Anointing a person with oil symbolized the empowerment of the Holy Spirit (e.g., 1 Samuel 10:1; 1 Samuel 16:13; Isaiah 61:1; Zechariah 4:1–6). When a priest was anointed, it communicated to the people that he was set apart by the Lord and should be treated with respect as the Lord’s representative.
10 Then Moses took the anointing oil and anointed the tabernacle and all that was in it, and consecrated them.