Cucumber

קשאים , σικυος, cucumis, Num 11:5, the fruit of a plant very common in our gardens. Tournefort mentions six kinds, of which the white and green are most esteemed. They are very plentiful in the east, especially in Egypt, and much superior to ours. Maillet, in describing the vegetables which the modern Egyptians have for food, tells us, that melons, cucumbers, and onions are the most common; and Celsius and Alpinus describe the Egyptian cucumbers as more agreeable to the taste and of more easy digestion than the European.

Cucumber first occurs in Num 11:5, in the verse where the Israelites, when in the desert, express their longings for the melons and the cucumbers of Egypt. All travelers in the East notice the extensive cultivation and consumption of cucumbers and other herbs of the same tribe, especially where there is any moisture of soil, or the possibility of irrigation. Thus even in the driest parts, the neighborhood of a well is often occupied by a field of cucurbitaceous plants, generally with a man or boy set to guard it from plunder, perched up on a temporary scaffolding, with a slight protection from the sun, where he may himself be safe from the attacks of the more powerful wild animals. That such plants appear to have been similarly cultivated among the Hebrews is evident from Isa 1:8, ’The daughter of Zion is left like a cottage in a vineyard, like a lodge in a garden of cucumbers;’ as well as from Letter of Jeremiah 6:70, ’As a scarecrow in a garden of cucumbers keepeth nothing, so are their gods of wood.’

A vegetable very plentiful in the East, especially in Egypt, Num 11:5, where they are esteemed delicacies, and form a great part of the food of the lower class of people, especially during the hot months. The Egyptian cucumber is similar in form to ours, but larger, being usually a foot in length. It is described by Hasselquist as greener, smoother, softer, sweeter, and more digestible than our cucumber.\par

A product abounding in Egypt, a variety of which, the Cucurtis chafe, is "the queen of cucumbers" (Hasselquist). A variety of the melon; hence the Israelites pined for this Egyptian dainty in the wilderness (Num 11:5). Qishu, from qaasha’ "to be hard," it being an indigestible food. Tristram observed quantities of the common cucumber in Palestine. Isa 1:8; "a lodge (a lonely box for watching in against depredations) in a garden of cucumbers," so solitary was Zion to be, as such a lodge when deserted and wrecked by the winds, the poles fallen or leaning every way, and the green boughs which had shaded it scattered.

is the translation of קַשֻּׁא, kishshu’ (so called probably from its difficulty of digestion; Sept. σίκυος), in our Auth. Vers., and the correctness of this rendering has been almost universally admitted. It occurs in Num 11:5, where the Israelites, when in the desert, express their longings for the melons and the cucumbers of Egypt. The Hebrews is so similar to the Arabic kissa that there can be very little doubt of their both meaning the same thing. Celsus (Hierobot . 2:247) gives keta, kati, and kusaia as different pronunciations of the same word in different Oriental languages. It does not follow that these names always indicate exactly the same species, since in the different countries they would probably be applied to the kinds of cucumber most common, or perhaps to those which were most esteemed in particular localities. Thus, in Egypt (see Prosp. Alpin, Plantt. AEg. c. 38, p. 54), the name kati appears to be applied to the species which is called Cucumis chate by botanists, and “queen of cucumbers” by Hasselquist, who describes it as the most highly esteemed of all those cultivated in Egypt (Trav. p. 258). See MELON. In India the name kissa is applied by the Mohammedans to the Cucumus utilissimus, or the common kukree of the natives, while in Persia and Syria the same name would probably be applied only to the common cucumber, or Cucumis sativus, as the two preceding species are not likely to be much known in either country. The Talmudists (Maaser. 1:4; Terumoth, 2:6; 6:6; Baba Mez. 7:5) have קַשּׁוֹת, and the Phoenicians had the word Κουσίμεζαρ (Diosc. 4:152), which is probably. Xrp מצר קשא, “cucumber of Egypt”=σίκυς ἄγριος. The same name for cucumber exists in all cognate languages. (For an account of the cucumbers of Syria and Egypt; see Forskal, Flora AEgypt. p. 169; Celsii Hierobot. 2, 249.) SEE BOTANY.

All travelers in the East notice the extensive cultivation and consumption of cucumbers and other vegetables of the same tribe, especially where there is any moisture of soil, or the possibility of irrigation (see Burckhardt, Arabic Proverbs, No. 660). Thus, even in the driest parts, the neighborhood of a well is often occupied by a field of cucurbitaceous plants, generally with a man or boy set to guard it from plunder, perched up on a temporary scaffolding, with a slight protection from the sun, where he may himself be safe from the attacks of the more powerful wild animals. That such plants appear to have been similarly cultivated among the Hebrews is evident from Isa 1:8, “The daughter of Zion is left like a cottage in a vineyard, like a lodge in a garden of cucumbers” (מַקְשָׁה, mikshah’, Sept. σικυήρατον), as well as from Bar 6:70, “as a scarecrow in a garden of cucumbers (σικυήρατον) keepeth nothing, so are their gods of wood.” SEE GARDEN; SEE COTTAGE.

qishshuim. Probably the water melon, common in Egypt and highly valued in that hot country: the Israelites longed for them. Num 11:5; Isa 1:8.

By: Emil G. Hirsch, Ira Maurice Price

The rendering of the Hebrew (Num. xi. 5). There are at least two kinds of cucumbers in Palestine (Hasselquist, Groser, Post, etc.); viz., Cucumis sativus and C. chate. The former is the common green cucumber well known in the western world; and the latter is the Egyptian or hairy cucumber, which is said by Hasselquist to be "the queen of cucumbers, refreshing, sweet, solid, and wholesome." Post (Hastings, "Dict. Bible") speaks of it as doubtless one of the good things of Egypt (Num. xi. 5). "It is longer and more slender than the common cucumber, being often more than a foot long, and sometimes less than an inch thick, and pointed at both ends." The so-called "garden of cucumbers" referred to in Isa. i. 8 is the translation of , meaning "place of cucumbers"; i.e., a place wherein cucumbers were cultivated. The "lodge" mentioned in the same verse is the shelter of the person who kept birds away and guarded the garden from robbers.

kū´kum-bẽr (קשׁאים, ḳishshu’ı̄m; σίκυος, sı́kuos): One of the articles of food for which Israel in the wilderness looked back with longing to Egypt (Num 11:5). Cucumbers are great favorites with all the people of Palestine. Two varieties occur, Cucumis sativus (Arabic, Khyār), originally a product of Northwest India, which is smooth-skinned, whitish and of delicate flavor, and requires much water in its cultivation, and Cucumis chate (Arabic, faqqūs), which is long and slender but less juicy than the former. Probably the Biblical reference is to this latter as it is a plant much grown in Egypt where it is said to attain unusual excellence.

A “garden of cucumbers” or more literally a “place of cucumbers” (miḳshāh), is mentioned in Isa 1:8; Baruch 6:70. “A lodge in a garden of cucumbers” (Isa 1:8) is the rough wooden booth erected by the owner from which he keeps guard over his ripening vegetables. It is commonly raised upon poles and, when abandoned for the season, it falls into decay and presents a dreary spectacle of tottering poles and dead leaves.

Isa 1:8 (b) This vegetable is used by the prophet to remind Israel that their heart’s desire had led them into a life of worthless, useless activity such as they had experienced in Egypt. Cucumbers have no food value, and were one of the principle foods in Egypt. GOD let them have their desire and sent leanness into their souls.

Cucumber. A climbing vine which produces vegetables. The cucumber was one of the vegetables which the Israelites longed for after leaving Egypt ( Num 11:5).

A garden vegetable of the gourd family. Numbers 11:5 mentions it as one of the foods desired by the wandering Israelites when they remembered the foods they ate in Egypt.

The cucumber is an annual climbing or trailing vine. No one knows for certain where cucumbers originally came from. People have grown cucumbers in all the warm countries of the Europe, Asia, and Africa since prehistoric times.

Cucumbers are usually eaten raw. A cucumber and a barley cake or some other kind of bread often make up a simple meal. The reference to "a shack in a cucumber field" (Isaiah 1:8) refers to the roughly built small house or shelter often set up in Palestinian cucumber fields and vineyards. These shelters protected the farmers or watchmen who guarded the crops.

See Food and Food Preparation.

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.