Nettle

Nettle (Hebrew charul, possibly also qimmosh) appears in Scripture as a symbol of desolation and neglect. Proverbs 24:30–31 describes the field and vineyard of the sluggard overrun with nettles and thorns — a picture of the consequences of laziness. Job 30:7 refers to desperate outcasts who sought shelter among the bushes and gathered under the nettles. Zephaniah 2:9 pronounces judgment on Moab and Ammon, declaring their lands shall be "a possession of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation" — a reversal of the fertile land into barren waste. The nettle thus functions as a recurring image of curse, abandonment, and the fruits of neglected responsibility.