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The Desirable Biblical Persimmon and the Balm of Gilead

The Desirable Biblical Persimmon and the Balm of Gilead

Last updated on: October 18, 2024 at 5:08 pm by Alice H. Murray

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The Desirable Biblical Persimmon and the Balm of Gilead 2024-10-18T17:08:32-04:00 Alice H. Murray

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The balm of Gilead comes from the resin of a balsam [Image Wikimedia Commons]

A familiar spiritual beautifully tells us “There Is A Balm In Gilead” While Jesus serves as a figurative balm for the “sin-sick soul,” out of what physical item did the phrase “balm in Gilead” arise? The surprising answer involves the much-desired biblical persimmon.

Gilead: A Geographical Place

Gilead was an actual location. The name refers to a region east of the Jordan River with a fertile and mountainous topography. The spices and ointments it produced gave Gilead its claim to fame.

The region’s name appears in its most precious commodity, the balm of Gilead. Made from the balsam plant or tree growing in that area, the balm could be applied to wounds, burns, or cuts. It ability to mask the smell of rotting flesh led to its use in the embalming process as well.

The Biblical Persimmon and Other Names

People in Bible times viewed the balsam as a positive symbol because they attributed both magical and ceremonial properties to it. They produced perfumes, incense and medicines from the plant. Additionally, Exodus 30:34 lists its sap as one of the spices for making incense for the Temple.

This particular plant bore several names, including the balm of Gilead, the balsam, and later on the biblical persimmon. Nevertheless, the ancient persimmon is unrelated to today’s persimmon which produces a fall fruit with sweet, honey-like flavor in yellow-orange flesh.

Drawing of High Pries before a smoking incense altar

Incense for the Temple’s incense included sap from the balsam as an ingredient [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Luxury Products and Cleopatra

The biblical persimmon was considered a luxury product in the ancient world. Accordingly, the Jews living in the Dead Sea basin where the plant grew tightly controlled its cultivation and trade.

The famous and expensive biblical persimmon was a component of the favorite perfume of Egypt’s Queen Cleopatra. In fact, the queen’s husband, Marc Antony, gifted his wife an orchard of persimmon trees previously belonging to Herod the Great. The orchard’s harvest helped to create Cleopatra’s signature scent.

Painting of Cleopatra along the Nile with handmaidens

Cleopatra’s signature scent contained the balm of Gilead [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Biblical References To The Balm of Gilead

Besides use in Temple incense, several references to incense and balm from the biblical persimmon are sprinkled throughout the Bible. In one of the earliest mentions, Genesis 43:11 tells how Jacob sent a gift of persimmon balm to Pharaoh. Included among other precious gifts the Queen of Sheba brought to Solomon was balsam. Hebrew merchants carried such balm to the market of Tyre.

Likely the most familiar biblical passage referencing the balm of Gilead come in the form of a question by the weeping prophet, Jeremiah. “Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there?” he asks in Jeremiah 8:22. God’s people had festering wounds from sin and needed the ultimate balm to heal them. While Gilead’s balm might heal temporary physical symptoms, only Jesus can ultimately heal souls.

Painting of the weeping prophet Jeremiah with his head bowed and right hand upon his face

The prophet Jeremiah famously asked “Is there no balm in Gilead?” [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Archaeological Find

In 2021 archaeological excavations in Jerusalem’s Old City along the Western Wall’s foundation stones uncovered an ancient amethyst seal. This discovered caused excitement as it bore the first known depiction of the plant called the “Balm of Gilead.”

The seal’s engraving showed a bird and a branch holding five pieces of fruit. Further examination led to the conclusion the branch belonged to the persimmon plant used for making perfume mentioned in the Bible. The seal, believed to be 2,000 years old, was fashioned from a wee semi-precious amethyst, under half an inch long and a quarter of an inch wide. Because the biblical persimmon was a luxury product, a wealthy Jew likely owned the lost seal. While not familiar to most today, ancient peoples knew of the plant and revered it for the luxury products it provided. Hence it was depicted on a valuable seal.

The Best Balm

The balm of Gilead led to better-feeling and better-smelling people in the ancient world. At least it did for those who could afford products from this luxury item. Regardless of the name the plant was given—whether balsam, biblical persimmon, or balm of Gilead, the relief it provided was only temporary. The best balm ever came later in the form of Jesus who, at the expense of his very life, provides eternal relief to “sin-sick souls.”

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About Alice H Murray

After 35 years as a Florida adoption attorney, Alice H. Murray now pursues a different path as Operations Manager for End Game Press. With a passion for writing, she is constantly creating with words. Her work includes contributions to several Short And Sweet books, The Upper Room, Chicken Soup For The Soul, Abba’s Lessons (from CrossRiver Media), and the Northwest Florida Literary Review. Alice is a regular contributor to GO!, a quarterly Christian magazine in the Florida Panhandle, and she has three devotions a month published online by Dynamic Women in Missions. Her devotions have also appeared in compilation devotionals such as Ordinary People Extraordinary God (July 2023) and Guideposts’ Pray A Word A Day, Vol. 2 (June 2023) and pray a word for Hope (September 2023). Alice’s first book, The Secret of Chimneys, an annotated Agatha Christie mystery, was released in April 2023. She has an adoption devotional scheduled for publication in October 2025. On a weekly basis, Alice posts on her blog about current events with a humorous point of view at aliceinwonderingland.wordpress.com. You can read more about the author here.

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