Pine Tree

pı̄n trē : (1) שׁמן עץ , ‛ēc shemen , translated the Revised Version (British and American) "wild olive," the King James Version "pine" ( Nehemiah 8:15 ); the Revised Version (British and American) "oil-tree," m "oleaster" (Isaiah 41:19 ); "olive-wood" (1 Kings 6:23 , 1 Kings 6:31-33 ). See OIL TREE . (2) תּדהר , tidhhār (Isaiah 41:19 , margin "plane"; Isaiah 60:13 ); πεύκη , peúke , "fir." Lagarde, from similarity of tidhhār to the Syriac deddar, usually the "elm," considers this the best translation. Symmachus also translated tidhhār (Isaiah 41:19 ) by πτελέα , pteléa , the "elm." The elm, Ulmus campestris , is rare in Palestine and the Lebanon, though it is found today N. of Aleppo. Post (HDB , III, 592-93) considers that (1) should be translated as "pine," which he describes as a "fat wood tree"; it is perhaps as probably a correct translation for (2), but great uncertainty remains. Two species of pine are plentiful in the Lebanon and flourish in most parts of Palestine when given a chance. These are the stone pine, Pinus pinea , and the Aleppo pine, Pinus halepensis; all the highlands looking toward the sea are suited to their growth.