east wind Summary and Overview

the wind coming from the east (Job 27:21; Isa. 27:8, etc.). Blight caused by this wind, "thin ears" (Gen. 41:6); the withered "gourd" (Jonah 4: 8). It was the cause and also the emblem of evil (Ezek. 17:10; 19:12; Hos. 13:15). In Israel this wind blows from a burning desert, and hence is destitute of moisture necessary for vegetation.

EAST WIND . See Wind.

Dry, parching, and blighting, as blowing from over burning deserts. The E. wind was what blasted the grain in Pharaoh's dream; strictly the S.E. wind (chamsin) is what is most hurtful in Egypt to animals and vegetation. While it lasts doors and windows are shut; but the fine dust penetrates everywhere, wooden vessels warp and crack, the thermometer suddenly rises, the grass withers (Ukert in Hengstenberg on Egypt and the Books of Moses). Israel's passage through the Red Sea after the passover was just the time of year when the "strong E. wind" from the Red Sea blows, exactly as the sacred narrative records (Exodus 14:21).