04 Paper Reeds (Heb., Aroth)
Paper Reeds (Heb., Aroth)
"The paper reeds by the brooks, by the mouth of the brooks, and everything sown by the brooks, shall wither, be driven away, and be no more." Isaiah 19:7. 714 B.C. (See Bulrush). The paper reed is understood to be Papyrus antiquorum, which is described under bulrush. It is there stated to have a three-sided stem 2 to 3 inches in diameter at the base and tapering upwards, having a smooth thin bark enclosing a mass of white pith like that of the common rush; this pith is famed as being the material of which the papyri of the ancients was made. The records found in the Egyptian tombs, as also those found in the now partially exhumed cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii, in Italy (which were suddenly buried in ashes thrown out by Mount Vesuvius, in 79 A.D.), were all written on paper made from the Papyrus stems, thus showing that the plant was of great importance in early times. The mode of preparing the paper appears to have been very simple: the stem was first peeled, the pith cut lengthways into thin slices, which were laid side by side with their edges touching one another. These were then sprinkled with gummy water, or, as some say, with the thin muddy water of the Nile; a heavy press was then applied, and thus the whole became united into one piece, of greater length or breadth according to circumstances. The sheet was then dried and cut into the required sizes for use.
Some consider the aroth translated paper reeds should be "green herbage" in general, but, for the sake of explanation, we deem it best to consider it in its literal reading in the above verse, paper reed. vRush (Heb., Gôme)
"Can the rush grow up without mire? can the flag grow without water?" - Job 8:11; 1520 B.C. "And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes." -Isaiah 35:7. 713 B.C. In Exodus 2:3, and Isaiah 18:2, already quoted under bulrush, the Hebrew word gôme is rendered bulrush, but in the above verses rush only, therefore it may be considered the name for rush-like plants in general, and may include the common bulrush, Scirpus lacustris, which is also found in Palestine; it belongs to the family Cyperaceœ, while the true rush belongs to the family Juncaceœ, represented in this country by about twenty species of the genus Juncus, all of which have cylindrical stems, and grow in wet places. A group, consisting of six British species having flat grasslike leaves, have been separated from Juncos under the name of Luzula. They grow generally in pastures and by river banks. Six British species of Juncos are also natives of Palestine, and as the above quotations show that they grow in wet places, as they do in this country, it may reasonably be inferred that our rushes represent the rushes of the Bible. vFlags (Heb., Achu, Suph)
"And she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink.".... "And when she (Pharaoh’s daughter) saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it." - Exodus 2:3; Exodus 2:5. 1571 B.C. "Can the rush grow up without mire? can the flag grow without water?" - Job 8:11. 1520 B.C. "And the brooks of defense shall be emptied and dried up; the reeds and flags shall wither." - Isaiah 19:6. 714 B.C. In this country the word flag is applied to certain plants having broad sword-shaped leaves, such as the corn flag, Gladiolus communis; yellow flag, Iris Pseud-acorus; stinking gladwyn, Iris fœtidissima; sweet flag, Acorus Calamus; Cat-tail flag, Typha latifolia; water dock, Rumex aquaticus; water plaiutain, Alisma Plantago; and other such broad-leaved plants; with the exception of the first, they grow by the banks of rivers, brooks, and in other wet, marshy places, or even in water. The flowering rush, Butomus umbellatus, is also sometimes called flags. All the above are common in most countries throughout the Northern hemisphere, and all or any one of them may be taken as representing the flags of the Bible.
Some commentators consider the term flag to be a general term for all plants growing in the vicinity of rivers and marshy places; this view is based on the Hebrew word ache being translated "meadow" in Genesis 41:1-57, verses 2 and 18. "And, behold, there came up out of the river seven well-favored kine and fat fleshed; and they fed in a meadow.” In Isaiah above quoted the Hebrew word translated flag is Suph; and in Jonah 2:5, the same Hebrew word is translated weeds-"the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head." This has led the authoress of the "Scripture Herbal" to consider flags to be Zostera marina, known in this country as grass wrack, growing in mouths of tidal rivers, or even in the deep sea; its leaves are ribbon-like, 3 to 4 feet long, floating in submerged masses, but there is no good evidence in support of this supposition, or that the Zostera grew in that part of the Nile where Moses was found.