אֵזוֹב

From the study of Psalm 51:7

Range of meaning

A small, hardy aromatic plant that grows from rocks and walls (1 Kgs 4:33). Botanists usually identify it as Syrian marjoram (Origanum syriacum, the za'atar plant). European hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis) is less likely, since it does not grow wild in the Levant. Its hairy, branching stems hold liquid well, so a bundle of it made a natural sprinkler.

Against the English

'Hyssop' is the traditional English name, taken from Greek hyssōpos. Modern readers picture the garden herb sold under that name, which is probably a different plant.

How it drifted

English took over the Greek and Latin plant name, and in Europe that name was attached to a different species.

Used elsewhere in the period

Exod 12:22: dipped in Passover blood and daubed on the doorposts. Lev 14:4–6, 49–52: with cedar wood and scarlet yarn, dipped in bird's blood to purify someone healed of skin disease, or a house. Num 19:6, 18: burned with the red heifer, and used to sprinkle the purification water on anyone defiled by a corpse. Later echoes appear in John 19:29 and Heb 9:19.

From the study of Exodus 12:22

Range of meaning

A small, bushy, aromatic plant with hairy leaves. It grows commonly in rocky ground and in cracks in walls (1 Kgs 4:33, where it stands for the smallest plant in contrast to the cedar). Most botanists identify it with Syrian marjoram (Origanum syriacum, Arabic za'atar). It is a plant, not a substance, and its use in Israel's rites is as a tool for applying liquids.

Against the English

Every major English version says 'hyssop', taken from the Greek hyssōpos. The word is correct but misleading: the modern plant sold as hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis) is a European herb that does not grow wild in Egypt or Canaan, so the plant in a reader's mind is probably the wrong one.

How it drifted

The Greek hyssōpos (possibly a loanword from the Semitic ezov) was passed through Latin into European languages and attached to a European plant, so the name moved to a different species.

Used elsewhere in the period

Torah: used to sprinkle blood and water in cleansing a person or house with skin disease (Lev 14:4–6, 49–52) and in the red-heifer water rite (Num 19:6, 18). Psalm 51:7 'purge me with hyssop' echoes these rites. The Septuagint renders it hyssōpos. The Mishnah (Parah 11:9) specifies a bundle of three stalks for sprinkling. In the New Testament: John 19:29; Heb 9:19.

From the study of Numbers 19:18

Range of meaning

A low, woody, aromatic plant that grows from walls and rocky ground (1 Kings 4:33: 'from the cedar… to the hyssop that grows out of the wall'). Proverbially it was the smallest of plants. In ritual texts it is always the tool for applying liquid: the Passover blood (Exod 12:22), the cleansing of someone with a skin disease and of a house (Lev 14:4–6, 49–52), and the red-heifer water (Num 19:6, 18).

Against the English

English 'hyssop' comes through Greek hyssōpos, itself borrowed from the Semitic word. Today it names Hyssopus officinalis, a European garden herb that is not native to the land of Israel. Most botanists identify the biblical plant with Syrian marjoram (Origanum syriacum, the herb behind za'atar).

How it drifted

The Greek and Latin name was carried over to a European plant during the Middle Ages, so English readers picture the wrong herb.

Used elsewhere in the period

LXX hyssōpos throughout. The Mishnah (Parah 11–12, Negaim 14:6) treats the ezov as a specific local plant, tells it apart from foreign kinds labelled 'Greek' or 'Roman' hyssop, and governs how a bunch was bound for sprinkling. Psalm 51:7 (Heb. 51:9), 'purge me with hyssop', uses the same verb for de-sinning or purifying (ḥiṭṭeʾ) that Num 19:19 uses for this rite. John 19:29 and Hebrews 9:19 also mention hyssop.