Commonly translated as bdellium (del’-i-um), in Hebrew בְּדֹלַח bedolach (H916), occurs twice in the Torah: in Genesis 2:12, in conjunction with gold and onyx, as a product of the land of Chavilah, and in Numbers 11:7, where the manna is likened to this substance in appearance: “his eye is like the eye of the bedolach.” The latter comparison excludes the idea of bedolach being a precious stone, and points to the identification of it with the fragrant resinous gum known to the Greeks as bdellion, several kinds being mentioned by Dioscorides and Pliny. It was a product of Arabia, India, Afghanistan, etc.
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