The
holy anointing oil (
Hebrew: שמן המשחה
shemen ha-mishchah, "oil of anointing") formed an integral part of the ordination of the
priesthood and the
High Priest as well as in the consecration of the articles of the
Tabernacle (Exodus 30:26) and subsequent
temples in Jerusalem. The primary purpose of
anointing with the holy anointing oil was to cause the anointed persons or objects to become
qodesh, or "most holy" (Exodus 30:29).