Myrrh, the third gift that the Wise Men brought Baby Jesus, is symbolic of Christ’s death. During Jesus’ final hours in the Garden of Gethsemane, He was in great agony because He knew that He would soon have to bear the weight of the sin of the world on the cross at Calvary. So severe was His anguish, that Scripture says He sweated great droplets of blood. As we will discover, His suffering can be compared to Myrrh.

Myrrh is a resin from trees that grow in the Arabian Peninsula. It is known for its healing properties and was often combined with other spices to create healing balms.
It is harvested by wounding the tree, by cutting and removing a small piece of the bark.

The tree resin then drips or “bleeds out” bitter droplets of Myrrh that are left to harden before they are removed. This process reminds us of Jesus’ suffering in Gethsemane and on the cross, where His precious blood was shed and poured out, to atone for our sins.

Jesus’ blood brings healing to any problem, disease or situation. Just as myrrh trees are cut and bruised so that they can bleed out precious resin for healing, incense and anointing, so too the suffering and blood of Jesus brings forth the power of healing and redemption. It is through His suffering that healing comes to our souls, and anointing power and answers, to our prayers. The shedding of his blood allows us to overcome the sting of death through His triumphal resurrection. On the cross, Jesus was offered wine mixed with myrrh, probably to help reduce the excruciating pain. But Jesus refused the mixture, most likely to bear the full weight of suffering.

Myrrh was also used in the burial process, embalming the body and helping to mask the
smell of decaying flesh. In John 19:39 we are told that Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes weighing about a hundred pounds, to prepare Jesus’ body for burial. A large amount, fit for the King of kings. Therefor we see that myrrh was symbolic of Christ’s death and resurrection.

In the Temple worship, myrrh was added to the anointing oil by first heating it and then
combining it with the oil. This sacred anointing oil was used to anoint the priests in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple in Jerusalem. The Hebrew word for Myrrh is “mowr”, which means “distilled,” and comes from the root word “marar,” which means “bitterness.” Just like Jesus’ body was taken away after the crucifixion and prepared for burial with myrrh, we too, the bride of Christ, must be made ready for the burial of our sins at the cross. We must die to self. This can be a difficult and bitter process, as we prepare ourselves for our coming King. Myrrh is a fixing oil, a servant oil, one used to enhance all the other oils and to make them last longer. Is that not a good picture of who Jesus is to us, His children? He desires to serve us, to lift us up and to enhance our lives with beautiful things.

Matthew 16:24-25
“If anyone desires to be My disciple, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me (cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if need be, in dying.) For whoever is bent on saving his life shall lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake shall find it – life everlasting.”

2 Corinthians 1:5
“For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ.”

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus, thank you that You suffered and died for me. Thank you that I can now
share in Your suffering, by dying to self, and be triumphant in Your resurrection. Give me full understanding of Your finished work on the cross. Thank you for enhancing my life with peace and joy. Amen.