Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Exodus 37:1-9 comments: the ark of the covenant




Exodus 37:1 ¶  And Bezaleel made the ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the breadth of it, and a cubit and a half the height of it: 2  And he overlaid  it with pure gold within and without, and made a crown of gold to it round about. 3  And he cast for it four rings of gold, to be set by the four corners of it; even two rings upon the one side of it, and two rings upon the other side of it. 4  And he made staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold. 5  And he put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark, to bear the ark. 6  And he made the mercy seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half was the length thereof, and one cubit and a half the breadth thereof. 7  And he made two cherubims of gold, beaten out of one piece made he them, on the two ends of the mercy seat; 8  One cherub on the end on this side, and another cherub on the other end on that side: out of the mercy seat made he the cherubims on the two ends thereof. 9  And the cherubims spread out their wings on high, and covered with their wings over the mercy seat, with their faces one to another; even to the mercy seatward were the faces of the cherubims.
Clearly there is some very special significance to the work called the children of Israel to do, or at least certain ones of them, and also the doing of it. There is no reason that a Bible-believer can imagine for the repetition of all of the details other than that they are important to God and the Holy Spirit wanted to stress that to the reader.

Hebrews 9:11  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

The tabernacle is representative of the believer’s heart after the Resurrection. We are a habitation of God through the spirit. Notice how Paul referred to the breaking down of the wall between those who had been given the Law and those who did not have the Law.
Ephesians 2:11 ¶  Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision [Jews] in the flesh made by hands; 12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
    14 ¶  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 15  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 16  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: 17  And came and preached peace to you which were afar
off, and to them that were nigh. 18  For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. 19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; 20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.
Sadly, many preachers who have a problem in reading comprehension or perhaps an agenda will use 14 without regard to 15 or 16 and say that the breaking down of a wall in this passage is between man and God rather than between Jew and Gentile to make the Church, the body of Christ on earth.  
Staves is a word we don’t use much anymore except in reference to a narrow strip of wood on the sides of a barrel. It was, at one time, a plural of staff, a pole, here used to carry the Ark of the Covenant which carried the Ten Commandments.

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