BOTTLE-GOURD PLANT

[Heb., qi·qa·yohnʹ].

The Hebrew term represents the plant that Jehovah caused to grow miraculously overnight to provide shade for the prophet Jonah as he sat in a booth awaiting the results of his prophesying against Nineveh. The plant brought great relief to Jonah until Jehovah caused a worm to attack it, resulting in its withering away, thereby leaving the prophet exposed to the beating rays of the sun.—Jonah 4:5-11.

Two plants are commonly suggested as possible translations of the Hebrew qi·qa·yohnʹ. Some Bible translations (RS, mar; JB) prefer the “castor-oil plant” (Ricinus communis), a perennial plant of rapid growth attaining a height of ten feet (3 meters) or more, and having large leaves. This preference is based on a conjectural association of the Hebrew term with the Graeco-Egyptian name for the castor-oil plant, kiki. Other scholars and translators suggest the “gourd” (AT) or “bottle-gourd plant” (NW; see Brown, Driver and Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, page 884), a broad-leafed plant classified botanically as Cucurbita lagenaria. The Septuagint and Peshitta Versions give some support to this translation. The bottle-gourd plant not only is fast growing but also has the characteristic of withering very quickly when damaged. Those favoring an identification with the gourd plant consider the context in the book of Jonah to indicate a vinelike plant that ‘came up over’ the booth that Jonah had constructed, rather than a treelike plant, such as the castor-oil plant. The bottle gourd is often planted by such booths in Near Eastern countries. However, there is an absence of any detailed description of the plant in the Biblical account.