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prop. òֵåֹ , ets ( äÝíäñïí ), which also signifies wood ( îῦëïí ); in Jer_6:6, the fern. òֵöָä , etsah, is used. Besides this generic term, there also occur peculiar words of a more distinct signification, e.g. àֵùֵׁì , eshel (1Sa_22:6; 1Sa_31:13; “grove” [q.v.] in Gen_21:33), which is thought to denote the tamarisk or else the terebbinth; àֵéì , eyl (Isa_61:3; Eze_31:14); Chald, àַéìָï , ildan (Dan_4:10 sq.), prob. the oak (q.v.); òֵåֹ äָãָø , ets hadar (“goodly tree,” Lev_23:40), òֵåֹ àָáֹú , nis aboth (“thick tree,” Lev_23:40; Neh_8:15), and
öֶàֶì , tsel (“shady tree,” Job_40:21-22), which designate rather vigorous trees in general than specific varieties. SEE TABERNACLES, FESTIVAL OF. For a list of all the kinds of trees (including shrubs, plants, fruits, etc.) mentioned in the Bible, SEE BOTANY. See Taylor, Trees of Scripture (Lond. 1842).
In Eastern countries trees are not only graceful ornaments in the landscape, but essential to the comfort and support of the inhabitants. The Hebrews were forbidden to destroy the fruit-trees of their enemies in time of war, “for the tree of the field is man's life” (Deu_20:19-20). Trees of any kind are not now very abundant in Palestine. Some trees are found, by an examination of the internal zones, to attain to a very long age. There are some in existence which are stated to have attained a longevity of three thousand years, and for some of them a still higher antiquity is claimed. Individual trees in Palestine are often notable for historical and sacred associations (Thomson, Land and Book, 2, 151). SEE ALLON-BACHUTH; SEE MEONENIM.