King James Bible Dictionary

1. In Isaiah 58:5 the rendering of a word which denotes "belonging to a marsh," from the nature of the soil in which it grows (Isaiah 18:2). It was sometimes platted into ropes (Job. 41:2; A.V., "hook," R.V., "rope," lit. "cord of rushes").

2. In Exodus 2:3, Isaiah 18:2 (R.V., "papyrus") this word is the translation of the Hebrew gome, which designates the plant as absorbing moisture. In Isaiah 35:7 and Job 8:11 it is rendered "rush." This was the Egyptian papyrus (papyrus Nilotica). It was anciently very abundant in Egypt. The Egyptians made garments and shoes and various utensils of it. It was used for the construction of the ark of Moses (Exodus 2:3, 5). The root portions of the stem were used for food. The inside bark was cut into strips, which were sewed together and dried in the sun, forming the papyrus used for writing. It is no longer found in Egypt, but grows luxuriantly in Palestine, in the marshes of the Huleh, and in the swamps at the north end of the Lake of Gennesaret. (See CANE.)

Moses' ark of
Exodus 2:3

Boats made of
Isaiah 18:2

Figurative
Isaiah 58:5

(or papyrus), a red growing in the shallow water on the banks of the Nile. It grows to the height of 12 or 15 feet, with a stalk two or three inches in diameter. The stalks are very pliable and can be very closely interwoven, as is evident from their having been used in the construction of arks. (Exodus 2:3,5) Paper was made from this plant, from which it derives its name.

BUL'RUSH, noun [bole, or boll, and rush.] A large kind of rush, growing in wet land or water, and without knots, says Johnson, but Dryden calls it, the knotty bulrush It is not a technical word.