Cedar in The Bible

An article from the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, the entry being "Cedar", and edited by me for accuracy, clarity, & brevity, as well as for removal of mention of the wood being used for idol-carving as a positive or neutral attribute.

This text is in the public domain.

sē´dẽr (ארז, 'erez, from the Hebrew root meaning “to be firm”; κέδρος, kédros): The 'erez was in almost all the Old Testament references the true cedar, Cedrus libani, but the name may have been applied in a loose way to allied trees, such as junipers and pines.

1. Cedar for Ritual Cleansing

Cedar is twice mentioned as a substance for ritual cleansing. In Leviticus 14:4 the cleansed leper was sprinkled with the blood of a “clean bird” into which had been put “cedar-wood, and scarlet, and hyssop.”

2. Cedar Trees in the Old Testament

Cedar trees are everywhere mentioned with admiration in the Old Testament. Solomon made strong mention of cedars (1Kings 4:33). They are amongst the trees spoken of as the “glory of Lebanon” (Isaiah 60:13). The most boastful threat of Sennacherib was that he would cut down the tall cedars of Lebanon (Isaiah 37:24). They were strong, as is implied in Psalm 29.

The cedars are tall - “whose height was like the height of the cedars” - (Amos 2:9; 2nd Kings 19:23); and excellent (Song of Solomon 5:15).

The growth of the cedar is typical of that of the righteous man (Psalm 92:12).

That cedars were once very abundant in the Lebanon is evident. What they contributed to the glory and beauty of that district may be seen in Zechariah 11:1-2.]

3. Cedar Timber

The wood of the cedar has always been highly prized. David had a house of cedar built for him by Hiram, king of Tyre (2nd Samuel 5:11), and he prepared “cedar trees in abundance” for the temple which his son was to build (1st Chronicles 22:4). Cedar timber was very much used in the construction of Solomon's temple and palace, the trees being cut in Lebanon by Sidonians by orders of the king of Tyre (1st Kings 5:6-10). One of Solomon's most famous buildings was known as “the house of the forest of Lebanon” (1st Kings 7:2; 1st Kings 10:17; 2nd Chronicles 9:16.) Cedar was well adapted, and used for beams ( 1Kings 6:9; Song of Solomon 1:17), boards (Song of Solomon 8:9), pillars (1st Kings 7:2) and ceilings (Jeremiah 22:14). It was also used for ships' masts (Ezekiel 27:5).

4. Cedars in Modern Syria

The Cedrus libani still survives in the mountains of Syria and flourishes in much greater numbers in the Taurus mountains. “There are groves of cedars above el-Ma‛āṣir, Barûk, ‛Ain Zehaltah, Hadith, Besherri, and Sı̂r” (Post, Flora, 751). Of these the grove at Besherri is of world-wide renown. It consists of a group of about 400 trees, among them some magnificent old patriarchs, which lies on the bare slopes of the Lebanon some 6,000 ft. above the sea. Doubtless they are survivors of a forest which here once covered the mountain slopes for miles. The half a dozen highest specimens reach a height of between 70 and 80 ft., and have trunks of a circumference of 40 ft. or more.

Though magnificent, these are by no means the largest of their kind. Some of the cedars of Amanus are quite 100 ft. high and the Himalayan cedar, Cedrus deodara, a variety of Cedrus libani, reaches a height of 150 ft.

The impressiveness of the cedar lies, however, not so much in its height and massive trunk, as in the wonderful lateral spread of its branches, which often exceeds its height. The branches grow out horizontally in successive tiers, each horizontal plane presenting, when looked at from above, the appearance of a green sward. The leaves are about an inch long, arranged in clusters; at first they are bright green, but they change with age to a deeper tint with a glaucous hue; the foliage is evergreen, the successive annual growths of leaves each lasting two years. The cones, 4 to 6 inches long, are oval or oblong-ovate, with a depression at times at the apex; they require two years to reach maturity and then, unlike other conifers, they remain attached to the tree, dropping out their scales bearing the seeds.

The wood of the cedar, specially grown under the conditions of its natural habitat, is hard, close grained, and takes a high polish. It is full of resin (Psalm 104:16) which preserves it from rot and from worms. Cedar oil, a kind of turpentine extracted from the wood, was used in ancient times as a preservative for parchments and garments.