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Bible Dictionaries
Apple
People's Dictionary of the Bible
or Apple Tree, Apple (Heb. tappûach). Apple tree is named in the English Versions in Song of Solomon 2:3; Song of Solomon 8:5, and Joel 1:12, The fruit of this tree is alluded to in Proverbs 25:11 and Song of Solomon 2:5; Song of Solomon 7:8. It is difficult to say what tree is intended by the Hebrew word tappûach. The apple proper is rare in Syria, and its fruit poor. Some writers say the Hebrew word means either the quince or the citron; others speak of the apricot, which is abundant and deliciously perfumed. On the other hand. Dr. Boyle says, "The rich color, fragrant odor and handsome appearance of the citron, whether in flower or in fruit, are particularly suited to the passages of Scripture mentioned above." Neither the quince nor the citron nor the apple appears fully to answer all the scriptural allusions. The orange would answer all the requirements of the scriptural passages, and orange trees are found in Palestine; but it is not certain that this tree was known in the earlier times to the inhabitants of Palestine. The question of identification, therefore, must still be counted unsettled.
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Rice, Edwin Wilbur, DD. Entry for 'Apple'. People's Dictionary of the Bible. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/rpd/a/apple.html. 1893.
