Root
In the agrarian society of the ancient world, hearers of the Bible would have resonated with plant imagery. They knew even better than we do how a strong root system works to produce healthy crops. If a root withers, the plant dies. But if a root is attached to a water source, the plant grows healthy and strong. It is able to produce good fruit.
The same is true with people. The wicked may appear to be strong and successful, but their roots are shallow and they cannot survive a crisis (Job 5:3; 18:16; Ps. 1:4). On the other hand, those who trust in the Lord are like trees planted by a stream (Ps. 1:3; Jer. 17:7–8). They continue to produce fruit and thrive even during a drought when all the plants around them are dying: “the roots of righteous people produce fruit” (Prov. 12:12). Believers can rely on God’s care for them, and so they do not fear calamity.
The Roots of a Nation
The nation of Israel is pictured as having strong roots that enable it to become a large vine.
You brought a vine from Egypt.
You forced out the nations and planted it.
You cleared the ground for it
so that it took root and filled the land.
Its shade covered the mountains.
Its branches covered the mighty cedars.
It reached out with its branches to the Mediterranean Sea.
Its shoots reached the Euphrates River. (Ps. 80:8–11; see also Ezek. 19:10–11)
God prospers the vine of Israel and helps it grow. The roots are a symbol of Israel’s relationship with God, a connection that is at times healthy and at times anemic. Unfortunately, Israel’s repeated rebellion causes its roots to wither and decay (Isa. 5:24; Hosea 9:16). Eventually God uproots them (1 Kings 14:15; Jer. 45:4), but even then he promises to preserve a remnant and one day restore Israel’s greatness. Isaiah prophesies, “In times to come Jacob will take root. Israel will blossom, bud, and fill the whole world with fruit” (Isa. 27:6).
The nations that fall under God’s judgment are also symbolized as uprooted plants. The Amorites will fall when God destroys their root system (Amos 2:9). Ekron would be “torn out by the roots” (Zeph. 2:4). Perhaps the most memorable use of this image is in relation to King Nebuchadnezzar. God allowed him to flourish like a great tree, but one day, similar to a tree that is chopped down, he descended into madness. After King Nebuchadnezzar learned his lesson, he was restored to some prominence, like a new shoot that comes up from a tree’s roots (Dan. 4:26).
The Roots of a Believer
Jesus also used roots as a symbol for the health of a person’s spiritual life. The Pharisees were not planted by God—he did not sanction their spiritual leadership—so they would be uprooted (Matt. 15:13). The entire generation of Jews in Jesus’ days would be judged by their root system, just as the fruitless fig tree withered from the roots up (Matt. 3:10; Mark 11:12–14, 20–21; Luke 3:9). Jesus told the parable of the soils to illustrate the spiritual health of his hearers. When the Word of God fell on rocky soil, the believers’ roots did not go deep enough, and their spiritual life withered and died. Jesus described it like this: “They don’t develop any roots. They believe for a while, but when their faith is tested, they abandon it” (Luke 8:13). Just like in the Old Testament use of the image of a root, those who have shallow roots cannot stand in times of trial.
The health of a plant depends on the strength of its root system; so also the fruitfulness of a person’s life depends on their being rooted in God’s Word and character.
The Root of Jesse
Elsewhere in Scripture we read that Jesus comes from the root of Jesse (Isa. 11:1, 10). He finds his source in the Davidic line, thereby confirming his identity as the Messiah. The symbolic root of Israel in the Old Testament is fulfilled in Christ. In addition, Israel itself will form the root of the people of God. People from other nations will be joined to the nation of Israel by finding their source in God (Rom. 11:16, 18). They, like the nation of Israel, will be judged by their roots—healthy roots will produce holy lives.
The Bitter Root
In a negative use of root imagery, idolatry and sin are likened to a bitter root that poisons the community of believers (Deut. 29:18 NIV; Heb. 12:15). Here the problem is bigger than a shallow root—the entire root system has gone bad, guaranteeing not just a poor harvest but a poisoned one. Such imagery should motivate us to pursue a life that is rooted in the living stream (John 7:37), just like the picture of a healthy tree offered in Psalm 1 and Jeremiah 17. The health of our root system will determine the spiritual fruit in our lives.
Key Verse
Since he doesn’t have any root, he lasts only a little while. When suffering or persecution comes along because of the word, he immediately falls from faith. (Matt. 13:21)