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What the Bible Says About Trees

Overview

The Bible addresses trees across 132 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Isaiah, Genesis and Ezekiel. Closely related themes include Idolatry, Tree, Vine, the and Solomon. Figures whose stories touch this theme include David, Solomon, Abraham and Ephron.

Key Bible verses about trees

Old Testament

Genesis

Genesis 1:11

And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. grass: Heb. tender grass

Genesis 1:12

And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:29

And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. bearing: Heb. seeding seed yielding: Heb. seeding seed

Genesis 1:30

And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so. life: Heb. a living soul

Genesis 2:9

And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

Genesis 18:1

And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;

Genesis 18:4

Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:

Genesis 21:33

And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God. grove: or, tree

Genesis 23:17

And the field of Ephron, which was in Machpelah, which was before Mamre, the field, and the cave which was therein, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all the borders round about, were made sure

Genesis 35:8

But Deborah Rebekah's nurse died, and she was buried beneath Bethel under an oak: and the name of it was called Allonbachuth. Allonbachuth: that is, The oak of weeping

Genesis 40:19

Yet within three days shall Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee, and shall hang thee on a tree; and the birds shall eat thy flesh from off thee. lift: or, reckon thee, and take thy office from thee

Genesis 43:11

And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:

Exodus

Exodus 9:25

And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field.

Exodus 10:5

And they shall cover the face of the earth, that one cannot be able to see the earth: and they shall eat the residue of that which is escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail, and shall eat every tree which groweth for you out of the field: face: Heb. eye

Exodus 10:15

For they covered the face of the whole earth, so that the land was darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt.

Exodus 15:27

And they came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees: and they encamped there by the waters.

Exodus 36:20

And he made boards for the tabernacle of shittim wood, standing up.

Leviticus

Leviticus 19:23

And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as uncircumcised: three years shall it be as uncircumcised unto you: it shall not be eaten of.

Leviticus 23:40

And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days. boughs of goodly trees: Heb. fruit of, etc

Leviticus 26:4

Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit.

Leviticus 26:20

And your strength shall be spent in vain: for your land shall not yield her increase, neither shall the trees of the land yield their fruits.

Leviticus 27:30

And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD'S: it is holy unto the LORD.

Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 6:11

And houses full of all good things, which thou filledst not, and wells digged, which thou diggedst not, vineyards and olive trees, which thou plantedst not; when thou shalt have eaten and be full;

Deuteronomy 8:8

A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey; of oil: Heb. of olive tree of oil

Deuteronomy 16:21

Thou shalt not plant thee a grove of any trees near unto the altar of the LORD thy God, which thou shalt make thee.

Deuteronomy 19:5

As when a man goeth into the wood with his neighbour to hew wood, and his hand fetcheth a stroke with the axe to cut down the tree, and the head slippeth from the helve, and lighteth upon his neighbour, that he die; he shall flee unto one of those cities, and live: head: Heb. iron helve: Heb. wood lighteth: Heb. findeth

Deuteronomy 20:19

When thou shalt besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, thou shalt not destroy the trees thereof by forcing an axe against them: for thou mayest eat of them, and thou shalt not cut them down (for the tree of the field is man's life) to employ them in the siege: for the: or, for, O man, the tree of the field is to be employed in the siege to employ: Heb. to go from before thee

Deuteronomy 20:20

Only the trees which thou knowest that they be not trees for meat, thou shalt destroy and cut them down; and thou shalt build bulwarks against the city that maketh war with thee, until it be subdued. it: Heb. it come down

Deuteronomy 21:22

And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree:

Deuteronomy 21:23

His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance. accursed: Heb. the curse of God

Deuteronomy 28:42

All thy trees and fruit of thy land shall the locust consume. consume: or, possess

1 Kings

1 Kings 4:33

And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes.

1 Kings 5:10

So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.

1 Kings 10:11

And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious stones.

1 Kings 10:12

And the king made of the almug trees pillars for the house of the LORD, and for the king's house, harps also and psalteries for singers: there came no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day. pillars: or, rails: Heb. a prop

1 Kings 10:27

And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the vale, for abundance. made: Heb. gave

1 Kings 19:4

But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. for himself: Heb. for his life

1 Kings 19:5

And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.

2 Chronicles

2 Chronicles 2:8

Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants, algum: or, Almuggim, I.Kin.10.11.

2 Chronicles 2:10

And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.

2 Chronicles 9:10

And the servants also of Huram, and the servants of Solomon, which brought gold from Ophir, brought algum trees and precious stones.

2 Chronicles 9:11

And the king made of the algum trees terraces to the house of the LORD, and to the king's palace, and harps and psalteries for singers: and there were none such seen before in the land of Judah. terraces: or, stairs: Heb. high ways

Psalms

Psalms 1:1

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. ungodly: or, wicked

Psalms 1:2

But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

Psalms 1:3

And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. wither: Heb. fade

Psalms 37:35

I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree. a green: or, a green tree that groweth in his own soil

Psalms 74:5

A man was famous according as he had lifted up axes upon the thick trees.

Psalms 78:47

He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycomore trees with frost. destroyed: Heb. killed frost: or, great hailstones

Psalms 104:16

The trees of the LORD are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted;

Psalms 104:17

Where the birds make their nests: as for the stork, the fir trees are her house.

Psalms 148:9

Mountains, and all hills; fruitful trees, and all cedars:

Isaiah

Isaiah 1:30

For ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water.

Isaiah 6:13

But yet in it shall be a tenth, and it shall return, and shall be eaten: as a teil tree, and as an oak, whose substance is in them, when they cast their leaves: so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof. and it: or, when it is returned, and hath been broused substance: or, stock, or, stem

Isaiah 7:2

And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind. is confederate: Heb. resteth on

Isaiah 10:19

And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them. few: Heb. number

Isaiah 10:34

And he shall cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one. by: or, mightily

Isaiah 11:1

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:

Isaiah 14:19

But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and as the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcase trodden under feet.

Isaiah 40:20

He that is so impoverished that he hath no oblation chooseth a tree that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image, that shall not be moved. is so: Heb. is poor of oblation

Isaiah 41:19

I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together:

Isaiah 44:4

And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses.

Isaiah 44:14

He heweth him down cedars, and taketh the cypress and the oak, which he strengtheneth for himself among the trees of the forest: he planteth an ash, and the rain doth nourish it. strengtheneth: or, taketh courage

Isaiah 44:15

Then shall it be for a man to burn: for he will take thereof, and warm himself; yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread; yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth it; he maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto.

Isaiah 44:16

He burneth part thereof in the fire; with part thereof he eateth flesh; he roasteth roast, and is satisfied: yea, he warmeth himself, and saith, Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire:

Isaiah 44:17

And the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image: he falleth down unto it, and worshippeth it, and prayeth unto it, and saith, Deliver me; for thou art my god.

Isaiah 44:19

And none considereth in his heart, neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say, I have burned part of it in the fire; yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof; I have roasted flesh, and eaten it: and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination? shall I fall down to the stock of a tree? considereth: Heb. setteth to his heart the stock: Heb. that which comes of a tree?

Isaiah 55:13

Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

Isaiah 56:3

Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the LORD, speak, saying, The LORD hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree.

Isaiah 61:3

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.

Isaiah 65:22

They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. shall long: Heb. shall make them continue long, or, shall wear out

Ezekiel

Ezekiel 15:2

Son of man, What is the vine tree more than any tree, or than a branch which is among the trees of the forest?

Ezekiel 17:3

And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; A great eagle with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers colours, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar: divers: Heb. embroidering

Ezekiel 17:5

He took also of the seed of the land, and planted it in a fruitful field; he placed it by great waters, and set it as a willow tree. planted: Heb. put it in a field of seed

Ezekiel 17:24

And all the trees of the field shall know that I the LORD have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the LORD have spoken and have done it.

Ezekiel 31:7

Thus was he fair in his greatness, in the length of his branches: for his root was by great waters.

Ezekiel 31:8

The cedars in the garden of God could not hide him: the fir trees were not like his boughs, and the chesnut trees were not like his branches; nor any tree in the garden of God was like unto him in his beauty.

Ezekiel 31:9

I have made him fair by the multitude of his branches: so that all the trees of Eden, that were in the garden of God, envied him.

Ezekiel 31:10

Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou hast lifted up thyself in height, and he hath shot up his top among the thick boughs, and his heart is lifted up in his height;

Ezekiel 34:27

And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them.

Ezekiel 36:30

And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen.

Ezekiel 47:12

And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine. shall grow: Heb. shall come up new: or, principal for medicine: or, for bruises and sores

Daniel

Daniel 4:10

Thus were the visions of mine head in my bed; I saw, and behold a tree in the midst of the earth, and the height thereof was great. I saw: Cald. I was seeing

Daniel 4:11

The tree grew, and was strong, and the height thereof reached unto heaven, and the sight thereof to the end of all the earth:

Daniel 4:12

The leaves thereof were fair, and the fruit thereof much, and in it was meat for all: the beasts of the field had shadow under it, and the fowls of the heaven dwelt in the boughs thereof, and all flesh was fed of it.

Daniel 4:13

I saw in the visions of my head upon my bed, and, behold, a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven;

Daniel 4:14

He cried aloud, and said thus, Hew down the tree, and cut off his branches, shake off his leaves, and scatter his fruit: let the beasts get away from under it, and the fowls from his branches: aloud: Cald. with might

New Testament

Matthew

Matthew 3:10

And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

Matthew 7:17

Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

Matthew 7:18

A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

Matthew 7:19

Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

Matthew 12:33

Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit.

Matthew 13:32

Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.

Matthew 21:19

And when he saw a fig tree in the way, he came to it, and found nothing thereon, but leaves only, and said unto it, Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever. And presently the fig tree withered away. a fig tree: Gr. one fig tree

People in the Bible and trees

Biblical figures whose stories intersect with this theme.

In the Bible dictionary

Studying trees for yourself

  • Begin with Genesis 1:11, then read the passages below in canonical order.
  • Compare how Isaiah, Genesis and Ezekiel each treat the theme.
  • Consider the lives of David, Solomon and Abraham and how their stories intersect with it.
  • Widen the study to related themes: Idolatry, Tree, Vine, the and Solomon.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Bible say about trees?

The Bible addresses trees across 132 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Isaiah, Genesis and Ezekiel. Closely related themes include Idolatry, Tree, Vine, the and Solomon. Figures whose stories touch this theme include David, Solomon, Abraham and Ephron.

How many Bible verses are about trees?

The Bible references trees in 132 verses (King James Version).

Where does the Bible first mention trees?

In canonical order, the first of these passages is Genesis 1:11: “And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. grass: Heb. tender grass”

Which people in the Bible are associated with trees?

David, Solomon, Abraham, Ephron and Rebekah.

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