A branch is a shoot or sprout that grows from a tree or bush. In the Bible, this word has both literal and symbolic meanings.
In its literal sense, "branch" refers to the three sets of arms that extend from the main shaft of the golden lampstand in the tabernacle (for example, Exodus 25:31–36). The word is also used for the palm branches that people used to build temporary shelters during the ancient Jewish Feast of Tabernacles (Leviticus 23:40–43).
In its figurative sense, "branch" is used as a symbol in prophecies about the Messiah (God's chosen one) and in other spiritual teachings. In the Bible, metaphoric uses of "branch" appear in several passages. Israel is described as different types of plants with branches:
an olive tree (Hosea 14:6),
a cedar (Ezekiel 17:23), and
a vine (Ezekiel 17:6; compare Psalm 80:8–11).
The image of a "branch" with its new growth often represents prosperity and blessing in the Bible (Genesis 49:22; Job 8:16; Psalm 80:8–11; Ezekiel 36:8).
Branches can also symbolize judgment when they are described as being cut off, broken off, withered, or burned (Job 18:16; Isaiah 9:14; Jeremiah 11:16). Jesus combined three of these ideas (withering, being cut, or being burned) into one metaphor (John 15:6). In a similar way, the apostle Paul wrote that the Jews who did not believe would be broken off like branches (Romans 11:19–21).
The most important use of branch symbolism in the Bible refers to the promised Messiah from King David's family line. Although this symbolism became common during the time of the prophets, its origins go back much earlier in the Bible. The concept of a "branch" was used to describe important people such as:
a king’s personal servant (Genesis 40:9–13),
the patriarch Joseph (Genesis 49:22),
Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Assyria (Daniel 4:12).
Passages such as 2 Samuel 23:4 and Psalm 132:17 speak of the Davidic line as “growing” or “sprouting forth” (which is the literal meaning of the Hebrew verbs used in these verses). Finally, images of a bountiful harvest were used to describe the blessings that would come when the Messiah would come and rule (compare Leviticus 26 with the prophetic passages mentioned earlier). From these earlier uses, it makes sense how the term "branch" eventually became a special title for the Messiah in later prophecies.