The just one shall flourish
like the palm tree,
like a cedar of Lebanon
shall he grow.
(Psalm 92:13)
Cedrus libani, commonly known as cedar of Lebanon is a species of tree in the genus Cedrus, a part of the pine family, native to the mountains of the Eastern Mediterranean basin. It is a large evergreen conifer that has great religious and historical significance in the cultures of the Middle East and is referenced many times in the literature of ancient civilizations. It is the national emblem of Lebanon and is widely used as an ornamental tree in parks and gardens.
The Lebanon cedar is mentioned several times in the Bible. Hebrew priests were ordered by Moses to use the bark of the Lebanon cedar in the treatment of leprosy. Solomon also procured cedar timber to build the Temple in Jerusalem. The Hebrew prophet Isaiah used the Lebanon cedar (together with "oaks of Bashan", "all the high mountains" and "every high tower") as examples of loftiness as a metaphor for the pride of the world.
Cedar in the Bible:
He said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God dwells in a tent!” (Samuel 2:2)
They are like gardens beside a stream, like the cedars planted by the Lord (Numbers 24:6).
Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorites before them, who were as tall as the cedars, and as strong as the oak trees. I destroyed their fruit above, and their roots beneath (Amos 2:9).
Thus says the Lord God: I, too, will take from the crest of the cedar, from its topmost branches tear off a tender shoot, and plant it on a high and lofty mountain; on the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it. It shall put forth branches and bear fruit, and become a majestic cedar. Birds of every kind shall dwell beneath it, every winged thing in the shade of its boughs. And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the Lord, bring low the high tree, lift high the lowly tree, wither up the green tree, and make the withered tree bloom. As I, the Lord, have spoken, so will I do. (Ezekiel 17:22-24)
In all my wanderings everywhere among the children of Israel, did I ever utter a word to any one of the judges whom I charged to tend my people Israel, to ask: Why have you not built me a house of cedar?’ (2 Samuel 7:7)
I will be like the dew for Israel: he shall blossom like the lily; he shall strike root like the Lebanon cedar, and put forth his shoots. His splendor shall be like the olive tree and his fragrance like the Lebanon cedar. (Hosea 14:6-7)
I will plant in the desert the cedar, acacia, myrtle, and olive; I will set in the wasteland the cypress, together with the plane tree and the pine, that all may see and know, observe and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this, the Holy One of Israel has created it. (Isaiah 41:19-20)
Then all the trees said to the buckthorn, ‘Come; you reign over us!’ But the buckthorn replied to the trees, ‘If you wish to anoint me king over you in good faith, come and take refuge in my shadow. Otherwise, let fire come from the buckthorn and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’” (Judges 9:14-15)
