FKIJIT, "the product of the earth, as trees, "jilants, etc. 1. ' Blessed shall be the fruit of thy ground and cattle.' The fruit of the body signifies children : 'Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body.' By fruit is
sometimes meant reward: 'They shall eat of the fruit of their own ways' (Prov. i, 31) ; the}' shall receive the reward of their bad conduct, and punishment answer- aide to their sins. The fruit of the lips is the sacrifice of praise or thanksgiving (Heb. xiii, 15). The fruit of the righteous — that is, the co'.msel, example, instruc- tion, and reproof of the righteo.is — is a tree of life, is a means of much good, both temporal and eternal, and that not only to himself, but to others also (Prov. xi, SO). Solomon says, in Prov. xii, 14, 'A man shall lie satisfied with good b}' the fruit of his mouth ;' that is, he shall receive abundant blessings from God as the reward of that good he has done by his pious and profitable discourses. 'Fruits meet for repentance' (Matt, iii, 8) is such a conduct as befits the profession of penitence.
"2. The fruits of the Spirit are those gracious habits which the Holy Spirit of God produces in those in whom he dwelleth and worketh, with those acts which flow from them, as naturally as the tree produces its fruit. The apostle enumerates these fruits in Gala- tians V, 22, 23. The same apostle, in Eph. v. 9, com- prehends the fruits of the sanctifying Spirit in these three things, namely, goodness, righteousness, and truth. The fruits of righteousness are such good works and holj' actions as spring from a gracious frame of heart: 'Being filled Avith the fruits of righteousness,' Phil, i, 11. Fruit is taken for a charitable contribu- tion, which is the fruit or effect of faith and love : 'When I have sealed unto them this fruit,' Kom. xv, 28; when I have safely delivered this contribution. "When fruit is spoken of good men, then it is to be un- derstood of the fruits or works of holiness and right- eousness ; but when of evil men, then are meant the fruits of sin, immorality, and wickedness. This is our Saviour's doctrine, Matt, vii, 16-18." — Watson, Theo- logical Dictionary, s. v.
FRUIT-TREE (113 'IV, efs-peri', Gen. i, 11, etc.). From the frequent mention of fruit in the Scriptures, we may infer that fruit-bearing trees of various sorts abounded in Palestine. Among the number are spe- cially noticed the vine, olive, pomegranate, fig, syca- more, palm, pear, almond, quince, citron, orange, mul- berry, carob, pistacia, and walnut. Other trees and plants also abounded, which yielded their produce in the form of odorous resins and oils, as the balsam, gal- banum, frankincense, ladanum, balm, myrrh, spike- nard, storax gum, and tragacanth gum. See Pales- tine. The ancient Egyptians bestowed great care upon fruit-trees, which are frequently delineated upon the monuments (Wilkinson, i, 36, 55, 57, abridgment). 'The Mosaic law contains the following prescriptions respecting fruit-trees :
1. The fruit of newly-planted trees was not to be plucked for the first four years (Lev. xix, 23 sq.). The economical effect of this provision was observed bj' Philo (0pp. ii, 402). Michaelis remarks (La7rs of Moses, art. 221), " Everj' gardener will teach us not to let fruit-trees bear in their earliest j-ears, but to ])luclc oflT the blossoms ; and for this reason, that they will thus thrive the better, and bear more abundantly af- terwards. The very expression, ' to re-^ard them as uncircumcised,' suggests the propriety of pinching them off." Another object of this law may have been to exclude from use crude, immature, and therefore unwholesome fruits. When fruits are in season the Orientals consume great quantities of them, t'hardin says the Persians and Turks are not only fond of al- monds, plums, and melons in a mature state, but they are remarkable for eating them before they are ripe. But there was also a higher moral object in the Jlosaic regulation. Trees were not regarded as full-grown until the fifth year, and all products were deemed im- mature (arfXfit) and unfit for use until consecrated to Jehovah (Josephus, ^?i^ iv, 8, 19). See Foreskin. The Talmud gives minute rules and many puerile dis-
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tinctions on the subject (Orlali, i, 10). See First- fruits.
2. In besieging fortified places fruit-trees were not to be cut down for fuel (q. v'.) nor for militiuy pur- poses (Deut. XX, 19 ; compare Josephus, Ant. iv, 8, 42 ; Pliilo, Opio. ii, 400). See Siege. This humane pro- hiliition, however, was not always observed (2 Kings iii, 2."0. See Tree.
Friinientius, St., called the apostle of Christian- ity in Ethiopia, was born in Tyre towards the begin- ning of the 4th centurj'. He was brought up by liis uncle ^leropius, whom he accompanied (with his rela- tive (Edesiiis) on a voyage of scientiiic discovery. The}^ landed on the coast of Abyssinia or Ethiopia to procure water, but the natives murdered all on board except the two hoys, whom they found sitting under a tree and reading. CEdesius became cup-bearer and i Frumentius private secretary to the prince. After [ the death of the prince, Frumentius was appointed tu- j tor to the young prince iEizanes, and obtained great j influence in state affairs. He succeeded in founding a church, and in 32G went to Alexandria, where Atha- nasius (recently made bishop of Alexandria) consecra- ted him bishop of Axum (Auxuma), the chief city of the Abyssiniaus, and an important mart of trade. His labors were rewarded by extraordinary success. He is supposed to have translated the Bible into Ethiopian. Theophihis of Arabia visited Abj'ssinia, and " repaired to the principal town, Auxuma (Axum). Theophilus being an Arian, and Frumentius, tlie friend of Atha- nasius, professing in all probability the doctrines of the Council of Nice, it is possible a dispute may have arisen in their announcement here of their respective doctrines, which would necessarily lie attended with unfavorable effects on the nascent church ; but per- haps, too, Frumentius, who had not received a theo- logical education, did not enter so deeply into theolog- ical questions. Still the emperor Constantiiis consid- ered it necessary to persecute the disciples of the hated Athanasius even in these remote regions. After Atlia- nasius had been banished from Alexandria, in the year 356, Constantius required the princes of the Abyssin- ian people to send Frumentius to Alexandria, in order that the Arian bishop Georgius, who had been set up in place of Athanasius, might inquire into his ortho- doxy, and into the regularitv of his ordination" (Ne- ander. Church Hist, ii, 120). The princes refused, and Frumentius continued at work until his death, the date of which is uncertain (perhaps A.D. 3G0). He is cel- ebrated as a saint by the Latins on October 27, bj"^ the Greeks on November 30, and by the Abyssiniaus on December 18. — Socrates, Hist. Eccl. i, 19; Theodoret, i, 22; Ludolf, Ilistor, ^'Ethiop. iii, 7; Butler, Lives of Saints, Oct. 27.