'Forest' in the Bible

Then Joshua replied, “If you are a numerous people, go up to the forest and clear ground for yourselves there in the land of the Perizzites and the Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you.”

but the hill country shall be yours. For though it is a forest, you shall clear it and possess it to its farthest borders; for you shall drive out the Canaanites, even though they have iron chariots and though they are strong.”

Then the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not stay in the stronghold; leave, and go into the land of Judah.” So David left and went into the forest of Hereth.

So the men went out into the field against Israel, and the battle was fought in the forest of Ephraim.

For the battle there was spread out over the surface of the entire countryside, and the [hazards of the] forest devoured more men that day than did the sword.

They took [down the body of] Absalom and threw him into a deep pit in the forest and set up a huge mound of stones over him. Then all Israel fled, everyone to his own tent.

Then they came to Gilead and to the land of Tahtim-hodshi, and they came to Dan-jaan and around to Sidon,

He also built the House of the Forest of Lebanon; its length was a hundred cubits (150 ft.), its width fifty cubits (75 ft.), and its height thirty cubits (45 ft.), upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.

He made three hundred smaller shields of beaten gold; three minas of gold went into each shield. The king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon [the king’s armory].

All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. None were of silver; it was not considered valuable in the days of Solomon.

‘Through your messengers you have taunted and defied the Lord,And have said [boastfully], “With my many chariotsI came up to the heights of the mountains,To the remotest parts of Lebanon;I cut down its tall cedar trees and its choicest cypress trees.I entered its most distant lodging, its densest forest.

And he made three hundred [smaller] shields of beaten gold, using three hundred shekels of gold on each shield; and the king put them in the house of the Forest of Lebanon.

All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; silver was not considered valuable in the days of Solomon.

and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, so that he will give me timber to construct beams for the gates of the fortress which is by the temple, and for the city wall and for the house which I will occupy.” And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.

“For every beast of the forest is Mine,And the cattle on a thousand hills.

Like fire consumes the forest,And like the flame sets the mountains on fire,

You [O Lord] make darkness and it becomes night,In which prowls about every wild beast of the forest.

I made pools of water for myself from which to water the forest and make the trees bud.

When the house of David (Judah) was told, “Aram is allied with Ephraim (Israel),” the hearts of Ahaz and his people trembled as the trees of the forest tremble in the wind.

For wickedness burns like a fire;It consumes briars and thorns,It even sets the forest thickets ablaze;And it swirls upward in a column of smoke.

The Lord will consume the glory of Assyria’s forest and of its fruitful garden, both soul and body,And it will be as when a sick man wastes away.

And the remaining trees of Assyria’s forest will be so few in numberThat a child could write them down.

He will cut down the thickets of the forest with an iron axe,And Lebanon (the Assyrian) will fall by the Mighty One.

Then God removed the [protective] covering of Judah;And in that day you looked to the weapons of the House of the Forest (Solomon’s armory).

Is it not yet a very little whileUntil Lebanon will be turned into a fertile field,And the fertile field regarded as a forest?

Until the Spirit is poured out upon us from on high,And the wilderness becomes a fertile field,And the fertile field is valued as a forest.

But it will hail, when the forest comes down,And the [capital] city will fall in utter humiliation.

“Through your servants you have taunted and defied the Lord,And you have said, ‘With my many chariots I have gone up to the heights of the mountains,To the remotest parts of Lebanon.I cut down its tallest cedars and its choicest cypress trees;And I will go to its remotest height, its most luxuriant and thickest forest.

He cuts cedars for himself, and takes a cypress or an oak and lets it grow strong for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a fir, and the rain nourishes it.

Shout for joy, O heavens, for the Lord has done it!Shout in triumph, you depths of the earth;Break forth into jubilant rejoicing, you mountains,O forest, and every tree in it!For the Lord has redeemed Jacob,And He shows His glory in Israel.

All you beasts of the field,All you beasts (hostile nations) in the forest,Come to eat.

Therefore a lion from the forest will kill them,A wolf of the deserts will destroy them,A leopard is watching their cities.Everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces,Because their transgressions are many,Their desertions of faith are countless.

For the customs and decrees of the peoples are [mere] delusion [exercises in futility];It is only wood which one cuts from the forest [to make a god],The work of the hands of the craftsman with the axe or cutting tool.

“My inheritance has become to MeLike a lion in the forest;She has raised her voice and roared against Me;So I have come to [treat her as if I] hate her.

“But I will punish you in accordance with the [appropriate] consequences of your decisions and your actions,” says the Lord.“I will kindle a fire in your forest,And it will devour all that is around you.”’”

“They have cut down her forest,” says the Lord;“Certainly it will no longer be found,Because they (the invaders) are more numerous than locustsAnd cannot be counted.

“Son of man, how is the wood of the grapevine (Israel) better than any wood of a branch which is among the trees of the forest?

Therefore, thus says the Lord God, ‘Like the wood of the grapevine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so have I given up the people of Jerusalem;

“Son of man, set your face toward Teman, and speak out against the south and prophesy against the forest land of the Negev (the South),

and say to the forest of the Negev, ‘Hear the word of the Lord: thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am about to kindle a fire in you, and it will devour every one of your green trees, as well as every one of your dry trees. The blazing flame will not be quenched and the whole surface from the south to the north will be burned by it.

‘The waters nourished it, the deep [underground waters] made it grow tall.Its rivers ran all around the place where it was planted,Sending out its streams to all the trees (other nations) of the field.

‘Therefore it towered higher than all the trees of the forestAnd its boughs multiplied and its branches grew long;Because there was so much water they spread outward.

“I will destroy her vines and her fig treesOf which she has said, ‘These are my wagesWhich my lovers have given me.’And I will make them a forest,And the animals of the open country will devour them.

Does a lion roar in the forest when he has no prey?Does a young lion growl from his den if he has not captured something?

The remnant of JacobShall be among the nations,In the midst of many peoplesLike a lion among the beasts of the forest,Like a young lion [suddenly appearing] among the flocks of sheepWhich, if he passes through,Tramples down and tears into pieces [the nations in judgment],And there is no one to rescue.

Shepherd and rule Your people with Your scepter [of blessing],The flock of Your inheritance and Your possessionWhich dwells alone [separate and secure from attack] in the forest,In the midst of a garden land.Let them feed in Bashan and GileadAs in the days of old [the days of Moses and Elijah].

The shields of his soldiers [of Media and Babylon] are colored red;The warriors are dressed in scarlet.The chariots blaze with fire of [flashing] steelWhen he is prepared to march,And the cypress spears are brandished [for battle].

Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen,Because the magnificent trees have been destroyed;Wail, O oaks of Bashan,For the inaccessible forest [on the steep mountainside] has come down.

In the same sense, the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things.See [by comparison] how great a forest is set on fire by a small spark!