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BIBLE DICTIONARY + WORD STUDY

Herb

Original Hebrew / Aramaic / Greek connected to this term

How to read this: there is rarely one magic “true meaning” hidden behind an English word. A lexicon records a word’s semantic range. The intended meaning is narrowed by grammar, sentence, author, historical usage and context.

HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H6212

עֵ֫שֶׂב

e.sev — vegetation

herb, herbage, grass, green plants Aramaic equivalent: a.sav (עֲשַׂב "grass" H6211B)

32 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →

HEBREW / ARAMAIC · H1877

דֶּ֫שֶׁא

de.she — grass

grass, new grass, green herb, vegetation, young Aramaic equivalent: de.te (דֶּ֫תֶא "grass" H1883)

14 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →

GREEK · G3001

λάχανον

lachanon — plant

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)

4 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →

GREEK · G1008

βοτάνη

botanē — crop

βοτάνη, -ῆς, ἡ (βόσκω), [in LXX for עֵשֶׂב, דֶשֶׁא, חָצִיר ;] 1. grass, fodder. 2. green herb: Heb.6:7.† SYN.: λάχανον, a garden herb, a vegetable. (AS)

1 tagged verse occurrence · see every occurrence →

GREEK · G3133

μαραίνω

marainō — to fade

μαραίνω [in LXX: Job.15:30 (יָבֵשׁ pi.), Job.24:24, Wis.2:8 19:21 * ;] in cl., 1. prop., to quench fire; pass., of fire, to die away, go out. 2. In various relations, to quench, waste, wear out (cf. Wis.19:21); pass., to waste away; in later writers (Plut., Luc., al.), of the withering of flowers and herbage (act., Job.15:30; pass., Job.24:24, Wis.2:8): Jas.1:11 (cf. ἀμάραντον).† (AS)

1 tagged verse occurrence · see every occurrence →

GREEK · G8405

νομός

nomos — abode

1. a feeding-place for cattle, pasture , (Homer); ν. ὕλης a woodland pasture , (Odyssey by Homer) 2. herbage , (Homeric Hymns):—;generally, food , (Hesiod) 3. metaphorically, ἐπέων πολὺς νομός a wide range for words, (Iliad by Homer) 4. an abode allotted or assigned to one, a district, province , (Pindar), etc.; νομὸν ἔχειν to have one's dwelling-place , (Herdotus Historicus) 5. one of the districts into which Egypt was divided, (Herdotus Historicus), etc.; applied also to other provinces , (Herdotus Historicus) (ML)

0 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →

GREEK · G8828

πόα

poa — herbage

1. grass, herb , (Homer), etc.; ποία Μηδική, Lat. herba Medica, sainfoin or lucerne , (Aristophanes Comicus) 2. the grass , i. e. a grassy place , plat., (Xenophon Historicus) 3. in Poets, of Time, τέσσαρας πόας four grasses , i. e. summers , [variant datesAnthology Palantina (ML)

0 tagged verse occurrences · see every occurrence →

Historical dictionary entry

(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.

Scripture references

Genesis 1:11Genesis 1:12Genesis 1:29Genesis 1:30Genesis 2:5Genesis 3:18Amos 7:1Amos 7:22 Kings 19:26Psalms 37:2Deuteronomy 11:10Isaiah 26:192 Kings 4:39Exodus 12:8Numbers 9:11

Source: Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897). Historical dictionary wording reflects the scholarship and language of its era.

Compare other reference traditions

Look up Herb in Smith’s Bible Dictionary and ISBE →