Have you ever been tempted by an commercial for a product that claims to resolve an issue in your life? The Exodus Effect claims to know the key ingredient utilized in the anointing oil described in Exodus 30 and provides the recipe for creating your personal anointing oil at home.
Does it work? Is it a miracle cure-all? Let’s take a more in-depth have a look at the product’s claims and what the Bible says about using anointing oils.
What Does the Exodus Effect Claim?
According to their website, the Exodus Effect is a manual for making your personal healing oil from natural ingredients. Created by “Pastor Andrew and Dr. Benet” (the web site doesn’t list their full names), the book teaches you learn how to create true anointed oil. While the promotional materials say it’s for Christians and non-Christians, it also says that it’s the true anointed oil God intended for its children.
Some of the supposed advantages of using the oil are as follows:
- Improves Sleep
- Eliminates Anxiety and Stress
- Reduces Inflammation
- Reduces Chronic Pain
So, what makes the oil special?
What Is the Secret Ingredient within the Exodus Effect Oil?
The secret ingredient within the Exodus Effect is cannabis oil containing minimal THC, which they guarantee has no uncomfortable side effects. The Exodus Effect has other recipes that don’t include cannabis for many who are against its use.
There have been discussions that the recipe for anointing oil given in Exodus 30:23 replaced cannabis with calamus when the Bible was translated into English. One study in 2020 suggested that cannabis was utilized in some Old Testament temple rituals at a shrine in Tel Arad, near the Dead Sea. While there have been many studies done on the topic, the health advantages of either cannabis or calamus are still being argued and researched.
We even have to think about a related query: even when the Old Testament Temple in Jerusalem used cannabis centuries after Exodus 30, that doesn’t prove that the Israelites replaced calamus with cannabis.
The concept that Bible translators replaced “cannabis” with “calamus” just isn’t likely. The context in scripture is that it’s a fragrant plant and comes from the Hebrew word qanah, meaning from a reed. The same word is utilized in several other places where the concept is conveyed of a fragrant plant translated as either calamus or sweet cane:
- “Spikenard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, With all trees of frankincense, myrrh, and aloes, With all of the chief spices.” (Song of Solomon 4:14)
- “You have bought Me no sweet cane with money, Nor have you ever satisfied Me with the fat of your sacrifices; But you may have burdened Me along with your sins, You have wearied Me along with your iniquities.” (Isaiah 43:24)
- “For what purpose to Me Comes frankincense from Sheba, And sweet cane from a far country? Your burnt offerings aren’t acceptable, Nor your sacrifices sweet to Me.” (Jeremiah 6:20)
- “Dan and Javan paid on your wares, traversing backwards and forwards. Wrought iron, cassia, and cane were amongst your merchandise.” (Ezekiel 27:19)
How Did People Use Anointing Oil within the Bible?
Since the Exodus Effect claims to be an anointing oil, first, we’d like to define what it means to anoint. A Christianity.com article defines anointing as “the act of consecrating or dedicating someone or something by applying oil or one other substance.” The article also gave three reasons for anointing with oil:
- Ordinary – equivalent to an act of hospitality, grooming, refreshment, burial customs
- Official – inauguration of prophets, priests, and kings
- Ecclesiastical – used for recovery of the sick.
In the article “Why is Anointing Oil Important within the Bible?”, Hope Bolinger points out that using oils was common within the Greek Dark Ages (1200-800 BC). Oil was used for hospitality, refreshment, health, and fragrance. The Bible, nevertheless, adds oil for anointing as a method of consecration.
The Exodus Effect is targeted on the healing properties, so we are going to deal with anointing the sick. The scripture basis for anointing with oil comes from James 5:14-15:
“Is anyone amongst you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and allow them to pray over him, anointing him with oil within the name of the Lord. And the prayer of religion will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will probably be forgiven.”
Dolores Smyth breaks down the ceremony used when anointing the sick in her article “What Is the Anointing of the Sick and Is It Biblical?” The emphasis just isn’t on the oil but on the prayers of the elders and the sick in petitioning God for healing.
Heather Riggleman points out in her article “Is Anointing Oil Biblical and Should We Use It Today?” that anointing the sick was preserved for many who were significantly sick. It wasn’t really for coughs or colds. So, anointing oil was not meant for on a regular basis use of common complaints.
Does the Bible Support the Exodus Effect’s Claims about Anointing Oil?
Given all this information, how does it apply to the Exodus Effect and its claims? Let’s have a look at the passage of scripture that sparked the concept, Exodus 30:22-32. The recipe for the anointing oil is given in verses 22-25:
“Also take for yourself quality spices—five hundred shekels of liquid myrrh, half as much sweet-smelling cinnamon (200 and fifty shekels), 200 and fifty shekels of sweet-smelling cane, five hundred shekels of cassia, based on the shekel of the sanctuary, and a touch of olive oil. And you shall make from these a holy anointing oil, an ointment compounded based on the art of the perfumer. It shall be a holy anointing oil.”
The next section of verses (26-30) explains how the anointing oil ought to be used. While the Exodus Effect may have the option to inform people learn how to make their oil, the recipe’s predominant use was not for healing. It was used to consecrate the temple and the priests:
“With it you shall anoint the tabernacle of meeting and the ark of the Testimony; the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense; the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the laver and its base. You shall consecrate them, that they might be most holy; whatever touches them have to be holy. And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they might minister to Me as priests.”
Finally, the scripture gives a warning in verses 31-32:
“This shall be a holy anointing oil to Me throughout your generations. It shall not be poured on man’s flesh; nor shall you make every other prefer it, based on its composition. It is holy, and it shall be holy to you.”
This oil was meant to be a consecrated and special oil used just for God’s purposes. While other oils were used on the body for health and wonder throughout the scriptures, this particular recipe was to be considered holy.
What Does the Exodus Effect Teach Us Today?
The Exodus Effect reminds us of the risks of taking scripture out of context. When we read specific passages within the Bible, we should always watch out to read them in relation to the remaining of the scriptures. God doesn’t lie, nor does His Word, so if someone uses a verse of scripture to support something that goes against God’s character or other scriptures, there may be an issue.
Throughout the scriptures, God has at all times been the source of healing. Healing got here in various ways, however the source was at all times God. In the fashionable world, God uses medicine and doctors’ knowledge to assist heal people, but sometimes, they’re healed in order that doctors don’t have any explanation apart from a miracle.
Oils can have medicinal properties, and it isn’t improper to make use of them. However, if there may be any miraculous healing, the source is God. If you discover relief through oils, then use them, but at all times remember who created the plants the oils got here from, and the scientists God gave the knowledge to create them. There is not any magical cure, but there may be a God who has the ability to heal, even whether it is on the opposite side of Heaven.
Photo Credit:©GettyImages/Tinnakorn Jorruang
Linda Lyle is a author, teacher, knitter, and unintentional collector of cats. She has written articles for the Alabama Baptist, Open Windows, Refresh, in addition to multiple novels and novellas. Her newest book, 5-Minute Prayer Plan for When Life Is Overwhelming, is ready to release in October. She spins yarns on her blog The End of My Yarn at lindalyle.com.
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