What Does Jeremiah 8:22 Mean?

(22) **Is there no balm in Gilead . . .?**—The resinous gums of Gilead, identified by some naturalists with those of the terebinth, by others with mastich, the gum of the *Pistaccia lentiscus, *were prominent in the pharmacopœia of Israel, and were exported to Egypt for the embalmment of the dead (Genesis 37:25; Genesis 43:11; Jeremiah 46:11; Jeremiah 51:8). A plaister of such gums was the received prescription for healing a wound. The question of the prophet is therefore a parable. “Are there no means of healing, no healer to apply them, for the spiritual wounds of Israel? The prophets were her physicians, repentance and righteousness were her balm of Gilead. *Why has no balsam-plaister been laid on the daughter of my people? *Why so little result from the means which Jehovah has provided?” The imagery re-appears in Jeremiah 46:11; Jeremiah 51:8. The balm which was grown at Jericho under the Roman Empire (Tac, *Hist. v.* 6; Plin., *Nat. Hist. xii.* 25), and was traditionally reported to have been brought by the Queen of Sheba, was probably *the Amyris Opobalsamum, *now cultivated at Mecca, which requires a more tropical climate than that of Gilead. Wyclif’s version, “Is there no *triacle *in Gilead?” may be noted as illustrating the history of a word now obsolete. “Triacle” was the English form of *theriacum, *the mediæval panacea for all wounds, and specially for the bites of serpents and venomous beasts. **Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission. **Bible Hub