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(herb) A bitter, poisonous herb (perhaps
Citrullus colocynthis ), the juice of which is thought to be the “hemlock” poison Socrates drank Gall was frequently linked with wormwood (
Deuteronomy 29:18;
Jeremiah 9:15;
Jeremiah 23:15;
Lamentations 3:19;
Amos 6:12 ) to denote bitterness and tragedy. Wormwood and gall were often associated with unfaithfulness to God, either as a picture of the unfaithful (
Deuteronomy 29:18 ) or as their punishment. Modern speech translations generally translate the Hebrew word for gall in light of the context of the passage (poisonous growth,
Deuteronomy 29:18 NRSV; poisonous water,
Jeremiah 8:14;
Jeremiah 9:5;
Jeremiah 23:15 NRSV; poison,
Amos 6:12 NRSV). Gall is still used at
Lamentations 3:19 . On the cross, Jesus was offered sour wine drugged with gall, perhaps opium, which He refused (
Matthew 27:34; compare
Psalm 69:21 ). Simon the magician was described as full of the gall of bitterness (
Acts 8:23 ) because he wanted to prostitute the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Copyright Statement
These dictionary topics are from the Holman Bible Dictionary, published by Broadman & Holman, 1991. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Broadman & Holman.
Bibliography Information
Butler, Trent C. Editor. Entry for 'Gall'. Holman Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hbd/g/gall.html. 1991.