Incense

Sweet-smelling spices and oils or sacrifices that produce pleasant-smelling smoke that satisfies God.

Since time began, people have loved pleasant smells. In ancient times, sacrifices included sweet smells to satisfy the gods. The smell was important for the gods to accept the offering. Thus, sweet-smelling plants and exotic-smelling liquids (perfumes) were valuable for both everyday and religious uses.

People valued spices and precious oils as well as silver and gold. The Queen of Sheba gave spices to King Solomon as a gift (1 Kings 10:2). The royal treasury stored incense (2 Kings 20:13). Spices and oils were very expensive because of the hard work of extracting them. It also cost a lot to import them from distant places. Merchants made high profits from selling the perfumes.

As a result, wives sometimes compared their beloved husband to "myrrh," a "mountain of myrrh," and a "hill of frankincense" (Song of Solomon 1:13; 4:6). The sweet smell of incense created the right atmosphere (1:12). Every spice known to a merchant burned beside King Solomon's large bed (couch) (3:6).

A husband enjoyed the perfumes of his beloved wife. She was his own private garden of incense (4:10–14). Even a prostitute burned incense beside her bed (Ezekiel 23:41). It is no surprise that wise men said, "Oil and incense bring joy to the heart, and the counsel of a friend is sweetness to the soul" (for example, Proverbs 27:9).

Frankincense is the incense mentioned most often in the Bible. They imported it from India, Somaliland, and Arabia Felix. Myrrh also came from Arabia Felix. Cinnamon was another important fragrance from Ceylon and China. Galbanum, tragacanth (a type of gum), and laudanum all grew in the mountains of Asia Minor. Galbanum was the most popular of these three because it was also found in Turkestan, Persia, Syria, and Crete. Henna, saffron, and balsam came from sweet-smelling plants native to Israel.

After the Jewish exile to Babylon, other plants came to Palestine, and they cultivated them there. These included the rose, narcissus, and jasmine. They seemed to have produced Onycha from local animals. Perhaps they extracted musk from a gland of the musk deer.

Incense came in many forms. People might use grains in a bag hung around the neck (Song of Solomon 1:13). However, most perfumes were liquid, dissolved in olive oil. A good example is the “sacred anointing oil” (Exodus 30:31). People used these oils to anoint the priests and kings of Israel. Only priests could prepare and use them. The incense contained raw spices beaten into a fine powder and seasoned with salt to make them holy.

They mixed equal parts of stacte, onycha, galbanum, and pure frankincense, "the work of a perfumer" (Exodus 30:34–37). People donated spices and incense for the sanctuary as gifts (Numbers 7:14–86; Jeremiah 17:26; 41:5). They stored them in the temple (Nehemiah 13:5, 9). Josephus described the incense of his time as a more complex mixture. He listed 13 ingredients in the best incense of the Herodian era.

Archaeology shows that incense offerings were common in the ancient Near East from the start of organized worship. Egyptian paintings and reliefs (raised surface art) from the New Kingdom sometimes depict a man holding a censer with burning incense. Assyria, Babylonia, and Arabia also used incense in their ceremonies. Altars from Canaan found at Megiddo and Tell Beit Mirsim have limestone altars with horns from the 10th century BC. It is possibly designed to hold a bowl of incense. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that incense offerings were part of Israel's worship from the beginning.

Incense offerings served several purposes in Israel’s worship. Incense was closely associated with holiness and prayer, and it marked sacred space as belonging to God. In some rituals, incense was connected with the consecration of the place of worship and its furnishings (Exodus 30:26–29). The Bible often describes offerings as producing a “pleasing aroma” to the Lord. This phrase expresses God’s acceptance of the offering, not a physical smell meant to please humans.

In some cases, incense itself became a sacrifice. In addition to other sacrifices, people burned frankincense alone. To stop a plague, Aaron performed a ceremony by burning incense (Numbers 16:46–47).

On the Day of Atonement, the high priest carried burning incense and hot coals on a censer (a pan that held incense) into the Holy of Holies (Leviticus 16:12–13). People believed the burning incense protected the high priest's life. It was possibly because the smoke prevented him from seeing the full glory of God.

People added frankincense to grain for offerings on the altar of burnt offering (Leviticus 2:1, 15–16; 6:15). It also accompanied the bread of the Presence in two dishes (24:7). King Hezekiah destroyed the bronze serpent during his reform. This was because it had become a polluted object to which people burned incense (2 Kings 18:4).

Except on the Day of Atonement, they offered incense on a special altar (Leviticus 4:7; see also Exodus 30:9). It burned morning and evening and became known as “perpetual incense” (Exodus 30:7–8). The altar of gold in King Solomon’s temple was probably the incense altar (1 Kings 6:20–22).

Offering incense was a holy ceremony. People who did not follow the procedures encountered punishment (Leviticus 10:1–2; Numbers 16:6–50). Uzziah, King of Judah, became a leper because he wrongly tried to offer incense (2 Chronicles 26:16–21).

Burning incense at "high places" often encountered criticism (for example, 1 Kings 22:43). This was either because the holy places were where they worshiped false gods or the priests did not care as much as those in Jerusalem. Prophets who criticized incense offerings did so to condemn ceremonies that lacked true dedication to the God of Israel (Isaiah 1:13; 66:3; Jeremiah 6:20).

Incense was a precious item, making it a suitable offering to God (Malachi 1:11). Incense offerings gave people a way to experience God's holy presence and seek forgiveness for sins (Numbers 16:46–47). The smoke rising to the sky symbolized people's prayers (Psalm 141:2; Luke 1:10; Revelation 5:8; 8:3–4). In the temple, the smoke also represented God's presence. This was similar to the cloud in the wilderness (Exodus 19:18; 33:9–10; Numbers 11:25). Along with the rising sun, the smoke was a strong symbol of the Lord's glory (Isaiah 6:1–7).

New Testament mentions of incense further enhance the importance of incense. A Christian's testimony about Christ is like offering incense (2 Corinthians 2:14–15). The sweet smell of the gospel contrasts with the smell of death that leads to destruction. Similarly, money from the Philippian Christians reached Paul like an incense sacrifice, showing love and devotion (Philippians 4:18).

Finally, incense seems to purify and accompany the prayers of the saints into God's presence (Revelation 5:8; 8:3–4). None of the New Testament references ask Christians to offer incense. At the least, these many passages encourage learning dedication to holy living, symbolized by burning this precious substance.

See also Plants (Aloe; Balm; Calamus; Cinnamon; Frankincense; Galbanum; Henna; Hyssop; Myrrh; Nard; Storax Tree); Perfume; Tabernacle; Temple.