Plants of the Bible

Lytton John MusselmanOld Dominion University

About 125 different plants are mentioned in the Bible.

This includes crops about whose identity is clear, and such obscure plants as almug wood (II Chronicles 2:8) and “costly wood” (Revelation 18:12). In addition, there are general terms as “weeds” and “trees”.

More plants are mentioned in the Old Testament than in the

New Testament• Isaiah mentions more plants than any other

book (it is also one of the longest books).

• Song of Solomon mentions more unique plants, hapex legemon, than any other book.

Few plants and plant products are unique to the New Testament

Papyrus

Laurel

Paper from the Egyptian river plant Cyperus papyrus is mentioned in II John 12. It was shipped to the Phoenician port of Byblos, the present day Lebanese city of Jbail. Our English word paper comes from papyrus and BibleBible from Byblos.

Ancient port of Byblos

Laurel (Laurus nobilis), the bay leaf of cooking, is implied in the victor’s crown in several New Testament verses, especially Paul’s writings. Itis a common shrub in the Mediterranean region.

“…you willreceive a crownof glory that will never fade. . .”I Peter 5:4

• Several plants are obvious imports to Israel. Examples are ebony (Ezekiel 27:15) and the essential ingredients for the anointing oil and incense—calamus, frankincense, and myrrh (Exodus 30)

Boswellia papyrifera near Kadugli, Sudan

• Based on an agrarian society, the Bible includes many references to crops, like wheat, and associated plants. Certainly the best known is the mustard of Jesus’ teaching yet we have little idea of which plant is intended.

• No clear correlation exists between the frequency of references and the frequency of plants in natural vegetation. A good example is the carob (kharoob in Arabic), Ceratonia siliqua, a common tree in much of the Middle East yet mentioned only once (the story of the prodigal son, Luke 15).

Because of their uniformweight, the seeds of carobwere used to measure preciouscommodities, like gold. Hencethe word carat in English, fromCeratonia.

Local people in different lands use Bible (or Qu’ran) names for indigenous plants which never grew in Bible lands. The flora of Eastern North America, for example, has many "cedars," which are no relation to the cedar of Lebanon of the Bible.  

Cedar of Lebanon

Atlantic whitecedar, DismalSwamp

Chamaecyparis thyoides

Juniperus virginiana

Red cedar

In eastern Sudan, the Beja people call the large, arborescent Euphorbia abyssinca, zaqqm after the “tree of Hell” mentioned in the Qu’ran (Al-Sfft 37:65, Al-Dukhn 44:49, Al-Waqiah 56:51).

• The vine (Vitis vinifera) and its products is mentioned more than any other plant with 372 references. On the other hand, some plants are mentioned only once such as saffron.

Current Research on Bible Plants

Cedar of LebanonCedrus libani

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like

a cedar in LebanonPsalm 92:12

Certainly the best known Lebanese plant is Cedrus libani, Cedar of Lebanon

Tannourine cedar preserveCedars of the Lord, Bsherri

Cedar requires fog from theMediterranean to thrive

Ehden cedar preserve, March 2002

Less than 3% of theoriginal cedar forestis extant in Lebanon

A patriarch of cedars at the Arz el Rab (cedars of God)Preserve near Bsherri, Lebanon

Wood craft from broken branchesand damaged trees

Artist Rudy Rahme has sculpted some dead treesinto objects of religious veneration, perhaps a

continuation of the ancient respect for forest giants

A cedar log about300 years old when

it was toppled, probably by a flood,

7774 years ago.Preserved on the campus

of the AmericanUniversity of Beirut

Current research at the American Universityof Beirut seeks to inventory cedars, determine their reproductive potential, and understand theirimportance in the local economy

MandrakeMandragora officinalisA relative of tomato, potato,and tobacco. It contains acomplex chemical mixture.

MandrakeFlowers in the winter with specializedfloral parts that repel rain.

Mandrake

Fruits are oftenconsidered toxic

Fragrant fruits are producedin the late spring. “. . .themandrakes send out theirfragrance. . .” Song of Solomon 7: 13.

Frikeh Green Roasted Wheat

Current Research on Bible Plants

What is the material in these verses?

• If you bring a grain offering of first fruits to the Lord, you shall bring as the grain offering of your first fruits coarse new grain from fresh ears parched with fire. Leviticus 2:14. New Revised Standard Version

• If you bring a grain offering of first fruits to the LORD, offer crushed heads of new grain roasted in the fire. Leviticus 2:14. New International Version

Frikeh Production in Syria

Selecting the grain for burning

Frikeh Production in Syria

Selecting the grain for burningBurning the durum wheat

Frikeh Production in Syria

The finished product.

Drying on an Aleppo sidewalk

What are “leeks” in the Bible?

We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost--also the cucumbers, melons, leeks and garlic.

Numbers 11:5

CComparison of Allium porrumand A. kurrat

Allium porrum, England Allium kurrat, Egypt

Kurrat

Culture of kurrat nearAlexandria, Egypt March 2003

Kurrat

Kurrat is easy to grow from seed.Flowers appear after six months.

What is the smallestseed in the Bible?

Brassica nigraBlack mustard

Brassica albaWhite mustard Mustard??

Brassica alba

Mustard seed is not the smallest seed, only the smallest of crop seeds.

Wheat

Chickpea

Barley

Flax

Wheat

Chickpea

Barley

Flax

Mustard

Jesus said: “It [The Kingdom ofGod] is like a mustard seed, whichis the smallest seed you plant. . .”Mark 4: 31.

What feature makes it like the Kingdom of God?

Perhaps its unusually rapid germination.

What feature makes it like the Kingdom of God?

“Leaven” is also a symbol of theKingdom of God.

Mustard seed 24 hours after sowing

Mustard—What ismustard in the Bible?

There is no archeologicalor ethnobotanical evidence

of culture of mustard.

One candidate is Erucasativa, known in Englishas rocket or arugula.

Eruca sativa, widely usedin the Middle East

Eruca sativa, widely usedin the Middle East

Some Bible Plants easyto grow in the Tidewater

area

Myrtle

Myrtle

Myrtle

Flax

Flax—source of linen, one of two fabrics in the Bible

Flax—source of linseed, orflax seed, one of the oldestknown foods.

Toasted Raw

There are many other Bibleplants suitable for Tidewater gardens including:Saffron OnionDill GarlicCumin BroadbeanMelon RueCucumber MyrtlePomegranate Mustard

There are many other Bibleplants suitable for Tidewater gardens including:Saffron

There are many other Bibleplants suitable for Tidewater gardens including:

Dill

There are many other Bibleplants suitable for Tidewater gardens including:

Cumin

There are many other Bibleplants suitable for Tidewater gardens including:Pomegranate

Pomegranates on a frieze in Hagia Sophia,Istanbul

There are some Bible plants un-suitable for Tidewater gardens including:Poison hemlock

Deadly poison!!Caused the death ofSocrates!

Plants of the Bible

For more information on BiblePlants, go to the ODU Bible plantsWeb site at http://web.odu.edu/plant

Plants of the Bible

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With thanks to……

American University of Beirut and Old Dominion University…

John Musselman, eagerfield companion….

My favorite Bible teacher,Libby Musselman

Solo Deo Gloria

Wadi Jhannem, northern Lebanon

…of Lebanon to the hyssopthat grows from the wall.I Kings 4

He [Solomon] spokeof plant life from thecedar……………