Isaiah 35, Day 3

The glory of Lebanon will be given to it,
the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.

Isaiah 35:2b

In the Hebrew Scriptures, the majestic, snow-capped mountains of Lebanon—rich in cedars and fruitful orchards—shaped the Israelite vision of the Promised Land. “Ah, let me cross over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, that fine hill country, and the Lebanon!” Moses pleaded at the end of his life (Deuteronomy 3:25). The fragrant cedars of Lebanon graced the holy temple of God built by Solomon, the “House of the Forest of Lebanon” (1 Kings 7:2).

Carmel, a range of mountainous cliffs overlooking the Mediterranean, means “orchard,” “garden,” or “fruitful field.” The lover in the Song of Songs praises his bride with rhapsodic figures of Lebanon and Carmel:

Your nose like the tower of Lebanon
that looks toward Damascus.
Your head rises upon you like Carmel;
your hair is like purple;
a king is caught in its locks.

Song of Songs 7:5b-6

Carmel also appears in Jeremiah’s poetic prophecy exalting the sovereignty of God.

As I live, says the King
whose name is Lord of hosts,
Like Tabor above mountains,
like Carmel above the sea, he comes.

Jeremiah 46:18

Sharon refers to the fertile plain between Mount Carmel and Jaffa on the Mediterranean coast. “Sharon shall become a pasture for the flocks,” Isaiah prophesies (Isaiah 65:10). The beloved in the Song of Songs says of herself:

I am a flower of Sharon,
a lily of the valleys.

Song of Songs 2:1