1,000-Year-Old Seed from Biblical Tree Revived

Well, not only is it incredible that a seed could sit around for 1,000 years and then grow, but the seed is believed to be a remnant from a now-extinct population of trees mentioned in the Bible. You may know the phrase “balm of Gilead” from your Bible and from the song “There Is a Balm in Gilead.” For example, Jeremiah 8:22 says,

Is there no balm in Gilead?
    Is there no physician there?
Why then has the health of the daughter of my people
    not been restored?

This medicinal balm is believed to have been made from a resinous extract from the species this newly grown tree belongs to (in the frankincense and myrrh kind). It’s believed to be from a tree that grew in the area described in the Bible, and chemical analysis revealed it does indeed have medicinal properties.

Chemical analysis of Sheba’s leaves and resin revealed the tree is rich in pentacyclic triterpenoids, which are biologically active compounds with anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. The leaves and stems were also high in squalene, a natural, oily substance with antioxidant and skin-smoothing properties, according to the study.

With the revival of this 1,000-year-old seed, we’re reminded that God’s Word is true—even down to the tiny details!

With the revival of this 1,000-year-old seed, we’re reminded that God’s Word is true—even down to the tiny details!

Plants of the Bible Coming to the Creation Museum

Oh, and while you won’t find this particular species in our new conservatory (opening after Thanksgiving) at the Creation Museum, the conservatory will house a walkthrough exhibit of many of the plants of the Bible. This exhibit will be open just in time for our free ChristmasTown event. Our gorgeous new conservatory will introduce you to a variety of plants from the Bible, other beautiful plants from around the world, biblical teaching, and a gospel presentation. It will be stunning—we can’t wait for you to experience it!

Visit CreationMuseum.org/christmas and make plans to join us for Christmas and to see our new conservatory. The conservatory consists of four large glass greenhouses with advanced technology to control four climates—tropical, subtropical, Mediterranean, and arid.

Get More Answers on Answers News

This item was discussed Monday on Answers News with cohosts Roger Patterson, Kevin Hadsall, and Jessica DeFord. Answers News is our weekly news program filmed live before a studio audience here at the Creation Museum, broadcast on our Answers in Genesis YouTube channel, and posted to Answers TV. We also covered the following topics:

• Do pro-life laws kill women?
• Do black holes zoom through our solar system?
• Can we reverse engineer evolution?
• And more!

Be sure to join us each Monday at 2 p.m. (ET) on YouTube or later that day on Answers TV for Answers News. You won’t want to miss this unique news program that gives science and culture news from a distinctly biblical and Christian perspective.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken

This item was written with the assistance of AiG’s research team.