The most important piece of
furniture in the Tabernacle of Meeting in the
wilderness and later the Jerusalem Temple was the
Ark of the Covenant, and the lid of gold called the
mercy seat or place of mercy (Exodus 25:10-22).
The ark was also called “the
ark of the testimony” because it contained God’s
testimony to the people of His covenant. In the ark
chest were a pot of manna, Aaron’s budded rod, and
the two stone tablets on which was written the Law
of Moses (25:16, 33; Num. 17:10; Heb. 9:4).
The “mercy seat” was a slab of
gold fitting over the top of the ark chest. Once a
year the High Priest would enter into the Most Holy
Place and make atonement for the sins of the people
of Israel by sprinkling blood of bulls and goats on
the mercy seat (Lev. 16:2-16).
The ark symbolizing the
presence of God with His people was holy and was
placed in the Holy of Holies and separated from the
rest of the tabernacle by a heavy veil (Ex.
26:31-33; Heb. 9:3-5). No sinful person could look
upon the glory of God above the ark and live (Lev.
16:2).
No one knows what happened to
the Ark of the Covenant after Babylon destroyed the
Temple in 586 B.C. We do know that the new temple
built by Zerubbabel and later remodeled by Herod did
not contain the Ark of the Covenant.
The disappearance of the Ark of
the Covenant at the exile was providential because
the presence of the LORD God had disappeared from
above the mercy seat long before the destruction of
the temple. God had rejected the worship that was
being offered by the idolatrous people (Isa.
1:11-14).
The full significance and
fulfillment of the meaning of the Ark of the
Covenant and its mercy seat is found in the person
and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
When God sent His perfect lamb
to make atonement for the sins of the people, the
blood of goats and bulls was no longer needed on the
Day of Atonement. The sprinkling of the blood of the
perfect Lamb of God secured eternal redemption for
sinners (Heb. 9:11-14).
Because of His perfect once and
for all sacrifice for sins, we are encouraged to
come with boldness and enter into His presence at
the mercy set in heaven (Heb. 4:14-16).
The thick veil that separated
man from the LORD God no longer hangs there as a
barrier separating sinful man from the holy presence
of God. The veil was torn into at the moment Jesus
died. Every person who comes by the shed blood of
Jesus is welcome into His presence (Matt. 27:51;
Heb. 10:20).
We are always welcome because
of the perfect sacrifice Christ made for our sins.
When God became man and dwelt
among us, the presence of God was made perfect
(Ezek. 36:27-29; Jn. 1:14; 14:16-17). The Ark of the
Covenant was a shadow of the perfect dwelling of God
with men in the incarnation of Jesus Christ.
We now long for the perfect day
of fulfillment in the new heaven and new earth. “And
I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying,
“Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He
will dwell among them, and they shall be His people,
and God Himself will be among them. . . . I saw no
temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the
Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the
sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of
God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb”
(Rev. 21:3, 22-23).
Selah!
Message by Wil Pounds (c) 2006
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Unless otherwise noted "Scripture quotations taken from the NASB."
"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE" © Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission." (www.Lockman.org)Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible copyright ©1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://www.bible.org/. All rights reserved.
Wil is a graduate of William Carey University, B. A.; New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Th. M.; and Azusa Pacific University, M. A. He has pastored in Panama, Ecuador and the U. S, and served for over 20 years as missionary in Ecuador and Honduras. He had a daily expository Bible teaching ministry head in over 100 countries from 1972-2005. He continues to seek opportunities to be personally involved in world missions. Wil and his wife Ann have three grown daughters. He currently serves as a Baptist pastor and teaches seminary extension courses in Ecuador.
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