Māshîaḥ derives from māshaḥ (H4886), 'to anoint with oil.' In Israel, anointing with oil was the formal ceremony that set apart kings (Saul, David, Solomon), priests (Aaron and his sons), and prophets. The māshîaḥ was any such consecrated person. Over time, in post-exilic prophecy, the term increasingly referred to the coming ideal King of David's line who would restore Israel and fulfill God's covenant promises. In Daniel 9:25-26, the 'māshîaḥ the Prince' appears in a precise prophetic timetable. The Greek equivalent is Christos — Christ.
The concept of the māshîaḥ stands at the center of both the Old and New Testaments. David was God's prototype anointed king — 'a man after God's own heart' — pointing forward to the greater Son of David. The prophets described a coming anointed figure who would bring justice, peace, and ultimate redemption (Isaiah 9; 11; 61). Psalm 2 depicts God installing his māshîaḥ as king over the nations. The NT's central claim is that Jesus of Nazareth is this long-awaited Messiah, the one in whom all Israel's hope is fulfilled and through whom God's covenant is finally consummated.