Galbanum is one of the ingredients for the perfume used in the holy temple. God himself mentioned this particular plant when he instructed Moses on the manner of preparation temple’s perfume should be made.
Galbanum’s Oil form or it’s a plain plant
While others claim that its oil form was used in the Bible, we could read from the verse that it did not mention that its oil form was used. Galbanum was mentioned in the bible only once and this can be found in the book of Exodus. In this particular verse, it plainly stated that God instructed Moses to have galbanum as one of the ingredients for the temple’s perfume, which others refer to as incense.
“34 And the LORD said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight:
35 And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy:
36 And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy. – Exodus 30:34-38
Galbanum’s scent
Galbanum is a gum and has been concluded that comes from the Galbanum officinale (1). Dioscorides filed galbanum under the Roots Of Akanthoda or Prickly Plants in his book and named it chalbane. The English translation of Dioscoride’s book suggested that its Latin name is ferula galbaniflua. According to Dioscorides, it is the resin of ferula and it has a strong scent. Some of the exact words used to describe this gum that was originally grown in Syria are warming, burning, attractive, and dispersing.
Aromatic effects of Galbanum
To enjoy the therapeutic benefits of this plant, galbanum can be applied or inhaled. Since the bible mentioned that it will be used as a perfume, this post would only focus on its aromatic effects although it has several healing properties. Its aromatic effects include repelling poisonous beasts (which probably means animals), easing the feeling of those people with vertigo and raising the epileptic. It’s also useful for women as it helps with womb congestion and expels menstrual flow. However, pregnant women should be careful in using it because it is also abortifacient.
Thus, from the different references we could see that this strong-scented gum was used biblically for the holy temple, and historically was utilized to heal some illnesses.
May our health prayers be like a sweet-smelling incense 💋❤
References:
- (1) Illustrated Bible Dictionary by Matthew George Easton via My Bible App
- (2) TA Osbaldeston, RPA Wood., The Herbal of Dioscorides the Greek (Modern English Version) 2000
- (3) King James Bible Version
- (Image) Galbanum, image courtesy of Wikipedia commons
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