E
X O D U S
CHAP. XXV.
At
this chapter begins an account of the orders and instructions God gave to
Moses upon the mount for the erecting and furnishing of a tabernacle to the
honour of God. We have here. I. Orders given for a collection to be made among
the people for this purpose, ver. 1-9. II. Particular instructions, 1.
Concerning the ark of the covenant, ver. 10-22. 2. The table of showbread,
ver. 23-30. 3. The golden candlestick, ver. 31, &c.
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The
Tabernacle and Its Furniture.
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B.
C. 1491.
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1 And the LORD
spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto the children of
Israel
, that they bring me an
offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take
my offering. 3 And this is the offering which ye shall take
of them; gold, and silver, and brass, 4 And blue, and purple, and
scarlet, and fine linen, and goats' hair, 5 And rams' skins
dyed red, and badgers' skins, and shittim wood, 6 Oil for the
light, spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense, 7 Onyx
stones, and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate.
8 And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. 9
According to all that I show thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle,
and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.
We may suppose that when Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and abode
there so long, where the holy angels attended the shechinah, or divine
Majesty, he saw and heard very glorious things relating to the upper world,
but they were things which it was not lawful nor possible to utter; and
therefore, in the records he kept of the transactions there, he says nothing
to satisfy the curiosity of those who would intrude into the things which they
have not seen, but writes that only which he was to speak to the children of
Israel. For the scripture is designed to direct us in our duty, not to fill
our heads with speculations, nor to please our fancies.
In these verses God tells Moses his intention in general, that the children of
Israel should build him a sanctuary, for he designed to dwell among them
(v. 8); and some think that, though there were altars and groves used
for religious worship before this, yet there never was any house, or temple,
built for sacred uses in any nation before this tabernacle was erected by
Moses, and that all the temples which were afterwards so much celebrated among
the heathen took rise from this and pattern by it. God had chosen the people
of Israel to be a peculiar people to himself (above all people), among whom
divine revelation, and a religion according to it, should be lodged and
established: he himself would be their King. As their King, he had already
given them laws for the government of themselves, and their dealings one with
another, with some general rules for religious worship, according to the light
of reason and the law of nature, in the ten commandments and the following
comments upon them. But this was not thought sufficient to distinguish them
from other nations, or to answer to the extent of that covenant which God
would make with them to be their God; and therefore,
I. He orders a royal palace to be set up among them for himself, here called a
sanctuary, or holy place, or habitation, of which it is said
(Jer. xvii. 12), A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of
our sanctuary. This sanctuary is to be considered,
1. As ceremonial, consonant to the to the other institutions of that
dispensation, which consisted in carnal ordinances (Heb. ix. 10); hence it is
called a worldly sanctuary, Heb. ix. 1. God in it kept his court, as
Israel's King. (1.) There he manifested his presence among them, 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 might be an
instance of the condescension of the divine favour. (2.) There he ordered his
subjects to attend him with their homage and tribute. Thither they must come
to consult his oracles, thither they must bring their sacrifices, and there
all Israel must meet, to pay their joint respects to the God of Israel.
2. As typical; the holy places made with hands were the figures of the
true, Heb. ix. 24. The gospel church is the true tabernacle, which the
Lord hath pitched, and not man, Heb. viii. 2. The body of Christ, in and
by which he made atonement, was the greater and more perfect tabernacle,
Heb. ix. 11. The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, as in a
tabernacle.
II. When Moses was to erect this palace, it was requisite that he should first
be instructed where he must have the materials, and where he must have the
model; for he could neither contrive it by his own ingenuity nor build it at
his own charge; he is therefore directed here concerning both.
1. The people must furnish him with the materials, not by a tax imposed upon
them, but by a voluntary contribution. This is the first thing concerning
which orders are here given.
(1.) Speak unto the children of Israel that they bring me an offering;
and there was all the reason in the world that they should, for (v. 1),
[1.] It was God himself that had not only enlarged them, but enriched them
with the spoils of the Egyptians. He had instructed them to borrow, and he had
inclined the Egyptians to lend, so that from him they had their wealth, and
therefore it was fit they should devote it to him and use it for him, and thus
make a grateful acknowledgement of the favours they had received. Note, First,
The best use we can make of our worldly wealth is to honour God with it in
works of piety and charity. Secondly, When we have been blessed with
some remarkable success in our affairs, and have had, as we say, a good turn,
it may be justly expected that we should do something more than ordinary for
the glory of God, consecrating our gain, in some reasonable proportion of it,
to the Lord of the whole earth, Mic. iv. 13. [2.] The sanctuary that was to be
built was intended for their benefit and comfort, and therefore they must be
at the expense of it. They had been unworthy of the privilege if they had
grudged at the charge. They might well afford to offer liberally for the
honour of God, while they lived at free quarters, having food for themselves
and their families rained upon them daily from heaven. We also must own that
we have our all from God's bounty, and therefore ought to use all for his
glory. Since we live upon him, we must live to him.
(2.) This offering must be given willingly, and with the heart, that is, [1.]
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, and might do it with a holy emulation, the zeal of a
few provoking many, 2 Cor. ix. 2. We should ask, not only, "What
must we do?" but, "What may we do for God?" [2.] Whatever they
gave, they must give it cheerfully, not grudgingly and with reluctance, for God
loves a cheerful giver, 2 Cor. ix. 7. What is laid out in the service of
God we must reckon well bestowed.
(3.) The particulars are here mentioned which they must offer (v. 3-7),
all of them things that there would be occasion for in the tabernacle, or the
service of it. Some observe that here was gold, silver, and brass, provided,
but no iron; that is the military metal, and this was to be a house of peace.
Every thing that was provided was very rich and fine, and the best of the
sort; for God, who is the best, should have the best.
2. God himself would furnish him with the model: According to all that I
show thee, v. 9. God showed him an exact plan of it, in miniature,
which he must conform to in all points. Thus Ezekiel saw in vision the form of
the house and the fashion thereof, Ezek. xliii. 11. Note, Whatsoever is done
in God's service must be done by his direction, and not otherwise. Yet 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, which he
goes over distinctly in this and the following chapters. When Moses, in the
beginning of Genesis, was to describe the creation of the world, though it is
such a stately and curious fabric and made up of such a variety and vast
number of particulars, yet he gave a very short and general account of it, and
nothing compared with what the wisdom of this world would have desired and
expected from one that wrote by divine revelation; but, when he comes to
describe the tabernacle, he does it with the greatest niceness and accuracy
imaginable. He that gave us no account of the lines and circles of the globe,
the diameter of the earth, or the height and magnitude of the stars, has told
us particularly the measure of every board and curtain of the tabernacle; for
God's church and instituted religion are more precious to him and more
considerable 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 and service of the Creator, but to
acquaint us with the methods of grace, and those things which are purely
matters of divine revelation. The blessedness of the future state is more
fully represented under the notion of a new Jerusalem than under the notion of
new heavens and a new earth.
10 And they shall make an
ark of shittim wood: 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. 11 And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold,
within and without shalt thou overlay it, and shalt make upon it a crown of
gold round about. 12 And thou shalt cast four rings of gold for
it, and put them in the four corners thereof; and two rings shall be
in the one side of it, and two rings in the other side of it. 13
And thou shalt make staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with
gold. 14 And thou shalt put the staves into the rings by the sides
of the ark, that the ark may be borne with them. 15 The staves
shall be in the rings of the ark: they shall not be taken from it.
16 And thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give
thee. 17 And thou shalt make a mercy seat of pure gold: two
cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half
the breadth thereof. 18 And thou shalt make two cherubims of
gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy
seat. 19 And make one cherub on the one end, and the other cherub
on the other end: even of the mercy seat shall ye make the cherubims on
the two ends thereof. 20 And the cherubims shall stretch forth their
wings on high, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and their faces shall
look one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the
cherubims be. 21 And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the
ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee.
22 And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above
the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark
of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment
unto the children of Israel.
The first thing which is here ordered to be made is the ark with its
appurtenances, the furniture of the most holy place, and the special token of
God's presence, for which the tabernacle was erected to be the receptacle.
I. The ark itself was a chest, or coffer, in which the two tables of the law,
written with the finger of God, were to be honourably deposited, and carefully
kept. The dimensions of it are exactly ordered; 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, with rings
and staves to carry it with; and in it he must put the testimony, v.
10-16. 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 and
obedience 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 (ch. xxx. 6), and the tabernacle
the tabernacle of the testimony (Num. x. 11) or witness, Acts vii. 44.
The gospel of Christ is also called a testimony or witness, Matt. xxiv. 14. It
is observable, 1. That the tables of the law were carefully preserved in the
ark for the purpose, to teach us to make much of the word of God, and to hide
it in our hearts, in our innermost 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 Rev. xi. 19. 2. That this ark was the chief token of
God's presence, which teaches us that the first and great evidence and
assurance of God's favour is the putting of his law in the heart. God dwells
where that rules, Heb. viii. 10. 3. That provision was made for the carrying
of this ark about with them in all their removals, which intimates to us that,
wherever we go, we should take our religion along with us, always bearing
about with us the love of the Lord Jesus, and his law.
II. The mercy-seat was the covering of the ark or chest, made of solid gold,
exactly to fit the dimensions of the ark, v. 17, 21. This propitiatory
covering, as it might well be translated, was a type of Christ, the great
propitiation, whose satisfaction fully answers the demands of the law, covers
our transgressions, and comes between us and the curse we deserve. Thus he is
the end of the law for righteousness.
III. The cherubim of gold were fixed to the mercy-seat, and of a piece with
it, and spread their wings over it, v. 18. It is supposed that these
cherubim were designed to represent the holy angels, who always attended the shechinah,
or divine Majesty, particularly at the giving of the law; not by any effigies
of an angel, but some emblem of the angelical nature, probably some one of
those four faces spoken of, Ezek. i. 10. Whatever the faces were, they looked
one towards another, and both downward towards the ark, while their wings were
stretched out so as to touch one another. The apostle calls them cherubim
of glory shadowing the mercy-seat, Heb. ix. 5. It denotes their attendance
upon the Redeemer, to whom they were ministering spirits, their readiness to
do his will, their special presence in the assemblies of saints (Ps. lxviii.
17; 1 Cor. xi. 10), and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel
which they diligently contemplate, 1 Pet. i. 12. God is said to dwell, or sit,
between the cherubim, on the mercy-seat (Ps. lxxx. 1), and thence he
here promises, for the future, to meet with Moses, and to commune with him,
v. 22. There he would give law, and there he would give audience, as a
prince on his throne; and thus he manifests himself willing to be reconciled
to us, and keep up communion with us, in and by the mediation of Christ. In
allusion to this mercy-seat, we are said to come boldly to the throne of
grace (Heb. iv. 16); for we are not under the law, which is
covered, but under grace, which is displayed; its wings are stretched
out, and we are invited to come under the shadow of them, Ruth ii. 12.
23 Thou shalt also make a table of shittim wood: two cubits shall be
the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half
the height thereof. 24 And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold,
and make thereto a crown of gold round about. 25 And thou shalt
make unto it a border of an hand breadth round about, and thou shalt make a
golden crown to the border thereof round about. 26 And thou shalt
make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings in the four corners that are
on the four feet thereof. 27 Over against the border shall the
rings be for places of the staves to bear the table. 28 And thou
shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold, that
the table may be borne with them. 29 And thou shalt make the
dishes thereof, and spoons thereof, and covers thereof, and bowls thereof, to
cover withal: of pure gold shalt thou make them. 30 And
thou shalt set upon the table showbread before me alway.
Here is, 1. A table ordered to be made of wood overlaid with gold, which 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, Heb. ix. 2, 23, &c. There must also be the usual
furniture of the sideboard, dishes and spoons, &c., and all of gold,
v. 29. 2. This table was to be always spread, and furnished with the
show-bread (v. 30), or bread of faces, twelve loaves, one for
each tribe, set in two rows, six in a row; see the law concerning them, Lev.
xxiv. 5, &c. The tabernacle being God's house, in which he was pleased to
say that he would dwell among them, he would show that he kept a good house.
In the royal palace it was fit that there should be a royal table. Some make
the twelve loaves to represent the twelve tribes, set before God as his people
and the corn of his floor, as they are called, Isa. xxi. 10. 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, (1.) A thankful
acknowledgement of God's goodness to them, in giving them their daily bread,
manna in the wilderness, where he prepared a table for them, and, in Canaan,
the corn of the land. Hereby they owned their dependence upon Providence, not
only for the corn in the field, which they gave thanks for in offering the
sheaf of first-fruits, but for the bread in their houses, that, when it was
brought home, God did not blow upon it, Hag. i. 9. Christ has taught us
to pray every day for the bread of the day. (2.) 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, God and Israel did, as it were, eat together, as a pledge
of friendship and fellowship; he supped with them, and they with him. (3.) 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. In our Father's house
there is bread enough and to spare, a loaf for every tribe. All that
attend in God's house shall be abundantly satisfied with the goodness of it,
Ps. xxxvi. 8. Divine consolations are the continual feast of holy souls,
notwithstanding there are those to whom the table of the Lord, and the meat
thereof (because it is plain bread), are contemptible, Mal. i. 12.
Christ has a table in his kingdom, at which all his saints shall for every eat
and drink with him, Luke xxii. 30.
31 And thou shalt make a
candlestick of pure gold: of beaten work shall the candlestick
be made: his shaft, and his branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers,
shall be of the same. 32 And six branches shall come out of the
sides of it; three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three
branches of the candlestick out of the other side: 33 Three bowls
made like unto almonds, with a knop and a flower in one branch; and
three bowls made like almonds in the other branch, with a knop and a
flower: so in the six branches that come out of the candlestick.
34 And in the candlestick shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with
their knops and their flowers. 35 And there shall be a knop
under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and
a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that
proceed out of the candlestick. 36 Their knops and their branches
shall be of the same: all it shall be one beaten work of pure
gold. 37 And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they
shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it.
38 And the tongs thereof, and the snuffdishes thereof, shall be of pure
gold. 39 Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with
all these vessels. 40 And look that thou make them after
their pattern, which was showed thee in the mount.
I. The next thing ordered to be made for the furnishing of God's palace was a
rich stately candlestick, all of pure gold, not hollow, but solid. The
particular directions here given concerning it show, 1. That it was very
magnificent, and a great ornament to the place; it had many branches drawn
from the main shaft, which had not only their bowls (to put the oil and the
kindled wick in) for necessity, but knops and flowers for ornament. 2. That it
was very convenient, and admirably contrived both to scatter the light and to
keep the tabernacle clean from smoke and snuffs. 3. That it was very
significant. The tabernacle had no windows by which to let in the light of the
day, all its light was candle-light, which intimates the comparative darkness
of that dispensation, while the Sun or righteousness had not as yet risen, nor
had the day-star from on high yet 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 to the Old-Testament church. 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 (2
Pet. i. 19), and a dark place indeed the world would be without it. The Spirit
of God, in his various gifts and graces, is compared to the seven lamps
which burn before the throne, Rev. iv. 5. The churches are golden
candlesticks, the lights of the world, holding forth the word of life
as the candlestick does the light, Phil. ii. 15, 16. Ministers are to light
the lamps, and snuff them (v. 37), by opening the scriptures. The
treasure of this light is now put into earthen vessels, 2 Cor. iv. 6,
7. The branches of the candlestick spread every way, to denote the diffusing
of the light of the gospel into all parts by the Christian ministry, Matt. v.
14, 15. There is a diversity of gifts, but the same Spirit gives to
each to profit withal.
II. There is in the midst of these instructions an express caution given to
Moses, to take heed of varying from his model: Make them after the pattern
shown thee, v. 40. Nothing was left to his own invention, or the
fancy of the workmen, or the people's humour; but the will of God must be
religiously observed in every particular. Thus, 1. All God's providences are
exactly according to his counsels, and the copy never varies from the
original. Infinite Wisdom never changes its measures; whatever is purposed
shall undoubtedly be performed. 2. All his ordinances must be administered
according to his institutions. Christ's instruction to his disciples (Matt.
xxviii. 20) is similar to this: Observe all
things whatsoever I have commanded you.
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