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Jesus mentioned dill or anise in the gospel of Matthew. The Pharisees paid a tithe of their dill as required by their law. Dill looks a great deal like fennel and has bright yellow flowers. It is a carminative and yields essential oil. Anise was used in food as well as to flavor essences. As a medicine it was treatment for skin wounds. Pliny, the naturalist and historian, wrote about other uses.
The leaves of dill are fine-cut and it grows to a height of 36 inches. The stalks are pale green and the remainder of the plant is a deep green. Its fruit is hard, brown, oval shaped and has a very strong taste. Both Greek and Roman societies used dill. The Talmud records that not just the seeds were tithed, but also stems and the leaves. Arabs called dill shibith. Some believe dill was scarce in Bible days.
Reference: All the Plants of the Bible, Walker & Smith's Bible Dictionary
Matthew 23:23 (KJV) Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye
pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
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