The way to abide in the Lord is by the teaching of the anointing (1 John 2:27). The anointing is typified by the holy anointing oil, the compound ointment, described in Exodus 30:23-25. The compound ointment was made from a hin of olive oil compounded with four spices: myrrh, cinnamon, calamus, and cassia. A hin is an ancient Hebrew unit of liquid measure. In both the Old Testament and the New Testament, oil typifies the Spirit of God. In Exodus 30 the oil is no longer oil alone but is compounded with four spices to become an ointment. Oil has one essence and one element, but the compound ointment is a mixture of five elements. The anointing in the Bible is the anointing of the ointment. Myrrh, the first of the four spices added to the oil, signifies Christ’s death in a positive sense. The death of Adam, which brought us all into death (Rom. 5:12), was negative, but the death of Christ, which rescued us out of death, is positive. Cinnamon signifies the effectiveness and sweetness of the death of Christ. Calamus is a reed that shoots up in muddy places, signifying resurrection. Cassia signifies the power and the effectiveness of Christ’s resurrection. In ancient times cassia was used as a snake and insect repellent. The effectiveness of Christ’s resurrection repels the serpent, Satan, and all the negative “insects” that come to bother us.
The quantities of the spices are also significant. There were five hundred shekels of myrrh, two hundred fifty shekels of cinnamon, two hundred fifty shekels of calamus, and five hundred shekels of cassia. The two hundred fifty shekels of cinnamon and two hundred fifty shekels of calamus compose one unit of five hundred shekels split in two. Thus, there are three units of five hundred shekels each, and the middle unit is cut in half. These three units signify the three of the Triune God, and the middle unit that was split signifies Christ the Son, the second of the Godhead, who was “split” on the cross. The number of spices, four, signifies the creatures, the foremost of which is man (Ezek. 1:5; Rev. 4:6). The combining of the numbers three and four implies the mingling of the Triune God with His creature man. Three multiplied by four is twelve, which is the number of the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem has twelve gates, twelve foundations, and measures twelve thousand stadia in all three dimensions (Rev. 21:12, 14, 16). Thus, the type of the compound ointment is the source of the number of the New Jerusalem, the ultimate mingling of God and man.
The olive oil being compounded with the four spices signifies the Spirit of God being compounded with Christ’s humanity, His death, and His resurrection. Everything Christ is and has accomplished has all been compounded into the Spirit of God. For this reason the Spirit is called the Spirit of Jesus Christ (Phil. 1:19). Such a Spirit was not yet before Jesus was glorified, that is, before He was resurrected. The Spirit mentioned in John 7:39 is the compound Spirit. Now that Christ has died and resurrected, the Spirit of God has become a wonderful compound Spirit. This compound Spirit includes the divinity of the Triune God, the humanity of Christ, Christ’s death, the effectiveness of His death, Christ’s resurrection, and the power of His resurrection.
My burden is not that we would merely gain some biblical knowledge but that we would see that the contents of the Spirit and the word of God are the same. In the previous chapter we saw that the constituents of God’s word in the Bible are Christ, His death, and His resurrection. Every page of the Bible contains Christ, His death, and His resurrection. The word of God may be compared to a cup of tea that contains tea and several other ingredients, such as lemon, milk, and honey, compounded together into an all-inclusive drink. When we drink such a cup of tea, we receive all the ingredients. That which is in the word is in the Spirit also. Christ is a constituent of the word, and Christ has also been compounded into the Spirit. Christ’s death is in the word, and His death has also been compounded into the Spirit. Christ’s resurrection is a constituent of the word, and His resurrection has also been compounded into the Spirit. Therefore, the Spirit and the word correspond. Actually, the word is the Spirit (Eph. 6:17). The word of God in the Bible, which is outside of us, becomes the Spirit when we take it into us. When the Spirit comes out of us, He becomes the word again. The word without is the Spirit within; these two are one. Christ, His death, and His resurrection are included in both the word and the Spirit.