Vine, vineyard

Three Heb. words are tr. in EV 'vine.' 1. [E} gcphen, Arab. jafn. This always refers to grape-bearing vines, except 2 K 4", where .tiS? jys the ' vine of the fields,' AV and RV ' wild-vine,' refers to a wild gourd-vine, prob. colocynth, and perhaps Dt SS", wTiere on? [r; ' the vine of Sodom ' may denote a grape-vine, or some other plant (see ' vine of Sodom, below). 2.

pi-' surek (Is 5' 'choicest vine'), plto (Jer 2-' 'noble vine'), nsnb sdrekak (Gn 49" 'choice vine'), used of a superior kind, producing dark-coloured grapes, with soft seeds or none. It is called in Arab. t&rik. 3. Tij nazir (Lv 25'- " AV ' vine undressed,' m. ' separation,' RV ' undressed vine '), fig. for un- pruned vine, named ndzlr from its resemblance tc the Nazirite, whose hair was uncut and unshaven.

The vine is one of the most important plants mentioned in the Bible and cultivated in the East. Noah planted a vineyard (Gn 9-*). The chief butler saw a vine in his dream (Gn 40"). Judah is repre- sented as binding his ass to a vine (Gn 49"), an allusion to the luxury in which he would live. Living under one's own vine and fig tree (1 K 4^, Mic 4'') was an emblem of peace. The languishing of the vine (Is \& etc.) was an emblem of destruc- tion and desolation.

Palestine was a land of vines (Dt 8). They were planted on mountains (Jer 3P). They flourish best there at the present day. The Nazikite, as being under a religious vow, was to ' eat nothing that is made of the grape- vine, from the kernels even to the husk ' (Nu 0^). Manoah's wife, as the future mother of a Nazirite, was also forbidden for a time to eat or drink of the fruit of the vine (Jg 13'). The \nne is fre- quently associated with the fig (Ps 105**, Jer 8", Hab 3", Ja 3'- etc.)

Christ calls Himself the true vine (Jn 15'"'). There are several other figurative allusions to the vine and vineyard. Israel wa-s a vine brought out of Egypt (Ps SO*"", Is 5'°). The fruitful wife was compared to the vine (Ps 128^). The remnant of Israel was to be gleaned as a vine (Jer 6"). Samaria was to be as plantings of a vine (Mic 1'). Beth-haccherem, 'the house of the vine' (Neh 3", Jer 6'), Abel-cheramim, 'the meadow of vineyards' (Jg 11''), were named from kerem=' y\ae.'

The vine is cultivated in a variety of ways. Sometimes it is trained over a trellis, or made to climb a tree (Ezk 19"). In this way a man sat under his vine (1 K4'^etc.) Sometimes it is trained over props about the height of a man, or a little higher, and the branches spread laterally, often forming festoons from stake to stake.

But tlie more usual method is to allow the stem to trail on the surface of the soil, and simply to prop up the cluster-bearing branches by foiled sticks, sulfici- entlj' to keep them ott' the ground. The vines in both the latter methods of cultivation are planted far enough apart to allow the plough to pass be- tween them. They are pruned at tlie end of the fruiting season (Jn 15'), so that, during the winter, the Wne is reduced to a trunk and a few principal branches.

The shoots of the next spring are thus made more vigorous, and bear better fruit. Those branches which bear no fruit are diligently cut away (vv.*-"). A whitened branch is a sign of withering (JI 1'). The trunks of old vines often attain the thickness of a man's body or more. Vines aie sometimes planted in irrigated ground (Ezk 19'"), but most of the vineyards are on dry liillsides, where, for 7 or 8 months they have no water except such as they can extract from Hie apparently arid soil.

Notwithstanding this, they live (Ezk 19"). In such situations as have a moist subsoil of clay or marl they flourish without irrigation, and produce large vintages. Whole mountain -sides are often ^een with vineyards, where one may search in vain for a spring or well. They are often not fenced ott', so one can come with ease into a 'neighbour's Wneyard' (Dt 23^). To protect the vines from foxes, jackals (Ca 2" etc.), and esp. from men, watclimen are stationed in commanding positions.

In Judu;a and some other parts of the country round towers are built for the watchmen (Is 5^ Mt21»'etc.) Generally a shelter of boughs and leaves (Is 1' AV 'cottage,' RV ' booth'), similar to the 'lodge in a garden of cucumbers' (.see illustration in vol. i. 532"), is con- structed in a prominent place, from which the watchman can overlook the vineyard.

To frighten away animals, a single cylindrical stone is set up, or several stones are placed one above anothei VDfE, VINEYAED VINE, VINEYARD 869 forming a pillar 3 to 4 ft. higli. The top of this pillar is often whitewashed, so that it is conspicu- ous even at niglit. The large numbers of tliese pillars make a marked feature in the Oriental landscape. Vineyards are let out (Ca 8", Mt 21^), or cultivated on the nietairial principle on shares.

The close association of vine and lig trees in the minds of the people of Palestine is shown bj- the fact tliat both a lig orchard and a vineyard are designated in Arab, by tlie term karm (the same as the Heb. cif), which primarily signifies a vine. Grapes. — A great variety of grapes are cultivated in Palestine and Syria. There is one greenish- white, from i to 3 in.

in diameter, with sweet juicy pulp ; another, olive-shaped and white, resembling Malaga grapes ; another, dark purple, of the size of a small prune ; others similar to Black Hamburgs ; others with a green rind, striped with red, and a pulp almost as hrra as that of an apple ; others nearly the same as the famous Zante curiints; others closely resembling the Isabella grape ; and many otliers of divers shapes, sizes, and flavours. Several Heb. words are used to designate them. 1.

ViifN 'eshkijl, which signities a cluster, usually of grapes (Is 65', Mic 7'). in which case greater precision is sometimes given by constructing it witli cjji' (Nu 13^), or associating it with the same (Gn 40"'), or oonstmcting it with gephen (Ca 7^ [Heb. 'J). It is as his hand can move. The luscious fruit is crushed by the tongue and teeth, and swallowed with extraordinary rapidity. The pea.

sant8 declare that, however many grapes they may have eaten in this way, in the vmeyards, their appetite for their regular meals is in no way diminished. The grapes are carried home to serve as food, or spread out on mats to be dried into raisins, pi-^ ziinmuk (1 S 25"* etc.), niB'-pN 'ashishitk (RV Ca 2', AV wrongly 'flagons'), or the juice expressed to be converted into wine or dibs.

The latter is the juice of the grape, boiled to the consistence of thick treacle, and set aside to cool into a mass resembling in appearance candied honey. It is not true that this substance is anywhere used or known as wine. In its commercial form it is no i more a beverage than crystallized lionev, and no one here ever saw or heard of any one diluting it and usin" it as a drink. Much less is any such dilution known as wine.

IJaskets (Jer 6") were, and are still, used to gather the grapes and trans- port them to the houses or presses. The juice is trodden out (Is 16'" 63', Jer 25*' etc.) The presses were often dug out in the marly soil (Mt 21'^), or excavated in the solid rock. Such rock vats are common throu;;hout Palestine. The boiling of the jnist&r (fresh grape juice) is done in large caldrons. Mit>(dr is sometimes drunk. The name, UOUER.V 8VE1AK WLNtritESS.

sometimes nsed of other tilings, as gall {mcrOrOth, Ut 32''-'), and henna (Ca l'«). 2. ;:i: 'cntlb, Arab. inab. This is the true word for the berry, as distinguished from the cluster (Gn iU'", Nu 13^). Wine is 3:;:'d- = blood of grapes. 3. i:S bOscr = unripe grape-s. The Arabs of Syria use the term liu^um for green grapes. Baser is tr. in A V ' sour grajjes' (Is 18" RV 'ripening grapes'), AV and KV 'unripe grapes' (Job 15**), AV and RV 'sour grapes' (Jer 3r-», Kzk 18=).

The seed, 'kernel,' of the grape isnientioned, and itsskin, ' husk' (Nu G*). Vintage. — The vintage is a season of great rejoic- ing in the East (Is lU'"). It begins in low-lying <listricts in July. The people eat the green grapes (bO^er) even in June. They also express the acid juice of the same, and sweeten it, and add water, to make a cooling drink. The nearly riiie but still acid j^apes are slightly lax.

ative, and the grape cure IS as well recognized here as a course of mineral waters in Europe or America. Hut when the grapes are quite ripe, in August or September, the rejoi'-ing is complete. The people go in large numbers t< gather the grapes, and eat tliem in the vineyards ( Jg [)'"). The quantity which one person consumes is enormous.

It is curious to see a man with a huge bunch of grapes in his hand, held a little above his head, with his neck bent backward, and his free hand plucking the grapes, singly or in pairs, and tossing them into his mouth as fast as applied to this fresh juice, is, however, a popular error, as that word signifies a true fer- mented wine.

The grape juice is never called in Arab, by any of the other names for wine, these names being applied solely to tlie fermented juice of the grape, date, or other fruit. Vine of Sodom (ci?"E3 gepkcn ShUvi) occurs once (Dt 32^-), ' their vine is as the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah ; their grapes are grapes of gall (r6sh), their clusters are bitter' (mfirOruth).

If real plants arc intended here, these must have been familiar to the Hebrews, and, if not peculiar to the Dead Sea Valley, at least so abundant there as to be designated by the names of the accursed cities. We have, as a philological guide to the plant intended, the term gephen, which certainly refers to a vine. The second member of the parallel- ism speaks of the fruit as ' j,'rapes of gall ' (innebr- r6sh), and its clusters as bitter (lit. bitternesses).

We are therefore to look for a vine growing so abundantly in the Dead Sea basin as to be attri- buted to Sodom and Gomorrah, and producing a bitter but graiielike fruit. The first embarrass- ment in the aetermination of this i)lant is the assumplion that it is the same as the fruit of which .loseiiluis sjjcaks, the Mi-cilled ' apples of Sodom ' (/>./ IV. viii.

4), ' the ashes growin" in their fruits, which fruits have a colour as if they were fit to be eaten, but if you pluck them with your 870 VI^'ECIAR VIRGIN hands they dissolve into smoke and ashes.' Tliis description would apply either to the fruit of the 'ushr, Calotropis proccra, Willd., or to that of the colocyntli, Arab, hondol. liotli of these have fruits, about the size of a pippin, wliich, when ripe and dry, contain a dust, which would suggest the 'dust and ashes' of Josephus.

The 'ushr, however, is not a vine, but a small shrub or tree, and its fruit lias no resemblance to the grape. The colocyntli is a vine, but it grows over a wide range in "Palestine besides the Dead Sea Valley, and its fruit also has no resemblance to a grai)e. It is like a small watermelon when green. We therefore, while accejjting one or both these plants as producing the fruit alluded to by Josephus, un- conditionally reject them both as candidates for the 'vine of Sodom.'

Cuctunis prophetarum, L., a tendril-bearing vine, growing in the Dead Sea Valley and southward to Sinai, and having an ovoid, bitter fruit, A to | in. long, might be a candidate, were it not for the fact that its fruits do not grow in clusters. On the other hand, Solanum nicfrum, L., and S. miniatum, Berb., and S. villosum, Lara., produce clusters of berries like very small grapes. These are called by the Arabs 'inab-edh-cihib = wolf's grapes.

But they are none of them vines, and none of them peculiar to the Dead Sea Valley. S. coagulans, Forsk., although peculiar to the Dead Sea and Jordan Valley, is not a vine, and has fruits like a small tomato, not like a grape. Oak galls cannot be intended. They are not produced ill this valley, are not clustered, and bear no resem- blance to a grape. We must conclude, therefore, that we have as yet no evidence on which to found a theory as to the plant intended by the vine of Sodom.

We (with commentators generally) think that the allusion is ligurative, and that the quality of bitterness is attributed to tlie grape-vine of the enemies of Israel, as their wine is said in the follow- ing verse to be ' the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps.'

The selection of the vine of Sodom and Gomorrah, of which their vine is said to be a shoot, was due to the proverbial bitterness of the Dead Sea, a quality which may have been supposed to be communicated to what grew on its shores.

We have a similar instance (Ezk 17^''") in the rhapsodical riddle of the great eagle, which plucked off a topmost shoot and twigs of the cedars of Lebanon, and set them in a city of merchants, and took of the seed of tlie land, and set it as a willow-tree, and it grew and became a vine of low stature, and shot forth branches towards the furrows, that it might bear fruit. And the roots were pulled up, and the fruit withered.

Here we have a combination far more intricate and unreal than that of the 'vine of Sodom,' to which the bitterness of the Dead Sea water is attrihuted, and the wine from the same, which is said to be serpent's venom. G. E. Post.