Bible Dictionary
Cane
Cane was a tall, hollow, reedlike plant growing in moist places. In some passages it represents weakness or refers to reeds and marsh creatures.
Definition
Cane is a tall, sedgy plant with a hollow stem that grows in moist places. The same Hebrew term is also translated “reed.”
Biblical Usage
Cane or reed can refer to vegetation, reeds, and possibly the crocodile or hippopotamus as “beasts of the reeds.” The fragile reed also illustrates weakness in passages concerning unreliable support.
Historical Background
The term is connected with a plant found in moist places and is also associated with reeds and marsh creatures. The entry identifies it with the related subject of calamus.
Scripture References
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
A tall sedgy plant with a hollow stem, growing in moist places. In Isa. 43:24; Jer. 6:20, the Hebrew word kaneh is thus rendered, giving its name to the plant. It is rendered “reed” in 1 Kings 14:15; Job 40:21; Isa. 19:6; 35:7. In Ps. 68:30 the expression “company of spearmen” is in the margin and the Revised Version “beasts of the reeds,” referring probably to the crocodile or the hippopotamus as a symbol of Egypt. In 2 Kings 18:21; Isa. 36:6; Ezek. 29:6, 7, the reference is to the weak, fragile nature of the reed. (See CALAMUS.)
Smith's Bible Dictionary
[Reed]
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>kan.</p><p>See REED.</p>