The Holy Spirit · The Equipping
The Anointing
Before “the anointing” was a conference word it was a compounded oil no Israelite was allowed to imitate, poured on prophets, priests, and kings — and the whole vocabulary was traveling somewhere: toward a Person whose very title, Messiah in Hebrew and Christ in Greek, means the Anointed One. This page follows the word from Exodus’s oil to Nazareth’s synagogue to the unction John says abides in every believer — and measures the modern vocabulary against the journey.
The Word's Journey
— oil → office → the Anointed → unctionONE WORD’S JOURNEY
oil → office → THE ANOINTED → unction
SHEMEN HA-MISHCHAH · the holy oil
compounded by weight, forbidden to flesh, reserved for what God claims
MASHACH · to anoint
prophets, priests, and kings set apart — the oil marking the office, the Spirit supplying the power
MASHIACH → CHRISTOS · THE ANOINTED ONE
the word the whole Bible bends toward — Messiah in Hebrew, Christ in Greek: not a surname, a title of anointing
“God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power” · Acts 10:38→CHRISMA · the believer's unction
from the Anointed to the anointed ones — the same Spirit, given to all who are his
The Oil, and the Offices
— Exodus 30, 1 Samuel 16, 2 Kings 2 — what the oil markedThe holy anointing oil was compounded to a divine recipe, forbidden to common use on pain of being cut off — holiness you could smell. What it marked was office and ownership: tabernacle, priests, and later kings and (at least once, 1 Kgs 19:16) prophets. But the oil was never the power. Samuel’s horn emptied over David’s head, and the text immediately looks past the oil: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward.When Elisha asked Elijah for “a double portion of thy spirit,” he was not asking for twice Elijah’s power — JFB and Barnes agree below — he was claiming the firstborn’s inheritance share (Deut 21:17): to be heir of the office and its Spirit.
And you are to tell the Israelites, ‘This will be My sacred anointing oil for the generations to come. It must not be used to anoint an ordinary man, and you must not make anything like it with the same formula. It is holy, and it must be holy to you. Anyone who mixes perfume like it or puts it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people.’”So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. Then Samuel set out and went to Ramah.the horn of oil, then the real event — the Spirit, from that day forward.
After they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken away from you?” “Please, let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied.Thou shalt anoint Aaron and his sons - For the reason of this anointing, see Clarkes note on Exo 29:7. It seems that this anointing oil was an emblem of Divine teaching, and especially of those influences by which the Church of Christ was, in the beginning, guided into all truth; as is evident from the allusion to it by St. John: Ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1832), on Exod 30:30
It is fitting to raise the eyes of faith to the power of this craftsman, and to consider here and there the Fathers of the new and old testament. Behold, with these same eyes of faith opened, I gaze upon David, Amos, Daniel, Peter, Paul, Matthew, and I wish to consider what kind of craftsman this Holy Spirit is, but in my very consideration I fall short. For he fills a boy who plays the harp, and makes him a psalmist. He fills a herdsman shepherd picking sycamore figs, and makes him a prophet.
Gregory the Great· Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 30 (604), on 1 Sam 16:18
But the phrase, "a double portion," was applied to the first-born [De 21:17], and therefore Elisha's request was, simply, to be heir to the prophetic office and gifts of his master.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871), on 2 Kgs 2:9
Let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me - Like Solomon, Elisha asks for no worldly advantage, but for spiritual power to discharge his office aright. The double portion is that which denotes the proportion of a fathers property which was the right of an eldest son Deu 21:17. Elisha therefore asked for twice as much of Elijahs spirit as should be inherited by any other of the sons of the prophets. He simply claimed, i. e., to be acknowledged as Elijahs firstborn spiritual son.
Albert Barnes· Notes on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869), on 2 Kgs 2:9
The Anointed One
— Isaiah 61 at Nazareth, and Acts 10:38 — where the word was goingIsaiah heard the Servant say it seven centuries early: “the Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me.” In the Nazareth synagogue Jesus read that scroll, closed it, and said the only thing that could make the room erupt: this day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.Wesley’s note lands the linguistic point most readers walk past — this is where the names come from: Messiah among the Hebrews, Christ among the Greeks. “Christ” is not Jesus’s surname; it is the anointing, become a Person. And Gregory of Nyssa presses the mystery to its depth: the Holy Spirit himself is the Unction of the Only-Begotten — the Anointed and his Anointing inseparable.
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners,“The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Then He rolled up the scroll, returned it to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on Him, and He began by saying, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because God was with Him.Anointed - Set me apart, both capacitating him with gifts, and commissioning him with authority; and yet more, as it is applied to Christ, a power to make all effectual, from whence he hath also the name of Messiah among the Hebrew, and of Christ among the Greeks; nay, Christ alone among the prophets hath obtained this name, Psalm xlv, 7.
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765), on Isa 61:1
But the Son, having all things which are the Father's, is himself proclaimed a king by holy Scripture. Now the divine Scripture says that the Holy Spirit is the unction of the Only Begotten, interpreting the dignity of the Spirit by a transference of the terms commonly used in this world. For as, in ancient days, in those who were advanced to kingship, the token of this dignity was the unction that was applied to them, and when this took place there was thenceforth a change from private and humble estate to the superiority of rule, and he who was deemed worthy of this grace received after his anointing another name, being called, instead of an ordinary man, the Anointed of the Lord. For this reason, that the dignity of the Holy Spirit might be more clearly shown to humankind, he was called by the Scripture "the sign of the kingdom" and "Unction," whereby we are taught that the Holy Spirit shares in the glory and kingdom of the only begotten Son of God. For as in Israel it was not permitted to enter upon the kingdom without the unction being previously given, so the word, by a transference of the terms in use among ourselves, indicates the equality of power, showing that not even the kingdom of the Son is received without the dignity of the Holy Spirit. And for this reason he is properly called Christ, since this name gives the proof of his inseparable and indivisible conjunction with the Holy Spirit. If, then, the only-begotten God is the Anointed, and the Holy Spirit is his Unction, and the appellation of Anointed points to the kingly authority, and the anointing is the token of his kingship, then the Holy Spirit shares also in his dignity. If, therefore, they say that the attribute of Godhead signifies dignity and the Holy Spirit is shown to share in this last quality, it follows that he who partakes in the dignity will also partake in the name that represents it.
Gregory of Nyssa· On the Holy Trinity (395), on Acts 10:38
The Believer's Unction
— 2 Corinthians 1 and 1 John 2 — from the Anointed to the anointed onesPaul makes the transfer explicit with a play on the word itself: God “hath anointed us” — chrisas— the Christ’s people receiving the Christ’s chrism, established, sealed, given the earnest. John names it chrisma, the unction — and the honest exegesis matters: in its own context, John’s anointing is truth-discernment against antichrists— “ye know all things… ye need not that any man teach you” is armor against seducers, not a dismissal of teachers or a synonym for ministry power. Wesley even wonders whether John chose the word chrism as a deliberate counterpoint to antichrist. Both readings of the wider theme are held below, with their holders.
Now it is God who establishes both us and you in Christ. He anointed us, placed His seal on us, and put His Spirit in our hearts as a pledge of what is to come.You, however, have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.And as for you, the anointing you received from Him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But just as His true and genuine anointing teaches you about all things, so remain in Him as you have been taught.But ye have an anointing - A chrism; perhaps so termed in opposition to the name of antichrist; an inward teaching from the Holy Ghost, whereby ye know all things - Necessary for your preservation from these seducers, and for your eternal salvation.
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755), on 1 John 2:20
"And ye have an unction from the Holy One, that ye may be manifest to your own selves." The spiritual unction is the Holy Spirit Himself, of which the Sacrament is in the visible unction. Of this unction of Christ he saith, that all who have it know the bad and the good; and they need not to be taught, because the unction itself teacheth them.
Augustine of Hippo· Ten Homilies on 1 John 3 (430), on 1 John 2:20
"It appears that we all are the body of Christ, because we all are anointed: and we all in Him are both Christ's and Christ, because in some measure the whole Christ is Head and body." and--therefore. ye know all things--needful for acting aright against Antichrist's seductions, and for Christian life and godliness.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871), on 1 John 2:20
'The anointing' in the modern vocabulary — measured against the textsthe usage named honestly, the gracious rule governing
The charismatic usage:in the Pentecostal and charismatic stream, “the anointing” names the felt, enabling presence of the Spirit on a person or moment of ministry — Bill Johnson’s Hosting the Presence(2012) is the stream’s modern articulation, and Kenneth Hagin’s teaching ministry carried the vocabulary to a generation. Its biblical appeal is real: Acts 10:38 ties anointing to power and doing good; Luke 4 ties it to preaching, healing, and liberty.
The classical usage:the commentators above read the believer’s anointing as the abiding Spirit himself — given to every Christian at conversion (2 Cor 1:21-22 is addressed to the whole church), teaching, sealing, guarding against deception. On this reading there are not anointed and unanointed believers; there are believers, all anointed, some more yielded.
What the texts refuse either way:the anointing is never a commodity. The one man in Scripture who tried to buy the Spirit’s power gave his name to the sin (simony), and Peter’s answer stands over every marketplace: “thy money perish with thee” (Acts 8:20). Whatever the anointing is, it is received from the Holy One — never purchased, performed, or owned.
Where It Points
— the Name above the vocabularyEvery drop of oil in the Old Testament and every use of the word since points at one Person: the Anointed One, whose Spirit now rests on his whole body. The surest test of any anointing-talk is the direction it faces — the unction John describes exists precisely so that “ye shall abide in him.”
Closing
An oil nobody could copy, offices nobody could seize, a title nobody else could carry — and then, astonishingly, an unction poured out on everyone who belongs to the Anointed. The word’s whole journey is the gospel in miniature: what was compounded for the holy few now abides in all his own, because the Christ shares his chrism.