Part 2: Conclusion of..
What Is The Connection Between Aliyah, Aloe, Spikenard, Gardens, Trumpets and a Plough?
The Song of Songs, or Song of Solomon also called Canticles.
Hebrew: שִׁיר הַשִּׁירִים, Šîr Haššîrîm,
Greek: ᾆσμα ᾆσμάτων, asma asmaton, both meaning Song of Songs, is one of the megillot (scrolls) found in the last section of the Tanakh, known as the Ketuvim (or “Writings”), and is a book of the Old Testament.
Incense contains spices
Spices in Hebrew is
בֶּשֶׂם
bosem
Phonetic: (beh’-sem)
Strong’s #1314 spice, balsam, the balsam tree
(an aromatic resinous substance)
This noun is derived from the root word בשם (B.S.M, this Semitic root is not used in the Hebrew Bible) meaning “to be fragrant.”
beyt – shin – mem
In the paleo Hebrew pictograph letters it looks like…
beyt: B, house, in, the body, the household or family, inside, within, amid. (tent – floor plan).
shin: S or Sh, eat, consume, destroys, teeth, ivory, point of a rock, a peak, to devour, something sharp, El Shaddai.
mem: M, closed, water, mighty, massive, many, chaos like the deep, to come from, like water down a stream.
(Remember Hebrew reads from right to left.)
From the Paleo/pictograph meanings, we could conclude the word
spices – bosem,
to mean:
Inside/within, (something to) eat/consume, to come from, like water down a stream.
(Think of a flowing smoke like fragrance in the air.. and the river of Lifes/chaim – flowing from both Eden and from His Throne.)
Whatever the fragrances of Eden were, we may not name them all accurately with modern translations, however, we see the spices chosen by God, winding and wafting by His Spirit throughout the Old and New Testament. They are interwoven into the history of humanity, usually indicating His presence in His Word, and His promise of a future Messiah.
Spices can be:vegetable substances possessing a sharp taste and aromatic qualities. The Bible sometimes uses the Hebrew word bosem for spices in general, which literally refers to the rich fragrance of spices.
Purpose of Spices:
A real substance for a particular use, such as food or medicine and taken from nature
A Sanctified or set apart/holy, substance, for worship or to attend God’s presence, e.g.
The Tabernacle and its Furnishings
The Anointing of Priests
The dedication of the Ark of the Covenant &
The Mercy Seat
A substance accompanying and indicative of an acceptable offering (e. g. frankincense on a meat offering) or incense attending the prayers of saints in heaven.
Revelation 5:8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Revelation 8:5:
And the smoke of the incense, (which came) with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.
The word used to signify glory is Kavod – כָּבֽוֹד
Or Kabod. pronounced kaw-bode’: abundance, honor, glory
Strongs# 3519b
kaf – vet – vav – dalet
The meaning in the paleo pictographs…
kaf: palm of hand, a wing, to allow to cover, to open the hand, the power to suppress or build up.
vet: tent, house, body, the household or family, inside, within, amid.
vav: a nail, a peg, a hook, joining together, making secure, becoming bound or nailed to.
dalet: a door, a path, a way of life, movement into or out of.
Glory could be described using the paleo Hebrew pictographs as: the hand or wing covers the family/household within, joining together and making secure the movement through the door and pathway of life.
Continuing the purposes of spices: Attending the Shekinah Glory or a manifestation of Gods presence: in the case of the Shekinah Glory of God which appeared on the Mercy Seat of the Ark of the Covenant, where the sanctified, set apart/holy perfume was to be placed. (Exodus 30:34-38)
As the manifestation of Gods presence: (Exodus 24:5,10, because the blood of the burnt offering, 24:5, was always to be placed upon the altar of sweet INCENSE, and the manifestation of Gods presence: 24:10 appeared afterwards).
There seems to be strong suggestions in scripture, that Gods Presence is associated with and follows after the spices/Incense/bosem – flowing like the water down a stream. The image of Water likened with Gods Word is already familiar to us.
Or: the presence of God in a communion between man and God, such as in the ‘Garden inclosed’ of the Song of Songs; because the Garden is filled with sweet aromas.
Could it be said, that it was prophetic, because it’s a place of Communion for the Sweet Savor which God ‘Smelled’ for the Travail in another garden (Gan) Gethsemane, the agony of Messiahs Soul?
Further continuing the purposes of spices…
As a fragrance or substance associated with kings, a gift fit for a king, or particularly with the Messiah of Israel.
This could be either directly, such as in the attendance of frankincense and myrrh at His birth and when offered to Him on the Cross. Or, indirectly, in a type and kind of the King of Israel, such as Joseph being carried to Egypt by spice merchants.
No doubt the aroma of frankincense and myrrh was drifting in the dry desert air, or in the gifts brought to Solomon by the Queen of Sheba; kingly aromas for the King of Israel.
Lastly, spices in the Bible are associated with:
The riches of the world: over and over the mention of various spices are intertwined with the finery of wealth, which merchants brought to major ports and the outer regions of Israel.
Notably scripture records that in the end of days, as the ‘Whore of Babylon’ meets her demise in the ‘smoke of her burning’; and the merchants in ships at sea, watch the city destroyed in one hour. They bewail the elegant cloths and woods, the precious metals and the spices, fragrances and perfumes which always accompanied and defined wealth and power.
Except perhaps where the instructions in Exodus are given for using the scents ‘of the apothecary’ in the Tabernacle; spices are relevant to the Song of Songs, probably more than in any other book.
Spices have a greater role, beyond anointing, in the book Shir HaShirim, the Song of Songs. This is the story of Israel and her Bridegroom, the ecclesia/called apart ones/church, and her beloved Messiah, and of God restoring to mankind perfect communion with Himself. Each spice mentioned, bears a particular significance pointing to the love and work of God, to Salvation and Messiah.
Spices as a Common Substance
As already mentioned, the first time we read of the word spices, is among the gifts that Jacob sent to Pharaoh, when his sons went into Egypt, to attempt to buy corn during a famine. The gifts are sent in part, to appease the anger of some elevated steward, whom he thinks has falsely accused his sons of double dealing. Jacob has no idea that it is his son Joseph, who he thought was long dead, was playing a little with the minds of his treacherous brothers. Gen.43:11
And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices and myrrh, nuts and almonds;
As we have seen they are also used as a gift; e.g. when given to Solomon by the Queen of Sheba, in I Kings 10:2
And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones; and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.
It is also seen among the items gifted to him by his people and Hezekiah’s treasure house contained the spices in 2 Chronicles 32:27; and Isaiah 39:2 among other riches. In Ezekiel 27:22, one notes the role of merchants and the trade of spices is referred to.
While most spices were costly, the first way to view them in the Bible is as a natural substance, used for many purposes, but the two most prominent uses of spices have to do with the Tabernacle and their use in in the Presence of God.
Spices bosem: spice, balsam, the balsam tree
Strongs:1314
בֶּשֶׂם
pronounced beh’-sem
meaning: fragrant (2), spice (2), spices (22), sweet perfume-smell, spice, sweet (odour). In some Bibles sweet calamus is translated as aromatic or fragrant Cane.
Strongs:5561
sweet spices
The general uses of spices are also mentioned throughout scripture, notably in the gall mixed with myrrh’s sedative powers, which were offered to Messiah during His crucifixion.
Mark 15:23 And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not.
Second purpose was for application due to the healing powers of balms and ointments. Many of these same substances continue to be used today for medicinal as well as worship purposes.
This list includes: saffron, cinnamon, calamus, frankincense, myrrh and others.
The spices of the Tabernacle are unique, in that they are commanded by God, and they mark the Word, Work, and presence of God in the Holy of Holies and Ark of the Covenant.
There are several uses within the Tabernacle of the Spices:
As a garnishment on certain Sacrifices, (e.g. Meat Offering was adorned with frankincense), or;
As an anointing oil for the physical tabernacle altars and furnishings/tools.
(Exodus 30:23-25)
Take thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred shekels, 24 And of cassia five hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin; 25 And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil.
OIL Olive
The Hebrew word is
sheh-mehn
Shin, Mem, Nun Sophit (Nms).
Strongs# 8081
From H8080; grease, especially liquid (as from the olive, often perfumed); figuratively richness: – anointing, fat (things), fruitful, oil ([-ed]), ointment, olive, + pine.
from 8080 “shah-mahn” (Nms)
A primitive root; to shine, that is, (by analogy) be (causatively make) oily or gross: – become (make, wax) fat.
Oil means shine.
Also as previously mentioned, spices were used as an anointing before the Testimony of the Tabernacle, before the Ark of the Covenant. This was a slightly different, but set apart and holy spice/ointment which was not to be replicated, since it adorned the presence of God in the Shekinah glory on the Mercy Seat between the cherubim:
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; Exodus 30:34 (also 35-38)
Cassia
Strongs:7102
qetsiah: cassia (a powdered bark)
קִצְיעָה
Kuph, Dalet, Heh (hdq);
pronounced: kets-ee-aw
or keed-dah/qiddah: (cassia)
Strongs:6916
קִדָּה
pronounced kid-daw’
H6915; kah-dahd – cassia bark, as in shriveled rolls.
A primitive root; to shrivel up, that is, contract or bend the body (or neck) in deference: – bow (down) (the) head, stoop.
Cassia means shriveled and bow (down) (the) head.
Stacte:
(Greek: στακτή, staktē)
Hebrew word is natap/nat-taph/nataf/nataph
נָטָ֤ף
Nun, Tet, Peh (ptn)
Strongs:5189
are names used for one of the ingredients of the most sacred temple incense, called the HaKetoret, referenced in Exodus 30:34.
It was to be mixed in equal parts with onycha (labdanum), galbanum and mixed with pure frankincense and made into an incense for burning on the altar of the tabernacle.
The Stacte is from the Storax Tree below.
A primitive root from 5197 “nah-taph” (; to ooze, that is, distil gradually; by implication to fall in drops; figuratively to speak by inspiration: – drop (-ping), prophesy.
Stacte means ‘ooze’, ‘drop’ and ‘prophecy’.
and Onycha.
The Hebrew word for onycha is
sh’khey-leth
Shin, Khet, Lamed, Tav (tlxs).
Strong’s # 7827
Onycha means ROAR
From an unused root probably meaning to roar; a lion (from his characteristic roar): – (fierce) lion. (or of a large shell)
The Onycha is also called Gum Rockrose.
Onycha is one of the four spices mentioned in the Old Testament (Exodus 30:34) and as an ingredient of KETORET, Holy Incense, (in picture below).
Like many other herbs and spices mentioned during Biblical times, the origin of onycha is shrouded in debate, starting with the name itself.
Various scholars have argued that the origins of onycha include one of the four following options: gum tragacanth from the Astralagus species; benzoin from the Styrax species; a mollusk; and the labdanum plant.
In Greek, it means fingernail; Gum tragacanth, a tree gum, has a resin that falls on the ground and looks like finger nails.
In Hebrew literature, it specifically states that onycha came from a plant, not a tree or animal.
Other Jewish texts indicate that onycha was a resin, pointing again to a non-animal origin. Furthermore, Jews considered fish and water animals to be unclean.
The final candidate for onycha is said to be labdanum.
Labdanum/ Gum Rockrose can be Cistus ladanifer and Cistus creticus, which are both called rock rose or rose of Sharon.
The leaves and twigs exude a musky-sweet, sticky, brown resin that is high in waxes. The name rose of Sharon perhaps comes from the fact that the plant grows extensively on the Israeli Sharon plains, which lie between Jaffa and Mount Carmel. The plant is native to the western Mediterranean region, where it thrives in the hot summers and cool dry winters, grows to 2.5 meters, and is cultivated for its scented foliage and showy flowers.
It is a vigorous, dense, upright shrub that bears ornamental white flowers which have 5 distinctive maroon spots at the base of its petals, are up to 10cm across and have yellow stamens and pistils at its centre.
The plant is covered with an aromatic resin.
According to Pliny the Elder, an herb called ladan (which is Arabic for labdanum) had a fragrant smell. The Bible mentions rose of Sharon:
“I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters. As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste” (Song of Solomon 2 KJ V).
Strongs:7827
וּשְׁחֵ֙לֶת֙
shecheleth: (an ingredient of the holy incense) perhaps onycha?
שְׁחֶלֶת
pronounced: shekh-ay’-leth
chelbenah:
or galbanum:
Strongs:2464
pronounced: khel-ben-aw:
gum, a type used in incense
חֶלְבְּנָה
Galbanum resin.
The Hebrew word galbanum is
khehl-b’nah
Khet, Lamed, Bet, Nen, Hey (hnblx).
Strongs #2464
From H2459;
galbanam, an odorous gum (as if fatty):
from Strongs 2459 kheh-lehv (blx)
From an unused root meaning to be fat; fat, whether literally or figuratively; hence the richest or choice part: – best, fat (-ness), finest, grease, marrow.
Galbanum means fat and also rich. Khelb’nah is also where we get our modern English word galbanum.
The remarkable thing about these spices is, that both,
the spices of the Tabernacle and its furnishings, and
the fragrance to attend the Ark,
were not commanded as mere perfumes with a specific purpose, but oil fragrances that God marked as holy; and for which the penalty for profaning their use was being cut off – karet, in Hebrew, or even death:
Exodus 30;33 Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people.
Exodus 30:38 Whosoever shall make like unto that to smell thereto shall even be cut off from his people.
Some of the spices suggest spiritual things and as nothing is included in His Word without a good reason, looking at the spices and flowers reveals some of the wisdom that God gave to Solomon. This included the Holy Anointing oil and the Incense for the Temple.
SOME POSSIBLE SYMBOLIC INTERPRETATIONS FROM THE MEANINGS OF THE SPICES:
In the application of the Holy Oil of the Anointing and the Ointment of Incense, if anyone tried to make these or get involved with these other than its proper use, are they usurping the prophetic role of Jesus/Yeshua, the Messiah?
In the case of the Priests: would those who usurp the first oil compound be making themselves play the role of a false priest in which is the Aaronic Levitical line, from where Messiah would descend? Recall, God removed the Priesthood from the other tribes.
If we combine the definitions of each of the spices in the Holy Anointing Oil, again, not in exact order, it seems to make a story….
Myrrh: Bitter
Cinnamon: Erect
Calamus: Purchased
Cassia: Shriveled/Bow (down) (the) Head
Oil: Shine
It could it be saying: One who was purchased, took on the bitterness and was shriveled, then erected and afterward bowed down the head and later shining appeared?
Was this a hidden prophecy of Jesus/Yeshua being purchased in silver by Judas, and took on Himself the sins /the bitterness of the world. His flesh was shredded /shriveled with the whip, then He was erected on a cross, then bowed down His head and died. Later we see the angel who was like lightning /shining, as the stone was rolled away, and also could be that Jesus/ Yeshua shined after He was revived to life /resurrected from the dead?
In the case of the second oil compound, the Ointment of Incense for the Temple: would those who usurp this would make themselves as a false Messiah taking the place of Jesus/Yeshua, who is the Tabernacle made Flesh? Is that why if anyone partook or made these combinations, they would be cut off from their people?
God said He will give us an oil of joy for mourning, which is in the book of Isaiah which Jesus read as He began His ministry!
(**see the possible interpretation of second oil further down.)
Below is a list of the spices and their biblical significance in the Song of Solomon, or ‘ShirHashirim’
Song of Songs 4:14
Nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, With all the trees of frankincense, myrrh and aloes, along with all the finest spices.
Nard or Jatamansi or Spikenard
Other names: nerd, nardo, muskroot.
Strong’s Hebrew: 5373.
נֵרְדְּ (nerd)
Phonetic Spelling: (nayrd)
It has a woody fragrance which is notably aromatic, warm and sensual. This fragrance is a combination of sweet, spicy resin and animal-fat odors. With Jatamansi, the essential oil is similar to an organic earthy scent.
The plant is found growing between 3,300 and 6,000 meters in the Himalaya mountains, and generally found clinging to both steep rocky cliffs and stony/grassy slopes.
Sometimes it has been reported seen growing from ravines in the rocks and in crevices and small depressions. It can also be found in wet meadows and by the banks of the rivulets in the high valleys and peaks ranging from 3,000 – 4,000 m.
It is the unseen root that is used… Is this a reference to the unseen hand of God in our lives? Namely that when we are in places that seem inaccessible or insurmountable, God makes a way where there seems to be no way?
Spikenard, a fragrant oil, used for anointing
Mark 14:3
While He was in Bethany at the home of Simon the leper, and reclining at the table, there came a woman with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume of pure nard; and she broke the vial and poured it over His head.
John 12:3
Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
Saffron
Strongs:3750
כַּרְכֹּם karkom
Saffron, the most sought after of spices, has its origins in the most beautiful of places. This exotic spice is sold in small bundles of long red strands and is heralded for the intense yellow color it imparts on dishes and the complexity of flavor it lends.
From Kashmir, India; it is the world’s most expensive spice. Kashmiri Saffron has long, flat and silky threads with a distinctive aroma.
Approximately 5,000 flowers are required to provide threads enough to make an ounce because there are only three strands of saffron in each flower.
Saffron is a precious spice because of the vast acreage involved, in addition to the labor-intensive handpicking of the flowers and extracting of the tiny threads.
Kobe beef is generally $150 (and more) per pound, whereas saffron can cost up to $315/oz (for the very best kind). That’s roughly $5,000 a pound!
Crocin is responsible for the aroma, flavor and color.
Calamus:
The specific name calamus (meaning “cane”) is derived from Greek κάλαμος (kálamos, meaning “reed”)
Calamus qaneh or kah-neh
Kuph, Nun, Heh (hnq) : a stalk, reed
Strongs:7070 a reed (as erect); by resemblance a rod (especially for measuring), shaft, tube, stem, the radius (of the arm), beam (of a steelyard): – balance, bone, branch, calamus, cane, reed, X spearman, stalk.
קָנֶה
pronounced kaw-neh’
from 7069 “kah-nah” (hnq), meaning: A primitive root; to erect, that is, create; by extension to procure, especially by purchase (causatively sell); by implication to own: – attain, buy (-er), teach to keep cattle, get, provoke to jealousy, possess (-or), purchase, recover, redeem, X surely, X verily.
Calamus: A sweet cane of Palestine also an ingredient of the holy ointment.
Calamus means purchased.
Sweet flag grows in India, central Asia, southern Russia, Siberia and Europe.
Calamus has been used for its fragrance, the plant was cut and used as a flavor for foods, and as a sweet smelling floor covering for the packed earth floors of dwellings and churches.
In addition to sweet flag and calamus other common names include: beewort, bitter pepper root, calamus root, flag root, gladdon, myrtle flag, myrtle grass, myrtle root, myrtle sedge, pine root, rat root, sea sedge, sweet cane, sweet cinnamon, sweet grass, sweet myrtle, sweet root, sweet rush, and sweet sedge)
Cinnamon,
qinnamon or keenamohn”- Kuph, Nen, Mem, Vav, Nun Sophit (Nwmnq)
Strongs:7076
From an unused root (meaning to erect); cinnamon bark (as in upright rolls): – cinnamon.
קִנָּמוֹן
Pronounced: kin-naw-mone’
Cinnamon means erect.
Cinnamon is Asia’s Most Popular Spice Tree.
(Old Cinnamon Tree)
Found on the Islands of Malaya. Native to India, Malaya, Ceylon, China, Japan and Taiwan, and depending on the exact species, are as common to them as some of our native trees are to us. The cinnamon sticks we commonly buy, are made from the bark of the tree, and are rolled naturally by being sun-dried.
Two species of the cinnamon tree are most common, and provide most of the spice sold worldwide and is used in both sweet and savory foods.
The spice from the Cinnamomum cassia, has a stronger taste and dark brown color. This version of the spice is popular in the United States.
True cinnamon is a common term for the Cinnamomum zeylanicum, a native of Sri Lanka (Ceylon). Its spice is sweeter in flavour. While Cinnamomum verum is sometimes considered to be true cinnamon, most cinnamon in international commerce is derived from related species, which are also referred to as cassia to distinguish them from true cinnamon.
(Cinnamon Fruit)
The Hebrew Bible makes specific mention of the spice many times: first when Moses is commanded to use both sweet cinnamon (Hebrew: קִנָּמוֹן, qinnāmôn) and cassia in the holy anointing oil.
In Proverbs where the lover’s bed is perfumed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon; and in Song of Solomon, a song describing the beauty of his beloved, cinnamon scents cover her garments like the smell of Lebanon.
Cassia was also part of the ketoret, the consecrated incense described in the Hebrew Bible.
The Hebrew word for cassia is keed-dah
Kuph, Dalet, Heh (hdq).
Strongs# 6916,
From H6915; cassia bark (as in shrivelled rolls): – cassia.
from 6915 “kah-dahd” (ddq), and its defintion
A primitive root; to shrivel up, that is, contract or bend the body (or neck) in deference: – bow (down) (the) head, stoop.
Cassia means shriveled and bow (down) (the) head.
It is also referred to as the HaKetoret (the incense). It was offered on the specialized incense altar in the time when the Tabernacle was located in the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem.
The ketoret was an important component of the Temple service in Jerusalem.
The Ketoret incense:
Ex.30:34 And God said to Moses, Take for yourself sweet spices of stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; sweet spices of pure frankincense: shall be a part on a part: 35 And you shall make from her an Ointment of Incense, the work of a perfumer, salted (seasoned), pure and Holy:
A combination of spices.
Psalm 45:8 mentions the garments of the king (or of Torah scholars) that smell of myrrh, aloes and cassia.
(Cinnamon Flower)
According to Pliny, a pound (the Roman pound, 327 g) of cassia, cinnamon, or serichatum cost up to 300 denarii, the wage of ten months’ labour.
Cinnamon bark is widely used as a spice. It is used in cooking as a condiment and flavoring and also in the preparation of chocolate, especially in Mexico, which is the main importer of cinnamon.
True cinnamon, rather than cassia, is more suitable for use in sweet dishes. In the Middle East, it is often used in savory dishes of chicken and lamb.
(Cinnamon Leaves)
Frankincense tree; (above)
לְבוֹנָה
Lamed, Bet, Nun, Heh (hnbl)
lebonah
pronounced: leb-o-naw
(Strongs 3828) laban;
l’voh-nah or lbonah – leb-o-naw’;
frankincense
(from its whiteness or perhaps that of its smoke?)
(frank) incense.
from 3826 leeb-bah (hbl)
Feminine of H3820; the heart: – heart.
from 3820 leyv (bl)
the heart; also used (figuratively) very widely for the feelings, the will and even the intellect; likewise for the centre of anything:
Also known as olibanum,
Hebrew: לבונה
Frankincense is a resin extracted from the Boswellia sacra tree (from the family of Burseraceae.)
Frankincense is stripped off the bark of the tree by slashing the tree and then allowing the sap or gum resin, the frankincense, in it to bleed out of the tree and become hardened.
It has associations with the hormone melatonin manufactured by the pineal gland in the brain – a gland long associated with the ‘third eye’ of consciousness-expanding experiences and enlightenment.
For this reason frankincense has been associated with the priesthood, with the ceremonies of an inner sanctum, Frankincense was ‘precious’ – and that reason may have been beyond its material value of the time.
When burned, it gave off a sweet-smelling fragrance. It was an ingredient of the holy incense used at the tabernacle and the temple.
It also accompanied grain offerings and was placed on each row of the showbread inside the Holy.— Ex 30:34-36;
Frankincense means heart.
**Looking at these specific spices and their symbolic meanings together,
the Ointment of Incense
could reveal another story?
Stacte: Prophet
Onycha: Roar
Galbanum: Fat/Rich
Frankincense: Heart
“A prophet will roar out from the fatness and richness of his heart“
The Prophet is Jesus/Yeshua, the Messiah, who spoke out (roared out) from the fatness and richness of His Heart towards the Jewish People, the Pharisees, Scribes, and Elders during His Ministry on earth.
Myrrh is extracted from resin.
Hebrew word for myrrh is “mohr”- Mem, Resh (rm)
Strongs#4753,
from 4843 “mah-rahr” (rrm)
Myrrh means bitter and from H4843; myrrh as distilling in drops, and also as bitter.
Myrrh, also called Commiphora myrrha and is native to Egypt.
The resin was frequently used in incense and perfumes in ancient Egypt, and the oil obtained from it was used for healing wounds in ancient Greece.
This particular resin has soporific/sleep-inducing/calming and tranquilizing properties, and for this reason is associated with a death-like state, even with death itself.
It has been found among the wrappings of Egyptian mummies, and its use in the mummification process is indicative of its associations with an apparent death – apparent, because the state was believed to be only the appearance of death.
In many cultures and beliefs, death is merely the door to the other side: a necessary bridge that needs to be crossed and that bridge was represented by the resin myrrh.
Noting this third gift of the magi, this ‘shamanic death’, was therefore indicative of death as a state that, however seemingly-powerful, nevertheless could be transcended.
In these specifically-named three gifts we have the great symbolic significance as well as that of a valuable commodity.
Gold represents a deity,
Myrrh is suffering, and
Frankincense is worship.
And perhaps even the actual qualities of a priestly ‘kingship’ beyond mere earthly royalty, and mystical, symbolic death. For in resurrection even death is transcended, and our true and glorious immortality awaits. The gifts of the magi together suggest a picture of the future life of the receiver, even up to the crucifixion and beyond.
Wise men consult with Herod.
Matthew 2:1-11. An interesting point is, that contrary to traditional timelines we may have been used to thinking from many childhood nativity plays; the ‘wise men’ did not visit Jesus/Yeshua at His place of birth, but some considerable time (weeks or even months) later at his ‘house’.
The symbolism of myrrh is particularly telling:
the tree’s large thorns echo the crown of thorns of Jesus’ crucifixion, and the myrrh resin is harvested by deliberately ‘wounding’ the tree. A stake is driven into the tree deeper than bark level, which forces the tree to ‘bleed’ its precious resin.
(Think soldiers spear in His side.)
In light of what we are learning, taking a fresh look at the popular carol We three Kings of Orient Are, written in 1857 by Rev. John Henry Hopkinsis quite revealing. The relevant verses (sung in turn by each ‘king’ and then in chorus) are:
Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again
King forever, ceasing never
Over us all to reign
Frankincense to offer have I
Incense owns a Deity nigh
Prayer and praising, all men raising
Worship Him, God most high
Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume
Breathes of life of gathering gloom
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying
Sealed in the stone-cold tomb
Glorious now behold Him arise
King and God and Sacrifice
Alleluia, Alleluia
Earth to heav’n replies
zahab: gold 2091
Original Word: זָהָב
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: zahab
Phonetic Spelling: (zaw-hawb’)
Aloes, along with all the finest spices (not named).
Aloe, ahalim: the aloe (a tree)
174 אֲהָלִים
pronounced a-haw-leem’
Aloe was a bitter spice and it tells all the sweetness of bitter things.
The bitter sweet which has its own fine application that only those who have felt it in life’s journey and experiences can understand.
Aloe wood
The bitter yellow juice can be found just below the skin of the leaves.
As the Myrrh was used to embalm the dead and it tells of death to something.
It is indicative of the sweetness which comes to the heart after it has died to its self-will and pride and sin.
There is an inexpressible presence that hovers about some of Gods children, simply because their mellow spirit and chastened countenance bears the very impression of His cross.
It is the holy/set-apart, evidence of having died to something that was once proud and strong but is now forever at the feet of Jesus/Yeshua, any strength now comes from this intimate relationship and the drawing and receiving of His Ruach HaKodesh/His Holy breath.
It is the heavenly essence of a broken spirit, as in one totally submitted to His will and revealing a contrite heart, as clear as the musical notes that issue from the minor key in a melody. It is true to say that one who is honestly ready to die, is truly ready to live..
Think Hebrew not Greek
There are 70 occurrences of spices in the scripture and they have great significance.
Here those mentioned in Song of Songs 4:14
Aloe, Nard and Saffron, Calamus and Cinnamon, With all the trees of frankincense, Myrrh and aloes, along with all the finest spices
Song of Songs 1:3
“Your oils have a pleasing fragrance, Your name is like purified oil; Therefore the maidens love you
Song of Songs 4:10
“How beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much better is your love than wine, And the fragrance of your oils Than all kinds of spices!
2 Chronicles 16:14
They buried him in his own tomb which he had cut out for himself in the city of David, and they laid him in the resting place which he had filled with spices of various kinds blended by the perfumers’ art; and they made a very great fire for him
Psalm 45:8
All Your garments are fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia; Out of ivory palaces stringed instruments have made You glad.
John 19:38-39
After these things Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission. So he came and took away His body. Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight.
1 Chronicles 9:29-30
Some of them also were appointed over the furniture and over all the utensils of the sanctuary and over the fine flour and the wine and the oil and the frankincense and the spices. Some of the sons of the priests prepared the mixing of the spices.
Exodus 30:23 Take thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty shekels,
לְבוֹנָה frankincense
Frankincense was a fragrance that came from the touch of the fire.
It was only in the burning of the powder, that sweetness rose in clouds from the heart of the flames.
It tells of the heart from which sweetness has been called forth, caused perhaps by flames of affliction, until the set-apart/holy/kadosh place of the soul, is filled with clouds of praise and prayer; reminiscent of the cloud of glory that filled the Mishkan sanctuary, and now resides within our hearts.
The question we need to ask ourselves is are we releasing and giving out the spices and perfumes of sweet odors from the heart?
It takes the fire of God in a spirit of burning…. Is. 4:4
for God is a consuming fire. Heb. 12:29
When the fire of the Holy Spirit is burning bright and clear in our lives, we’ll be able to help those in the dark to see clearly.
We need to keep our fire burning because the more the flame burns, the less wax it produces; (wax is symbolic of sin and weaknesses), the Spirit is a Burning Flame.
Matt. 3:11-12 and Acts 2 His Ruach haKodesh imparted the fire and now we serve God because there’s a fire burning in us. The same One who sends us for His service and is the source of our service – is the fire burning in us.
Spikenard:
“While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof” (1:12 Song of Solomon).
The essential oil was also used by Roman perfumers.
It is a truth that we begin to smell like those in whose company we spend time. We all can attest to smoke and how the smell attaches itself to our clothes and hair. Or garlic, that unless all eat, it is overpowering in its odor on ones breath. What we imbibe saturates our physical bodies. The principle is true and therefore what we fill ourselves with, will eventually ooze out, filtering through to the outside and all see what is truly inside.
1Cor 2: 14,15 and 2 Corinthians 2:15-16 Amplified Bible (AMP) 15 For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ [which ascends] to God, [discernible both] among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; 16 to the latter one an aroma from death to death [a fatal, offensive odor], but to the other an aroma from life to life [a vital fragrance, living and fresh].
Proverbs 7:17
“I have sprinkled my bed With myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.
Song of Songs 4:14
Nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, With all the trees of frankincense, Myrrh and aloes, along with all the finest spices.
Revelation 18:13
and cinnamon and spice and incense and perfume and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat and cattle and sheep, and cargoes of horses and chariots and slaves and human lives.
In Ephesians 3:19 The Word instructs us to know this the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye may be filled with all the fullness of God.
This means to reach a knowledge of the surpassing love of Messiah, so that we may be made complete in accordance with God’s own standard of completeness.
To be full of God, is to be full of everything God is to you and has for you.
To be full of God, is to come to a place of life, health, peace, abundance, total wellness.
Shalom in all its fullness.
The word of God is spiritual, and not mental or emotional. The word of God will renew our minds but mostly it will go down into our heart and cause faith and peace/shalom to rise and to grow. It is not felt at first, not until the shoot starts to come up.
“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free,” John 8:32.
As we meditate on the spices from Genesis to Revelation and the specific occasions they were used and the seasons of His appointed times, we should also pay attention to the blowing of the Shofar/ trumpet/rams horn, at this Yom Ha din/Day of the blowing of trumpets.
In our Heavenly Fathers calendar, it is a time of reflection, repentance/Teshuvah. A season of getting right with the Father, before the presence of His plough in our lives breaks up the fallow ground and in so doing, prepares our hearts to meet with Him.
It’s a time of being prepared as that bride for her groom and heeding the warning in the parable of the 10 virgins.
We are to have the spices adorn our gardens which represent our individual selves, and like Esther who was also prepared to meet the King.
Each young woman’s turn came to go in to King Ahasuerus after she had completed twelve months’ preparation, according to the regulations for the women, for thus were the days of their preparation apportioned: six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with perfumes and preparations for beautifying women Esther 2:12,
This exotic Biblical spice,
mor: myrrh מֹר
strongs 4753 from marar and is in small yellowish or white globules or tears.
MYRRH (Heb. מוֹר, mor), one of the most important perfumes of ancient times. It is referred to 11 times in the Bible, more than any other perfume. The Hebrew, mor, refers to its bitter taste (mar, “bitter”); the root is common to the various Semitic languages, from where it was transferred to Greek μύῥῥα and Latin myrrha.
Pure Strongs:1865
Hebrew derowr (der-ore) means to move rapidly, freedom; hence spontaneity.
Myrrh Strongs: 4753
Hebrew mor (more) distilling in drops and also bitter.
The King James Version uses the word myrrh with the reference to different plants.
The verb מור ( mor) means to change, alter or exchange, and it obviously looks similar to the previous words (particularly the noun מור, mor, meaning myrrh).
Or mowr (more); from marar; myrrh (as distilling in drops, and also as bitter) — myrrh. (Hebrew – marar)
It was used in purification & beautification rites, in the formula for the Holy Anointing Oil, and in burial spices. Queen Esther was bathed in it for six months and with other aloes and perfumes for another six months before her presentation to the king.
She “soaked” 6 months in oil of myrrh … 6 more months in other spices … 12 months of preparation for 1 date … but 1 night with the King changed everything!
And so when we met Him for the first time it changed everything and our preparation time has been somewhat longer than Esthers’ 12 months!
The second meeting face to face
(paneh or panim), (face פָנִים paw-neem’)
will be when the last trumpet/shofar sounds; then it will be followed by the fulfillment of sukkot /to tabernacle with Him forever.
As we make aliyah
Aliyah, al-ee-yaw עֲלִיָּה
going up to the heavenly Jerusalem. We will be singing the psalms of His praise for He alone is worthy, as THE Yom Kippur sacrifice, who took our place as the ATONEMENT for sin.
In the verse 14 of chp. 4, Chief spices are included and scripture records that they attend the winds, North and South which are called to blow on the brides garden, which is ready for the bridegrooms appearance.
The bed of spices, is where the bridegroom goes to feed in the garden and to gather lilies. (6:2) Lastly, the call to the beloved to come like a young hart is mentioned first with reference to the mountains of Bether, and again in connection with the mountain of spices.
This seems to be speaking of the lovely communion with Mashiach/Messiah; if we visualize Him as the Living Tabernacle attendant with the sanctified perfumes of the sanctuary:
Make haste, my beloved, and be thou like to a roe or to a young hart upon the mountains of spices.
Where the word for spices is ‘besem’. Song of Songs 8:14
Powders of the merchants, then can in a general sense, be understood to indicate spices which were traded at the time, all rare and costly, and especially to leaders and kings.
Looking at a deeper spiritual meaning in the context of the bridegroom/King, who at the same time is the Living Tabernacle; we find those costly powders include all the categories and overlap. Namely: chief spices, the sweet spices, and the special spices. Here we can see the Messiah/Bridegroom as the living tabernacle:
Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God [is] with women and men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, [and be] their God.
The personifying of the Tabernacle is clear when it is noted that the tabernacle of God is WITH us, and that HE will dwell with us. Making a truly magnificent picture, that high on the fragrant mountains of Israel, garlanded with flowers, the flora and fauna including the deer and the spices and here in the Song above all songs, we find the bride lovingly summoned to the heights, (mountain of spices), to dwell for ever with her beloved Messiah.
It seems significant to note that Spices are never introduced in the song during His absence; therefore the time of His return from “the mountain of spices” (Solomon 8:14) is to be contemplated.
At the last supper, the cup of betrothal was given by Him; later, the cup or marriage shall be presented by her upon His return (Matthew 26:29). And this will be fulfilled when he comes for His kallah/bride. כַּלָה
Proverbs 27:9 tells us that oil and incense bring joy to the heart.
And now we know that balsam and fragrant perfumes have a refreshing effect on us and comfort our natural spirits, when they sink and are tired.
The second part of the verse in Proverbs 27:9 KJV: Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart so [doth] the sweetness of a man’s friend by hearty counsel.
This indicates that likewise the very presence of a true-hearted friend, and much more their faithful counsel, cause a person’s soul to rejoice; especially when they are: ‘at such a loss, that he knows not how to advise himself.’
Meaning that good friends are like the anointing oil that yields the fragrant incense of God’s presence and we remember that is true because, there is the friend that sticks closer than a brother; which of course refers to Jesus/Yeshua His Ruach HaKodesh.
Don’t leave this page without assurance in your heart that the fragrance of His Ruach haKodesh is filling your garden today….and in turn being released into the earth drawing whosoever will into intimate relationship with Himself.
This is the 10 days of Awe beginning and it is also the New Year and the celebration of the creation of Adam.
For info on these Fall/Autumn Feasts click links below.
and below are also about the Feast of Tabernacles/Sukkot etc.
You are loved! Abundant shalom and New Year blessings to every reader from your family and friends at MMM.
L’shannah tovah – may this new year be filled with health and happiness!
Make that life-saving decision – time is running out. Don’t miss the day of your visitation!
The Shofars Voice is Calling for you today!
This life is NOT all there is!
You are not here by chance!
SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…Don’t put it off one more moment…
Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.
I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’ name. Amen.
You are now Born Again by the Holy Spirit of the Living God and you are part of the ever growing family of believers. You will never be the same again!
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1 Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him Ps 98:1
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