Bible Commentaries

THE SACRED ARK

‘Lo, we heard of it at Ephratah: we found it in the fields of the wood.’

Psalms 132:6

In the days to which the Psalmist’s words refer the Ark provided satisfaction for certain instincts of the human soul which any powerful and lasting religion must satisfy in some way or other.

I. It was remarkable, first of all, on account of its contents.—These were in the early days of Israel threefold. First there were the Tables of the Law, written by the finger of God. Next, as we are told in the Epistle to the Hebrews, there was Aaron’s rod that budded, and the pot of manna. It would seem that in Solomon’s day these latter had disappeared, as we are expressly told there was then nothing in the Ark but the Tables of the Law. Each of these relics reminded Israel of a serious truth. Aaron’s rod was a symbol of Israel’s communion with God through the Priesthood and by sacrifices; the pot of manna was the symbol of Israel’s dependence on God for material and spiritual blessings. But the most important, as well as the most permanent, of the contents of the Ark were the Tables of the Law.

II. Secondly, the Ark was remarkable for the Presence which rested on it.—The Ark was the support of the Mercy Seat; certainly, it enclosed the Letter of the Covenant, on the observance of which the Divine mercy rested; but this symbolical meaning of the Ark was emphasised by an appearance above it manifesting as much of the beauty and glory of God as it was possible for His creatures to witness in this mortal state. On particular occasions there appeared a light of extraordinary brightness, but for the most part this light was shrouded in a cloud which alone was visible.

Now, had the Ark with its sacred contents, and the Shechinah resting on it, continued to be a leading feature of the interior furniture of the Holy Place in the Temple until our Lord’s time, there might have been in pious minds, trained in the religion of Israel, a rivalry between the Presence in the Ark and the higher Presence of Jesus of Nazareth—a rivalry such as existed between the still continuing Jewish sacrifices and the great Sacrifice of Calvary, with its continuous commemoration in the Church of God; but in point of fact the distinctive glories of the Ark vanished with the destruction of Solomon’s Temple. In the Temple which was built after the exile there was no Ark, no Shechinah. And thus we see how, first of all, the gift of the sacred Ark and its accompanying prerogatives, and next its withdrawal for some six hundred years from the midst of Israel, might lead devout minds to our Saviour. The Ark sanctified and trained a religious desire for some intimate manifestation of the Presence of God, and then the withdrawal of the Ark left Israel with this desire keener than ever, and yet unsatisfied. Certainly every precious thing in ancient Israel ultimately led to Christ.

Still more, the Presence which rested on the Ark between the cherubim suggests that higher, uncreated Nature which from the first moment of our Lord’s earthly life was joined indissolubly to His manhood.

III. The history of the Ark and that particular chapter of it to which our text refers, suggests one more point for consideration.—It was natural that the Israelites should be deeply impressed with the mysterious power attaching to the Ark of the Covenant. From this it was but a step to ask the question, Can we not make use of it for other purposes than that for which it was originally given? Can we not make it an engine of war, so that the enemies of Israel shall quail before a might which is more than human? It was an evil hour when, after their defeat by the Philistines, the leaders of the Israelites bethought themselves of this expedient: ‘Wherefore hath the Lord smitten us to-day before the Philistines? Let us fetch the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord out of Shiloh unto us, that, when it cometh among us, it may save us out of the hands of our enemies.’ And we Christians are guilty of the same fault when we attempt to use our Creed for purposes of worldly advantage, and imagine that its public profession will screen us if we engage in doubtful courses of conduct. The sacred Ark will never be made to fight the world’s battles, though in the moment of disaster God knows how to defend His own honour.

Canon Liddon.