BROOM.—See Juniper.
Broom. A dense, twiggy bush, almost leafless, which grew to about 3. 6 meters (12 feet). It has small white blooms. Common in the desert regions of Palestine, Arabia, and Egypt, it was used as charcoal ( Psa 120:4) and provided shade for the prophet Elijah ( 1Ki 19:4-5). The roots which Job ate were not from the broom, which was not edible, but may have been an edible parasite which infested the bush ( Job 30:4). The broom is sometimes referred to as juniper in the NKJV, KJV, and NASB. Many scholars believe this to be the shrub or heath referred to in ( Jer 17:6) and ( Jer 48:6).
The broom is a Palestinian shrub or bush that often grows quite large and provides shade (1 Kings 19:4). It is native to Eurasia.
The King James Version translates the Hebrew word as "juniper." It does not refer to true juniper plants. Instead, it refers to a species of broom known as the white broom (Retama raetam).
The white broom has long, flexible branches that form an upright, dense bush growing 0.9 to 3.7 meters (3 to 12 feet) tall. Though its leaves are small and few, it provides welcome shade in desert areas. The plant produces sweet, very fragrant white flowers shaped like peas that grow in clusters along its twigs. This beautiful shrub grows in the desert regions of Palestine, Syria, and Persia. In many desert areas, it is the only bush that offers any shade (1 Kings 19:4–5).
The "roots of the broom" mentioned in Job 30:4 are neither juniper nor white broom roots. The roots of the white broom taste very bad and could not be eaten in the way Job describes. Job's "roots of the broom" were probably an edible parasitic plant (Cynomorium coccineum). This plant grows in salt marshes and sandy coastal areas. People often eat it during food shortages. At one time it was highly valued for its supposed healing properties in treating severe intestinal illness.
Aquifer Open Bible Dictionary © 2026 Mission Mutual, an adaptation of the Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Discussion:
A number of scholars identify rothem as the White Broom Retama raetam, a tough desert shrub found in the Holy Land and Arabia. Earlier, Moldenke contended that rothem refers to a parasitic plant called dog’s club. In the story of Elijah’s flight from Jezebel, the mention of the broom tree in 1KI 19:4 provides detail to the image of desolation brought to mind by the word “wilderness” earlier in the verse. The references to rothem in PSA 120:4 (“… with glowing coals of the broom tree”) and JOB 30:4 (“… and to warm themselves the roots of the broom”) have led scholars to conclude that it is indeed the broom shrub, since it makes a very hot fire, due to the oil in the stems and leaves. The place name Rithmah (“place of rothem”) referred to in NUM 33:18; NUM 33:19 may also refer to the broom. The white broom is found on hills, rocky places, ravines and sandy places throughout the Holy Land, especially near the Dead Sea, in Gilead, on Mount Carmel, in the Syrian desert, and on the Phoenician coast.
Description:
The white broom, which is more of a large bush than a shrub, can reach a height of 2 meters (7 feet). It has many small branches, few leaves, and clusters of white flowers that make the shrub a beautiful sight on a hillside.
Translation:
In 1KI 19:4 the New Jerusalem Bible [NJB ] renders rothem as “furze bush,” also known as “gorse,” in an attempt to use a name known to English gardeners, but neither “gorse” nor “furze” are familiar to botanically ignorant city-dwellers of the twenty-first century. Likewise, the German Ginsterstrauch in the German common language version (GECL) is not well known. Hence, some modern versions use a generic term in 1 Kings, such as “large bush” (Contemporary English Version [CEV ]), “tree” (Good News Bible [GNB ], and “bush” (New Century Version [NCV ]). In areas where plants are still known by species names, translators can select a shrub that grows in dry, barren areas (assuming it is big enough to offer shade), or transliterate from the Hebrew (rothem) or a major language (for example, retem in Arabic). Otherwise, they can use “small tree” or “shrub.”
In PSA 120:4 a local kind of wood that produces a very hot fire could be used, since the text is rhetorical, and needs an image of something very hot.
The reference to broom in JOB 30:4 poses major textual and exegetical problems, which explains the variety of renderings in modern Bibles. RSV reads “they pick mallow and the leaves of bushes, and to warm themselves the roots of the broom.” GNB and the New International Version (NIV) have these poor folk eating the roots of the broom tree. However, reliable sources tell us that the root of the broom tree is poisonous. That is why Moldenke suggested that it must be another plant, namely the parasite Dog’s Club Cynomorium coccineum, which grows up out of the roots of the broom tree. However, there is good evidence that the writer intended to say the roots were “burned” (as in RSV), not “eaten” (as in GNB and NIV). Hanni Kuhn, writing in The Bible Translator, advises three options for translators of the two difficult lines of this verse, two of which we put forward here (the third, following Moldenke’s suggestion of dog’s club, has had less support and we are not promoting it):
1. They pluck saltplant [orache] leaves for food,
the roots of broom they burn for warmth.
Here the letters l-ch-m-m of the final Hebrew word are read as lchumam (“to warm themselves”). This is followed by RSV and Moffatt (Mft), based on a change in the vowels that were added to the Hebrew text. (For “saltplant,” see 3.5.10 Orache (saltwort))
2. They pluck saltplant leaves to eat,
and sell/make embers/coals [charcoal] of broom to earn their bread.
In this rendering l-ch-m-m is read as lachmam (“their bread/food”). This second view is supported by Hareuveni (pages 31–32).
Plants and Trees in the Bible © United Bible Societies. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Reference:
Description and usage:
The broom was a longer or shorter stick to one end of which was attached some flexible material such as small branches. The broom was used to sweep dirt from the floor.
Translation:
The Hebrew word mat’ate’ appears only in ISA 14:23, although it is known from extra-biblical literature. In the Isaiah reference it is an instrument of destruction and judgment, and most translations render literally “broom of destruction” (RSV, NIV). Where an equivalent implement is not known, or where a destructive broom might seem too strange, translators may follow CEV, which renders the last half of the verse as “The LORD will sweep out the people.”
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