass by the river side. (2.) Heb. ma'areh (Judg. 20:33), pl., "meadows of Gibeah" (R.V., after the LXX., "Maareh-geba"). Some have adopted the rendering "after Gibeah had been left open." The Vulgate translates the word "from the west."

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Melons

Only in Num. 11:5, the translation of the Hebrew abattihim, the LXX. and Vulgate pepones, Arabic britikh. Of this plant there are various kinds, the Egyptian melon, the Cucumus chate, which has been called "the queen of cucumbers;" the water melon, the Cucurbita citrullus; and the common or flesh melon, the Cucumus melo. "A traveller in the East who recollects the intense gratitude which a gift of a slice of melon inspired while journeying over the hot and dry plains, will readily comprehend the regret with which the Hebrews in the Arabian desert looked back upon the melons of Egypt" (Kitto).

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Mint

(Gr. heduosmon, i.e., "having a sweet smell"), one of the garden herbs of which the Pharisees paid tithes (Matt. 23:23; Luke 11:42). It belongs to the labiate family of plants. The species most common in Syria is the Mentha sylvestris, the wild mint, which grows much larger than the garden mint (M. sativa). It was much used in domestic economy as a condiment, and also as a medicine. The paying of tithes of mint was in accordance with the Mosiac law (Deut. 14:22), but the error of the Pharisees lay in their being more careful about this little matter of the mint than about weightier matters.

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Mustard

A plant of the genus sinapis, a pod-bearing, shrub-like plant, growing wild, and also cultivated in gardens. The little round seeds were an emblem of any small insignificant object. It is not mentioned in the Old Testament; and in each of the three instances of its occurrence in the New Testament (Matt. 13:31, 32; Mark 4:31, 32; Luke 13:18, 19) it is spoken of only with reference to the smallness of its seed. The common mustard of Palestine is the Sinapis nigra. This garden herb sometimes grows to a considerable height, so as to be spoken of as "a tree" as compared with garden herbs.

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Nettle

(1.) Heb. haral, "pricking" or "burning," Prov. 24:30, 31 (R.V. marg., "wild vetches"); Job 30:7; Zeph. 2:9. Many have supposed that some thorny or prickly plant is intended by this word, such as the bramble, the thistle, the wild plum, the cactus or prickly pear, etc. It may probably be a species of mustard, the Sinapis arvensis, which is a pernicious weed abounding in corn-fields. Tristram thinks that this word "designates the prickly acanthus (Acanthus spinosus), a very common and troublesome weed in the plains of Palestine." (2.) Heb. qimmosh, Isa. 34:13; Hos. 9:6; Prov. 24:31 (in both versions, "thorns"). This word has been regarded as denoting thorns, thistles, wild camomile; but probably it is correctly rendered "nettle," the Urtica pilulifera, "a tall and vigorous plant, often 6 feet high, the sting of which is much more severe and irritating than that of our common nettle."

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Pannag

(Ezek. 27:17; marg. R.V., "perhaps a kind of confection") the Jews explain as the name of a kind of sweet pastry. Others take it as the name of some place, identifying it with Pingi, on the road between Damascus and Baalbec. "Pannaga" is the Sanscrit name of an aromatic plant (comp. Gen. 43:11).

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Poison

(1.) Heb. hemah, "heat," the poison of certain venomous reptiles (Deut. 32:24, 33; Job 6:4; Ps. 58:4), causing inflammation. (2.) Heb. rosh, "a head," a poisonous plant (Deut. 29:18), growing luxuriantly (Hos. 10:4), of a bitter taste (Ps. 69:21; Lam. 3:5), and coupled with wormwood; probably the poppy. This word is rendered "gall", q.v., (Deut. 29:18; 32:33; Ps. 69:21; Jer. 8:14, etc.), "hemlock" (Hos. 10:4; Amos 6:12), and "poison" (Job 20:16), "the poison of asps," showing that the rosh was not exclusively a vegetable poison. (3.) In Rom. 3:13 (comp. Job 20:16; Ps. 140:3), James 3:8, as the rendering of the Greek ios.

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Shuthelah

plant; verdure; moist; pot

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Soap

(Jer. 2:22; Mal. 3:2; Heb. borith), properly a vegetable alkali, obtained from the ashes of certain plants, particularly the salsola kali (saltwort), which abounds on the shores of the Dead Sea and of the Mediterranean. It does not appear that the Hebrews were acquainted with what is now called "soap," which is a compound of alkaline carbonates with oleaginous matter. The word "purely" in Isa. 1:25 (R.V., "throughly;" marg., "as with lye") is lit. "as with bor." This word means "clearness," and hence also that which makes clear, or pure, alkali. "The ancients made use of alkali mingled with oil, instead of soap (Job 9:30), and also in smelting metals, to make them melt and flow more readily and purely" (Gesenius).

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Spikenard

(Heb. nerd), a much-valued perfume (Cant. 1:12; 4:13, 14). It was "very precious", i.e., very costly (Mark 14:3; John 12:3, 5). It is the root of an Indian plant, the Nardostachys jatamansi, of the family of Valeriance, growing on the Himalaya mountains. It is distinguished by its having many hairy spikes shooting out from one root. It is called by the Arabs sunbul Hindi, "the Indian spike." In the New Testament this word is the rendering of the Greek nardos pistike. The margin of the Revised Version in these passages has "pistic nard," pistic being perhaps a local name. Some take it to mean genuine, and others liquid. The most probable opinion is that the word pistike designates the nard as genuine or faithfully prepared.

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Thorn

(1.) Heb. hedek (Prov. 15:19), rendered "brier" in Micah 7:4. Some thorny plant, of the Solanum family, suitable for hedges. This is probably the so-called "apple of Sodom," which grows very abundantly in the Jordan valley. "It is a shrubby plant, from 3 to 5 feet high, with very branching stems, thickly clad with spines, like those of the English brier, with leaves very large and woolly on the under side, and thorny on the midriff." (2.) Heb. kotz (Gen. 3:18; Hos. 10:8), rendered akantha by the LXX. In the New Testament this word akantha is also rendered "thorns" (Matt. 7:16; 13:7; Heb. 6:8). The word seems to denote any thorny or prickly plant (Jer. 12:13). It has been identified with the Ononis spinosa by some. (3.) Heb. na'atzutz (Isa. 7:19; 55:13). This word has been interpreted as denoting the Zizyphus spina Christi, or the jujube-tree. It is supposed by some that the crown of thorns placed in wanton cruelty by the Roman soldiers on our Saviour's brow before his crucifixion was plaited of branches of this tree. It overruns a great part of the Jordan valley. It is sometimes called the lotus-tree. "The thorns are long and sharp and recurved, and often create a festering wound." It often grows to a great size. (See CROWN OF [632]THORNS.) (4.) Heb. atad (Ps. 58:9) is rendered in the LXX. and Vulgate by Rhamnus, or Lycium Europoeum, a thorny shrub, which is common all over Palestine. From its resemblance to the box it is frequently called the box-thorn.

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