02. The Construction of the Ark; or, God's Presence Glorious
Chapter 2 - The Construction of the Ark; or, God’s Presence Glorious THE fabrication of the ark was not left to the dictates of human judgment. Material and measure, outline and ornament, were alike prescribed. In form it was to be oblong, the height and width (2 1/4 feet) being the same, and each in the proportion of three-fifths to the length (3 3/4 feet). The specification is given, according to Hebrew measurement, in the following words: "Two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof." The wood, as we have already seen, was to be of the "shittim," or probably acacia tree, much valued for its incorruptibility and beauty. This was to be overlaid "with pure gold, within and without." Next there was to be made "round about upon it a crown of gold,"---an ornamental rim or cornice,---to finish it off with elegance and taste, and possibly to supply also a groove whereon the lid might firmly rest. At four of the outside comers of the chest were to be "four rings of gold," so disposed that "two rings should be in the one side of it, and two rings in the other side of it;" while, corresponding with these rings, were two "staves of shittim wood," also overlaid with gold, and by means of which the ark might be borne from place to place.
There has been much controversy as to the position of these rings, some regarding the poles which passed through them as having run parallel with the breadth of the ark, while others believe them to have run lengthwise. The latter is the ordinary representation in engravings, and is corroborated by the statements of Josephus, and of many Rabbinical writers, who lay a stress on the distinction which they conceive to be made between the "side" and the" end" (comp. Exod. xxv vers. 12 and 19). On the other hand, there are Jewish authorities of equal note, who maintain that these terms are convertible; in which case, it would seem preferable to believe, that we may here understand the word "side" in its literal import, as denoting neither the back nor front, but the end or narrower side. The bearers would by such arrangement have more freedom of motion; and we should thus be able consistently to explain the mode of the ark’s location in the sanctuary,* without being constrained to assume, as Witsius and others have done, that it was placed with its narrow side toward the veil. Various questionings have also arisen, as to the elevation of the rings, whether near the crown, or about the center, or (as in the woodcut over leaf) at the base of the hallowed chest. That the word rendered "corners" may be translated "feet," is indisputable; and it is not unworthy of consideration, that the similar rings, made for the transport of the showbread table, were to be "on the four feet thereof," The supporters of this idea urge, further, the evident intention that the holy things should be borne aloft in the midst of the people; and they consequently argue, that the lower the staves, the more conspicuous would be the burden. On the contrary, it is asserted that, in conformity with mechanical laws, and with a view to preserve a just equilibrium, the massiveness of the ark required its rings and poles to be considerably higher than those which would serve for a lighter structure. We may, perhaps, regard this as an open question, and retain the idea to which popular representations have familiarized us.
{These points are gone into at full length by Van Til, in his Commentary on the Tabernacle; and by Buxtorf, in his inquiries concerning the ark (Exercitationes ad Historiam, No. I.) We may add, that the engravings customary in the present day are widely different from those which prevailed in earlier ages. In the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries we meet with representations of the ark wholly erroneous in the varied and fanciful forms assigned to it, but harmonizing in the consistent uprearing of it upon poles affixed to its base. See, for example, the ark crossing Jordan, and the ark at the capture of Jericho---the one from an old MS., and the other from the "Speculum Humanæ Salvationis"---as they are given in L. Twining’s "Types and Figures of the Bible, illustrated from early Christian Art."} The lid, or cover of the ark, was to be "of pure gold," not made to project over, but fitted precisely in size to the dimensions of the ark, both in length and in width. Its height is unknown; and this would lead to the inference, that it was of no considerable thickness. In the original, it is simply called" a cover;" but the Septuagint and Vulgate having taken the secondary idea of the verb from which it is derived, and having rendered it "a propitiatory," as if in reference to the covering of sin through the sprinkled blood of atonement, our translators have retained the latter idea, and have termed it "the mercy seat." Whether any such signification was even remotely intended in the Hebrew, we need not determine. It is unquestionably true, that it is only in virtue of a propitiation that God can dwell with fallen men; and that if He, the Just and Righteous One, has a seat in their midst at all, it can be none other than a mercy seat. To dwell with them on any other terms, He must either forego His justice, or ensure their destruction. The foundation laid for His manifested presence in the tabernacle, and in the temple, was based on that forgiving mercy which had devised a scheme of atonement, and had found in Christ crucified the needful ransom. On the upper surface of the lid, were to be made "two cherubims of gold, of beaten work, in the two ends of the mercy seat," one at either side. These were to be "beaten out of one piece," and so made "of the mercy seat itself,"---or, as the margin reads, "of the matter of the mercy seat," so as to be one with it. In posture they were to be face to face, not fronting the worshippers, but fronting the Shechinah-glory that lay beneath their outstretched forward-pointed wings. Concerning their form, little or comparatively nothing is revealed---in order, as Bernard Lamy has well said, that" no human language might describe them, no human pencil delineate them, and no human intellect conceive of them." The Bible tells us not whether they were figured standing, or kneeling; but, in either case, they were with their faces, not heavenward, but bending" toward the mercy seat"---the attitude, as we take it, of lowly adoration and fixed attention. We shall not attempt to discuss the long-agitated and greatly complicated question which arises as to the nature and symbolism of the cherubs. Whether they were emblematic of the attributes possessed by the Divine Being, who there revealed himself as the Hearer and Answerer of prayer, wise to counsel, valiant to protect, mighty to help, and swift to relieve---whether they represented angelic ’existences attendant on their Sovereign Lord, and bending an eager glaze to look upon the wondrous mystery of His grace---or whether they were figurative of redeemed humanity elevated to the enjoyment of intercourse with a pardoning God it may not be possible to decide. Weighty and worthy names are ranked in support of each hypothesis. It must suffice for our present purpose to note, that whatever may have been their typical import, it was between them, and on the mercy seat, that the actual manifestation of Jehovah was vouchsafed. Hence the oft-recurring phrase, "0h Lord God of Israel! which dwellest between the cherubims;" "thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth!" "the Lord reigneth, let the people tremble; He sitteth between the cherubims, let the earth be moved;" ---phrases, which to the Jewish ear were replete with intensity of meaning;---phrases, which told them that the Lord their God was with them, and the shout of a King in their midst.
We marvel not that the shittim wood should have been completely encased in gold; we wonder not that the mercy seat, whereon the presence-cloud rested, should have been entirely formed of the same precious metal; we wonder not that the gold was to be pure; nor that, when the work was complete, the whole had to be anointed with a perfumed oil. It was fitting that everything should be of the costliest. It was needful that the Almighty should thus "make the place of His feet glorious." None but a magnificent shrine would comport with the majestic presence which was there to be revealed---the presence of Him before whom angels veil their faces, and cry ’Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the hole earth is full of His glory!" It is true that the splendors of the ark were not required to bribe His favor, or to allure His stay. He could already declare, "The silver is mine, and the gold is mine," and if I were impoverished, "I would not tell thee, for the world is mine, and the fullness thereof." A more resplendent throne He had in that brighter world above, whose surpassing glories can only be faintly portrayed to our dull apprehensions under the image of golden streets, and pearly gates, and jewel-garnished walls. We may not think, however, that this expenditure was vainly lavished. If unprofitable to Him, it was of use on man’s account. It was to the Jew a pictorial teaching, an impressive memorial of God’s transcendent greatness. It was calculated to keep alive the remembrance that God’s condescension was a condescension. It was fitted to remind the worshipper that God "humbleth himself to behold the things that are in heaven," and much more so, to regard the things "that are in the earth." The mere fact of God’s manifested presence ought to have led to the acknowledgment, that His ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts than our thoughts; and yet it was possible for this very fact to become so familiar to the mind as to engender the false idea that He is altogether such an one as ourselves. We let His goodness too often eclipse, whereas it ought only to illustrate His greatness. It were well for us more often to address ourselves to Him as the God who once dwelt between the cherubim, and to recall to mind that He is the same God still. His presence is none the less glorious because there is no longer a visible display of glory in connection with its manifestation in anyone selected and hallowed spot. He who deigned to make the ark His footstool, views the whole earth as none too vast for the purpose. (Matthew 5:35; Acts 7:49.) He who dwelt above the mercy seat, occupies a heavenly throne. He is willing, indeed, to reveal Himself to the heart of man; but it must be as "the God of glory." He requires that His presence be reverenced. He will not abide where sin is cherished. He demands that the chamber of the heart be inlaid with the pure gold of holiness, and consecrated with the unction of heavenly grace. "God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing." "Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God."