Counter-Missionary Education Proper Anointment vs Smearing with Ointment

Counter-Missionary Education Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) A Counter-Missionary Education Lesson by Uri Yosef, Ph. D. , Director of Education Virtual Yeshiva of the Messiah Truth Project, Inc. [The article on this topic is located here - http: //thejewishhome. org/counter/Anointed. pdf ] Copyright © Uri Yosef 2015 for the Messiah Truth Project, Inc. All rights reserved March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 1

Introduction The passage Daniel 9: 24 -27 has been a favorite of Christian apologists who see it as a messianic prophecy that foretells the advent of Jesus, his crucifixion, and the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple, which occurred some four decades following his death. These claims are laid to rest in a detailed and rigorous analysis of this entire chapter, and several such analyses are available from other reliable sources. In this lesson we shall not carry out a detailed analysis of this chapter. Rather, we shall first show where the Christian perspective is based on two significant mistranslations of the Hebrew noun ( משיח ma. SHI’ah) in verses 25&26 of that passage, and use this as a segue to develop a template for the anointing process based on the information in the Hebrew Bible. A similar template will be developed from the accounts about the anointment of Jesus in the four Gospels. Finally, the two templates will be compared to determine whether the anointing of Jesus described in the New Testament complies with the specifications provided in the Hebrew Bible. March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 2

Daniel 9: 25 -26 Shown below are side-by-side English renditions and the Hebrew text of the passage Daniel 9: 25 -26. The Hebrew term משיח and its respective renditions in the two translations are shown in highlighted form. We shall next examine the consistency of the KJV translations of terms that are related to the Hebrew noun . משיח Such terms include various inflections of the noun in singular and plural forms as well as in combinations with prepositions. March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 3

The 39 Instances of the Noun משיח in the Hebrew Bible Some other translations of משיח in Daniel 9: 25, 26 March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 4

Anointment According to the Hebrew Bible, the men who were selected to serve as the high priest and king had to undergo a ritual anointing ceremony. This ritual involved the application of a specific substance to the subject being anointed. The Substance – The Oil of Anointing Proper anointment requires the application of a special substance that was stored in a special container, and which was prepared from pure olive oil mixed with essence of four aromatic herbs according to the formula given in Exodus 30: 22 -25. No other substance is acceptable for anointing and, being a holy substance, this anointing oil had to be stored in the (portable) Tabernacle while the Israelites were in the wilderness and, later on, in the Temple in Jerusalem. The Ritual – Applying the Oil of Anointing The oil had to be applied according to the instructions Moses received when he was commanded to anoint his brother Aaron as the first High Priest (Exodus 29: 7). As will be demonstrated from the examples in the Hebrew Bible of anointing a king, there are specifications regarding who must perform the ritual and how it is to be carried out. Someone who had gone through the process of anointing is referred to as , משיח literally meaning, an anointed one, in the Hebrew Bible. It is a significant fact that none of the 39 applications of the noun משיח in the Hebrew Bible refer to the promised Jewish King/Messiah! March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 5

Anointment According to the Hebrew Bible (continued) Biblical Accounts of Anointing of Royalty in Israel March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 6

The Template for Anointing According to the Hebrew Bible The Biblical accounts of the anointment of the first three kings of Israel – Saul, David, and Solomon – contain the following six unique elements that form a template for the process of anointing of royalty of Israel, one of whom will eventually be the promised future Jewish King/Messiah - : משיח [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] A special preparation from pure olive oil was used as the oil of anointing. Being sacred, the anointing oil was stored in the Temple. A universally recognized prophet performed the ritual of anointing a king. The prophets used the vial of oil (Saul), or the horn of oil (David, Solomon), to anoint the new king, not merely a vial of oil or a horn of oil. The oil of anointing was poured only on the head. [6] Anointing was tantamount to crowning a king (or appointing a high priest). This template for the process of anointing will be used to test the validity of the anointment of Jesus, as it is described in the four Gospels of the New Testament March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 7

Anointment According to the New Testament The four Gospels of the New Testament contain accounts that describe the anointment of Jesus, which provide the information on the substance and ritual. The Substance The four Gospel authors describe the substance used on Jesus as shown below: The Ritual The four Gospel authors describe the way Jesus was anointed as shown below: Unlike the process of anointing in the Hebrew Bible’s, the purpose of which is to crown a king (or appoint a high priest), according to the New Testament the purpose of anointing Jesus was to prepare him for his burial (Matthew 16: 12; Mark 14: 8). March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 8

The Template for Anointing According to the New Testament The elements of the process that is described in the Four Gospels as the anointment of Jesus are listed below in the same order as the elements listed in the template for the process of anointing that was developed from the accounts in the Hebrew Bible: [1] The substance used to anoint Jesus was an ointment of spikenard. [2] It is unknown from where the costly ointment of spikenard came. It clearly was not a sacred substance, since people complained about having wasted it by pouring it on Jesus rather than selling it and giving the money to the poor. Jesus was anointed by a woman (Mary of Bethany, who is described as a sinner). The ointment used on Jesus was contained in an alabaster box. There are conflicting accounts in the New Testament about where on his body the anointing substance was applied to Jesus. The accounts in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark state it was applied to his head; while the accounts in the Gospels of Luke and John state it was applied to his feet only. Jesus declared that his anointing was a preparation for burial, i. e. , for death, and not for kingship. [3] [4] [5] [6] March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 9

The Requirements in the Hebrew Bible vs. the “Anointment” of Jesus This comparison demonstrates that the “anointment” of Jesus, as described in the New Testament, violates all the requirements for a valid anointment of royalty as specified in the Hebrew Bible. Consequently, Jesus was not properly anointed! March 18, 2015 Proper Anointment vs. Smearing with Ointment (via Daniel 9: 25 -26) 10