Cannabis Oil in the Bible: Did Jesus Really Use It?

According to Chris Bennett, author and researcher of the intersection of cannabis and religion, Jesus used a mixture containing “kaneh-bosem” – which in the last few decades has been identified as a translation of the word cannabis – to treat pain, leprosy, lesions, swollen muscles and countless other conditions – much like modern cannabis consumers do today. Could this curative, infused oil have been responsible for the seemingly miraculous healing of various conditions and skin diseases referred to in the Bible?

According to Dr. Ethan Russo, ancient Assyrian medical tablets housed in the Louvre mention a healing ointment made from cannabis, and Mesopotamian prescriptions for epilepsy included cannabis. Furthermore, some Mesopotamian documents suggest that early Christians employed “Holy Oil” to treat various conditions following the time of Jesus, lending more credence to the idea that Jesus worked his own brand of magic with the cannabis plant.

Indeed, in the early days of Judaism, cannabis was commonly used to treat ailments, as fragrant incense offerings and even as an intoxicant. Carl Ruck, a professor of classical mythology at Boston University, was quoted in The Guardian as saying, “There can be little doubt about a role for cannabis in Judaic religion. Obviously, the easy availability and long-established tradition of cannabis in early Judaism would inevitably have included it in the [Christian] mixtures.”

Biblical evidence of this dates back to 1500 years BCE, with “kaneh bosm” appearing five times in the Old Testament – in the books of Exodus, the Song of Songs, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. But why is this knowledge so obscure and contentious?

Some fringe scholars suggests that a mistranslation in the earliest Greek translation of the Bible has resulted in a shrouding of the truth about the role of cannabis in Jesus’s healing work. It is only since 1936 that research by Sula Benet, a Polish etymologist, proposed that the word “kaneh-bosm” (also known as kannabus in traditional Hebrew), and which is translated as “calamus” in the Bible, instead likely represents the controversial cannabis plant.

More recently, etymologists at Hebrew University in Jerusalem confirmed that cannabis is referenced in the Bible by the name “kineboisin” (also spelled kannabosm) – in a list of ingredients for producing holy oil ointment. Further etymological research by Weston La Barre also confirmed that the word “kanebosm” is found in the early Aramaic and the Hebrew versions of the Old Testament, and represents hemp.

So, whether you’re out walking among the trees or smoking them, praising the Most High or just getting the most high, if the political climate heats up a little too much around the dinner table, you can spark up a conversation about Jesus being way into super biblical dabs.

Hempy Spring Equinox, First Day of Spring, Lent, Easter, etc. from the Doobie Nights Family to yours!

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