Unity - Oil and Dew

Psalm 133
Another short psalm, so here it is in its entirety, but without line breaks, making it easier to pick up context, at least for me:

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity!
It is like the precious oil upon the head, coming down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard, coming down upon the edge of his robes.
It is like the dew of Hermon coming down upon the mountains of Zion;
For there the LORD commanded the blessing—life forever.

A couple phrases need some exploring to really grasp the picture being painted here. Obviously, the context is about brothers being in unity, which is said to be good and pleasant. Hard to disagree. But again, if we leave it there, we miss the richness of the further explanation. How does this compare with oil upon the head of Aaron, or some dew of Hermon? How do these help explain the goodness of unity?

First, for the oil, refer to Exodus 20:22-33. The oil to be used in anointing the high priest, Aaron being the first, was to contain four different spices. A singular spice was not prescribed, but rather four different and distinct spices, which, when blended together in the oil made a wonderful fragrance. Kind of like adding multiple ingredients to a cookie recipe, none of which taste good by itself, but when added together make for delicious eating. What a great picture of unity. The psalmist, David, is very familiar with this oil, and he uses its imagery to describe the unity that should exist between brothers (God-fearers), no matter how different they are as individuals.

Remember, this is another song of ascents, so it would have directly applied to those heading for Jerusalem to worship, very likely including a diverse group of people, unique in personalities and the like.

Hermon was and is the highest point in Palestine (Israel today), high enough to have a snowy cap at its top. In dry times in the land, the dew descended from this snow, refreshing those who experienced the moist relief. We take water for granted today, and really, when do we really thank the Lord for the dew? These worshipers did, and they relished in the refreshment it brought them.

That same refreshment is to be felt among those with God in common. For us, we can easily apply that to our relationship with other believers. We differ doctrinally, personally, professionally, geographically, name the difference, we have it here. Yet believers are to dwell together in unity, with Christ as the common factor.

Going a step further than the unity is the primary importance of our relationship with the Lord. For one to experience the fragrance of the oil, or the dew from Hermon, he or she needed to be close to the source. God refreshment, His wonder and His very presence are only felt by those who are near Him, who are close to Him.

When we are close to Him, we get a feeling for the unity that He says is good and pleasant.