Balm of Gilead
Opobalsamum; balsam of Judaea, balm of Mecca
- Known today as
- The resin of Commiphora gileadensis.
- Kind
- Resin & Wood, in 3 older authorities
- Constituents
- alpha-pinene and sabinene, sesquiterpenes, salicin
- Earliest authority here
- Jeremiah
- In other databases
- Plants of the World Online search · GBIF search · Wikidata search
Balm of Gilead: what was it used for?
The most precious balsam of antiquity: for wounds, and in the holy oils.
Balm of Gilead: what does modern science say?
An aromatic resin; the true balsam is now rare, and “balm of Gilead” in the trade is usually poplar buds.
Pharmacognosy & Toxicology
- Constituents
- alpha-pinene and sabinenethe oil of Commiphora gileadensis
- sesquiterpenes
- salicin ChEMBLin the North American “balm of Gilead” buds of the balsam poplar, a different thing
- Mechanism
- The true balsam of Judaea, a myrrh relative grown at Jericho and En Gedi, is an antiseptic resin; the name passed in America to poplar buds, whose salicin is a willow-type analgesic. The sap of the true plant was cytotoxic to cancer cells in one Israeli study.
- Toxic dose
- Safe externally.
- Standing
- The plant was lost to cultivation in Palestine after the Crusades and replanted from Arabian stock in the 1980s; no monograph.
- Amiel, E., et al. (2012). “Beta-caryophyllene, a compound isolated from the biblical balm of Gilead, is a selective apoptosis inducer for tumor cell lines.” Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Verified against its record · doi:10.1155/2012/872394
- Iluz, D., et al. (2010). “Medicinal properties of Commiphora gileadensis.” African Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology 4. Not indexed
The abstract of each source, beneath its citation. For Club members. About the Club or sign in.
Constituent names open the compound’s record at PubChem, and “ChEMBL” beside a name opens its record at ChEMBL, the European Bioinformatics Institute’s database of bioactive molecules. Where a mechanism line was checked against ChEMBL (ChEMBL 37, read 1 October 2026), the check is shown with the measured value and its source paper, or says plainly that nothing has been measured. Doses are as the references give them, for description only; this is not medical advice. Each source carries the result of its check against Crossref, PubMed, or the authority’s page: see Verification.
Balm of Gilead: what lore surrounds it?
Balsam was mixed with olive oil to make the chrism of the Church; after the Spanish reached the Americas, balsam of Peru often took its place. See Chrism.
The balsam groves near Jericho were valuable enough in antiquity that Antony is said to have given them to Cleopatra as a gift, and Herod then leased them back from her. Crusaders fought over the same groves centuries later.
Balm of Gilead: what did the older authorities say?
Sources
- Jeremiah 8:22. Book, seen in reviews
- Josephus, Jewish Antiquities VIII. Book, seen in reviews
- Pliny, Natural History XII. Primary text
Verification
- Checked
- October 1, 2026
- Passes
- Every sentence read against its sources, in the pass over the remaining 343 entries
- The Standing line checked against the authority it names (EMA, WHO, FDA, CITES, Commission E)
- Every dated or regulatory claim checked by category across the database
- Sources
- 5 cited: 1 verified against its record, 1 primary text, 2 book, seen in reviews, 1 not indexed. 1 with the abstract on file.
- Corrections
- None were needed.
What was checked, how, and what was found is set out on the Verification page. A checked source is one whose record was found; it does not make the entry medical advice.
Cite This Entry
Version 1 · first published September 25, 2026
- Chicago
“Balm of Gilead.” In Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1. The Thinking Press, 2026–. Last modified September 25, 2026. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/balm-of-gilead.
- MLA
“Balm of Gilead.” Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema, version 1, The Thinking Press, 25 Sept. 2026, thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/balm-of-gilead. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.
- APA
Balm of Gilead. (2026, September 25). In B. C. P. Statema (Ed.), Materia medica (Version 1). The Thinking Press. Retrieved October 8, 2026, from https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/balm-of-gilead
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See Also
Sharing salicin
Also in Flavius Josephus
Mandrake in Flavius Josephus · everything Flavius Josephus names →
Also in Pliny the Elder
Barley water in Pliny the Elder · Asarabacca in Pliny the Elder · Ben-nut in Pliny the Elder · Arthritica in Pliny the Elder · everything Pliny the Elder names →
Drawing on the same sources: Pliny
Nearby in the alphabet
Balsam of Peru (vanilla-scented balsam from Myroxylon balsamum var) · Balm (Melissa officinalis) · Aurum potabile (Gold dissolved or suspended in liquid for drinking) · Basil (Ocimum basilicum) · Aster (Aster amellus) · Bells (and wrongly, called their “baptism) · The aspergillum (or perforated ball on a handle, with which holy water is sprinkled)
Historical description, not medical advice.