What is bdellium? You may never have heard of it before, but chances are that you definitely use something every day that was made from bdellium: Velcro. Yes, Velcro was made from something called bdellium. But what is this mysterious substance? I’ve been curious to find out where the name comes from, the Spiritual meaning of bdellium, bdellium meaning in the Bible, and what spiritual meaning can be found in the plant’s sacred name.
Bdellium is a mysterious jewel found in ancient civilizations, from those of the Aztecs, Greeks and Romans to the Ancient Egyptians and the Middle East. The name is taken from the Greek word ‘bdelyx’ meaning ‘gum like resin’, which does not mean that bdellium was made of resin. In fact, it was considered a precious stone or even a star or planet from heaven, as relics from different cultures describe it as coming from the sky. This, in turn, led to healing properties for both physical and psychological well-being.
Bdellium is a word that can be used to describe both a plant and its resin.
The plant itself is called “Commiphora wightii,” and it grows in the Arabian Peninsula. It’s also known as “guggul” in Hindi, which means “wax.” It’s been used in traditional medicine for centuries, although the medical claims surrounding it are not well-researched or proven.
Spiritual Meaning of Bdellium
The resin of the bdellium tree is also used in traditional medicines and remedies. It’s often associated with protection against demons, evil spirits, and witchcraft, which gives us some insight into its spiritual meaning.
Bdellium is a resin that comes from trees. It has been used in spiritual practices throughout history. In particular, it is thought to have the power to help people manifest their desires and intentions. This can be done by wearing or carrying bdellium on one’s person or by burning it during a ritual.
There are many different kinds of bdellium, each with its own properties and uses. The most common form is “white bdellium,” which is found in India and Africa. It is often used as incense, but can also be used in divination or to find lost objects.
Another type of bdellium is “black bdellium,” which comes from Persia and Afghanistan. This type has healing properties that are said to relieve pain and reduce inflammation in the body when ingested or inhaled.
Bdellium Meaning in Hebrew
The Hebrew noun זהב means ‘Gold’, but in the context of Genesis 2:12 it would read more naturally as a generic term for anything precious that is found naturally:
10A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. 11The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold. 12And the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are there. 13The name of the second river is the Gihon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Cush. 14And the name of the third river is the Tigris, which flows east of Assyria. And the fourth river is the Euphrates. ESV
The phrase ‘bdellium and onyx stone are there’ seems to expand on the reference to gold rather than be an addition. In other words it seems to mean something like:
- “the gold of that land is good, for example you can even find bdellium and onyx stone”
rather than:
- “the gold of that land is good, and in addition, you can find bdellium and onyx stone”
My question is whether that is possible—can the Hebrew word here be interpreted as a generic term or must it be understood to refer specifically to the yellow precious metal?
The Idea in Brief
When viewed through the lens of Jewish tradition, the suggested literal translation of the verse would appear as follows:
Gen 2:12And gold of the land is good: there [one finds] the yellow and the red stone.
The second clause (after the colon) would modify and expand upon the first clause. In this regard, the Babylonian Talmud appears to point to the “yellow stone” (commonly translated as bdellium) and “red stone” (commonly translated as onyx) in this particular verse as references to unalloyed and alloyed gold, respectively.
The cantillation marks of the Masoretic Text would reinforce this Talmudic view. That is, the cantillation marks surrounding “the yellow and the red stone” in the second clause appear to modify the word “gold” in the first clause.
Discussion
Hebrew Words
The word “bdellium” in this verse is בְּדֹלַח, and occurs only twice in the Hebrew Bible (here and in Numbers 11:7). In the latter instance, the reference is to Manna, which appears in that context to be white or yellow in color.
According to Gesenius –
The word for “onyx” in this verse is שֹׁהַם. The color of this stone can be of variant colors to include red (that is, the carnelian stone).
According to the Hebrew Aramaic Lexicon –
Received Oral Jewish Tradition
The Babylonian Talmud contains the received Jewish tradition as understood by the various rabbinic schools during the early and middle ages. The Talmud is a commentary of the Mishnah, which was the starting point for the received oral tradition. The Mishnah provides the two qualitative variants of gold — pure gold (yellow) and gold alloyed with copper (red).
According to Jacob Neusner’s translation of the Mishnah (m. Kippurim 4:4, K-M) –
The rabbis in the early and middle ages took the Mishnah and wrote their analyses and commentaries. These writings were the “Gemara,” which, when combined with the Mishnah, formed the Talmud in part as we know today.
The following is Gemara commentary and expansion of the Mishnah (see red box in the image, below) and as translated by Jacob Neusner –
NOTE: The Baker Bible Encyclopedia defines the “Parvaim” as follows:
Parvaim.
Geographical area from which Solomon obtained gold for use in the temple (2 Chr 3:6). According to rabbinic sources the gold had a reddish hue, and was used to make the vessel with which the high priest removed the ashes from the altar of burnt offering on the Day of Atonement. Parvaim was probably located in Arabia. (Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, V.2, p. 1617)
In other words, the Gemara makes reference to Gen 2:12 in order to indicate that there was “yellow gold” and “red gold.” Since the “red gold” appeared from Parvaim, this gold was alloyed gold, which, when combined with copper for example, appears red in color. (The implied assumption here is that shovels in the Temple made of pure gold would be too malleable and too heavy to function as effective shovels.) The Talmud therefore seems to make the following distinctions of gold based on the allusion and reference to “yellow” and “red” found in Gen 2:12.
In the next section, the Masoretic Text appears to follow the Talmud. That is, the cantillation marks of the latter half of Gen 2:12 expand and modify the first half of Gen 2:12. Thus the references to yellow and red would modify “gold,” which is alloyed (red) and unalloyed (yellow).
Masoretic Cantillation Markings in Relation to the Talmud
The Talmud existed during the early and middle ages (c.200-900 CE), whereas the Masoretic Era appeared later (c.900-1000 CE). Thus the Talmud influenced the Masoretic Text, and not vice-versa. Kelley, Mynatt, and Crawford (1988) indicate the following in this regard.
Thus when we view the cantillation marks in the Masoretic Text for Gen 2:12, the reader notices that the allusion and reference to “yellow and the red stone” are to gold. That is, the stronger disjunctive accents “point” to the logical reading of the Hebrew verse. Please click the image below to enlarge in order to see these contrasts.
The graph above depicts visually through colors how the logic would have “sounded” when sung aloud according to the cantillation marks. That is, chunks of words were modified logically by subsequent words. The second half of the verse therefore modified the first half of the verse because the “Atnach” accent/cantillation mark appears right after the Hebrew word for “good.” When the reader heard that sound (cantillation mark), the logical response was to understand what remained (until the more powerful Silluq appeared and ended the verse). That is, the “Silluq” is the only disjunctive accent that is more powerful than the “Atnach,” and therefore everything after “Atnach” is subsumed logically until the “Silluq” appears in the verse (in order to end the verse since the “Silluq” accent/cantillation mark is only used to end verses). Thus, it was not logical for precious gem stones to modify gold in the first half of the verse, but for yellow and red to modify gold in the first half of the verse.
In summary, the Masoretic Text provides the literal backdrop to the Talmud and therefore reinforces the received Jewish Oral Tradition.
Bdellium Meaning In The Bible
When Moses was commanded by God to take a census of Israel, he found that there were 600,000 men able to go to war. He then numbered the Levites, who were not required to fight because they were considered to be holy. He found that there were 32,000 men in all who were not fighting for an earthly king but for their Heavenly King. These Levites and other priests would be the ones to enter the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur and bring out the blood of sacrifice.
The Bible tells us that these priests wore linen garments and linen pants under their robes (Exodus 39:27). Linen is a material made from flax; it was used because it is soft and has a faint scent. The Bible says that bdellium is also called “shoe-flower” (Jeremiah 6:20). This may have been because bdellium had a faint scent like linen, or perhaps because it was used in making shoes.
So when we read about בדליות (bdelyot), which brings peace between man and God, we can understand its meaning as being one of those things created by God that brings peace between Him and humanity.
Conclusion
The above discussion explanation appears to be how Jewish rabbis and scholars would have approached this verse throughout antiquity. That is, Jewish rabbis and scholars over the millennia passed on what they had received and/or understood as relating to passages of Scripture in the Hebrew Bible. Thus, while the primary interpretation of this verse signals apparent gems and other precious stones (“bdellium and onyx”), Jewish Oral Tradition provides the alternative explanation that refers to the types and varieties of gold (“yellow and red stone”).
