Q&A 0782 – Anointing houses with oil?

My father has studied the Bible and is very knowledgeable. He is telling my mother that she should anoint the house with oil, because the Bible tells us to do this. I read in James 5, "Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. -- So should we anoint houses? -- K.A.A.

Nowhere does the New Testament say we should anoint houses. Only people! (You have probably already read what I have written on this subject at the website, so I won't bore you by repeating it here.) The Old Testament instructed priests to anoint the Tent of Meeting and many of its contents (Exodus 30). Jacob also anointed a pillar in Genesis 28:18. But as far as anointing houses goes, that is a fanciful idea unsupported by the Scriptures.

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