Objects & worship
Anointing Oil
Oil used to set the tabernacle, its furnishings, and priests apart for God’s service.
Also called · holy anointing oil
What it means
Exodus 30 prescribes holy oil made with olive oil and aromatics, including myrrh. It forbids ordinary use, making the same mixture, or applying it to an unauthorized person, with a warning that offenders will be cut off from their people.
In Leviticus 8, Moses uses this oil to consecrate the tabernacle and its furnishings, and pours it on Aaron’s head to consecrate him.
How it appears in the Bible
In 1 Samuel 16, Samuel anoints David among his brothers, and the LORD’s Spirit comes mightily on him from that day forward. James 5 also describes elders praying over a sick person and anointing the person with oil in the Lord’s name.
Translation note
The passages about David and the sick person do not say that their oil has the sanctuary mixture prescribed in Exodus.