23-33. Take thou also . . . principal spices, &c.--Oil
is frequently mentioned in Scripture as an emblem of sanctification,
and anointing with it a means of designating objects as well as persons
to the service of God. Here it is prescribed by divine authority, and
the various ingredients in their several proportions described which
were to compose the oil used in consecrating the furniture of the
tabernacle.
myrrh--a fragrant and medicinal gum from a little known tree in
Arabia.
sweet cinnamon--produced from a species of laurel or sweet bay,
found chiefly in Ceylon, growing to a height of twenty feet: this spice
is extracted from the inner bark, but it is not certain whether that
mentioned by Moses is the same as that with which we are familiar.
sweet calamus--or sweet cane, a product of Arabia and India, of
a tawny color in appearance; it is like the common cane and strongly
odoriferous.
JFB.
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