2 Corinthians 2:14-15
For we are the aroma of Messiah to God among those who are being
saved and among those who are perishing.
There
is a fragrance reserved for the anointing of the holy. It is a fragrant scent
distinguishing the consecrated from the profane (Exodus 29:7; 30:22-33). As a man distinguishes his wife’s perfume
personalized by her own scent, it is a sign for all to recognize what has been
consecrated to God.
This
oil has a special name. It is called: ‘Shemen HaMashiach’: ‘The Anointing
Oil’. “Mashiach’ in Hebrew simply means ‘anointed one’, and the use of
this oil was reserved to anoint the offices that required it such as priest,
king and prophet. Only three people were known to carry the three offices:
Moses, King David, and Yeshua. There is a decree of banishment for whoever replicates
this oil or pours it on a common person (Exodus 30:31-33).
Exodus speaks of this fragrance in sacrificial terms, but
in Song of Songs it appears in a lover’s language. ‘Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better
than wine; your anointing oils are fragrant; your name is oil poured out;
therefore virgins love you (Song of Songs
1:3)’. The Torah’s fragrant oil is called: ‘Shemen HaMashiach Solomon ’s kingship, the son of King David . This verse
therefore from the Song of Song alludes to the future coming One, the Messianic
King who will be known as: Messiah, or ‘The Anointed One’. It is remarkable
that one of the steps of His anointing was a passage at a place called 'The
Olive Press": Gethsemane .
The Apostolic Scriptures take up the theme of the
Anointing Oil in the following terms: But thanks be to
God, who in Messiah always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us
spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are
the aroma of Messiah to God among those who are being saved and among those
who are perishing (2 Corinthians
2:14-15). Through Moses God promised that Israel will become a nation of
priests. As the Levites are the priesthood for Israel, Israel is the priesthood
for the world. About fifteen hundred years later Galilean Jewish fisherman
Peter tells the mixed (Jews and Gentiles) congregation of Messiah that they are
a royal priesthood (Exodus 19:6; 1 Peter 2:9).
As a nation of priests dedicated unto God we
are now carriers of the holy scented oil. May our lives truly exhale His
fragrance in every case and every situation we meet throughout the day lest we
profane the Spirit that is vested in us.
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