Day 2: Matthew 2

Wrapping up Day 2 of the reading plan is Matthew 2, which explains how Jesus escaped murder at the hands of Herod and ended up in Nazareth.

Gifts from the wise men


The three wise men together gave gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Gold I know, but what is frankincense and myrrh?

Frankincense appears to be a resin used in incense and perfumes. According to Wikipedia, visited this 2nd day of January, 2015: "The current annual world production of frankincense is about 1,000 tons. Most of this product comes from Somalia, with some frankincense also gathered in adjacent Southern Arabia." I didn't know that Somalia actually traded with the rest of the world, and this information is reassuring to hear.

As an interesting point of comparison, the global production of lavender was about 1,200 metric tons (200 of lavender and 1,000 of lavandin) per year, according Lavender production published by the Republic of South Africa's Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

Myrrh is another precious, aromatic resin. A December, 2011 article published by Dr. Kim D. Coder stated that the annual production of myrrh was 500 tons. According to Dr. Coder: "Myrrh grows along the Red Sea coast and is native to Somalia and Yemen. Over time the tree has been planted farther afield in Yemen, Omar, Somalia, Ethiopia, and Sudan. It is easily reproduced by cuttings and can be transplanted, but is seldom found in a commercial plantation setting."

Given an opportunity I'd love to get a whiff of both of these resins!

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