It can be argued that the search for the Mashiach (Messiah) is as old as the Jewish people are and his identity as debated as Jewish people are opinionated. It is not debated though, that the Hebrew word mashiach carries the meaning of "anointed." But it doesn't exclusively describe the Mashiach with a capital M. The Tenach speaks of several people as "mashiach" as they were anointed by G-d for a specific purpose, and it doesn't even stop with people. King David, while he was no Mashiach–after all, he was a murderer and an adulterer–was also called "a man after my own heart" by G-d Himself. But King David was a mashiach, in the sense of being anointed by G-d for a purpose. Samuel was led by G-d to select David over all of Jesse's sons and anointed him for kingship in 1 Samuel 16:13. It carries the meaning of being "set-apart" and "empowered" for service. Jehu was anointed for kingship in 2 kings 9:6 , a stone was anointed with oil by Jacob in Genesis 28:18 and even Aaron's priestly garments were anointed for his son's service in Exodus 29:29. So it is clear that the word "anointed" has the same meaning, but can be used for people, things and places.

Moving forward, we need to consider the office and identity of the Mashiach with a capital M only. Four individuals will be considered in this PODCAST, only one qualifies!