In the passages we’ve read so far in Exodus, blood and water have featured heavily in terms of sanctification (being made holy before God). The shed blood speaks of atoning for the guilt of people’s sins, the water is linked to their cleansing or washing. Reflect: through his death, Jesus has both atoned for all your guilt, and washed you clean so that no stains of sin remain.

Today’s passage details the anointing oil that was to be used – a third element of sanctification that marks out people (v 30) and items (v 29) for the service of God. God is very specific about the ingredients to be used for the oil and the instructions for its use (vs 31,32). Incense creates a fragrance and atmosphere. God instructed Moses that this particular incense was only to be used in the Temple, not as a perfume in everyday life (v 38). Its composition was exact (vs 34– 36) and no random elements were to be introduced (v 37). Incense makes us think of the prayers of God’s people rising to him (see Revelation 5:8).

Through Jesus, God has anointed us (see 2 Corinthians 1:20–22). We are ready and fit for his service. Just as the incense was sweet-smelling and pleasing, our prayers are delightful to God when we approach him in Spirit and in truth, through Jesus. 

‘… and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.’¹

In today’s reading we cover the second half of what might be described as an ancient ‘multi-sensory worship manual’ and the featured sense is that of smell. Candidly, the smell of perfume in church is distracting to me. Why do they have to wear so much of that stuff? In the tent of meeting, however, the perfumer was an important member of the worship team and strong aromas were a noticeable feature of the service. Why? 

We find two answers in the text. The first is the recipe and instructions for making the anointing oil and incense, both of which would have created a powerful smell. On a practical level, perhaps the extravagant perfume would counteract the smells of animal sacrifice, but a second and more significant theme emerges when we consider the following words woven into the chapter: consecrate, sacred, holy. The strong perfume signalled the holiness of God and therefore the reason for worshipping him. By engaging the sense of smell, God was providing the worshippers with an unforgettable reminder of that fact. 

There’s even more going on here, however, because anointing oil (vs 25,31) was also a symbol of a person receiving the Holy Spirit.² In our church after someone is baptised, the priest anoints their forehead with oil and says, ‘You are sealed by the Holy Spirit in baptism and marked as Christ’s own for ever’. When our children and grandchildren were small enough to hold in my arms, I’d sometimes look them in the eyes and mark their foreheads with the sign of the cross as a way of reminding their little hearts who they really belong to and who loves them most of all. For the Israelites, the anointing oil and perfume were two more reminders that their Heavenly Father wanted to meet with them (v 36). 

In prayer, imagine you are still a child and your Heavenly Father is holding you.  Imagine him looking you in the eyes, smiling and holding you even closer.

¹ Eph 5:2  ² See 1 Sam 16:13