Thorn

Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary

A general name for several kinds of prickly plants. 1. In the curse denounced against the earth,  Genesis 3:18 , its produce is threatened to be "thorns and thistles," קוצ ודרדר , in the Septuagint ακανθας και τριβολους . St. Paul uses the same words,   Hebrews 6:8 , where the last is rendered "briers;" they are also found  Hosea 10:8 .

The word kutz is put for "thorns," in other places, as   Exodus 22:6;  Judges 8:7;  Ezekiel 2:6;  Ezekiel 28:24; but we are uncertain whether it means a specific kind of thorn, or may be a generic name for all plants of a thorny kind. In the present instance it seems to be general for all those obnoxious plants, shrubs, &c, by which the labours of the husbandman are impeded, and which are only fit for burning. If the word denotes a particular plant, it may be the "rest-harrow," a pernicious prickly weed, which grows promiscuously with the large thistles in the uncultivated grounds, and covers entire fields and plains, in Egypt and Palestine. From the resemblance of the Hebrew dardar, to the Arabic word dardargi, Scheuchzer supposes the cnicus to be intended.

2. תות , from its etymology, must be a kind of thorn, with incurvated spines, like fish hooks, similar to those of the North American "witch hazel." Celsius says that the same word, and of the same original in Arabic, is the" black thorn," or "sloe tree," the prunus spinosa of Linnaeus.

3. סירים . It is impossible to determine what plants are intended by this word. Meninski says that serbin, in the Persic language, is the name of a tree bearing thorns. In   Ecclesiastes 7:6 , and  Nahum 1:10 , they are mentioned as fuel which quickly burns up; and in  Hosea 2:6 , as obstructions or hedges; it may be the lycium Afrum.

4. סלון , mentioned  Joshua 23:13;  Ezekiel 2:6;  Ezekiel 28:24 . From the vexatious character ascribed to this thorn in the places just referred to, compared with  Numbers 33:55;  Judges 2:3; it is probably the kantuffa, as described by Bruce.

5. By שבים ,  Numbers 33:55 , may be intended goads, or sharp-pointed sticks, like those with which cattle were driven.

6. The שית ,  Isaiah 5:6;  Isaiah 10:17 , must mean some noxious plant that overruns waste grounds.

7. The word צנים ,  Numbers 33:55;  Joshua 23:13;  Isaiah 5:5 . It seems, from its application, to describe a bad kind of thorn. Hiller supposes it to be the vepris. Perhaps it is the rhamnus paliurus, a deciduous plant or tree, a native of Palestine, Spain, and Italy. It will grow nearly to the height of fourteen feet, and is armed with sharp thorns, two of which are at the insertion of each branch, one of them straight and upright, the other bent backward.

8. ברקנים , translated "briers,"  Judges 8:16 . "There is no doubt but this word means a sharp, jagged kind of plant: the difficulty is to fix on one, where so many offer themselves. The Septuagint preserves the original word. We should hardly think Gideon went far to seek these plants. The thorns are expressly said to be from the wilderness, or common hard by; probably the barkanim were from the same place. In our country this would lead us to the blackberry bushes on our commons; but it might not be so around Succoth. There is a plant mentioned by Hasselquist, whose name and properties somewhat resemble those which are required in the barkanim of this passage: "Nabka paliurus Athenaei, is the nabka of the Arabs. There is every appearance that this is the tree which furnished the crown of thorns which was put on the head of our Lord. It is common in the east. A plant more proper for this purpose could not be selected; for it is armed with thorns, its branches are pliant, and its leaf of a deep green like that of ivy. Perhaps the enemies of Christ chose this plant, in order to add insult to injury by employing a wreath approaching in appearance that which was used to crown emperors and generals." In the New Testament, the Greek word translated "thorn," is ακανθα ;  Matthew 7:16;  Matthew 13:7;  Matthew 27:29 ,  John 19:2 . The note of Bishop Pearce on  Matthew 27:29 , is this: "The word ακανθων may as well be the plural genitive case of the word ακανθος , as of ακανθα : if of the latter, it is rightly translated ‘of thorns,' but the former would signify what we call ‘bear's foot,' and the French branche ursine. This is not of the thorny kind of plants, but is soft and smooth. Virgil calls it mollis acanthus. So does Pliny; and Pliny the elder says that it is laevis, ‘smooth;' and that it is one of those plants that are cultivated in gardens. I have somewhere read, but cannot at present recollect where, that this soft and smooth herb was very common in and about Jerusalem. I find nothing in the New Testament concerning this crown which Pilate's soldiers put on the head of Jesus, to incline one to think that it was of thorns, and intended, as is usually supposed, to put him to pain. The reed put into his hand, and the scarlet robe on his back, were meant only as marks of mockery and contempt. One may also reasonably judge by the soldiers being said to plat this crown, that it was not composed of such twigs and leaves as were of a thorny nature. I do not find that it is mentioned by any of the primitive Christian writers as an instance of the cruelty used toward our Saviour before he was led to crucifixion, till the time of Tertullian, who lived after Jesus' death at the distance of above one hundred and sixty years. He indeed seems to have understood ακανθων in the sense of thorns, and says, ‘ Quale oro te, Jesus Christus sertum pro utrogue sexu subiit? Ex spinis, opinor, et tribulis.' [What kind of a crown, I beseech you, did Jesus Christ sustain? One made of thorns and thistles, I think.] The total silence of Polycarp, Barnabas, Clemens Romanus, and all the other Christian writers whose works are now extant, and who wrote before Tertullian, in particular, will give some weight to incline one to think that this crown was not platted with thorns. But as this is a point on which we have not sufficient evidence, I leave it almost in the same state of uncertainty in which I found it." See Garden .

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

(See Bramble , (See Brier .)

(1) The Hebrew Atad , Greek Ramnos ( Judges 9:14-15;  Psalms 58:9); the Lycium Εuropoeum or boxthorn, in southern Europe and northern Africa, common in hedges.

(2) Chedek ;  Proverbs 15:19, "the way of the slothful is as an hedge of thorns," i.e. he sees difficulties where all is plain to the willing and resolute ( Proverbs 20:4;  Proverbs 22:13);  Micah 7:4, "the best of them is as a brier (thorn) ... sharper than a thorn hedge," pricking all who come in contact with them, a vivid image of the bad; a single thorn is sometimes two inches long, as sharp as a pin, and. as hard as a bone ( 2 Samuel 23:6-7). Thorns were the curse on the ground ( Genesis 3:18). Jesus as "King of the curse" wore a crown of thorns ( Galatians 3:13). So the blessing shall come in the regenerated earth, "instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree" ( Isaiah 55:13).  Ezekiel 28:24, "there shall be no more a pricking brier unto the house of Israel, nor any grieving thorn of all round about them"; none, first, to ensnare Israel into sin (As A Brier Catches One'S Garment) , then as the thorn to be the instrument of punishing them.

(3) Choach , "thistles" ( Job 31:40); some fast growing prickly weed.

(4) Dardar  Genesis 3:18, "thistles"; Greek Triboloi , Latin Tribuli ( Matthew 7:16); the Τribulus Terrestris , or else Centsurea Calcitrapa , "star thistle."

(5) Shamir , the Arabic Samur , a kind of sidra. The Ρaliurus Aculeatus ("Christ's thorn") and Ζizyphus Spina Christi , growing 20 or 30 ft. high, the Arab Nebk , abound in Palestine; the Nebk fringes the Jordan. The Natsowts of  Isaiah 7:19 was probably some Zizyphus . Christ's crown of thorns was probably platted of its flexible, round, thorny branches, so as to resemble in mockery the green garlands with which generals and emperors used to be crowned. The balm of Gilead is said to have been procured from the Spins Christi , by incision in the bark; antitypically, our healing comes from His wound.

As King of the curse He wore the crown of thorns, to which the ground was doomed by man's sin; and from the thorns He extracts the medicine to heal our incurable wound ( Jeremiah 8:22). Six species of thistle ( Carduus ) have been noticed between Rama and Jerusalem. The thorny ononis or "rest harrow" also abounds in Palestine. Thorns were often used for fuel ( Ecclesiastes 7:6), their "crackling" answers to the fool's loud merriment which hurries on his doom; dried cow dung was the common fuel; its slowness of burning contrasts with the quickness with which the thorns blaze to their end ( Nahum 1:10).

As thorns "folden together" so that they cannot be disentangled and thrown into the fire in a mass, so the Assyrians shall be.  Isaiah 27:4;  Isaiah 33:12;  Hebrews 6:8;  Psalms 118:12;  Psalms 58:9, "before your pots can feel the thorns He shall take them away as with a whirlwind both living and in His wrath": proverbial; explain rather before your pots' contents can feel the heat of the thorns burning beneath, He will with a whirlwind take the wicked away, whether the flesh in the pot (I.E. The Plans Of The Wicked Against The Godly) be raw (Literally, Living) or sodden (Literally, Glowing) ; or else "He will take them (The Wicked) away, whether green (Not Yet Reached By The Fire) or burning." Travelers in the desert often have the just kindled fire and all their preparations swept away by a sudden wind. Science regards thorns as undeveloped branches (As In The Hawthorn; But Prickles As In The Bramble And Rose Are Only Hardened Hairs) ; a specimen of the arrest which the fall put on the development of what otherwise would have been good; powers for good turned to hurt through sin.

Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types

 Numbers 33:55 (b) The enemies of Israel were to cause terrible pain, trouble and sorrow as they remained among the people of GOD. (See also  Joshua 23:13;  Judges 2:3).

 2 Samuel 23:6 (a) David is describing his enemies. They had a great desire to hurt him and harm him, but GOD would make them powerless and helpless as He defended David.

 Proverbs 15:19 (a) There are people who seem more like porcupines than humans. When you get near them, they hurt your feelings and seem bent on doing only things that are injurious. They seem to live in a thorn-patch.

 Proverbs 26:9 (b) Here is a picture of the carelessness and insensibility of the drunkard. He handles things that will hurt him, and doesn't notice what he is doing. So the fool handles things with which he is not familiar, and gets an injury thereby. The drunkard puts his hand carelessly where it should not be, and is injured by it. So the foolish person says things that injure him.

 Song of Solomon 2:2 (c) Probably this means that the church is in GOD's sight like a beautiful lady, while everything else outside the people of GOD is of no more value to Him than thorns would be. (See also under Thistle

 Isaiah 55:13 (c) In the life of the Christian and in the future condition of Israel, the Lord will remove the things that hurt (thorns), and will bring joy, happiness and gladness to the hearts of the people. (See also under BRIER and FIR).

 Jeremiah 4:3 (b) It has always been GOD's plan to avoid the mixture of good and evil. He warns us against sowing wheat among weeds. He warns against sowing different kinds of seeds, good seeds and weed seeds. So in this passage, He is calling upon His people to clean house, turn their hearts to the Lord, and have a society or a nation that is altogether for Himself, with no mixture of the heathen.

 Jeremiah 12:13 (c) This sad prophecy is warning Israel in regard to their habits and ways. He is informing them that he will bring weeds instead of grain, and will curse their land instead of blessing it. Instead of the blessing and profit, there will come sorrow and loss.

 Ezekiel 28:24 (a) This is a very precious promise to Israel, in which GOD informs them that the enemy will no more be able to cause trouble to invade or to conquer them or their land.

 Hosea 2:6 (a) GOD will see to it that Israel has trouble on every side, and from every source. When they disobey GOD they may expect tribulation.

 Matthew 13:7 (a) Our Lord describes and explains this type in verse  Matthew 13:22. The problems that arise in this world and the evils that come with the daily life will be hurtful and harmful to the people.

 2 Corinthians 12:7 (b) Paul does not tell us just what this particular sorrow or affliction was. Some think it was sore eyes and defective vision. Others think it was the small size of his body. Others think that it was the restraint put upon him in which he was not permitted to tell what he saw in Heaven during his visit there. It must have been most difficult for Paul to refrain from describing the glories of that Heaven into which he was caught up. (See2Co  12:4).

King James Dictionary

THORN, n.

1. A tree or shrub armed with spines or sharp ligneous shoots as the black thorn white thorn, &c. The word is sometimes applied to a bush with prickles as a rose on a thorn. 2. A sharp ligneous or woody shoot from the stem of a tree or shrub a sharp process from the woody part of a plant a spine. Thorn differs from prickle the latter being applied to the sharp points issuing from the bark of a plant and not attached to the wood, as in the rose and bramble. But in common usage, thorn is applied to the prickle of the rose, and in fact the two words are used promiscuously. 3. Any thing troublesome. St. Paul had a thorn in the flesh.  2 Corinthians 12;  Numbers 33 4. In Scripture, great difficulties and impediments.

I will hedge up thy way with thorns.  Hosea 2

5. Worldly cares things which prevent the growth of good principles.  Matthew 13

Webster's Dictionary

(1): ( n.) Fig.: That which pricks or annoys as a thorn; anything troublesome; trouble; care.

(2): ( v. t.) To prick, as with a thorn.

(3): ( n.) A hard and sharp-pointed projection from a woody stem; usually, a branch so transformed; a spine.

(4): ( n.) Any shrub or small tree which bears thorns; especially, any species of the genus Crataegus, as the hawthorn, whitethorn, cockspur thorn.

(5): ( n.) The name of the Anglo-Saxon letter /, capital form /. It was used to represent both of the sounds of English th, as in thin, then. So called because it was the initial letter of thorn, a spine.

Easton's Bible Dictionary

Heb. atad ( Psalm 58:9 ) is rendered in the LXX. and Vulgate by Rhamnus, or Lycium Europoeum, a thorny shrub, which is common all over Palestine. From its resemblance to the box it is frequently called the box-thorn.

Copyright Statement These dictionary topics are from M.G. Easton M.A., DD Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition, published by Thomas Nelson, 1897. Public Domain.

Bibliography Information Easton, Matthew George. Entry for 'Thorn'. Easton's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/ebd/t/thorn.html. 1897.

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

Copyright StatementThese files are public domain. Bibliography InformationMcClintock, John. Strong, James. Entry for 'Thorn'. Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tce/t/thorn.html. Harper & Brothers. New York. 1870.

The Nuttall Encyclopedia

A town and fortress of the first rank in West Prussia, on the Vistula, 115 m. NW. of Warsaw; formerly a member of the Hanseatic League ( q. v .); was annexed by Prussia in 1815; the birthplace of Copernicus; carries on a brisk trade in corn and timber.