There is a Balm in Gilead – Dawson

Is there no balm in Gilead?

Jeremiah 8:22a

No doubt you have heard by now that there is indeed a balm in Gilead, or at least there was, prior to the extinction of Commiphora opobalsamum [1]. This sturdy bush grew in the stony arid hills of Gilead, a region east of the Jordan that was the inheritance of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and part of Manasseh. Resin from the bush was harvested for medicinal balms that were an economic engine for the region for more than 1000 years.

However powerful the balm was, it did not heal sin-sick souls. That would be the work of Jesus; so in this usage the Balm of Gilead is another personage of Jesus, like The Lion of Judah or The Good Shepherd. This use of metaphor, along with the nature of the tune and the words, suggest to me a date on the late end of the African-American Spiritual spectrum, and suggest a variety of influences on what came to be the hymn.

William Levi Dawson (1899 – 1990) was a composer and arranger specializing in African-American Spirituals among other musical achievements; he is also remembered for his contributions to the Tuskegee Institute musical programs, particularly the choir that he raised to international prominence. His There is A Balm In Gilead (1939 – listen), is a straightforward anthem arrangement of the hymn employing echo and solo voice features.

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• Not Pistachia lentiscus, according to https://www.researchgate.net/publication/282748639_Frankincense_Myrrh_and_Balm_of_Gilead_Ancient_Spices_of_Southern_Arabia_and_Judea
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_L._Dawson_(composer)
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_Is_a_Balm_in_Gilead