The Shema Prayer (Hear o’ Israel the Lord is God and God is One) is considered Judaism’s declaration of faith in God. Deuteronomy 7:13, quoted from Chabad.org, reads “And He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your soil, your grain, your wine, and your oil, the offspring of your cattle and the choice of your flocks, in the land which He swore to your forefathers to give you”.
Many of these blessings seem to have a link to Temple service, grain for the challah, oil for the Menorah and for anointing the Kohanim/Priests, wine for Kiddush, cattle for the sacrifices, etc. The blessings also seem to have a link to Israel as a nation including populating the land and feeding it. The one element I specifically question is the oil. What is the signifance of oil in terms of consumption or Temple service that it is a blessing? Wouldn’t water be symbolically appropriate for purifying the Kohanim instead of oil? In a land “flowing with milk and honey” there has to be bees to produce that abundance of honey and if there are bees, there is bees wax that can be used to light the Temple menorah. Why is oil so essential that it is considered a blessing for the masses?