Cedrus libani: Cedars of God
Gilgamesh opened his mouth and spoke to Enkidu:
“.....Humbaba, the terrible, ........................ let us destroy him that his power shall be no more. Let us go down to the cedar forest, and make Humbaba affright within his lair.”
Enkidu opened his mouth and spoke to Gilgamesh:
“Know, my friend, in the mountain, when I moved about with the cattle to a distance of one double hour into the heart of the forest, but who would penetrate within it, to Ḫumbaba, whose roar is a flood, whose mouth is fire, whose breath is death? Why dost thou desire to do this, to advance towards the dwelling of Ḫumbaba?”
Gilgamesh opened his mouth and spoke to Enkidu: “I will climb the slopes of the forest, to the dwelling of Ḫumbaba. I will go down to the forest.”
Enkidu opened his mouth and spoke to Gilgamesh: “How can we venture to the home of Humbaba, to keep safe the cedar forest? Enlil has decreed him to be a seven-fold terror. We must not together go down to the cedar forest, whose guardian, O warrior Gilgamesh, is a power without rest, Humbaba, whose voice is the Deluge. His speech is the inferno, and his breath is death. He can hear the movements of the forest at a double hour. Who would venture into his forest? Adad is the first, but Humbaba is the second. None among even the Igigi would oppose him, to keep safe the cedar forest, for Enlil has decreed him to be a seven-fold terror. To enter his forest is to be seized by shaking.”
- Epic of Gilgamesh.
"Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour thy cedars. Howl, fir tree; for the cedar is fallen; because the mighty are spoiled: howl, O ye oaks of Bashan; for the forest of the vintage is come down." (Zechariah 11:1, 2)
"He moves his tail like a cedar; The sinews of his thighs are tightly knit." (Job 40:17)
"The priest shall take cedarwood and hyssop and scarlet stuff, and cast them into the midst of the burning of the heifer" (Numbers 19:6)
"The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon" (Psalm 29:5)
"The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar in Lebanon" (Psalm 92:12)
"I will put in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive" (Isaiah 41: 19)
"Behold, I will liken you to a cedar in Lebanon, with fair branches and forest shade" (Ezekiel 31:3)
"I destroyed the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars" (Amos 2:9)
"The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted." (Psalm 104:16 NRSV)
[King Solomon made] cedar as plentiful as the sycamore-fig trees in the foothills. (1 Kings 10:27, NIV)
Cedar of Lebanon
Early Use
The
cedar of Lebanon (Cedrus libani) was prized throughout the ancient
Near East. The Palermo Stone indicates cedar was imported to Egypt in
the reign of the 4th dynasty king Sneferu, ca. 2613-2589 BC. One of
its primary uses was for boat construction. The Egyptian tale of
Wen-Amun, from ca. the 11th century BC, recounts the travels of an
Egyptian official to Byblos to negotiate for cedar wood. One of the
earliest references to cedar in Mesopotamia comes from the reign of
Sargon of Akkad, ca. 2334-2279 BC.
Biblical Significance
Commonly
referred to in Scripture as the cedars of Lebanon, this aromatic,
durable wood was highly desirable for building in Iron Age Israel.
David used in it building his palace (2 Sam 5:11; 1 Chr 17:1), and
Solomon used it in the construction of the temple and a palace for
himself (2 Chr 2:3-8). He was said to make the cedar as plentiful in
Jerusalem as sycamore-fig trees in the Shephelah (2 Chr 1:15). The
second temple was also constructed from cedars (Ezra 3:7).
Esh-Shouf Cedar Reserve
Over
the centuries, the cedar forests of Lebanon were severely depleted.
The government of Lebanon is taking steps to replenish the forests
and has established cedar reserves. The Esh-Shouf Cedar Reserve was
established in 1996, and is the largest of Lebanon’s nature
reserves. The reserve is comprised of oak and juniper forests, as
well as three cedar forests: Barouk, Maasser Al-Shouf, Ain Zhalta –
Bmohary. The cedar forests in the Esh-Shouf Cedar Reserve make up
about 25 percent of all remaining cedars in Lebanon.
Cedar of Lebanon cones
These
giant, beautiful, evergreen trees grow in mountainous regions, at
altitudes of 3,300-6,500 feet (1,000-2,000 m). They can be found in
Lebanon, south-central Turkey, and Cyprus. They produce cones which
grow on top of the branch. The trees can attain a height of 100 feet
(30 m) and the trunk may reach 6 feet (2 m) in diameter. Compared
with the trees of Israel, the cedar is indeed a mighty tree, and it
is highly praised in Scripture.
