The ____ anointed the kings and judges of Israel and anointed Jesus (Luke 4:18).

• A. Holy Spirit
• B. Anointing oil
• C. Prophets
• D. Angels

Answer: (A)

The Spirit of the Lord is the one who empowers and sets apart leaders and the Messiah for their mission. In Luke 4:18, Jesus declares that the Spirit of the Lord is upon him because he has anointed him to preach the gospel to the poor. This shows that the anointing comes from the Holy Spirit, giving Jesus the authority and power for his ministry.

In Israel’s history, leaders like kings and judges were described as being empowered by the Spirit for service and governance, not by the oil itself acting independently. The oil functioned as a sign of setting apart, while the deeper empowering and commissioning comes from the Spirit. Angels do not anoint, and while oil is used in the ceremony, the decisive agent doing the anointing is the Spirit of God. Prophets could carry out the ceremony in some cases, but the text in Luke highlights the Spirit as the source of the anointing. That’s why Holy Spirit is the best answer.