Laurel tree
Archimandrite Nikifor’s Biblical Encyclopedia
- the Hebrew word ezrach, rendered 'cedar of Lebanon' in the Slavonic Bible and 'a green tree spreading itself' in the Russian translation of Psalm 37:35, may refer to a tree of the laurel family; others, following the Septuagint and Vulgate, understood a cedar of Lebanon. The Hebrew word properly conveys a native tree growing and spreading in its own soil rather than one transplanted. The laurel is a large, beautiful evergreen of warm climates and southern Europe, especially high mountains where it may form extensive forests.
It is native to Palestine. Its leaves season food. Greeks and Romans crowned heroes, orators, victors, and poets with laurel wreaths. In eastern popular speech, both good and wicked persons could be compared with tamarinds, cedars, or other trees.