"oil to make his face to shine"

Psalm 104 is a great nature poem, probably written by David. I've read it many times, and you probably have, too. Here's part of it that recently struck me:

14 He causes the grass to grow for the livestock,
    and plants for man to cultivate,
    that he may produce food out of the earth:
15 wine that makes glad the heart of man,
    oil to make his face to shine,
    and bread that strengthens man’s heart. (World English Bible, public domain.)

OK. Grass for pasture for livestock, plants for garden vegetables and fruit, wine, and bread for food. But oil to make our faces to shine? Where did that come from?

The Bible Gateway, using the World English Bible, indicates that the word, "oil," occurs about 200 times in the Bible, with only a few of these in the New Testament. Oil was used as fuel for lamps, and was used on people who had been injured. It was also used in cooking, and to anoint people, as a sign of honoring them.

The first use of the word, in the Bible, is in this verse:
Genesis 28:18 Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil on its top.

Jacob was fleeing from the wrath of his brother, Esau, and this use was a form of worship, of thanking God for showing Jacob a vision. It is interesting that Jacob, presumably running away with only essential possessions, would have had oil among those possessions.

Leviticus mentions oil more than any other book in the Bible does. It was to be used in some types of offering to God, and was also to be used to anoint the priests, as a sign that they were separated for the Lord's work.

I Samuel tells us that Saul was anointed with oil, as a sign that he was to be the first king of Israel. David, who took Saul's place when Saul didn't obey God, was also anointed as a sign of God's calling.

1 Kings 17 tells the story of how a widow fed herself, her son, and Elijah, by cooking or baking them a mixture of oil and meal, for at least several days. The containers of meal and oil were miraculously kept from being empty.

Luke 7 tells the story of how a Pharisee invited Jesus to eat with him. Jesus rebuked the host because he hadn't anointed His head with oil. (A woman anointed His feet with her tears.)

OK. Back to Psalm 104. That Psalm doesn't mention oil as an offering, oil for food, or oil for healing. It probably doesn't imply using oil for anointing. It just says "to make his face to shine." A couple of thoughts on that. One is that, although the Bible doesn't say that cleanliness is next to godliness, God apparently appreciates cleanliness, in spirit, and in body and in our surroundings. The other is that Psalm 104 seems to be endorsing the use of cosmetics. Like so many other things, cosmetics can be, and are, over-used. But making our faces look good seems to be part of God's best plan for us, and doing so by application of at least one substance seems to be endorsed by Psalm 104.

Thanks for reading!