900. Almond trees were admired for their beautiful blossoms by the ancients. The pretty blooms were even used in artwork, such as on the ark (Exod. 25: 33-34). The nuts, and oil taken from the nuts were used for food. Almond blossoms had a special religious significance for the Hebrews, who in ancient times carved them on the golden candlesticks in the tabernacle, and who still carry them to this day to the synagogue for festivals.
901. Apple trees are only mentioned in two books of the Bible: Proverbs and Song of Solomon. As a result, it is not clear if the "apple" tree was in fact apple-bearing, or if perhaps the "apples" might have been apricots or even figs.
902. Cedar trees came from Lebanon and were greatly prized for their height, strength, and the durability of the wood. The temples of early Israel utilized the mighty trees for their buildings. Cedar wood is mentioned for use in cleansing rituals, but it is now believed that specific reference was actually to a different type of wood, Phoenician juniper.
903. Solomon had the tall cedars felled by the thousands to supply timber for the temple and for his fabulous palace, which he named "the House of the Forest of Lebanon." He sent shifts of ten thousand Israelites a month to aid the native workers in cutting down the forests.
904. Only barren slopes remain where the cedars used to be. Only a few scattered groves survived the axes of empire after empire. One small grove is preserved in a park about eighty miles north of Beirut, Lebanon.
