ISSOP (Hebrew 'ežóbh; Greek ὕσσωπος). — A small plant used for sprinkling in Jewish rites.
It is mentioned already in Ex. 12:22, where the Israelite doors in Egypt are spoken of as being sprinkled with the blood of the paschal lamb. It was used in particular for the purification of the leper (Lev. 14:4) and for lustral water (Num. 19:6, 18). For a metaphorical use of the term cf. Ps. 50:9. In Io. 19:29 there is general agreement in seeing an erroneous reading, since the plant in question cannot be hyssop.
Botanists do not agree in identifying this plant. Some have thought of Linnaeus’ Hyssopus officinalis, but since this does not grow in Palestine, it has also been identified with Origanum Maru.
Bibl.: I. Loew, Die Flora der Juden, II, Vienna 1926, pp. 84-101; id., Der biblische ežóbh, in Sitzungsberichte der Kaiserl. Akad. der Wissenschaften in Wien, 161 (1909), 5.3. Angelo Penna