Drought

Drought (בִּצֹּרֶת, batstso'reth, restraint of rain, Jer 17:8; "dearth," 14:1; חֹרֶב, cho'reb, dryness, Ge 31:40; Jer 1; Jer 38; Hag 1:11; elsewhere "heat," etc.; or חֲרָבוֹן, charabon', the same, Ps 32:4; צִחצָחוֹת, tsachtsachoth', dry places, Isa 58:11; צַיּה, tsiyah', Job 24:19; Jer 2:6, a dry land, as elsewhere usually rendered; צַמָּאוֹן, tsimmaon', a parched region, De 8:15; "dry ground," Ps 107:33; "thirsty land," Isa 35:7; תִּלאוּבָה, talubah', thirst, Ho 13:5). SEE DESERT; SEE PALESTINE. In Judaea, during the months of April, May, August, and Saptember, before and after the height of summer, and after the early and before the latter rains, the earth is refreshed with dews so copious as in a great measure to supply the place of showers. But, however copious the dews, they nourish only the more robust or hardy plants; and, as the season of heat advances, the grass withers, the flowers fade, every green herb is dried up by the roots and dies, unless watered by the rivulets or by the labor of man. To this appearance of the fields during an Eastern summer the sacred writers often allude (Ps 32:4; Isa 40:6-7). Should at this season a single spark fall upon the grass, a conflagration immediately ensues, especially if there should be any briers or thorns, low shrubs, or contiguous woods (Ps 83:14; Isa 9:18; Isa 10:34,18; Jer 21:14). From the middle of May to the middle of August, therefore, the land of Judaea is dry. It is the drought of summer (Ge 31:40; Ps 32:4). The parched ground is often broken into chasms (Ps 103:4). The heavens seem like brass, and the earth like iron, and all the land and the creatures upon it suffer (De 28:23); and nothing but the very slight dews of the night preserve the life of any living thing (Hag 1:11). SEE DEW.