Esev, Deshey, Khatsir: PLANT, GRASS, VEGETATION.

PLANT/VEGETATION/GRASS- Esev- masculine noun (Strong’s 6212); Deshey- young/tender/fresh grass- masculine noun (Strong’s 1877); khatsir- edible plant- masculine noun (Strong’s 2682).

There are at least three Hebrew words that represent the generic idea of plants or vegetation (esev, deshey, and khatsir), just like there are at least three English words that represent plants/grass/vegetation: 

Esev tends to be the more all-encompassing term for plant or grass.

Proverbs 19:12

A king’s wrath is like the roaring of a lion, but his favour is like dew on the grass [esev].

Deshey often indicates new, young, tender, or fresh plant growth.

Isaiah 66:14a

Then you will see this, and your heart will be glad, and your bones will flourish like the new grass [ka-deshey].

Khatsir seems to indicate a plant which was edible. For example, Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go through the land to all the springs of water and to all the river valleys; perhaps we will find grass [khatsir] and keep the horses and mules alive, and not have to kill some of the cattle.” (2 Kings 18:5).

In one verse khatsir has been translated as leeks by almost every translation:

Number 11:5-6

We remember the fish which we used to eat for free in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks [w-et keh-khatisr], the onions, and the garlic; but now our soul is dry. There is nothing at all to look at except this manna!”

Was khatsir leeks? It’s hard to know for sure. All we can tell is that khatsir was a kind of edible plant that the Hebrew people missed as they wandered through the desert. In this passage, the people were tired of roaming in the wilderness with Moses. They recalled the nourishment they received as slaves in Egypt. They had food then, but now their soul (their whole very being) was in need of nourishment. In their hunger they thought about going back into slavery, but that was not the way to find good nourishment.

Plants/grass/vegetation were always described as good things. In fact, one of the most famous verses highlighted the comfort people received from God-given plants:

Psalm 23:1-3a

YHWH is my shepherd, I will not be in need. He lets me lie down in green grassy [deshey] pastures; He leads me beside restful waters. He restores my soul.

Unlike most translations, green isn’t the word that should be used here (although a large majority of translations use this word)… YHWH provided soft, new, grassy pastures for David to rest. 

Not surprisingly, when Yeshua (Jesus) fed the 5000 it was noted that the people had a grassy place to sit where He would restore their hungry souls with food. Psalm 23 should come to mind when we read of this miracle. Yeshua was their Shepherd, feeding His flock and giving them a place of rest and satisfaction:

Mark 6:38-42 (see also Matthew 14:17-20a, John 6:8-12)

But He [Jesus] said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go look!” And when they found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” And He ordered them all to recline by groups on the green grass [Greek: chloro chorto]. They reclined in groups of hundreds and fifties. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food and broke the loaves and He gave them to the disciples again and again to set before them; and He divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied.

Food for Us

Vegetation was one of God’s greatest gifts to humanity. It showed up very early in the Creation narrative:

Genesis 1:11-13 (see also Genesis 2:4-6)

Then God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation [deshey], plants [esev] yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit according to their kind with seed in them”; and it was so. The earth produced vegetation [deshey], plants [esev] yielding seed according to their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, according to their kind; and God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a third day.

When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden they had to leave Eden. YHWH would continue to support their lives with plants, but now they would have to cultivate the plants with hard work:

Genesis 3:17-19

Then to Adam He said,

“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’;  cursed is the ground because of you; with hard labour you shall eat from it  all the days of your life.

Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you;  yet you shall eat the plants [et esev] of the field; by the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,  until you return to the ground, because from it you were taken;  for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

This world was created to sustain life; to help humans and animals flourish and grow. As humans we were called to be God’s Image Bearers on this planet and our holy commission was to be the care-takers of the earth and all the life-giving plants within it:

Genesis 1:26-30

Then God said, “Let Us make mankind in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the livestock and over all the earth, and over every crawling thing that crawls on the earth.” So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant [et kal esev] yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; and to every animal of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to everything that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant [et kal yerek esev] for food”; and it was so.

Truthfully, we have done a pretty lousy job of being benevolent leaders of this earth. When we turn our backs on the Creator and try to be little gods of our own design, we tend to fail in our mandate as planetary custodians. The greed for power and wealth has put the earth into slavery and the world has gone from beautiful creation to a haunting de-creation. Pollution, deforestation, and animal extinction are direct consequences that come from bad human decisions… decisions made by those who do not value God’s beautiful, sustaining, creation. And the truth is, the world is completely sustainable, if we properly fulfill our job description as curators of the earth. 

Vegetation Reflects the Spiritual Health of Society

In Ancient Near Eastern cultures, gods were often associated with agriculture. Good crops and abundant rain was a sign of a happy deity. If there was no rain and the crops failed the people blamed themselves. Perhaps their god was angry at them for some unknown misdeed? Maybe they didn’t give enough sacrifices? Perhaps if they sacrificed their children, the gods would be appeased?

YHWH was not that type of god. He gave vegetation to His people as a free blessing from the beginning of time. They had to cultivate the plants and food, but He would not withhold food from them. 

However, YHWH knew they would be tempted to turn to the pagan gods and a warning was given to His people:

Deuteronomy 11:13-17

And it shall come about, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love YHWH your God and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul, that He will provide rain for your land in its season, the early and late rain, so that you may gatheryour grain, your new wine, and your oil. He will also provide grass [esev] in your field for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied. Beware that your hearts are not easily deceived, and that you do not turn away and serve other gods, and worship them. Otherwise, the anger of YHWH will be kindled against you, and He will shut up the sky so that there will be no rain, and the ground will not yield its produce; then you will quickly perish from the good land which YHWH is giving you.

When humans acted like God’s image bearers they could eat the produce given to God’s image bearers, but when they bowed down to images of things that relied on God’s provisions, they lost focus (by their own actions) of their image bearing status:

Psalm 106:20-21

So they exchanged their glory for the image of an ox that eats grass [esev]. They forgot God their Saviour, who had done great things in Egypt.

When they inevitably turned away from YHWH, and began worshipping the neighbouring deities, YHWH gave them what they desired and reflected the kind of god they apparently wanted… one who would withhold rain. This sad state of de-creation, at the hands of those who rejected Creator, meant drought would wither the grass:

Jeremiah 14:1-7a

That which came as the word of YHWH to Jeremiah regarding the drought:

“Judah mourns and her gates languish; her people sit on the ground in mourning garments, and the cry of Jerusalem has ascended. Their nobles have sent their servants for water; they have come to the cisterns and found no water. They have returned with their containers empty; they have been put to shame and humiliated, and they cover their heads, because the ground is cracked, for there has been no rain on the land.

The farmers have been put to shame, they have covered their heads. For even the doe in the field has given birth only to abandon her young, because there is no grass [lo hayah deshey]. The wild donkeys stand on the bare heights; they pant for air like jackals, their eyes fail because there is no vegetation [en esev]. Though our wrongdoings testify against us, YHWH, act for the sake of Your name!”

When the humans forgot YHWH, and the covenant they made with Him, the plants lost their productivity and humans no longer reflected God’s image. Instead, they were uprooted like plants and were harvested for nothing:

Deuteronomy 29:22-28

“Now the future generation, your sons who rise up after you and the foreigner who comes from a distant land, when they see the plagues of that land and the diseases with which YHWH has afflicted it, will say, ‘All its land is brimstone and salt, burned debris, unsown and unproductive, and it does not grow any grass [kal esev], like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which YHWH overthrew in His anger and in His wrath.’ A

ll the nations will say, ‘Why has YHWH done all this to this land? Why this great outburst of anger?’ Then people will say, ‘It is because they abandoned the covenant of YHWH, the God of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Egypt. And they went and served other gods and worshiped them, gods that they have not known and whom He had not assigned to them. Therefore, the anger of YHWH burned against that land, to bring upon it every curse which is written in this book; and YHWH uprooted them from their land in anger, fury, and in great wrath, and hurled them into another land, as it is this day.’”

The State of Plants in De-Creation 

YHWH is the All-Creator, but when we reject Him the planet goes into a state of de-creation. The concept of de-creation can be found throughout the Tanakh. When YHWH saw that all humanity was nothing but evil, He sent a flood to de-create the earth, but He did not annihilate it completely. He saved a remnant (Noah and his family). 

When YHWH heard the cries of His people as they were oppressed in Egypt, He sent the plagues on Egypt and reversed His creation. One way He did this was by destroyed plants:

Exodus 9:25-26

The hail struck everything that was in the field through all the land of Egypt, from people to animals; the hail also struck every plant [kal esev] of the field, and shattered every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, was there no hail.

Note that this wasn’t a complete annihilation. In Goshen the plants were fine. But in Pharaoh’s Egypt, after the hail did it’s destruction, all the remaining plants were destroyed with locusts:

Exodus 10:12-15

The locusts came up over all the land of Egypt and settled in all the territory of Egypt; they were very numerous. There had never been so many locusts, nor would there be so many again. For they covered the surface of the whole land, so that the land was darkened; and they ate every plant [et kal esev] of the land and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Therefore nothing green was left on tree or plant [u-v-esev] of the field throughout the land of Egypt. 

Throughout history the wicked often flourished with chaos but, by their actions, they would face de-creation. 

Psalm 92:5-9

How great are Your works, YHWH! Your thoughts are very deep. A stupid person has no knowledge, nor does a foolish person understand this: when the wicked sprouted up as like grass [esev] and all who did injustice flourished, it was only that they might be destroyed forevermore. But You, YHWH, are on high forever. For, behold, Your enemies, YHWH, for, behold, Your enemies will perish; all who do injustice will be scattered.

For the humans who turned against God, life was like living in the desert. When the wickedness of Moab was crushed, Isaiah spoke of their lands saying, “the grass [khatsir] is withered, vegetation [deshey] is finished, there is no greenery” (Isaiah 15:6b).

Jeremiah, who lived during the Babylonian invasion, grieved over the scorched vegetation:

Jeremiah 12:4

How long is the land to mourn, and the vegetation [w-esev] of the countryside to dry up? Due to the wickedness of those who live in it, animals and birds have been snatched away, because people have said, “He will not see our final end.”

God’s enemies had a bleak future. They were like grass that withered before it grew to its full potential:

Psalm 129:5-8

May all who hate Zion be put to shame and turned backward; may they be like grass [ka-kha’tsir] upon the housetops, which withers before it grows up; with which the harvester does not fill his hand, or the binder of sheaves his arms; nor do those who pass by say, “The blessing of YHWH be upon you; we bless you in the name of YHWH.”

Flourishing like Grass; Withering like Grass

The seeds of humanity would perish, but this was not God’s desire. Humans were meant to expand, grow, and flourish like grass:

Job 5:25

“You will also know that your descendants will be many, and your offspring as the grass [k-esev] of the earth.”

Sometimes even God’s followers felt like withered grass living in a world of depravity:

Psalm 102:1-4a, 11-12

Hear my prayer, YHWH! And let my cry for help come to You. Do not hide Your face from me on the day of my distress; incline Your ear to me; on the day when I call answer me quickly. For my days have ended in smoke, and my bones have been scorched like a hearth. My heart has been struck like grass [ka-esev] and has withered…

 …My days are like a lengthened shadow, and I, like grass [ka-esev], wither away. But You, YHWH, remain forever, and Your name remains to all generations.

Even though they knew God was on their side, they still felt like they were withering away like scorched grass. We’ve all been there. We’ve all felt knocked down, oppressed, exhausted, and withered, but if we hold on to the hope of YHWH’s eternal love for us, we will rise up.

In one of David’s Psalms he encouraged the people that YHWH was in control. The wicked may have flourished like grass, but they would fade away:

Psalm 37:1-3

[A Psalm of David:] Do not get upset because of evildoers, do not be envious of wrongdoers. For they will wither quickly like the grass [keh-khatsir], and decay like the green plants [deshey]. Trust in YHWH and do good; live in the land and cultivate faithfulness.

Plants & Riches

One of the reasons people turned to the deities of their neighbours was because the grass has always seemed greener on the other side. Those people were flourishing; they looked successful. Perhaps what we have isn’t enough. Perhaps we should have what they have.

This desire to match status or rise above others is a dangerous notion. It causes jealousy, pride and gluttony. Why live with just enough nourishment when you could have more wealth and food than you could ever need? A desire for excess and the hoarding of wealth was not congruent with the lifestyle YHWH wanted for His people. Wealth and crops were for sharing. No one on this planet was meant to go without food:

Proverbs 27:25-27

Know well the condition of your flocks, and pay attention to your herds; for riches are not forever, nor does a crown endure to all generations. When the grass [khatsir] disappears, the tender grass [deshey] is seen, and the vegetation [ees’voht] of the mountains are gathered in, the lambs will be for your clothing, and the goats will bring the price of a field, and there will be enough goats’ milk for your food, for the food of your household, and sustenance for your attendants.

There will be enough. That was the message. This planet has enough vegetational wealth to provide nourishment for every single human on the planet. So why are there people starving on earth today?

God’s earth provided everything necessary to feed His people… as long as we don’t abuse and overuse that which has been given to us. Hoarding the world’s resources does not provide a healthy environment for anyone. The accumulation of wealth at the expense of others is damaging and in opposition to God’s plan for a healthy and thriving planet. 

This world needs to learn that riches will fade, but true wealth is a good harvest from God’s world of creation.

James 1:9-11

Now the brother or sister of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position; but the rich person is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass [Greek: chortou] he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass [Greek: chorton]; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so also the rich person, in the midst of his pursuits, will die out.

Gluttony and greed will do nothing for us, in the long run. What need is there in death for an accumulation of things and an over-stocked pantry? The food will spoil and the wealth will be distributed. We will end this life with empty pockets and empty stomachs.

Life is like a Blade of Grass

Psalm 103:15-16

As for man, his days are like grass [keh-khatsir]; like a flower of the field, so he flourishes. When the wind has passed over it, it is no more, and its place no longer knows about it.

Life, on earth, is fleeting. It doesn’t last long, but there is an eternal life that will be so much more fulfilling.

Isaiah 44:3-6

[YHWH:] “‘For I will pour water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring, and My blessing on your descendants; and they will spring up among grass [khatsir] like poplars by streams of water.’

This one will say, ‘I am YHWH’s’; and that one will call on the name of Jacob; and another will write on his hand, ‘Belonging to YHWH,’ and will give himself Israel’s name with honour.

This is what YHWH says, He who is the King of Israel and his Redeemer, YHWH of armies: ‘I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me.’”

God is the First and the Last and the all-consuming Creator. He created us because He loves us. The entire history of humanity rests in His hands and all along He has had a plan to save us and bring us back to His Garden Kingdom.

The Grass Withers but the Word of YHWH stands Forever

Isaiah 40:3-9

The voice of one calling out, “Clear the way for YHWH in the wilderness; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Let every valley be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; and let the uneven ground become a plain, and the rugged terrain a broad valley; then the glory of YHWH will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together; for the mouth of YHWH has spoken.”

A voice says, “Call out.”

Then he answered, “What shall I call out?”

All flesh is grass [khatsir], and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass [khatsir] withers, the flower fades, when the breath of YHWH blows upon it; the people are indeed grass [khatsir]! The grass [khatsir] withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever. Go up on a high mountain, Zion, messenger of good news, raise your voice forcefully, Jerusalem, messenger of good news; raise it up, do not fear. Say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!”

Isaiah compared all flesh to grass. The breath of YHWH produced the words of YHWH and those words would stand forever. Humans would not stand forever on this earth, but while here they were to be messengers of the good news…

Clear the way for YHWH in the wilderness because He was coming!

Yeshua would come to earth and walk in our footsteps. He would know what it felt like to wither under the weight of this world. He would die to save it and live again to redeem it. Because of Yeshua’s sacrifice, humans would grow, flourish, and live abundantly beyond this mortal life. The disciple, Peter, understood Isaiah’s message:

1 Peter 1:17b-25

…conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay on earth; knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of the Messiah. For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for the sake of you who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

Since you have purified your souls in obedience to the truth for a sincere love of the brothers and sisters, fervently love one another from the heart, for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable, but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God. For,

“All flesh is like grass [Greek: chortos], and all its glory is like the flower of the grass [Greek: chortou]. The grass [Greek: chortos] withers, and the flower falls off, but the Word of the LORD endures forever.” 

Without God’s guidance, vegetation would wither and humans would wither, but God would not abandon His Creation. He would guide us onto the path of light:

Isaiah 42:14-16

[YHWH:] “I have kept silent for a long time, I have kept still and restrained Myself. Now like a woman in labour I will groan, I will both gasp and pant. I will lay waste the mountains and hills and wither all their vegetation [es’bam]; I will turn the rivers into coastlands and dry up the ponds.

I will lead those who are blind by a way they have not known, in paths they have not known I will guide them. I will turn darkness into light before them and uneven land into plains. These are the things I will do, and I will not leave them undone.”

YHWH had a plan to rescue and guide us home. He sent His Son to lead the way. 

Mark 4:26-29

And He [Jesus] was saying, “The kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; and he goes to bed at night and gets up daily, and the seed sprouts and grows—how, he himself does not know. The soil produces crops by itself; first the (plant) stalk [Greek: chorton], then the head, then the mature grain in the head. Now when the crop permits, he immediately puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

The Kingdom of God is like a garden that looks after itself. We are the gardeners but we  don’t know how the garden grows or when the crop is done. But there will be a harvest for each of us… a time to go home to the Kingdom of God. Our life will wither, our flower will fade, but we will be harvested for the Kingdom. We will go home to the Father fully mature and ready for abundant life alongside our Creator in a Garden Kingdom filled with life and greenery:

Revelation 22:1-5

And he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illuminate them; and they will reign forever and ever.

Next week: ICE/FROST/CRYSTAL