SALT HERB

This translates the Hebrew term mal·luʹahh, mentioned only once in Scripture as a food eaten by those of little account. (Job 30:4) The original-language word is considered to be derived from a root meaning “to salt” and has also been translated “salt-wort” (AS, AT, Da), “cress” (Fn), “grass” (Dy) and “mallow(s).” (AV, Le, RS) The rendering “mallows” appears to have resulted from the similarity between the Hebrew word mal·lu’ahh and the Greek word ma·laʹkhe, which is believed to be related to the English designation “mallow.” However, at Job 30:4 the translators of the Septuagint Version did not use ma·laʹkhe but aʹli·ma (“salt herbs,” Bagster’s LXX), and aʹli·ma, like mal·luʹahh, is thought to refer either to the salty taste of the plant or to the region where it grows.

The plant most frequently suggested as corresponding to the mal·luʹahh of the Bible is “sea purslane” (Atriplex halimus). Ordinarily this bushy shrub grows one to three feet (.3 to .9 meter) high, but on the shores of the Dead Sea plants measuring as much as ten feet (3 meters) in height have been encountered. The plant has small, thick, sour-tasting leaves and, in the spring, it bears tiny purple flowers. Sea air is vital to its existence.