willow

There are two kinds of willow in Palestine, the White Willow Salix alba being the northern one, and the Common Willow Salix acmophylla being the southern, more heat-tolerant one. In the Jordan Valley the willow gives way to the salt-tolerant Euphrates poplar as the river gets close to the Dead Sea. Some confusion of names arises from the fact that the Euphrates poplar has two kinds of leaves. The younger shoots produce a narrow leaf like the willow, and the mature shoots produce a wider, ovate leaf.

The willow is found along streams, where it can grow to a height of 6 meters (20 feet). It has long, narrow leaves which drop during the winter and the tiny green flowers appear around October.

If “willow” is indeed the correct translation of ‘aravah in Leviticus (23:40), then it is one of the four species recommended for use in building shelters for the Festival of Shelters. In Job it is the habitat of the mysterious Behemoth that no man can tame. In Isaiah and Ezekiel it is a metaphor for something that grows luxuriantly.

Over three hundred Salix species are found around the world in temperate regions. They are sometimes known as ossiers or sallows. At least one Salix species (Safsaf Willow Salix subserrata) is found in sub-Saharan Africa in addition to being found in Egypt, Libya, and Israel. Flora of West Tropical Africa lists three other species. People who make round, thatched houses use thin, flexible sticks from a shrub to form the concentric rings that hold the radial sticks (either bamboo or sorghum stalks) in place. Some of these may be willows, and if so, the local word would be appropriate in the biblical context where shelters are being constructed.

In Isaiah 44:4 and Ezekiel 17:5 the willow is symbolic of quick growth and may require an appropriate local equivalent of a thriving plant.

Salix acmophilla, Wikimedia Commons

Source: Each According to its Kind: Plants and Trees in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

Translation commentary on Isaiah 44:4

They shall spring up like grass amid waters, like willows by flowing streams: The pronoun They refers back to the children in the previous verse. In Revised Standard Version they are compared to grass and willows that grow on well-watered ground. However, in the Hebrew text of Masoretic Text there is only a comparison to willows. Masoretic Text is literally “They will spring up in between grass, like willows by streams of water.” Revised Standard Version follows the Septuagint, which is similar to Dead Sea Scrolls here. Revised English Bible emends Masoretic Text to read “They will grow up like a green tamarisk, like willows by flowing streams” (similarly New Revised Standard Version). Like de~Waard and Hebrew Old Testament Text Project, we prefer Masoretic Text here. New Jerusalem Bible follows Masoretic Text by saying “and they will spring up among the grass, like willows on the banks of a stream” (similarly New American Bible).

For willows see the comments on 15.7. In cultures where the willow tree is unknown, translators can select a tree that grows near water. If a general term for such trees exists, it is better to use it in order to avoid importing a foreign idea into the biblical culture.

Despite the textual difficulty here, the overall picture is quite clear: the children will flourish like plants and trees that are well watered. For the translation of this verse consider the following examples:

• They will shoot up amid grass,
like green trees beside streams.

• They will grow up among green plants,
like willow trees along flowing streams.

• They will grow like poplar trees
among grass by the riverside.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Sterk, Jan. A Handbook on Isaiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .