Willows. Willows are mentioned in Leviticus 23:40; Job 40:22; Psalms 137:2; Isaiah 44:4. With respect to the tree upon which the captive Israelites hung their harps, there can be no doubt that the weeping willow, Salix babylonica, is intended. This tree grows abundantly on the banks of the Euphrates, in other parts of Asia as in Palestine.
The Hebrew word translated willows is generic, and includes several species of the large family of Salices, which is well represented in Palestine and the Bible lands, such as the Salix alba, Salix viminalis (osier), Salix aegyptiaca.