snow

Crystallized water formed when moisture-laden air is chilled. It is relatively rare in biblical lands except in northern reaches and at higher elevations. It was, however, sufficiently known for biblical writers to refer to it (Ps 148:8; Prov 25:13; Isa 55:10; Jer 18:14; 2Sam 23:20). It also served as a standard for whiteness, whether as symptomatic of illness like leprosy (Exod 4:6; Num 12:10; 2Kgs 5:27) or in its own right (Ps 51:7; Isa 1:18; Dan 7:9; Matt 28:3; Rev 1:14). It was recognized to be properly seasonal (Ps 26:1), and its control lay in the hand of God, as with all of nature (Job 37:6; Job 38:22). Its whiteness symbolized the ultimate in purity (Lam 4:7).