Exodus · Chapter 25

V. 1. Doubtless when Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and abode there so long, he saw and heard glorious things, but they were things which were not lawful or possible to utter; and therefore, in the records he kept of the transactions there, he saith nothing to satisfy curiosity, but writes that only which he was to speak to the children of Israel. Probably there never was any house or temple built for sacred uses, before this tabernacle was erected by Moses. In this God kept his court, as Israel’s king, and it was intended for a sign or token of his presence, that while they had that in the midst of them they might never again ask, Is the Lord among us or not? And because in the wilderness they dwelt in tents, even this royal palace was ordered to be a tabernacle too, that it might move with them. And these holy places made with hands were the figures of the true, Hebrews 9:24. The gospel-church is the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched, and not man, Hebrews 8:2. The body of Christ, in and by which he made atonement, was the greater and more perfect tabernacle, Hebrews 9:11. The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, as in a tabernacle.

V. 2. Speak unto the children of Israel that they bring me an offering-This offering was to be given willingly, and with the heart. It was not prescribed to them what or how much they must give, but it was left to their generosity, that they might shew their good-will to the house of God, and the offices thereof.

Verse 2. That they bring me an offering] The offering here mentioned is the hmwrt terumah, a kind of free-will offering, consisting of any thing that was necessary for the occasion. It signifies properly any thing that was lifted up, the heave-offering, because in presenting it to God it was lifted up to be laid on his altar; but see Clarke on “Exodus 29:27”. God requires that they should build him a tent, suited in some sort to his dignity and eminence, because he was to act as their king, and to dwell among them; and they were to consider themselves as his subjects, and in this character to bring him presents, which was considered to be the duty of every subject appearing before his prince. See Exodus 23:15.

Verse 2. Speak unto the children of Israel — Doubtless when Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and abode there so long, he saw and heard glorious things, but they were things which it was not lawful or possible to utter, and therefore in the records which he kept of the transactions there, he saith nothing to satisfy curiosity, but writes that only which he was to deliver to the people. And God, having now solemnly ratified his covenant with Israel to be their God, and that they should be his subjects and servants, gives orders next concerning a place for his solemn worship, where by visible symbols of his divine presence he might reside among them as their Deliverer, Protector, and the great object of their worship, and might keep his court as their King, that while they had that place in the midst of them they might never again ask, “Is the Lord among us or not?” And because in the wilderness they dwelt in tents, even this royal palace was to be a tabernacle too, a kind of portable temple suitable to their travelling condition, that it might move with them. Probably there never was any house or temple built for sacred uses before this tabernacle was erected by Moses. And the frame, fashion, utensils, ministers, and services of it were to be such as would be a model of that more magnificent temple, its furniture and service, which was to be afterward erected in the land of Canaan, even as that temple itself, with its whole economy, was to be but a figurative resemblance of a more complete and spiritual dispensation under the Messiah. For these holy places made with hands were the figures of the true, Hebrews 9:24. The gospel church is the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched, and not man, Hebrews 8:2. And the body of Christ, in and by which he made atonement, was the greater and more perfect tabernacle, Hebrews 9:11. The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us as in a tabernacle. That they bring me an offering — This offering was to be given willingly, and with the heart. It was not prescribed to them what or how much they must give, but it was left to their generosity, that they might show their good-will to the house of God, and the offices thereof.

Verse 2. That they bring me an offering. We now enter on the tabernacle, a hallowed work, a figure of the church, and emblem of the heavenly glory. This mystical temple was not new: it had existed in paradise; it had no doubt been preserved by Noah in the ark, for we find it in the Egyptian and Indian temples, as well as among the ancient Greeks. Yet God by special revelation was pleased to renew it in a figure of perfection.

2. Bring me an offering — Hebrews, take for me a terumah. The terumah (hmwrt) was thought of as a gift or offering that was lifted up to the honour of God. The word is often translated heave offering, as in the margin. Comp. Exodus 29:27, 28; Leviticus 7:14, 32; Numbers 15:19, 20; Deuteronomy 12:6, 11, 17. Here it is used in the general sense of offering, or oblation, and what every man contributed toward the sanctuary was to be given willingly with his heart. No compulsory oblations were to be accepted for this new house of Jehovah, but only such as each man’s heart impelled him to bestow. And so in typical form it was indicated that God builds his spiritual house of willing souls. Comp. Romans 12:1; 1 Peter 2:5. How willingly the people responded is seen in Exodus 35:21-29; 36:5-7.

Verse 3. This is the offering] There were three kinds of metals:

1. GOLD, bhz zahab, which may properly signify wrought gold; what was bright and resplendent, as the word implies. In Job 28:15,16,17,19, gold is mentioned five times, and four of the words are different in the original. 1. rwgs SEGOR, from rgs sagar, to shut up; gold in the mine, or shut up in its ore. 2. כתם KETHEM, from כתם catham, to sign, seal, or stamp; gold made current by being coined; standard or sterling gold, exhibiting the stamp expressive of its value. 3. bhz ZAHAB, wrought gold, pure, highly polished gold; probably what was used for overlaying or gilding. 4. zp PAZ, denoting solidity, compactness, and strength; probably gold formed into different kinds of plate, as it is joined in Exodus 25:17 of the above chapter with ylk keley, vessels. The zahab, or pure gold, is here mentioned, because it was in a state that rendered it capable of being variously manufactured for the service of the sanctuary.

2. SILVER, ãsk keseph, from casaph, to be pale, wan, or white; so called from its well-known colour.

3. BRASS, tvjn nechosheth, copper; unless we suppose that the factitious metal commonly called brass is intended: this is formed by a combination of the oxide or ore of zinc, called lapis calaminaris, with copper. Brass seems to have been very anciently in use, as we find it mentioned Genesis 4:22; and the preparation of copper, to transform it into this factitious metal, seems to be very pointedly referred to Job 28:2: Iron is taken out of the earth, and brass is molten out of the stone; hvwjn qwxy אבנ eben yatsuk nechushah, translated by the Vulgate, Lapis, solutus calore, in æs vertitur, “The stone, liquefied by heat, is turned into brass.” Is it going too far to say that the stone here may refer to the lapis calaminaris, which was used to turn the copper into brass? Because brass was capable of so fine a polish as to become exceedingly bright, and keep its lustre a considerable time, hence it was used for all weapons of war and defensive armour among ancient nations; and copper seems to have been in no repute, but for its use in making brass.

3. Gold, and silver, and brass — Sceptics have been fond of asking whence the Hebrews in the wilderness could have obtained such quantifies of the precious metals as the tabernacle required. It is not difficult to answer: (1.) They probably possessed some of the treasures which belonged to their ancient fathers, and of which they had not been despoiled in Egypt. (2.) They obtained great quantities of gold and silver from the Egyptians on their departure from their land. See Exodus 12:35, 36, and notes on Exodus 3:22, and Exodus 11:2. (3.) Much spoil of the Egyptian army probably fell into their hands at the Red sea. See Exodus 14:30, note. (4.) They doubtless obtained much spoil of the defeated Amalekites, (Exodus 17:8-13.) (5.) Finally, we are not to imagine that in the Sinaitic peninsula the Hebrews were cut off from all communication with other peoples. Great caravans frequently traversed these deserts, (comp. Genesis 37:25, 28,) and doubtless then, as in a later time merchantmen of “all the kings of Arabia, and of the governors of the country,” (1 Kings 10:14-17,) carried to and fro with them large quantities of precious metals; and these, as well as other material needed for any of their purposes, could have been obtained by the Israelites.

V. 4. Blue, and purple, and scarlet-Materials of those colours.

Verse 4. Blue] tlkt techeleth, generally supposed to mean an azure or sky colour; rendered by the Septuagint vakinqon, and by the Vulgate hyacinthum, a sky-blue or deep violet.

Purple] ארגמנ argaman, a very precious colour, extracted from the purpura or murex, a species of shell-fish, from which it is supposed the famous Tyrian purple came, so costly, and so much celebrated in antiquity. See this largely described, and the manner of dyeing it, in Pliny, Hist. Nat., lib. ix., c. 60-65, edit. Bipont.

Scarlet] תולעת tolaath, signifies a worm, of which this colouring matter was made; and, joined with ynv shani, which signifies to repeat or double, implies that to strike this colour the wool or cloth was twice dipped: hence the Vulgate renders the original coccum bis tinctum, “scarlet twice dyed;” and to this Horace refers, Odar., lib. ii., od. 16, v. 35:— ———Te BIS Afro

Murice TINCTÆ

Vestiunt LANÆ.——

“Thy robes the twice dyed purple stains.”

It is the same colour which the Arabs call al kermez, whence the French cramoisi, and the English crimson. On this subject much may be seen in Bochart, Calmet, and Scheuchzer.

Fine linen] vv shesh; whether this means linen, cotton, or silk, is not agreed on among interpreters. Because vv shesh signifies six, the rabbins suppose that it always signifies the fine linen of Egypt, in which six folds constituted one thread; and that when a single fold was meant, db bad is the term used. See Clarke’s note on “Genesis 41:42”. Goats’ hair] µyz[ izzim, goats, but used here elliptically for goats’ hair. In different parts of Asia Minor, Syria, Cilicia, and Phrygia, the goats have long, fine, and beautiful hair, in some cases almost as fine as silk, which they shear at proper times, and manufacture into garments. From Virgil, Georg. iii., v. 305-311, we learn that goats’ hair manufactured into cloth was nearly of equal value with that formed from wool.

Hae quoque non cura nobis leviore tuendæ;

Nec minor usus erit: quamvis Milesia magno

Vellera mutentur, Tyrios incocta rubores.

Nec minus interea barbas incanaque menta

Cinyphii tondent hirci, setasque comantes,

Usum in castrorum, et miseris velamina nautis.

“For hairy goats of equal profit are

With woolly sheep, and ask an equal care.

‘Tis true the fleece when drunk with Tyrian juice

Is dearly sold, but not for needful use:

Meanwhile the pastor shears their hoary beards

And eases of their hair the loaden herds.

Their camelots, warm in tents, the soldier hold,

And shield the shivering mariner from the cold.”

DRYDEN.

Verses 4, 5. Blue, and purple, and scarlet — Materials of those colours. Shittim-wood — A kind of wood growing in Egypt and the deserts of Arabia, very durable and precious.

Ver. 4. Blue and purple. Some materials proper for the work, and of the colours here mentioned; wool or threads, or some such like things, as appears from Hebrews 9:19.

4. Blue, and purple, and scarlet — The exact colours, tints, or shades denoted by the Hebrew words thus translated it is now hardly possible to determine with absolute certainty. The same may be said of the names of colours in all the ancient languages. The use of these different colours in the tabernacle probably served not only for the sake of beauty and variety, but also to suggest thoughts of heavenly excellence and glory. The three colours here named have always and everywhere been regarded as appropriate for the persons and palaces of kings. Blue, as the colour of the heaven, reflected in the sea, would naturally suggest that which is heavenly, holy, and divine. Hence it was appropriate that the robe of the ephod was made wholly of blue, (Exodus 28:31; 39:22,) and the breastplate was connected with it by blue cords, verse 28. It was also by a blue cord or ribbon that the golden plate inscribed “Holiness to Jehovah” was attached to the high priest’s mitre, verse 31. The loops of the tabernacle curtains were of this colour, (Exodus 26:4,) and the children of Israel were commanded to place blue ribbons as badges upon the borders of their garments, (Numbers 15:37-41,) as if to remind them that they were children of the heavenly King, and were under the responsibility of having received from him commandments and revelations. Hence, too, it was appropriate that a blue cloth was spread over the holiest things of the tabernacle when they were arranged for journeying forward. Numbers 4:6, 7, 11, 12. Purple and scarlet, so often mentioned in connexion with the dress of kings, have very naturally been regarded as symbolical of royalty and majesty. Judges 8:26; Esther 8:15; Daniel 5:7; Nahum 2:3. Both these colours, along with blue, appeared upon the curtains of the tabernacle, (Exodus 26:1,) and upon the vail that separated the holy place from the most holy. Exodus 26:31. A scarlet cloth covered the holy vessels which were placed upon the table of showbread, and a purple cloth the altar of burnt offerings. Numbers 4:8, 13. Fine linen — Hebrews vv, shesh, believed to be an Egyptian word, translated by bussov in the Septuagint, and applied to an Egyptian fabric made of fine flax, and having a peculiar whiteness. Joseph’s vesture, when made ruler in Egypt, was of this material. Genesis 41:42. It was used for the curtains and vails of the tabernacle, and for the garments of the priests. Exodus 26:1, 31, 36; 28:5, 6, 8, 15, 39. Goats’ hair — A very solid fabric was woven of the hair of the goat, and was the most common material used for the covering of tents among the nomads of the East.

V. 5. Shittim-wood-A kind of wood growing in Egypt and the deserts of Arabia, very durable and precious.

Verse 5. Rams’ skins dyed red] מאדמים אילם tr[ oroth eylim meoddamim, literally, the skins of red rams. It is a fact attested by many respectable travellers, that in the Levant sheep are often to be met with that have red or violet-coloured fleeces. And almost all ancient writers speak of the same thing. Homer describes the rams of Polyphemus as having a violet-coloured fleece.

Arsenev oiev hsan eutrefeev dasumalloi,

Kaloi te, megaloi te, iodnefev eirov econtev.

Odyss., lib. ix., ver. 425.

“Strong were the rams, with native purple fair,

Well fed, and largest of the fleecy care.”

POPE.

Pliny, Aristotle, and others mention the same. And from facts of this kind it is very probable that the fable of the golden fleece had its origin. In the Zetland Isles I have seen sheep with variously coloured fleeces, some white, some black, some black and white, some of a very fine chocolate colour. Beholding those animals brought to my recollection those words of Virgil:—

Ipse sed in pratis Aries jam suave rubenti

Murice, jam croceo mutabit vellera luto.

Eclog. iv., ver. 43.

“No wool shall in dissembled colours shine;

But the luxurious father of the fold,

With native purple or unborrow’d gold,

Beneath his pompous fleece shall proudly sweat,

And under Tyrian robes the lamb shall bleat.”

DRYDEN.

Badgers’ skins] תחשים tr[ oroth techashim. Few terms have afforded greater perplexity to critics and commentators than this. Bochart has exhausted the subject, and seems to have proved that no kind of animal is here intended, but a colour. None of the ancient versions acknowledge an animal of any kind except the Chaldee, which seems to think the badger is intended, and from it we have borrowed our translation of the word. The Septuagint and Vulgate have skins dyed a violet colour; the Syriac, azure; the Arabic, black; the Coptic, violet; the modern Persic, ram-skins, &c. The colour contended for by Bochart is the hysginus, which is a very deep blue. So Pliny, Coccoque tinctum Tyrio tingere, ut fieret hysginum. “They dip crimson in purple to make the colour called hysginus.”-Hist. Nat., lib. ix., c. 65, edit. Bipont.

Shittim wood] By some supposed to be the finest species of the cedar; by others, the acacia Nilotica, a species of thorn, solid, light, and very beautiful. This acacia is known to have been plentiful in Egypt, and it abounds in Arabia Deserta, the very place in which Moses was when he built the tabernacle; and hence it is reasonable to suppose that he built it of that wood, which was every way proper for his purpose.

Verses 4, 5. Blue, and purple, and scarlet — Materials of those colours. Shittim-wood — A kind of wood growing in Egypt and the deserts of Arabia, very durable and precious.

5. Rams’ skins dyed red — “These skins may have been tanned and coloured like the leather now known as red morocco, which is said to have been manufactured in Libya from the remotest antiquity.” — Speaker’s Commentary. Others have explained the words as meaning simply skins of red rams. Badgers’ skins — Besides the mention in Ezekiel 16:10, the word vjt, here translated badger, occurs only in connexion with the curtains and coverings of the tabernacle. The Sept. and Vulg. seem to understand it as the name of a colour, hyacinthine. The Targum and the Syriac translate it by the word anwgss, which Levy explains (Chald. Worterbuch) as a red-spotted beast. Kitto’s Cyclopaedia maintains that it was probably an animal of the antelope tribe, but could not have been the badger, which is not found in Asia so far south as Palestine and Arabia. It is probably best understood of a kind of seal which is said to be found in the waters about Arabia. “The word bears a near resemblance to the Arabic tuchash, which appears to be the general name given to the seals, dugongs, and dolphins found in the Red sea, (Tristram,) and, according to some authorities, to the sharks and dog-fish. (Furst.) The substance spoken of would thus appear to have been leather formed from the skins of marine animals, which was well adapted as a protection against the weather. Pliny speaks of tents made of seal skins as proof against the stroke of lightning, (Nat. Hist., 2:56,) and one of these is said to have been used by Augustus whenever he travelled. The skins of the dolphin and dugong are cut into sandals by the modern Arabs, and this may explain Ezekiel 16:10.” — Speaker’s Commentary. Shittim wood — The wood of the acacia tree, a very hard and durable kind of tree which abounds in the Sinaitic peninsula.

Verse 6. Oil for the light] This they must have brought with them from Egypt, for they could not get any in the wilderness where there were no olives; but it is likely that this and some other directions refer more to what was to be done when in their fixed and settled residence, than while wandering in the wilderness.

Spices] To make a confection for sweet incense, abounded in different parts of these countries.

6. Oil for the light — This, according to Exodus 27:20, was to be pure olive oil and beaten. Spices — Such as are more fully described in Exodus 30:22-25. The various things for which the anointing oil was used are mentioned in Exodus 30:26-33. Sweet incense — See more fully Exodus 30:34-38.

Verse 7. Onyx stones] We have already met with the stone called שהם shoham, Genesis 2:12, and acknowledged the difficulty of ascertaining what is meant by it. Some think the onyx, some the sardine, and some the emerald, is meant. We cannot say precisely what it was; possibly it might have been that fine pale pebble, called the Egyptian pebble, several specimens of which now lie before me, which were brought from the coast of the Red Sea, and other parts in Egypt, by a particular friend of mine, on purpose to add to my collection of minerals.

Stones to be set in the ephod] מלאים אבני abney milluim, stones of filling up. Stones so cut as to be proper to be set in the gold work of the breastplate.

The dpa ephod.-It is very difficult to tell what this was, or in what form it was made. It was a garment of some kind peculiar to the priests, and ever considered essential to all the parts of Divine worship, for without it no person attempted to inquire of God. As the word itself comes from the root dpa aphad, he tied or bound close, Calmet supposes that it was a kind of girdle, which, brought from behind the neck and over the shoulders, and so hanging down before, was put cross upon the stomach, and then carried round the waist, and thus made a girdle to the tunic. Where the ephod crossed on the breast there was a square ornament called חשנ choshen, the breastplate, in which twelve precious stones were set, each bearing one of the names of the twelve sons of Jacob engraven on it. There were two sorts of ephods, one of plain linen for the priests, the other very much embroidered for the high priest. As there was nothing singular in this common sort, no particular description is given; but that of the high priest is described very much in detail Exodus 28:6-8. It was distinguished from the common ephod by being composed of gold, blue, purple, scarlet, fine twisted linen, and cunning work, i.e., superbly ornamented and embroidered. This ephod was fastened on the shoulders with two precious stones, on which the twelve names of the twelve tribes of Israel were engraved, six names on each stone. These two stones, thus engraved, were different from those on the breastplate, with which they have been confounded. From Calmet’s description the ephod seems to have been a series of belts, fastened to a collar, which were intended to keep the garments of the priest closely attached to his body: but there is some reason to believe that it was a sort of garment like that worn by our heralds; it covered the back, breast, and belly, and was open at the sides. A piece of the same kind of stuff with itself united it on the shoulders, where the two stones, already mentioned, were placed, and it was probably without sleeves. See Clarke on “Exodus 28:2”, &c.

Ver. 7. The ephod, or superhumeral, a species of long shawl which covered the shoulders and breast of the high priest; and to which the pectoral or breastplate was appendent. See Exodus 28:15.

7. Onyx stones — Already mentioned Genesis 2:12. These, and the other precious stones set in the breastplate, are mentioned more fully in Exodus 28:17-21.

V. 8. A sanctuary-A place of public and solemn worship; that I may dwell among them. Not by my essence, which is everywhere; but by my grace and glorious operations.

Verse 8. Let them make me a sanctuary] vdqm mikdash, a holy place, such as God might dwell in; this was that part of the tabernacle that was called the most holy place, into which the high priest entered only once a year, on the great day of atonement.

That I may dwell among them.] “This,” says Mr. Ainsworth, “was the main end of all; and to this all the particulars are to be referred, and by this they are to be opened. For this sanctuary, as Solomon’s temple afterwards, was the place of prayer, and of the public service of God, Leviticus 17:4-6; Matthew 21:13; and it signified the Church which is the habitation of God through the Spirit, 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:19-22; Revelation 21:2,3; and was a visible sign of God’s presence and protection, Leviticus 26:11,12; Ezekiel 37:27,28; 1 Kings 6:12,13; and of his leading them to his heavenly glory. For as the high priest entered into the tabernacle, and through the veil into the most holy place where God dwelt; so Christ entered into the holy of holies, and we also enter through the veil, that is to say his flesh. See the use made of this by the apostle, Hebrews 9:1-28; Hebrews 10:1-18. Thus the sanctuary is to be applied as a type, 1. To Christ’s person, Hebrews 8:2; 9:11, 12; John 2:19-21. 2. To every Christian, 1 Corinthians 6:19. 3. To the Church; both particular, Hebrews 3:6; 1 Timothy 3:15; and universal, Hebrews 10:21: and it was because of the very extensive signification of this building, that the different things concerning this sanctuary are particularly set down by Moses, and so variously applied by the prophets and by the apostles.”-See Ainsworth. As the dwelling in this tabernacle was the highest proof of God’s grace and mercy towards the Israelites, so it typified Christ’s dwelling by faith in the hearts of believers, and thus giving them the highest and surest proof of their reconciliation to God, and of his love and favour to them; see Ephesians 1:22; 3:17.

Verse 8. A sanctuary — A place of solemn worship; that I may dwell among them. Not by my essence, which is every where; but by my grace and glorious operations.

Ver. 8. A sanctuary. A sort of ambulatory temple; and in all antiquity we find nothing more ancient than such portable temples.

8. A sanctuary — This word, vdqm, has occurred but once before this place, namely, in Moses’s song, (Exodus 15:17,) where a general prophecy is made that the chosen people shall be established in the mountain of Jehovah’s inheritance, the sanctuary in which Jehovah purposed to dwell. This name applies to the entire structure about to be described, and designates it as the holy place where Jehovah would graciously dwell among his people, and reveal to them his holiness and his truth.

V. 9. According to all that I shew thee-God shewed him an exact plan of it in little, which he must conform to in all points. And God did not only shew him the model, but gave him also particular directions how to frame the tabernacle, according to that model, in all the parts of it. When Moses was to describe the creation of the world, tho’ it be such a stately and curious fabrick, yet he gave a very short and general account of it; but when he comes to describe the tabernacle, he doth it with the greatest niceness and accuracy imaginable: for God’s church and instituted religion is more precious to him than all the rest of the world. And the scriptures were written not to describe to us the works of nature, (a general view of which is sufficient to lead us to the knowledge of the Creator,) but to acquaint us with the methods of grace, and those things which are purely matters of revelation.

Verse 9. After the pattern of the tabernacle] It has been supposed that there had been a tabernacle before that erected by Moses, though it probably did not now exist; but the tabernacle which Moses is ordered to make was to be formed exactly on the model of this ancient one, the pattern of which God showed him in the mount, Exodus 25:40. The word משכנ mishcan signifies literally the dwelling or habitation; and this was so called because it was the dwelling place of God; and the only place on the earth in which he made himself manifest. See Clarke’s note on “Exodus 25:40”, and on Exodus 33:7-10.

Verse 9. According to all that I show thee — God showed him an exact plan of it in little, which he must conform to in all points. And God did not only show him the model, but gave him also particular directions how to frame the tabernacle, according to that model, in all the parts of it. When Moses was to describe the creation of the world, though it be such a stately and curious fabric, yet he gave a very short and general account of it; but when he comes to describe the tabernacle, he doth it with the greatest niceness and accuracy imaginable; for God’s church and instituted religion are more precious to him than all the rest of the world. And all the Scriptures were written, not to describe to us the works of nature, (a general view of which is sufficient to lead us to a knowledge of the Creator,) but to acquaint us with the methods of grace, and those things which are purely matters of revelation.

9. The pattern of the tabernacle — This is most positively represented throughout this entire narrative (comp. verse 40; Exodus 26:30; Acts 7:44; Hebrews 8:5) as given to Moses by divine revelation. The notion that it was a fiction of the priests, invented nearly a thousand years after the time of Moses, puts such a withering stamp of falsehood upon this straightforward narrative that it must fail to commend itself to any serious student of history. But when we study out the details, and picture the whole pattern before our eyes — when, further, we consider the striking symbolism of the various objects, and their adaptation to body forth the profoundest truths touching the relations of God and man — we are convinced that the pattern originated not with man, but with God himself. How God showed Moses this model of the tabernacle we are not told. It may have been imaged before him in clear outline, like the sight of the burning bush; or, in a dream of the night it may have been definitely pictured before the soul. We have no need, however, with the rabbins, to suppose that he saw heaven opened, and a material tabernacle there, in form and substance like what he was commanded to make.

V. 10. The ark was a chest or coffer, in which the two tables of the law, written with the finger of God, were to be deposited. If the Jewish cubit was, as some learned men compute three inches longer than our half-yard, (twenty one inches in all) this chest or cabinet was about fifty-two inches long, thirty-one broad and thirty one deep; it was overlaid within and without with thin plates of gold; it had a crown, or cornish of gold round it; rings and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony. The tables of the law are called the testimony, because God did in them testify his will; his giving them that law was in token of his favour to them, and their acceptance of it was in token of their subjection to him. This law was a testimony to them to direct them in their duty, and would be a testimony against them if they transgressed. The ark is called the ark of the testimony, Exodus 30:6, and the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, Numbers 10:11. The tables of the law were carefully preserved in the ark, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide it in our inmost thoughts, as the ark was placed in the holy of holies. It intimates likewise the care which divine providence ever did, and ever will take to preserve the records of divine revelation in the church, so that even in the latter days there shall be seen in his temple the ark of his testament. See Revelation 11:19.

Verse 10. They shall make an ark] ארונ aron signifies an ark, chest, coffer, or coffin. It is used particularly to designate that chest or coffer in which the testimony or two tables of the covenant was laid up, on the top of which was the propitiatory or mercy-seat, (see on Exodus 25:17,) and at the end of which were the cherubim of gold, (Exodus 25:18-20,) between whom the visible sign of the presence of the supreme God appeared as seated upon his throne. The ark was the most excellent of all the holy things which belonged to the Mosaic economy, and for its sake the tabernacle and the temple were built, Exodus 26:33; 40:18, 21. It was considered as conferring a sanctity wherever it was fixed, 2 Chronicles 8:11; 2 Samuel 6:12.

Two cubits and a half shall be the length, &c.] About four feet five inches in length, taking the cubit as twenty-one inches, and two feet six inches in breadth and in depth. As this ark was chiefly intended to deposit the two tables of stone in, which had been written by the finger of God, we may very reasonably conjecture that the length of those tables was not less than four feet and their breadth not less than two. As to their thickness we can say nothing, as the depth of the ark was intended for other matters besides the two tables, such as Aaron’s rod, the pot of manna, &c., &c., though probably these were laid up beside, not in, the ark.

Verses 10-16. The ark was a chest or coffer, in which the two tables of the law, written by the finger of God, were to be placed. If the Jewish cubit was, as some learned men compute, three inches longer than our half yard, (twenty-one inches in all,) this chest or cabinet was about fifty-two inches long, thirty-one broad, and thirty-one deep; it was overlaid within and without with thin plates of gold; it had a crown or cornice of gold round it; rings and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony. The tables of the law are called the testimony, because God did in them testify his will; his giving them that law was in token of his favour to them, and their acceptance of it was in token of their subjection to him. This law was a testimony to them to direct them in their duty, and would be a testimony against them if they transgressed. The ark is called the ark of the testimony, (Exodus 30:6,) and the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, Numbers 10:11. The tables of the law were carefully preserved in the ark, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide it in our inmost thoughts, as the ark was placed in the holy of holies. It intimates likewise the care which Divine Providence ever did, and ever will take to preserve the records of divine revelation in the church, so that even in the latter days there shall be seen in his temple the ark of his testament. See Revelation 11:19.

Ver. 10. Ark of shittim-wood, or the acacia wood, as Dr. Shaw, our learned traveller, suggests. All the more distinguished temples of the heathen seem to have had an ark or chest, in which to preserve their sacred utensils. The predictions of the Sybils, written in verse, were preserved in a chest. For an account of those prophetesses, see Lanctantius’s Institutes, book 1.; Augustine’s City of God, book 18. chap. 23. If those poems were forged, yet the traditions were true, for the Voluspa, a poem beforementioned, foretels the same things.—As the law was deposited in the ark, it is promiscuously called the ark of the testimony, the ark of the testament, and the ark of the covenant.

THE ARK OF THE COVENANT, 10-22.

he description of the tabernacle begins with the most sacred object, which, in addition to the above title, bore the several names of the Ark of the Testimony, (verse 22,) or simply the Testimony, (Exodus 27:21,) the Ark of Jehovah, (Joshua 3:13,) the Ark of God, (1 Samuel 3:3,) the Ark of the strength of Jehovah, (Psalm 132:8,) and the Holy Ark. 2 Chronicles 35:3. This occupied the most holy place in the sanctuary, and symbolized the deepest mysteries of redemption. The monuments of Egypt have been found to bear images which strikingly resemble the ark here described. This no more conflicts with the statement that the tabernacle of the Hebrews was modelled after a heavenly pattern than does the fact that numerous other revelations embodied in well known forms of human thought conflict with their heavenly origin. Other nations and other religions have their altars, and sanctuaries, and ceremonials; but this does not hinder Israel from appropriating like objects to symbolize their holiest mysteries. In like manner, the new revelations both of Mosaism and of Christianity did not invent a new language for their use, but appropriated and adapted old ones. Moses’s acquaintance with the learning and wisdom of the Egyptians made him the more competent, under God, to fashion such objects as served the purpose he had in hand. Not so much the mere outward form as their arrangement and religious lessons give evidence of a heavenly origin.

10. Shittim wood — Its material, observes Stanley, “was not of oak, the usual wood of Palestine, nor of cedar, the usual wood employed in Palestine for sacred purposes, but of shittim, or acacia, a tree of rare growth in Syria, but the most frequent, not even excepting the palm, in the peninsula of Sinai.” The size of the ark was about three feet nine inches long, and a little over two feet in breadth and height. Its probable form is best illustrated by the adjoining cut.

Verse 11. A crown of gold round about.] A border, or, as the Septuagint have it, kumatia crusa stepta kuklw, waves of gold wreathed round about.

Verses 10-16. The ark was a chest or coffer, in which the two tables of the law, written by the finger of God, were to be placed. If the Jewish cubit was, as some learned men compute, three inches longer than our half yard, (twenty-one inches in all,) this chest or cabinet was about fifty-two inches long, thirty-one broad, and thirty-one deep; it was overlaid within and without with thin plates of gold; it had a crown or cornice of gold round it; rings and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony. The tables of the law are called the testimony, because God did in them testify his will; his giving them that law was in token of his favour to them, and their acceptance of it was in token of their subjection to him. This law was a testimony to them to direct them in their duty, and would be a testimony against them if they transgressed. The ark is called the ark of the testimony, (Exodus 30:6,) and the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, Numbers 10:11. The tables of the law were carefully preserved in the ark, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide it in our inmost thoughts, as the ark was placed in the holy of holies. It intimates likewise the care which Divine Providence ever did, and ever will take to preserve the records of divine revelation in the church, so that even in the latter days there shall be seen in his temple the ark of his testament. See Revelation 11:19.

Ver. 11. Crown of gold, a border raised up above the rest of the ark.

11. A crown of gold round about — Rather a rim, moulding, or border around the top, as shown in the cut.

Verses 10-16. The ark was a chest or coffer, in which the two tables of the law, written by the finger of God, were to be placed. If the Jewish cubit was, as some learned men compute, three inches longer than our half yard, (twenty-one inches in all,) this chest or cabinet was about fifty-two inches long, thirty-one broad, and thirty-one deep; it was overlaid within and without with thin plates of gold; it had a crown or cornice of gold round it; rings and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony. The tables of the law are called the testimony, because God did in them testify his will; his giving them that law was in token of his favour to them, and their acceptance of it was in token of their subjection to him. This law was a testimony to them to direct them in their duty, and would be a testimony against them if they transgressed. The ark is called the ark of the testimony, (Exodus 30:6,) and the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, Numbers 10:11. The tables of the law were carefully preserved in the ark, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide it in our inmost thoughts, as the ark was placed in the holy of holies. It intimates likewise the care which Divine Providence ever did, and ever will take to preserve the records of divine revelation in the church, so that even in the latter days there shall be seen in his temple the ark of his testament. See Revelation 11:19.

12-15. Rings… staves — The position of these is seen in the cut, and the whole, as wont to be carried by the priests, is shown in the following cut.

Verses 10-16. The ark was a chest or coffer, in which the two tables of the law, written by the finger of God, were to be placed. If the Jewish cubit was, as some learned men compute, three inches longer than our half yard, (twenty-one inches in all,) this chest or cabinet was about fifty-two inches long, thirty-one broad, and thirty-one deep; it was overlaid within and without with thin plates of gold; it had a crown or cornice of gold round it; rings and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony. The tables of the law are called the testimony, because God did in them testify his will; his giving them that law was in token of his favour to them, and their acceptance of it was in token of their subjection to him. This law was a testimony to them to direct them in their duty, and would be a testimony against them if they transgressed. The ark is called the ark of the testimony, (Exodus 30:6,) and the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, Numbers 10:11. The tables of the law were carefully preserved in the ark, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide it in our inmost thoughts, as the ark was placed in the holy of holies. It intimates likewise the care which Divine Providence ever did, and ever will take to preserve the records of divine revelation in the church, so that even in the latter days there shall be seen in his temple the ark of his testament. See Revelation 11:19.

12-15. Rings… staves — The position of these is seen in the cut, and the whole, as wont to be carried by the priests, is shown in the following cut.

Verses 10-16. The ark was a chest or coffer, in which the two tables of the law, written by the finger of God, were to be placed. If the Jewish cubit was, as some learned men compute, three inches longer than our half yard, (twenty-one inches in all,) this chest or cabinet was about fifty-two inches long, thirty-one broad, and thirty-one deep; it was overlaid within and without with thin plates of gold; it had a crown or cornice of gold round it; rings and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony. The tables of the law are called the testimony, because God did in them testify his will; his giving them that law was in token of his favour to them, and their acceptance of it was in token of their subjection to him. This law was a testimony to them to direct them in their duty, and would be a testimony against them if they transgressed. The ark is called the ark of the testimony, (Exodus 30:6,) and the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, Numbers 10:11. The tables of the law were carefully preserved in the ark, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide it in our inmost thoughts, as the ark was placed in the holy of holies. It intimates likewise the care which Divine Providence ever did, and ever will take to preserve the records of divine revelation in the church, so that even in the latter days there shall be seen in his temple the ark of his testament. See Revelation 11:19.

12-15. Rings… staves — The position of these is seen in the cut, and the whole, as wont to be carried by the priests, is shown in the following cut.

Verse 15. The staves-shall not be taken from it.] Because it should ever be considered as in readiness to be removed, God not having told them at what hour he should command them to strike their tents. If the staves were never to be taken out, how can it be said, as in Numbers 4:6, that when the camp should set forward, they should put in the staves thereof, which intimates that when they encamped, they took out the staves, which appears to be contrary to what is here said? To reconcile these two places, it has been supposed, with great show of probability, that besides the staves which passed through the rings of the ark, and by which it was carried, there were two other staves or poles in the form of a bier or handbarrow, on which the ark was laid in order to be transported in their journeyings, when it and its own staves, still in their rings, had been wrapped up in the covering of what is called badgers’ skins and blue cloth. The staves of the ark itself, which might be considered as its handles simply to lift it by, were never taken out of their rings; but the staves or poles which served as a bier were taken from under it when they encamped.

Verses 10-16. The ark was a chest or coffer, in which the two tables of the law, written by the finger of God, were to be placed. If the Jewish cubit was, as some learned men compute, three inches longer than our half yard, (twenty-one inches in all,) this chest or cabinet was about fifty-two inches long, thirty-one broad, and thirty-one deep; it was overlaid within and without with thin plates of gold; it had a crown or cornice of gold round it; rings and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony. The tables of the law are called the testimony, because God did in them testify his will; his giving them that law was in token of his favour to them, and their acceptance of it was in token of their subjection to him. This law was a testimony to them to direct them in their duty, and would be a testimony against them if they transgressed. The ark is called the ark of the testimony, (Exodus 30:6,) and the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, Numbers 10:11. The tables of the law were carefully preserved in the ark, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide it in our inmost thoughts, as the ark was placed in the holy of holies. It intimates likewise the care which Divine Providence ever did, and ever will take to preserve the records of divine revelation in the church, so that even in the latter days there shall be seen in his temple the ark of his testament. See Revelation 11:19.

12-15. Rings… staves — The position of these is seen in the cut, and the whole, as wont to be carried by the priests, is shown in the following cut.

Verse 16. The testimony] The two tables of stone which were not yet given; these tables were called td[ eduth, from d[ forward, onward, to bear witness to or of a person or thing. Not only the tables of stone, but all the contents of the ark, Aaron’s rod, the pot of manna, the holy anointing oil, &c., bore testimony to the Messiah in his prophetic, sacerdotal, and regal offices.

Verses 10-16. The ark was a chest or coffer, in which the two tables of the law, written by the finger of God, were to be placed. If the Jewish cubit was, as some learned men compute, three inches longer than our half yard, (twenty-one inches in all,) this chest or cabinet was about fifty-two inches long, thirty-one broad, and thirty-one deep; it was overlaid within and without with thin plates of gold; it had a crown or cornice of gold round it; rings and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony. The tables of the law are called the testimony, because God did in them testify his will; his giving them that law was in token of his favour to them, and their acceptance of it was in token of their subjection to him. This law was a testimony to them to direct them in their duty, and would be a testimony against them if they transgressed. The ark is called the ark of the testimony, (Exodus 30:6,) and the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, Numbers 10:11. The tables of the law were carefully preserved in the ark, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide it in our inmost thoughts, as the ark was placed in the holy of holies. It intimates likewise the care which Divine Providence ever did, and ever will take to preserve the records of divine revelation in the church, so that even in the latter days there shall be seen in his temple the ark of his testament. See Revelation 11:19.

Ver. 16. The testimony, the two tables of stone, on which the decalogue was written. Exodus 30:6. Leviticus 16:13.

16. Put into the ark the testimony — Hence the name “Ark of the Testimony,” (verse 22.) This testimony was Jehovah’s declarations from the mount, which were afterward written by God’s finger upon two tables of stone (Exodus 31:18.) They were to be deposited in the ark as a monumental witness of the will of God.

V. 17. The mercy-seat was the covering of the ark, made exactly to fit the dimensions of it. This propitiatory covering, as it might well be translated, was a type of Christ the great propitiation, whose satisfaction covers our transgressions, and comes between us and the curse we deserve.

Verse 17. A mercy-seat] trpk capporeth, from rpk caphar, to cover or overspread; because by an act of pardon sins are represented as being covered, so that they no longer appear in the eye of Divine justice to displease, irritate, and call for punishment; and the person of the offender is covered or protected from the stroke of the broken law. In the Greek version of the Septuagint the word ilasthrion, hilasterion, is used, which signifies a propitiatory, and is the name used by the apostle, Hebrews 9:5. This mercy-seat or propitiatory was made of pure gold; it was properly the lid or covering of that vessel so well known by the name of the ark and ark of the covenant. On and before this, the high priest was to sprinkle the blood of the expiatory sacrifices on the great day of atonement: and it was in this place that God promised to meet the people, (see Exodus 25:22;) for there he dwelt, and there was the symbol of the Divine presence. At each end of this propitiatory was a cherub, between whom this glory was manifested; hence in Scripture it is so often said that he dwelleth between the cherubim. As the word ilasthrion, propitiatory or mercy-seat, is applied to Christ, Romans 3:25, whom God hath set forth to be a PROPITIATION (ilasthrion) through faith in his blood-for the remission of sins that are past; hence we learn that Christ was the true mercy-seat, the thing signified by the capporeth, to the ancient believers. And we learn farther that it was by his blood that an atonement was to be made for the sins of the world. And as God showed himself between the cherubim over this propitiatory or mercy-seat, so it is said, God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself; 2 Corinthians 5:19, &c. See Clarke on “Leviticus 7:38”.

Verse 17. The mercy-seat was the covering of the ark, made exactly to fit the dimensions of it. This propitiatory covering, as it might well be translated, was a type of Christ the great propitiation, whose satisfaction covers our transgressions, and comes between us and the curse we deserve.

Ver. 17. A mercy-seat, or propitiatory, which covered the ark, and upon which the God of Israel is represented as having been seated; and hence the ark was called his footstool. See Leviticus 16. This ilasthrion is several times alluded to in the new testament. Hebrews 9:5. Romans 3:24. 1 John 2:1.

17. A mercy seat — Hebrew, capporeth; the cover or lid of precisely the same dimensions as the length and breadth of the ark. Verse 10. On its symbolical significance see note at the end of chap. 40.

V. 18. The cherubim (Cherubim is the plural of Cherub, not Cherubims) were fixed to the mercy-seat, and of a piece with it, and spread their wings over it. It is supposed these were designed to represent the holy angels, (who always attend the Shechinah, or divine majesty,) not by any effigies of an angel, but some emblem of the angelical nature, probably one or more of those four faces spoken of Ezekiel 1:10. Whatever the faces were, they looked one towards another, and both downwards towards the ark, while their wings were stretched out so as to touch one another. It notes their attendance upon the Redeemer, their readiness to do his will, their presence in the assemblies of saints, Psalm 68:17 1 Corinthians 11:10, and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel, which they diligently contemplate, 1 Peter 1:12. God is said to dwell or sit between the cherubim, on the mercy-seat, Psalm 80:1, and from thence he here promiseth for the future to meet with Moses, and to commune with him. Thus he manifests himself, willing to keep up communion with us, by the mediation of Christ.

Verse 18. Thou shalt make two cherubims] What these were we cannot distinctly say. It is generally supposed that a cherub was a creature with four heads and one body: and the animals, of which these emblematical forms consisted, were the noblest of their kinds; the lion among the wild beasts, the bull among the tame ones, the eagle among the birds, and man at the head of all; so that they might be, says Dr. Priestley, the representatives of all nature. Concerning their forms and design there is much difference of opinion among divines. It is probable that the term often means a figure of any kind, such as was ordinarily sculptured on stone, engraved on metal, carved on wood, or embroidered on cloth. See on Exodus 37:8. It may be only necessary to add, that cherub is the singular number; cherubim, not cherubims, the plural. See what has been said on this subject in the note on Genesis 3:24. See Clarke’s note “Genesis 3:24”.

Verses 18-22. The cherubim (cherubim is the plural of cherub, not cherubims) were fixed to the mercy-seat, and of a piece with it, and spread their wings over it. It is supposed these were designed to represent the holy angels, (who always attend the Shechinah, or divine majesty,) not by any effigies of an angel, but some emblem of the angelical nature, probably one or more of those four faces spoken of Ezekiel 1:10. Whatever the faces were, they looked one toward another, and both downward toward the ark, while their wings were stretched out so as to touch one another. This denotes their attendance upon the Redeemer, their readiness to do his will, their presence in the assemblies of saints, (Psalm 68:17; 1 Corinthians 11:10,) and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel, which they diligently contemplate, 1 Peter 1:12. God is said to dwell or sit between the cherubim, on the mercy-seat, Psalm 80:2; and from thence he here promiseth for the future to meet with Moses, and to commune with him. Thus he manifests himself willing to keep up communion with us, by the mediation of Christ.

Ver. 18. Two cherubim of gold. Moses has not told us what was the form of these cherubim; but they were designed to represent the angelic nature. Josephus admits that they were of a configuration unknown to men, and represented celestial beings. In Ezekiel, the number is four. The sphynxes of the Egyptians had some resemblance to these figures. See Ezekiel 32:4.—Beaten work. Not made of several parcels joined together, but beaten by the hammer out of one continued piece of gold.

18-20. Two cherubim — The exact form of these is nowhere described, but their position in the two ends of the cover of the ark, and the stretching forth and covering the mercy seat with their wings, may be seen best illustrated in the cuts. It is not necessary to suppose that the cherubim described in Ezekiel 1:5-14, conformed in all details with those of the tabernacle. The probable form of the cherubic type as there given is seen in connexion with our note on 1 Kings 6:23, and also in McClintock & Strong’s Cyclopaedia, article Cherubim, from which the adjoining cut is taken.

Verses 18-22. The cherubim (cherubim is the plural of cherub, not cherubims) were fixed to the mercy-seat, and of a piece with it, and spread their wings over it. It is supposed these were designed to represent the holy angels, (who always attend the Shechinah, or divine majesty,) not by any effigies of an angel, but some emblem of the angelical nature, probably one or more of those four faces spoken of Ezekiel 1:10. Whatever the faces were, they looked one toward another, and both downward toward the ark, while their wings were stretched out so as to touch one another. This denotes their attendance upon the Redeemer, their readiness to do his will, their presence in the assemblies of saints, (Psalm 68:17; 1 Corinthians 11:10,) and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel, which they diligently contemplate, 1 Peter 1:12. God is said to dwell or sit between the cherubim, on the mercy-seat, Psalm 80:2; and from thence he here promiseth for the future to meet with Moses, and to commune with him. Thus he manifests himself willing to keep up communion with us, by the mediation of Christ.

18-20. Two cherubim — The exact form of these is nowhere described, but their position in the two ends of the cover of the ark, and the stretching forth and covering the mercy seat with their wings, may be seen best illustrated in the cuts. It is not necessary to suppose that the cherubim described in Ezekiel 1:5-14, conformed in all details with those of the tabernacle. The probable form of the cherubic type as there given is seen in connexion with our note on 1 Kings 6:23, and also in McClintock & Strong’s Cyclopaedia, article Cherubim, from which the adjoining cut is taken.

Verses 18-22. The cherubim (cherubim is the plural of cherub, not cherubims) were fixed to the mercy-seat, and of a piece with it, and spread their wings over it. It is supposed these were designed to represent the holy angels, (who always attend the Shechinah, or divine majesty,) not by any effigies of an angel, but some emblem of the angelical nature, probably one or more of those four faces spoken of Ezekiel 1:10. Whatever the faces were, they looked one toward another, and both downward toward the ark, while their wings were stretched out so as to touch one another. This denotes their attendance upon the Redeemer, their readiness to do his will, their presence in the assemblies of saints, (Psalm 68:17; 1 Corinthians 11:10,) and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel, which they diligently contemplate, 1 Peter 1:12. God is said to dwell or sit between the cherubim, on the mercy-seat, Psalm 80:2; and from thence he here promiseth for the future to meet with Moses, and to commune with him. Thus he manifests himself willing to keep up communion with us, by the mediation of Christ.

18-20. Two cherubim — The exact form of these is nowhere described, but their position in the two ends of the cover of the ark, and the stretching forth and covering the mercy seat with their wings, may be seen best illustrated in the cuts. It is not necessary to suppose that the cherubim described in Ezekiel 1:5-14, conformed in all details with those of the tabernacle. The probable form of the cherubic type as there given is seen in connexion with our note on 1 Kings 6:23, and also in McClintock & Strong’s Cyclopaedia, article Cherubim, from which the adjoining cut is taken.

Verses 18-22. The cherubim (cherubim is the plural of cherub, not cherubims) were fixed to the mercy-seat, and of a piece with it, and spread their wings over it. It is supposed these were designed to represent the holy angels, (who always attend the Shechinah, or divine majesty,) not by any effigies of an angel, but some emblem of the angelical nature, probably one or more of those four faces spoken of Ezekiel 1:10. Whatever the faces were, they looked one toward another, and both downward toward the ark, while their wings were stretched out so as to touch one another. This denotes their attendance upon the Redeemer, their readiness to do his will, their presence in the assemblies of saints, (Psalm 68:17; 1 Corinthians 11:10,) and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel, which they diligently contemplate, 1 Peter 1:12. God is said to dwell or sit between the cherubim, on the mercy-seat, Psalm 80:2; and from thence he here promiseth for the future to meet with Moses, and to commune with him. Thus he manifests himself willing to keep up communion with us, by the mediation of Christ.

THE ARK OF THE COVENANT, 10-22.

he description of the tabernacle begins with the most sacred object, which, in addition to the above title, bore the several names of the Ark of the Testimony, (verse 22,) or simply the Testimony, (Exodus 27:21,) the Ark of Jehovah, (Joshua 3:13,) the Ark of God, (1 Samuel 3:3,) the Ark of the strength of Jehovah, (Psalm 132:8,) and the Holy Ark. 2 Chronicles 35:3. This occupied the most holy place in the sanctuary, and symbolized the deepest mysteries of redemption. The monuments of Egypt have been found to bear images which strikingly resemble the ark here described. This no more conflicts with the statement that the tabernacle of the Hebrews was modelled after a heavenly pattern than does the fact that numerous other revelations embodied in well known forms of human thought conflict with their heavenly origin. Other nations and other religions have their altars, and sanctuaries, and ceremonials; but this does not hinder Israel from appropriating like objects to symbolize their holiest mysteries. In like manner, the new revelations both of Mosaism and of Christianity did not invent a new language for their use, but appropriated and adapted old ones. Moses’s acquaintance with the learning and wisdom of the Egyptians made him the more competent, under God, to fashion such objects as served the purpose he had in hand. Not so much the mere outward form as their arrangement and religious lessons give evidence of a heavenly origin.

10. Shittim wood — Its material, observes Stanley, “was not of oak, the usual wood of Palestine, nor of cedar, the usual wood employed in Palestine for sacred purposes, but of shittim, or acacia, a tree of rare growth in Syria, but the most frequent, not even excepting the palm, in the peninsula of Sinai.” The size of the ark was about three feet nine inches long, and a little over two feet in breadth and height. Its probable form is best illustrated by the adjoining cut.

Verse 22. And there I will meet with thee] That is, over the mercy-seat, between the cherubim. In this place God chose to give the most especial manifestations of himself; here the Divine glory was to be seen; and here Moses was to come in order to consult Jehovah, relative to the management of the people.

Ainsworth has remarked that the rabbins say, “The heart of man may be likened to God’s sanctuary; for as, in the sanctuary, the shechinah or Divine glory dwelt, because there were the ark, the tables, and the cherubim; so, in the heart of man, it is meet that a place be made for the Divine Majesty to dwell in, and that it be the holy of holies.” This is a doctrine most implicitly taught by the apostles; and the absolute necessity of having the heart made a habitation of God through the Spirit, is strongly and frequently insisted on through the whole of the New Testament. See the note on the following verse.

Verses 18-22. The cherubim (cherubim is the plural of cherub, not cherubims) were fixed to the mercy-seat, and of a piece with it, and spread their wings over it. It is supposed these were designed to represent the holy angels, (who always attend the Shechinah, or divine majesty,) not by any effigies of an angel, but some emblem of the angelical nature, probably one or more of those four faces spoken of Ezekiel 1:10. Whatever the faces were, they looked one toward another, and both downward toward the ark, while their wings were stretched out so as to touch one another. This denotes their attendance upon the Redeemer, their readiness to do his will, their presence in the assemblies of saints, (Psalm 68:17; 1 Corinthians 11:10,) and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel, which they diligently contemplate, 1 Peter 1:12. God is said to dwell or sit between the cherubim, on the mercy-seat, Psalm 80:2; and from thence he here promiseth for the future to meet with Moses, and to commune with him. Thus he manifests himself willing to keep up communion with us, by the mediation of Christ.

22. There I will meet with thee — Here, as also in Exodus 29:42-46, we have an intimation of the main idea, symbolized in the tabernacle, namely, the union and communion of Jehovah and his people.

V. 23. This table was to stand not in the holy of holies, (nothing was in that but the ark with its appurtenances) but in the outer part of the tabernacle, called the sanctuary or holy place. This table was to be always furnished with the shew-bread, or bread of faces, twelve loaves, one for each tribe, set in two rows, six in a row. As the ark signified God’s being present with them, so the twelve loaves signified their being presented to God. This bread was designed to be, a thankful acknowledgment of God’s goodness to them in giving them their daily bread, a token of their communion with God; this bread on God’s table being made of the same corn as the bread on their own tables. And a type of the spiritual provision which is made in the church, by the gospel of Christ, for all that are made priests to our God.

Verse 23. Thou shalt also make a table of shittim wood] The same wood, the acacia, of which the arkstaves, &c., were made. On the subject of the ark, table of shew-bread, &c., Dr. Cudworth, in his very learned and excellent treatise on the Lord’s Supper, has the following remarks:— “When God had brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, resolving to manifest himself in a peculiar manner present among them, he thought good to dwell amongst them in a visible and external manner; and therefore, while they were in the wilderness, and sojourned in tents, he would have a tent or tabernacle built to sojourn with them also. This mystery of the tabernacle was fully understood by the learned Nachmanides, who, in few words, but pregnant, expresseth himself to this purpose: ‘The mystery of the tabernacle was this, that it was to be a place for the shechinah, or habitation of Divinity, to be fixed in;’ and this, no doubt, as a special type of God’s future dwelling in Christ’s human nature, which was the TRUE SHECHINAH: but when the Jews were come into their land, and had there built them houses, God intended to have a fixed dwelling-house also; and therefore his movable tabernacle was to be turned into a standing temple. Now the tabernacle or temple, being thus as a house for God to dwell in visibly, to make up the notion of dwelling or habitation complete there must be all things suitable to a house belonging to it; hence, in the holy place, there must be a table, and a candlestick, because this was the ordinary furniture of a room, as the fore-commended Nachmanides observes. The table must have its dishes, and spoons, and bowls, and covers belonging to it, though they were never used; and always be furnished with bread upon it. The candlestick must have its lamps continually burning. Hence also there must be a continual fire kept in this house of God upon the altar, as the focus of it; to which notion I conceive the Prophet Isaiah doth allude, Isaiah 31:9: Whose fire is in Zion, and his furnace in Jerusalem; and besides all this, to carry the notion still farther, there must be some constant meat and provision brought into this house; which was done in the sacrifices that were partly consumed by fire upon God’s own altar, and partly eaten by the priests, who were God’s family, and therefore to be maintained by him. That which was consumed upon God’s altar was accounted God’s mess, as appeareth from Malachi 1:12, where the altar is called God’s table, and the sacrifice upon it, God’s meat: Ye say, The table of the LORD is polluted; and the fruit thereof, even HIS MEAT, is contemptible. And often, in the law, the sacrifice is called God’s mjl lechem, i.e., his bread or food. Wherefore it is farther observable, that besides the flesh of the beast offered up in sacrifice, there was a minchah, i.e., a meat-offering, or rather bread-offering, made of flour and oil; and a libamen or drink-offering, which was always joined with the daily sacrifice, as the bread and drink which was to go along with God’s meat. It was also strictly commanded that there should be salt in every sacrifice and oblation, because all meat is unsavoury without salt, as Nachmanides hath here also well observed; ‘because it was not honourable that God’s meat should be unsavoury, without salt.’ Lastly, all these things were to be consumed on the altar only by the holy fire which came down from heaven, because they were God’s portion, and therefore to be eaten or consumed by himself in an extraordinary manner.” See Clarke on “Exodus 25:22”.

Verse 23. Thou shalt make a table of shittim-wood — This table was to stand, not in the holy of holies (nothing was in that but the ark with its appurtenances) but in the outer part of the tabernacle, called the sanctuary, or holy place.

Ver. 23. Table of shittim-wood. The LXX read, a golden table. King Solomon made this table of gold, 1 Kings 7:48; and the LXX follow that reading. Thus the Hebrew copy and the Greek version are both correct.

THE TABLE OF SHOWBREAD, 23-30.

23. Two cubits — While the height of it was to be the same as that of the ark, (verse 10,) the length and breadth were each half a cubit less. The form is represented in the adjoining cut.

24. Crown — Rather, moulding or rim, as in verse 11.

Ver. 25. I will commune with thee, as in Exodus 28:15.

25. Border — An enclosing framework, running round the table underneath the top and designed to strengthen the whole by holding the legs firmly in place. To this border there was also fastened a golden moulding like that which adorned the top of the table. Verse 24.

26-28. Rings… staves — These are exhibited in the cut, and serve the same purpose as the like in the ark verses 12-15.

26-28. Rings… staves — These are exhibited in the cut, and serve the same purpose as the like in the ark verses 12-15.

26-28. Rings… staves — These are exhibited in the cut, and serve the same purpose as the like in the ark verses 12-15.

Verse 29. The dishes thereof] wytr[q kearothaiv, probably the deep bowls in which they kneaded the mass out of which they made the shew-bread.

And spoons thereof] wytpk cappothaiu, probably censers, on which they put up the incense; as seems pretty evident from Numbers 7:14, 20, 26, 32, 38, 44, 50, 56, 62, 68, 74, 80, 86, where the same word is used, and the instrument, whatever it was, is always represented as being filled with incense.

Covers thereof] wytwcq kesothaiv, supposed to be a large cup or tankard, in which pure wine was kept on the table along with the shewbread for libations, which were poured out before the Lord every Sabbath, when the old bread was removed, and the new bread laid on the table.

Bowls thereof] wytyqnm menakkiyothaiv, from hqn nakah, to clear away, remove, empty, &c.; supposed by Calmet to mean, either the sieves by which the Levites cleansed the wheat they made into bread, (for it is asserted that the grain, out of which the shew-bread was made, was sowed, reaped, ground, sifted, kneaded, baked, &c., by the Levites themselves,) or the ovens in which the bread was baked. Others suppose they were vessels which they dipped into the kesoth, to take out the wine for libations.

29. The dishes — Probably large deep plates used for the purpose of carrying the showbread to and from the table. Spoons — Or, perhaps, cups, small hollow vessels used sometimes, according to Numbers 7:14, for holding incense. Covers… bowls — These were vessels for holding the drink offerings, as appears from the words which immediately follow, to pour out withal, (margin,) wrongly translated to cover withal. The Speaker’s Commentary renders this part of the verse thus: “And thou shalt make its bowls and its incense-cups and its flagons and its chalices for pouring out, (the drink offerings.)”

Verse 30. Shew-bread] פנים לחם lechem panim literally, bread of faces; so called, either because they were placed before the presence or face of God in the sanctuary, or because they were made square, as the Jews will have it. It is probable that they were in the form or cubes or hexædrons, each side presenting the same appearance; and hence the Jews might suppose they were called the bread or loaves of faces: but the Hebrew text seems to intimate that they were called the bread of faces, פנים panim, because, as the Lord says, they were set ynpl lephanai, before my FACE. These loaves or cakes were twelve, representing, as is generally supposed, the twelve tribes of Israel. They were in two rows of six each. On the top of each row there was a golden dish with frankincense, which was burned before the Lord, as a memorial, at the end of the week, when the old loaves were removed and replaced by new ones, the priests taking the former for their domestic use.

It is more difficult to ascertain the use of these, or what they represented, than almost any other emblem in the whole Jewish economy. Many have conjectured their meaning, and I feel no disposition to increase their number by any addition of my own. The note on Exodus 25:23, from Dr. Cudworth, appears to me more rational than any thing else I have met with. The tabernacle was God’s house, and in it he had his table, his bread, his wine, candlestick, &c., to show them that he had taken up his dwelling among them. See Clarke’s note on “Exodus 25:23”.

Verse 30. Thou shalt set upon the table the show bread — Hebrew, Bread of the face or presence, because it was set before the ark, where God was peculiarly present. We call it show bread, because it was showed, or exhibited before God upon the sacred table, as a national weekly oblation, in the name of all the twelve tribes, for the loaves were twelve in number, and being an offering to God were to be eaten only by the priests in the holy place, Leviticus 24:5-9. Every loaf must have been of considerable size, since two-tenth deals, or two homers of flour were used for each, which are about six quarts English. This bread, set in two rows, six loaves in a row, was designed to be a thankful acknowledgment of God’s goodness to them in giving them their daily bread, a token of their communion with God, this bread on God’s table being made of the same corn with the bread on their own tables. And it was a type of the spiritual provision which is made in the church, by the gospel of Christ, for all that are made priests to our God.

Ver. 30. Shew bread: twelve loaves in two heaps. God is not unmindful to provide bread for those who wait at the altar.

30. Showbread before me always — The showbread (Hebrews µynp µjl, bread of faces,) was so called from its being designed to lie as a meat-offering continually before the face of Jehovah. The manner of making this bread, and of arranging it upon the table in two piles of six cakes each, is described in Leviticus 24:5-9, and is also shown in the above cut. The twelve cakes or loaves undoubtedly represented the twelve tribes of Israel as offered in holy consecration perpetually before Jehovah.

V. 31. This candlestick had many branches drawn from the main shaft, which had not only bowls to put the oil and the kindled wick in for necessity, but knops made in the form of a pomegranate and flowers for ornament. The tabernacle had no windows, all its light was candle-light, which notes the comparative darkness of that dispensation, while the sun of righteousness was not as yet risen, nor had the day-star from on high visited his church. Yet God left not himself without witness, nor them without instruction; the commandment was a lamp, and the law a light, and the prophets were branches from that lamp, which gave light in their several ages. The church is still dark, as the tabernacle was, in comparison with what it will be in heaven: but the word of God is the candlestick, a light burning in a dark place.

Verse 31. A candlestick of pure gold] This candlestick or chandelier is generally described as having one shaft or stock, with six branches proceeding from it, adorned at equal distances with six flowers like lilies, with as many bowls and knops placed alternately. On each of the branches there was a lamp, and one on the top of the shaft which occupied the centre; thus there were seven lamps in all, Exodus 25:37. These seven lamps were lighted every evening and extinguished every morning. We are not so certain of the precise form of any instrument or utensil of the tabernacle or temple, as we are of this, the golden table, and the two silver trumpets.

Titus, after the overthrow of Jerusalem, A.D. 70, had the golden candlestick and the golden table of the shew-bread, the silver trumpets, and the book of the law, taken out of the temple and carried in triumph to Rome; and Vespasian lodged them in the temple which he had consecrated to the goddess of Peace. Some plants also of the balm of Jericho are said to have been carried in the procession. At the foot of Mount Palatine there are the ruins of an arch, on which the triumph of Titus for his conquest of the Jews is represented, and on which the several monuments which were carried in the procession are sculptured, and particularly the golden candlestick, the table of the shew-bread and the two silver trumpets. A correct MODEL of this arch, taken on the spot, now stands before me; and the spoils of the temple, the candlestick, the golden table, and the two trumpets, are represented on the panel on the left hand, in the inside of the arch, in basso-relievo. The candlestick is not so ornamented as it appears in many prints; at the same time it looks much better than it does in the engraving of this arch given by Montfaucon, Antiq. Expliq., vol. iv., pl. 32. It is likely that on the real arch this candlestick is less in size than the original, as it scarcely measures three feet in height. See the Diarium Italicum, p. 129. To see these sacred articles given up by that God who ordered them to be made according to a pattern exhibited by himself, gracing the triumph of a heathen emperor, and at last consecrated to an idol, affords melancholy reflections to a pious mind. But these things had accomplished the end for which they were instituted, and were now of no farther use. The glorious personage typified by all this ancient apparatus, had about seventy years before this made his appearance. The true light was come, and the Holy Spirit poured out from on high; and therefore the golden candlestick, by which they were typified, was given up. The ever-during bread had been sent from heaven; and therefore the golden table, which bore its representative, the shew-bread, was now no longer needful. The joyful sound of the everlasting Gospel was then published in the world; and therefore the silver trumpets that typified this were carried into captivity, and their sound was no more to be heard. Strange providence but unutterable mercy of God! The Jews lost both the sign and the thing signified; and that very people, who destroyed the holy city, carried away the spoils of the temple, and dedicated them to the objects of their idolatry, were the first in the universe to receive the preaching of the Gospel, the light of salvation, and the bread of life! There is a sort of coincidence or association here, which is worthy of the most serious observation. The Jews had these significant emblems to lead them to, and prepare them for, the things signified. They trusted in the former, and rejected the latter! God therefore deprived them of both, and gave up their temple to the spoilers, their land to desolation, and themselves to captivity and to the sword. The heathens then carried away the emblems of their salvation, and God shortly gave unto those heathens that very salvation of which these things were the emblems! Thus because of their unbelief and rebellion, the kingdom of heaven, according to the prediction of our blessed Lord, was taken from the Jews, and given to a nation (the Gentiles) that brought forth the fruits thereof; Matthew 21:43. Behold the GOODNESS and SEVERITY of God!

Verse 31. This candlestick had many branches drawn from the main shaft, which had not only bowls to put the oil and the kindled wick in for necessity, but knops made in the form of a pomegranate and flowers for ornament. The tabernacle had no windows, all its light was candle-light, which denotes the comparative darkness of that dispensation, while, the Sun of righteousness was not as yet risen, nor had the Day-star from on high visited his church. Yet God left not himself without witness, nor them without instruction; the commandment was a lamp, and the law a light, and the prophets were branches from that lamp, which gave light in their several ages. The church is still dark, as the tabernacle was, in comparison with what it will be in heaven: but the word of God is the candlestick, a light shining in a dark place.

THE GOLDEN CANDLESTICK, 31-40.

31. A candlestick — This is to be thought of as an elaborately constructed lampstand, furnishing places for seven lamps, (verse 37.) Like the cherubim it consisted of beaten work, (comp. verse 18,) that is, elaborately wrought by some hand process. Shaft — Rather, the base, or pedestal. Branches — Rather, the main stem or shaft, rising up from the pedestal, Bowls — These appear to have been the flower-shaped cups into which the spherical knops, next mentioned, were set, and both the cups and the knops were further connected with flowers, or blossoms, all together serving the purpose of ornamentation. All these were to be wrought out of one and the same piece, so as to form a complete whole.

32. Six branches — Having described the main shaft or stem (hnq) which was to rise up out of the base, he next mentions the six stems (µynq) which were to come out of the sides of it. These, with the central shaft, furnished at their tops the places for the seven lamps.

33. Three bowls — Returning now to a further description of the ornamental bowls or cups (µy[ybg) mentioned in verse 31, the writer describes them as made like unto almonds, probably meaning like almond blossoms. Also a knop and a flower were to be wrought into each of the six branches that come out of the candlestick. In this verse, and in the two following, the word candlestick is to be understood more particularly of the main shaft or stem of the lampstand, a part being named for the whole.

34. In the candlestick — That is, in the main shaft of it. Four bowls — Four cups like those in each of the branches just described in verse 33. These, like those, were to have their knops and their flowers. The position of these knops is stated in the next verse.

35. Under two branches of the same, according to the six branches — That is, immediately underneath the point at which the side stems, or branches, proceeded out of the main stem there was a knop, each connected with its cup, (bowl, verse 31, note,) and its flower, (verse 33.) This leaves us to infer that the fourth bowl (verse 34) was above, between the two upper branches and the top of the main stem. Thus is explained the position of the four bowls of verse 34.

36. Shall be of the same — The entire lampstand was to be wrought out of one piece of pure gold, that is, as in verse 31, so that the completed work should form one solid piece.

37. Seven lamps — One for each of the side stems or branches, and one for the central shaft. They shall light the lamps — Or, cause the lamps to go up, that is, they shall elevate or place the lamps (the lighted, shining lamps) in their position, that they may give light over against it, that is, opposite the place where it stood, the opposite side of the room. The above description of the golden candlestick is somewhat obscure. The exact form of the shafts, or branches, and the knops and flowers is left to conjecture, nor can we determine from what is here written whether the central shaft and the six branches were all carried up to the same height, and whether the branches proceeded out of the shaft at right angles or formed a curve in their upward turn. No dimensions are given, and we can judge of its size only by supposing that its height would have been as high, and probably somewhat higher, than the table, and its breadth between the two outer lamps at least two feet. Josephus (Ant., 3:6, 7) describes it as having a shaft rising from a single base and spreading itself into as many branches as there are planets, including the sun among them. Its seven heads terminated in one row, and all stood parallel to one another. A conspicuous object among the spoils of Jerusalem pictured on the Arch of Titus at Rome is a figure of the candlestick, with its central shaft and six arms. It is not certain that this is an exact copy of even the one captured at the fall of the temple, for the Roman artist may have modified some of its parts; but in its main outline it doubtless truly represents the original. The two additional cuts herewith given exhibit two slightly different models, the one showing all the lamps on the same level, and the other at various elevations. Either of these will illustrate the statements of the text commented on above. Here is seen, first, the pedestal or base (shaft of verse 31) from which rises the main shaft with its four knops and associated ornamentation, (verses 31, 34, 35,) and from which three pipes branched out on each side, one above the other, and formed so many arms to hold the lamps. Each of these branches had three bowls or cups (verse 33) along with knop and flower, as the central shaft had four, placed as described in verse 35. Most writers believe that the seven lamps were all elevated to the same level, which is probable, but not made certain by what is here written. That they were all in a row, or in the same plane, as shown in all these cuts, is evident from verse 32, where the six branches are described as coming out of two sides of the main shaft.

38. Tongs… snuffdishes — The one for snuffing and trimming the lamps, the other for holding the burned snuffings when removed from the wicks. These latter were a small sort of fire-pans or ash-pans. Comp. Exodus 27:3. The exact form of these is nowhere described.

Verse 39. Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels.] That is, a talent of gold in weight was used in making the candlestick, and the different vessels and instruments which belonged to it. According to Bishop Cumberland, a talent was three thousand shekels. As the Israelites brought each half a shekel, Exodus 38:26, so that one hundred talents, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, were contributed by six hundred and three thousand five hundred and fifty persons; by halving the number of the Israelites, he finds they contributed three hundred and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels in all. Now, as we find that this number of shekels made one hundred talents, and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels over, if we subtract one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five, the odd shekels, from three hundred and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five, we shall have for a remainder three hundred thousand, the number of shekels in one hundred talents: and if this remainder be divided by one hundred, the number of talents, it quotes three thousand, the number of shekels in each talent. A silver shekel of the sanctuary, being equal, according to Dr. Prideaux, to three shillings English, three thousand such shekels will amount to four hundred and fifty pounds sterling; and, reckoning gold to silver as fifteen to one, a talent of gold will amount to six thousand seven hundred and fifty pounds sterling: to which add two hundred and sixty-three pounds for the one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, at three shillings each, and it makes a total of seven thousand and thirteen pounds, which immense sum was expended on the candlestick and its furniture. It is no wonder, then, (if the candlestick in the second temple was equal in value to that in the ancient tabernacle,) that Titus should think it of sufficient consequence to be one of the articles, with the golden table, and silver trumpets, that should be employed to grace his triumph. Their intrinsic worth was a matter of no consequence to Him whose are the silver and gold, the earth and its fulness; they had accomplished their design, and were of no farther use, either in the kingdom of providence, or the kingdom of grace. See Clarke’s note on “Exodus 25:31”, and “Exodus 38:24”.

Ver. 39. Talent of gold, containing three thousand shekels, value about three hundred and fifty pounds. Exodus 38:25.

THE GOLDEN CANDLESTICK, 31-40.

31. A candlestick — This is to be thought of as an elaborately constructed lampstand, furnishing places for seven lamps, (verse 37.) Like the cherubim it consisted of beaten work, (comp. verse 18,) that is, elaborately wrought by some hand process. Shaft — Rather, the base, or pedestal. Branches — Rather, the main stem or shaft, rising up from the pedestal, Bowls — These appear to have been the flower-shaped cups into which the spherical knops, next mentioned, were set, and both the cups and the knops were further connected with flowers, or blossoms, all together serving the purpose of ornamentation. All these were to be wrought out of one and the same piece, so as to form a complete whole.

Verse 40. And look that thou make, &c.] This verse should be understood as an order to Moses after the tabernacle, &c., had been described to him; as if he had said: “When thou comest to make all the things that I have already described to thee, with the other matters of which I shall afterwards treat, see that thou make every thing according to the pattern which thou didst see in the mount.” The Septuagint have it, kata ton tuton ton dedeigmenon soi\ according to the TYPE-form or fashion, which was shown thee. It appears to me that St. Paul had this command particularly in view when he gave that to his son Timothy which we find in the second epistle, 2 Timothy 1:13: Jupotupwsin ece ugiainontwn logwn, wn parJ emou hkousav. “Hold fast the FORM of sound words which thou hast heard of me.” The tabernacle was a type of the Church of God; that Church is built upon the foundation of the prophets and apostles, Jesus Christ being the chief cornerstone, Ephesians 2:20-22: the doctrines, therefore, delivered by the prophets, Jesus Christ, and his apostles, are essential to the constitution of this church. As God, therefore, gave the plan or form according to which the tabernacle must be constructed, so he gives the doctrines according to which the Christian Church is to be modelled; and apostles, and subordinate builders, are to have and hold fast that FORM of sound words, and construct this heavenly building according to that form or pattern which has come through the express revelation of God.

IN different parts of this work we have had occasion to remark that the heathens borrowed their best things from Divine revelation, both as it refers to what was pure in their doctrines, and significant in their religious rites. Indeed, they seem in many cases to have studied the closest imitation possible, consistent with the adaptation of all to their preposterous and idolatrous worship. They had their IAO or JOVE, in imitation of the true JEHOVAH; and from different attributes of the Divine Nature they formed an innumerable group of gods and goddesses. They had also their temples in imitation of the temple of God; and in these they had their holy and more holy places, in imitation of the courts of the Lord’s house. The heathen temples consisted of several parts or divisions: 1. The area or porch; 2. The naov or temple, similar to the nave of our churches; 3. The adytum or holy place, called also penetrale and sacrarium; and, 4. The opisqodomov or the inner temple, the most secret recess, where they had their mysteria, and which answered to the holy of holies in the tabernacle. And as there is no evidence whatever that there was any temple among the heathens prior to the tabernacle, it is reasonable to conclude that it served as a model for all that they afterwards built. They had even their portable temples, to imitate the tabernacle; and the shrines for Diana, mentioned Acts 19:24, were of this kind. They had even their arks or sacred coffers, where they kept their most holy things, and the mysterious emblems of their religion; together with candlesticks or lamps, to illuminate their temples, which had few windows, to imitate the golden candlestick in the Mosaic tabernacle. They had even their processions, in imitation of the carrying about of the ark in the wilderness, accompanied by such ceremonies as sufficiently show, to an unprejudiced mind, that they borrowed them from this sacred original. Dr. Dodd has a good note on this subject, which I shall take the liberty to extract.

Speaking of the ark, he says, “We meet with imitations of this Divinely instituted emblem among several heathen nations. Thus Tacitus, Deuteronomy Moribus Germanorum, cap. 40, informs us that the inhabitants of the north of Germany, our Saxon ancestors, in general worshipped Herthum or Hertham, i.e., the mother earth: Hertham being plainly derived from xra arets, earth, and אם am, mother: and they believed her to interpose in the affairs of men, and to visit nations: that to her, in a sacred grove in a certain island of the ocean, a vehicle covered with a vestment was consecrated, and allowed to be touched by the priests only, (compare 2 Samuel 6:6, 7; 1 Chronicles 13:9, 10,) who perceived when the goddess entered into her secret place, penetrale, and with profound veneration attended her vehicle, which was drawn by cows; see 1 Samuel 6:7-10. While the goddess was on her progress, days of rejoicing were kept in every place which she vouchsafed to visit; they engaged in no war, they handled no weapons; peace and quietness were then only known, only relished, till the same priest reconducted the goddess to her temple. Then the vehicle and vestment, and, if you can believe it, the goddess herself, were washed in a sacred lake.” Apuleius, Deuteronomy Aur. Asin., lib. ii., describing a solemn idolatrous procession, after the Egyptian mode, says, “A chest, or ark, was carried by another, containing their secret things, entirely concealing the mysteries of religion.”

And Plutarch, in his treatise Deuteronomy Iside, &c., describing the rites of Osiris, says, “On the tenth day of the month, at night, they go down to the sea; and the stolists, together with the priest, carry forth the sacred chest, in which is a small boat or vessel of gold.”

Pausanius likewise testifies, lib. vii., c. 19, that the ancient Trojans had a sacred ark, wherein was the image of BACCHUS, made by Vulcan, which had been given to Dardanus by Jupiter. As the ark was deposited in the holy of holies, so the heathens had in the inmost part of their temples an adytum or penetrale, to which none had access but the priests. And it is remarkable that, among the Mexicans, Vitzliputzli, their supreme god, was represented under a human shape, sitting on a throne, supported by an azure globe which they called heaven; four poles or sticks came out from two sides of this globe, at the end of which serpents’ heads were carved, the whole making a litter which the priests carried on their shoulders whenever the idol was shown in public.-Religious Ceremonies, vol. iii., p. 146.

Calmet remarks that the ancients used to dedicate candlesticks in the temples of their gods, bearing a great number of lamps.

Pliny, Hist. Nat., lib. xxxiv., c. 3, mentions one made in the form of a tree, with lamps in the likeness of apples, which Alexander the Great consecrated in the temple of Apollo.

And Athenæus, lib. xv., c. 19, 20, mentions one that supported three hundred and sixty-five lamps, which Dionysius the younger, king of Syracuse, dedicated in the Prytaneum at Athens. As the Egyptians, according to the testimony of Clemens Alexandrinus, Strom., lib. i., were the first who used lamps in their temples, they probably borrowed the use from the golden candlestick in the tabernacle and temple. From the solemn and very particular charge, Look that thou make them after their pattern, which was showed thee in the mount, it appears plainly that God showed Moses a model of the tabernacle and all its furniture; and to receive instructions relative to this was one part of his employment while on the mount forty days with God. As God designed that this building, and all that belonged to it, should be patterns or representations of good things to come, it was indispensably necessary that Moses should receive a model and specification of the whole, according to which he might direct the different artificers in their constructing the work. 1. We may observe that the whole tabernacle and its furniture resembled a dwelling-house and its furniture. 2. That this tabernacle was the house of God, not merely for the performance of his worship, but for his residence.

3. That God had promised to dwell among this people, and this was the habitation which he appointed for his glory. 4. That the tabernacle, as well as the temple, was a type of the incarnation of Jesus Christ. See John 1:14, and John 2:19, 21. 5. That as the glory of God was manifested between the cherubim, above the mercy-seat, in this tabernacle, so God was in Christ, and in him dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. 6. As in the tabernacle were found bread, light, &c., probably all these were emblematical of the ample provision made in Christ for the direction, support, and salvation of the soul of man. Of these, and many other things in the law and the prophets, we shall know more when mortality is swallowed up of life.

EXODUS

Ver. 40. Pattern shewed thee in the mount. This being often repeated, marks its importance: no fancy work was allowed there.

THE GOLDEN CANDLESTICK, 31-40.

31. A candlestick — This is to be thought of as an elaborately constructed lampstand, furnishing places for seven lamps, (verse 37.) Like the cherubim it consisted of beaten work, (comp. verse 18,) that is, elaborately wrought by some hand process. Shaft — Rather, the base, or pedestal. Branches — Rather, the main stem or shaft, rising up from the pedestal, Bowls — These appear to have been the flower-shaped cups into which the spherical knops, next mentioned, were set, and both the cups and the knops were further connected with flowers, or blossoms, all together serving the purpose of ornamentation. All these were to be wrought out of one and the same piece, so as to form a complete whole.