I pondered on that and thought of the color of the mixture I had made of the ancient holy anointing oil from a recipe found in Exodus. It was made with pure olive oil, cinnamon, cassia, and myrrh. (I left out the sweet calamus so as not to be "cut off" as it says in Exod 30:33) :)
When olive oil is applied it is distributed throughout the body and most likely carried through the blood! The blood must be significant. (much like essential oils which, when are applied to the skin, their healing components are absorbed into the bloodstream by the pores and hair follicles. Once inside the bloodstream, they disperse to the specific organs and systems on which they work.) https://www.21drops.com/pages/how-essential-oils-work
In an apocrypha document, Adam is said to ask for the healing oil from the tree of life in the Garen of Eden, as he is approaching death, but it is denied by the angel guarding the tree. We are told in the Book of Revelations, that the oil from the tree of life will heal the nations.
The Tree of Life contains the healing oil of salvation.
Teaching attributed to St Peter explained how Christ had been anointed:
‘The Son of God, the beginning of all things, became Man. He was the first whom God anointed with oil taken from the wood of the tree of life’. The text continues: ‘In this present life, Aaron the first high priest was anointed with a blended oil, made after the pattern of the spiritual oil... If this temporal grace, blended by men, was so effective, how potent is the ointment extracted by God from a branch of the tree of life. (From Margaret Barker and Clementine recognitions)
‘The Son of God, the beginning of all things, became Man. He was the first whom God anointed with oil taken from the wood of the tree of life’. The text continues: ‘In this present life, Aaron the first high priest was anointed with a blended oil, made after the pattern of the spiritual oil... If this temporal grace, blended by men, was so effective, how potent is the ointment extracted by God from a branch of the tree of life. (From Margaret Barker and Clementine recognitions)
The oil of the fruit is the healing of the atonement. Healing us from death and sin. This is especially symbolic of olives, in as much as we used olive oil in our anointing for healing.
The Holy Priesthood of God is the Order by which means we receive anointings and healing blessings. Doctrine and Covenants Section 121 tells that "the doctrine of the priesthood shall distil upon thy soul as the dews from heaven."
Dew of heaven is a direct reference to the holy anointing oil because, according to Margaret Barker, "it shone and was like dew".
In modern scripture the Lord used the word "dew' to show the prosperity of an often dry Judean climate when he spoke of Mount Carmel, known as the "Garden of God". This thought comes from a September 1980 Ensign article by D. Kelly Ogden.
"'As the dews of Carmel, so shall the knowledge of God descend upon [the Saints' (D&C 128:19). We understand the full impact of God’s reference only when we realize that Mt. Carmel averages 250 dew-nights a year!"
In Exodus Chapter 30, we read that the holy ointment was used to anoint all vessels and furnishings in the tabernacle of Moses. Verse 29 says that "thou shalt sanctify them, that they may be most holy: whatsoever toucheth them shall be holy. קָדַשׁ qâdash; a primitive root; to be to make, pronounce or observe as) clean (ceremonially or morally):—appoint, bid, consecrate (fill the hand) , dedicate, defile, hallow, (be, keep) holy(-er, place), keep, prepare, proclaim, purify, sanctify(-ied one, self), wholly.
Margaret Barker wrote: "The fragrant tree of life appears in the Enoch traditions, standing near the heavenly throne, with a
fragrance beyond all fragrance. After the great Judgement, it would be restored to the temple, and
its fruit would be given to the righteous and holy ones. This is what St Paul meant when he spoke
of the fragrance of Christ being a fragrance from life for life. In 2 Enoch, the fragrant tree is gold
and crimson, like fire, a memory of the menorah, the tree of fire, the ancient symbol of Wisdom."
The symbolism of anointing tells us the sacred and important nature of this ritual: (parts of this list were obtained from Bible History.com)
Anointing a king was equivalent to crowning him (1 Sam. 16:13; 2 Sam. 2:4, etc.).
"Anointing the eyes with eyesalve" expresses imparting of spiritual perceptions (Revelation 3:18).
Prophets were also anointed (1 Kings 19:16; 1 Chr. 16:22; Ps. 105:15).
All furnishings and parts of the ancient tabernacle and most likely Temple were anointed (Ex 30)
In Isa 21:5 it reads "anoint the shield". Oil was rubbed on the leather of the shield so as to make it supple and fit for use in war.
Anointing was also an act of hospitality (Luke 7:38, 46). It was the custom of the Jews in like manner to anoint themselves with oil, as a means of refreshing or invigorating their bodies (Deut. 28:40; Ruth 3:3; 2 Sam. 14:2; Ps. 104:15, etc.). This custom is continued among the Arabians to the present day.
Oil was used also for medicinal purposes. It was applied to the sick, and also to wounds (Ps. 109:18; Isa. 1:6; Mark 6:13; James 5:14).
The bodies of the dead were anointed (Mark 14:8; Luke 23:56) To cease anointing was a mark of mourning (2 Samuel 14:2; Daniel 10:3; Matthew 6:17).
Isaiah's beautiful messianic speech about the "oil of joy for mourning" has become a new favorite scripture. It was also termed the "oil of gladness" (Ps. 45:7; Heb. 1:9).
Jesus of Nazareth is this anointed One, the Messiah (John 1:41; Acts 9:22; 17:2, 3; 18:5, 28).
The sacred use of oil was for consecrating things or persons to God. So Jacob anointed for a pillar the stone which had been his pillow at Bethel (Genesis 28:18).
The oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, and as applied to things gave them a ceremonial sacredness, fitting them for holy ministrations. As applied to prophets (1 Chronicles 16:22; 1 Kings 19:16), priests (Leviticus 4:3), and kings (Isaiah 45:1), it marked their consecration to the office, and was a symbol of the spiritual qualification divinely imparted for its due discharge (Exodus 30:29-30). 1 Samuel 10:1,6: King Saul. 1 Samuel 16:13-14; David thrice anointed: first to the right; then over Judah; then actually over the whole nation.
Isaiah 61:1; Isaiah anointed and the oil of joy and gladness
Christ (In Greek the Anointed One) in Hebrew he is Messiah (the anointed one).
He was anointed Prophet (prophecy), Priest (hood), and King. He was anointed with the Holy Spirit from the womb, then at His baptism- in the sense of being anointed with the Holy Ghost. (John 1:32-33-41).
What He is His people are - Messiahs or "anointed ones" --by union with Him (Zechariah 4:14), having the unction (anointing) of the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 1:21; 1 John 2:20). Though priests in general were at first anointed, afterward anointing was restricted to the high priest, called "the priest that is anointed:" the perfume used was of stacte, onycha, and galbanum, with pure frankincense.
Frankincense in Hebrew is לְבוֹנָה lᵉbôwnâh from the root lbn meaning to be white and
to make pure.
There is great imagery in the type of individual who was anointed. Thanks to Rebecca Stay for this wonderful insight. They were the prophet, the priest, the king and the messenger/angel of the king (all same word from מלכ), and the bride/groom. A most interesting individual to add to the group would be a leper.
Jesus the Christ. Christ is Χριστός Christós, in Greek meaning, The Anointed One. He is the Messiah, in Hebrew Messiah מָשִׁיחַ mâshîyach, the anointed one.
Jesus Christ was a prophet, priest, King. He is the Bridegroom. He also carries the symbols of a leper. For in his hands are wounds that did not heal. Yet, because of HIM we can be cleansed, cleaned up and fully healed and restored.
I love my Savior!
The symbolism of anointing tells us the sacred and important nature of this ritual: (parts of this list were obtained from Bible History.com)
Anointing a king was equivalent to crowning him (1 Sam. 16:13; 2 Sam. 2:4, etc.).
"Anointing the eyes with eyesalve" expresses imparting of spiritual perceptions (Revelation 3:18).
All furnishings and parts of the ancient tabernacle and most likely Temple were anointed (Ex 30)
In Isa 21:5 it reads "anoint the shield". Oil was rubbed on the leather of the shield so as to make it supple and fit for use in war.
Anointing was also an act of hospitality (Luke 7:38, 46). It was the custom of the Jews in like manner to anoint themselves with oil, as a means of refreshing or invigorating their bodies (Deut. 28:40; Ruth 3:3; 2 Sam. 14:2; Ps. 104:15, etc.). This custom is continued among the Arabians to the present day.
Oil was used also for medicinal purposes. It was applied to the sick, and also to wounds (Ps. 109:18; Isa. 1:6; Mark 6:13; James 5:14).
The bodies of the dead were anointed (Mark 14:8; Luke 23:56) To cease anointing was a mark of mourning (2 Samuel 14:2; Daniel 10:3; Matthew 6:17).
Isaiah's beautiful messianic speech about the "oil of joy for mourning" has become a new favorite scripture. It was also termed the "oil of gladness" (Ps. 45:7; Heb. 1:9).
Jesus of Nazareth is this anointed One, the Messiah (John 1:41; Acts 9:22; 17:2, 3; 18:5, 28).
The sacred use of oil was for consecrating things or persons to God. So Jacob anointed for a pillar the stone which had been his pillow at Bethel (Genesis 28:18).
The oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit, and as applied to things gave them a ceremonial sacredness, fitting them for holy ministrations. As applied to prophets (1 Chronicles 16:22; 1 Kings 19:16), priests (Leviticus 4:3), and kings (Isaiah 45:1), it marked their consecration to the office, and was a symbol of the spiritual qualification divinely imparted for its due discharge (Exodus 30:29-30). 1 Samuel 10:1,6: King Saul. 1 Samuel 16:13-14; David thrice anointed: first to the right; then over Judah; then actually over the whole nation.
Isaiah 61:1; Isaiah anointed and the oil of joy and gladness
Christ (In Greek the Anointed One) in Hebrew he is Messiah (the anointed one).
He was anointed Prophet (prophecy), Priest (hood), and King. He was anointed with the Holy Spirit from the womb, then at His baptism- in the sense of being anointed with the Holy Ghost. (John 1:32-33-41).
What He is His people are - Messiahs or "anointed ones" --by union with Him (Zechariah 4:14), having the unction (anointing) of the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 1:21; 1 John 2:20). Though priests in general were at first anointed, afterward anointing was restricted to the high priest, called "the priest that is anointed:" the perfume used was of stacte, onycha, and galbanum, with pure frankincense.
Frankincense in Hebrew is לְבוֹנָה lᵉbôwnâh from the root lbn meaning to be white and
to make pure.
There is great imagery in the type of individual who was anointed. Thanks to Rebecca Stay for this wonderful insight. They were the prophet, the priest, the king and the messenger/angel of the king (all same word from מלכ), and the bride/groom. A most interesting individual to add to the group would be a leper.
Leviticus 14 tells of the Cleansing of a Leper. (Thanks to Bible Hub for this layout)
Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought to the priest. And the priest shall go out of the camp, and the priest shall examine him; and indeed, if the leprosy is healed in the leper, then the priest shall command to take for him who is to be cleansed two living and clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop. And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water. As for the living bird, he shall take it, the cedar wood and the scarlet and the hyssop, and dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water. And he shall sprinkle it seven times on him who is to be cleansed from the leprosy, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose in the open field. He who is to be cleansed shall wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and wash himself in water, that he may be clean. After that he shall come into the camp, and shall stay outside his tent seven days. But on the seventh day he shall shave all the hair off his head and his beard and his eyebrows; all his hair he shall shave off. He shall wash his clothes and wash his body in water, and he shall be clean."
a. Then the priest shall command to take for him who is to be cleansed two living and clean birds: In this cleansing ceremony, one bird was killed in an earthen vessel over running water, and its blood was applied to a living bird, to some cedar wood, to some scarlet fabric, and to some hyssop. Then, using these things, the blood was sprinkled on the one who was cleansed from leprosy. Then, the living bird was let go.
i. This seems to be a picture of Jesus’ death and its spiritual application; a “heavenly” being (as a bird is “of the heavens”) dies in an earthen vessel, while remaining clean (because of the running water). The death of the bird is associated with blood and water; the blood is connected with life (applied to the living bird), and then applied to the one cleansed.
ii. Cedar wood: Cedar is extremely resistant to disease and rot. The Temple was a "house of cedar".
iii. The connection with hyssop is also important. Jesus was offered drink from a hyssop branch on the cross (Matthew 27:48), and when David said purge me with hyssop in Psalm 51:7, he was admitted that he was as bad as a leper. אֵזוֹב ay-zone or hyssop was the branch
used to spread the blood of the lamb on the lintel or doorpost on the night of the Passover exodus from Egypt.
b. He shall shave all the hair off his head and his beard and his eyebrows: After the sacrificial ceremony with the birds, the cleansed leper had to wash their clothes and shave off all of their hair. They started all over again, as if they were a brand new baby.
i. Again, this seems to be an illustration of being “born again” - a completely new start.
On the eighth day:
"And on the eighth day he shall take two male lambs without blemish, one ewe lamb of the first year without blemish, three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering, and one log of oil. Then the priest who makes him clean shall present the man who is to be made clean, and those things, before the LORD, at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. And the priest shall take one male lamb and offer it as a trespass offering, and the log of oil, and wave them as a wave offering before the LORD. Then he shall kill the lamb in the place where he kills the sin offering and the burnt offering, in a holy place; for as the sin offering is the priest's, so is the trespass offering. It is most holy. The priest shall take some of the blood of the trespass offering, and the priest shall put it on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. And the priest shall take some of the log of oil, and pour it into the palm of his own left hand. Then the priest shall dip his right finger in the oil that is in his left hand, and shall sprinkle some of the oil with his finger seven times before the LORD. And of the rest of the oil in his hand, the priest shall put some on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the blood of the trespass offering. The rest of the oil that is in the priest's hand he shall put on the head of him who is to be cleansed. So the priest shall make atonement for him before the LORD. Then the priest shall offer the sin offering, and make atonement for him who is to be cleansed from his uncleanness. Afterward he shall kill the burnt offering. And the priest shall offer the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar. So the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be clean."
a. On the eighth day he shall take two male lambs without blemish: In completing the sacrifices for the cleansed leper, offerings were made on the eighth day and sacrificial blood was applied to the right ear, the right thumb, and the right big toe, to sanctify and consecrate the cleansed leper. This was the same way that the priest was consecrated.
b. And of the rest of the oil in his hand, the priest shall put some on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed: On the eighth day, oil was also applied to the cleansed leper. It was both sprinkled on his body in general and then applied to the ear, thumb, and toe just as the blood was. Each of these places on the body was meant to be anointed with oil.
i. Therefore, a cleansed leper had a special calling and a special anointing. One could not go through such a ritual as this and not be changed.
ii. Since leprosy is a picture of sin, we see how this ritual has spiritual application to ever sinner set free by Jesus.
iii. Since leprosy had no natural cure, it was certain that this ritual was rarely performed - and when it was performed at the command of Jesus (Luke 5:12-14), it must have been a great testimony to the priests at the temple.
Jesus Christ was a prophet, priest, King. He is the Bridegroom. He also carries the symbols of a leper. For in his hands are wounds that did not heal. Yet, because of HIM we can be cleansed, cleaned up and fully healed and restored.
I love my Savior!
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