Moses is alone with God up the mountain. This chapter begins with God telling Moses to ask the people to bring an offering. He didn’t say what for but that they should do it willingly (v1,2)
In 2 Corinthians 9:7 we are urged. – “So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.”
God wants cheerful, willing givers, not forced, grudging givers. It is all of the heart, will and mind, out of love for God.
There is a lot of false teaching today about giving, particularly tithing. I know of people who have been told by churches that they had to sign a pledge to give certain amounts before they could even become members of the church. God wants our willing hearts not our arms twisted up our backs or ‘sign this or else’.
It was vitally important that the willingness was there before they knew what to give and Moses was then told what God wanted. God said that He wanted them to give gold, silver and bronze, blue, purple and scarlet thread, fine linen, goat’s hair, ram’s skins dyed red, badger skins, acacia wood, oil for light, spices for anointing oil and for the sweet incense, onyx stones and stones to be set in the ephod and breastplate (v3-7).
These were all precious items, and it required sacrificial giving but what were all these for? God told them (v8,9) that He wanted them to build a tabernacle, a sanctuary and that they were to build it according to the pattern which he would show them. The purpose of the tabernacle was a place where they could meet with God. Not that they couldn’t meet Him anywhere, but this was a specific place which they could identify as the place where He would meet with them. The initial place was not a permanent structure but a tabernacle, a tent which they could move from place to place as they travelled. It would be a holy place and the articles which they had given would be used to make and maintain it.
God obviously described it to Moses, how it was built so that it could be dismantled and moved on and all its furnishings. Hebrews 8:5 tells us that it was “…. a copy and shadow of the heavenly things.” It was not a haphazard arrangement it had exact dimensions, and the articles were for a purpose and a shadow of the heavenly. Thus, what they gave was being used by God to teach them holy things.
They were to make an ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits in length, a cubit and a half wide and a cubit and a half high. It was to be overlaid with pure gold inside and out (v10,11). Unlike the ark in Genesis which Noah was told to build and was a boat, this ark was a box, later known as the Ark of the Covenant. It was 3 feet 9 inches long and 2 feet 3 inches wide and high.
The ark did not have handles, rather it was to be carried on poles inserted into rings cast in gold and attached at each corner of the ‘box’. These rings and poles were acacia wood overlaid with gold which would not be taken out but remain in situ at all times. (v12-15)
The Ark was to contain the Testimony (the Ten Commandments) (v16). It would later contain other things – the golden pot that held manna and Aaron’s rod that budded.
This was the first and most important Item in the Tabernacle for it represented the approach to God and His presence with the people.
They were not permitted to touch the Ark.
A subsequent example of one doing so is recorded in 2 Samuel 6:6,7 where Uzzah touched the Ark to keep it from falling off a cart and God struck him dead. The Ark of the Covenant was central to their worship and signified the presence of Gold. It was simply a wooden box overlaid with gold containing the two tablets on which the 10 Commandments were written by God, Aaron’s rod that budded, and a pot of manna. (Hebrews 9:4) It had 2 cherubim on top.
It had sadly been neglected and fallen into disuse (1 Chronicles.13:3) “For we have not inquired at it since the days of Saul”, and had been taken from the Israelites by the Philistines who had captured it in 1 Samuel 4 and 5 when Eli, the priest had died when he fell backward off his chair. Eli had been distraught, his sons Hophni and Phineas who were evil priests, had been killed and the Ark taken. “The glory of The Lord had departed from Israel.” (1 Samuel 4:22)
It had been calamitous for the Philistines for when they put it in Dagon’s temple, Dagon, their god, fell and was smashed. Not only that, but they were infested with rats and the plague. They moved it around to various places but in the end, they realised that it was a curse to them, either with death or serious illness. It had brought them nothing but trouble – “There was deadly destruction throughout all the cities; the hand of God was very heavy there.” (1 Samuel 5:11)
They had to get rid of this ark so after seven months, after taking advice from their priests and diviners, they were instructed to build a new cart and to put it on the cart (6:7) and send it, pulled by two cows, to Beth Shemesh. The cows had never been yoked together previously and the people were told to watch – “If the cart goes up the road to its own territory, to Beth Shemesh, then He (God) has done us this great evil, but if not, then we shall know that it is not His hand that struck us; it was by chance that this happened to us.” (1 Samuel 6:9) To the Philistines it was like drawing lots or turning cards – I wonder if they even put bets on it!
However, the cows headed straight for Beth Shemesh. The people of Beth Shemesh rejoiced, and the Levites took the Ark down (remember, only they were allowed to touch it) and put it on a rock, chopped up the cart and used it for firewood and sacrificed the cows as a burnt offering to The Lord (1 Samuel 6:14). Five Philistine lords (v16) watched all this and returned home to tell the story, leaving the inescapable conclusion that God had been judging them.
However, calamity also struck Beth Shemesh as The Lord struck down 70 men of Beth Shemesh because they looked into the ark of The Lord. Some Hebrew manuscripts say v19 says “50 thousand and 70 men” – one margin reference says probably ’70 men and 50 yoke of oxen.’ Whichever is correct, “the people lamented because The Lord had struck the people with a great slaughter.”
How important it was to be careful to obey The Lord. They acted correctly in the Levites taking it off the cart and smashing up the cart and burning it, but evidently the seventy ordinary men (not Levites) got curious and touched it and looked inside – something they were not permitted to do.
Consequently, the men of Beth Shemesh were eager to get rid of the ark and they called for the men of Kiriath Jearim to come and collect it. They said it had been returned to them by the Philistines and invited the people of Kiriath Jearim to come and collect it. Why did they want to get rid of it? “Who is able to stand before The Holy Lord God?” If the curious men had not been disobedient, they might have been able, but it does not say much for the people when they failed to recognize and remember that God is a Holy God, and they needed to be obedient and worship Him. If they had they would have received the blessing rather than the anger of God.
The men of Kiriath Jearim came and took the ark and put it in the house of Abinadab and consecrated his son Eleazar to keep it. It remained at Kiriath Jearim for twenty years (1 Samuel 7:2). It seems that during the reign of Saul it had been left at Kiriath Jearim (or Kirjath Jearim). I doubt that Saul had used it at all. In view of what had happened before, I assume that the Levites conveyed the ark. It appears that they reverenced it.
In 2 Samuel 6:1 David gathered all the chosen men (30,000 able young men) of Israel to go and bring back the ark from Abinadab’s house. It could have been a dangerous mission, so it was a large select band. They may have had to run the gauntlet of the Philistines, so it was important that the right men were chosen.
1 Chronicles 13:1-6 tells us that “David conferred with each of his officers, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds. He then said to the whole assembly of Israel, “If it seems good to you and if it is the will of the Lord our God, let us send word far and wide to the rest of our people throughout the territories of Israel, and also to the priests and Levites who are with them in their towns and pasturelands, to come and join us. Let us bring the ark of our God back to us, for we did not inquire of it during the reign of Saul.” The whole assembly agreed to do this because it seemed right to all the people. So, David assembled all Israel, from the Shihor River in Egypt to Lebo Hamath, to bring the ark of God from Kiriath Jearim. David and all Israel went to Baalah of Judah (Kiriath Jearim) to bring up from there the ark of God the Lord, who is enthroned between the cherubim—the ark that is called by the Name.”
2 Samuel 6:3-5 The ark is brought with great joy. But and there is a big but, they make a fatal mistake. In the past God had given instructions that the ark had to be carried by the poles by the Levites. In Exodus 25:15 when Moses was given instructions to build it, he was told that the poles were to remain in situ and not taken from the rings through which they fitted. Time has passed and maybe David forgot or simply overlooked the instructions about transportation. No doubt he had been informed that the ark had come from the Philistines on a cart, and maybe he wanted to do better than the Philistines, but for some reason he overlooked the vital instruction. Admittedly, the excitement of bringing back the ark could have got to him.
They set it on a new cart. It may have seemed good and it was new, but it was in direct violation of God’s law laid down in Numbers 7:9 and 18:3. It was to David’s credit that he wanted to bring back the ark, but he was careless in its execution in that he provided a new cart to transport it. Note the emphasis on a ‘new cart’ – this was not any old cart and maybe David thought that God would be impressed!
In Numbers 7 covered carts were given to the Gershonites and Merarites for carrying tabernacle items but the Kohathites were not given carts because they must carry the things allocated to them, including the ark of the covenant which must be carried on their shoulders.
The ark was meant to be carried (Exodus 25:12-15) and only by the Levites of the family of Koath (Numbers 4:15) They were not to look at or touch the things in case they die. Only Aaron and his sons, the priests were permitted to attend to everything behind the veil in The Most Holy Place.
Even Abinadab said nothing despite his apparent reverence of the ark, and he even allowed his sons to drive the cart. Uzzah and Ahio sons of Abinadab were guiding the cart. Ahio in front of it leading the oxen and Uzzah, I presume to the rear or alongside to keep the oxen on the move. Some procession – excitement was high! The whole orchestra played and there was great rejoicing, until …. Whoops! The oxen stumbled. If it had been carried this would not have happened, but it was on a cart and the ground was probably uneven. It arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon (or Chidon – 1 Chronicles 13:9) and Uzzah reached out and took hold of it to steady it. A natural thing to do, you might say. Then in v7 we read “The Lord’s anger burned, and He struck Uzzah there for his error (irreverence) and he died there by the ark of God.”
A bit severe, you might think but there must have been a good reason for we don’t read of the anger of The Lord being aroused without good reason.
Let’s go back – the ark was being brought back from disuse. That was good, sure God wasn’t angry about that. The people were rejoicing – nothing wrong with that, probably about time they did! What was wrong was the mode of transport – four men, not just any men, but Levites should have been carrying it with the poles provided, not dancing around and generally getting excited. It should not have been on a cart, even though it was a new cart. David should have known better. The Philistines sent it on a cart, but they didn’t know any better and they were trying to get rid of it quickly. And now he brings it from the house of Abinadab on a cart! David and the whole house of Israel were celebrating.
We can’t push or pull the presence of God around; we have Him in our hearts, and we carry Him around with us. There’s no easy way to lighten the load. In fact, it shouldn’t seem like a load or a burden.
Uzzah did what he did probably out of the best of motives and no doubt very sincerely, but he was wrong. I would say, he should have let it fall to the floor and possibly smash. I say probably because David’s inattention to God’s commands caused Uzzah to die. In all the euphoria of bringing the ark back he made a fatal mistake. It is far more important that we obey God’s Word than appear to get excited and in doing so forget and disobey God’s Word. It was fatal for Uzzah. Some may think God was harsh on him. He was a Levite and should have known he wasn’t allowed to touch it. It is said that the ark had been in his house before. He may have done it instinctively to stop it falling but I venture to suggest that God wouldn’t have allowed it to fall! Nothing wrong with rejoicing and showing delight except when in so doing we forget and disobey God’s Word. People often say and do strange things when they get carried away with euphoria. It can cause us to be careless.
Note that this happened when David and all Israel were worshipping God, it was joyous, but God was not pleased with it because it was in the midst of disobedience in carrying the ark on a cart, however new the cart was.
Our worship must be in Spirit and in truth. However much we may get excited it must not be at the expense of truth, obedience to God’s word and in His Spirit. There is a very important lesson for us as individuals and in our churches. We must be careful in thinking we can copy the world’s ideas to further the work of the Gospel. We must obey God’s Word and follow His commands otherwise the consequences could be fatal. We are often guilty of compromise, and this must not be. This is the work of God and He must be obeyed. I am not saying that we must not work in accordance with the law of the land but when man’s law and God’s law conflict, we must always follow God’s law. Of course, we must be efficient and carry out our work totally above board, but we must act spiritually. “God’s work must be done in God’s way if we are to have God’s blessing.” (Warren Wiersbe)
Another commentator has said that it is the devil’s deception telling us that to win the lost we have to become like them. We should be different so that they will be attracted to The Lord Jesus.
It is clear that we cannot play around with our worship of Almighty God.
Many Christians and churches are getting involved in or including worldly, even pagan practices in their services. We must follow the teachings of God’s word and not add anything to, nor take anything away from it. We are warned in 1 Peter 2:11 “Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul”. And in 2 Peter 2:1,2 “But there were also false prophets among the people just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.”
I quote Alan Redpath, “We want God’s presence very much, don’t we? But we like to hitch His presence to some of our new carts. We like to add Him to our list of organizations, to load Him on top of the mechanics of a busy life, and then drive. How much of our service is really in the energy of the flesh, I wonder! So often we put forth our hands, but not our hearts.”
David was afraid of The Lord that day. He was also angry with God. He called the place Perez Uzzah (Outburst against Uzzah). His fear was that he was concerned that the ark could not come back to him and asked (The Lord) “How can the ark of The Lord come to me?” (2 Samuel 6:9)He was afraid that if it did, they would always suffer some catastrophe. The answer was simple, he knew very well how it should be transported but his anger got the better of him and caused a mental blockage!
David was a man after the heart of God and God was with him, but it didn’t mean he was perfect. He made many mistakes but when he did, he repented and came back to God.
On this occasion (2 Samuel 6:9) David was so afraid of the Lord. He would not move the ark, presumably it was still stuck in the threshing floor on the road on this cart but “He wouldn’t take it with him into the City of David” instead he took it to the house of Obed-Edom, the Gittite. He was either from Gath, which would be quite amazing as that’s where Goliath was from or more probably Gath-Rimmon, one of the Levitical cities (Joshua 21:24). The ark remained there for three months, and The Lord blessed him and his household. However, in 1 Chronicles 15 Obed-Edom is referred to as a Levite of the family of Koath, who in Numbers 4:15 had been commanded to take care of the carrying of the ark. So, it was in the right place for now. Even though he may have been a Gittite, he was a follower of Israel’s God and a Levite more probably from Gath Rimmon as above.
1 Chronicles 13:14 tells us “The ark of God remained with the family of Obed-Edom in his house for three months, and the Lord blessed his household and everything he had.”
David’s plan to start off with was right by bringing the Ark – the symbol of the presence of God, back to his city, but it ended in disaster. His motives were right, but he went about it in the wrong way. How careful we must be to follow God’s instructions in His Word. David’s motives seemed right, Uzzah’s motives seemed right but however sincere we may be, if we do not obey God’s Word, it will end in disaster. In v12-15 When David learned that The Lord had blessed Obed-Edom and his family because of the presence of the ark, I suppose he felt it was now safe, so he went and brought it to the city of David with rejoicing. He instructed them about the proper order (v13) “For because you did not do it right the first time, The Lord our God broke out against us, because we did not consult Him about the proper order.” Thus, when God was obeyed blessings followed. David had learned during that three months what the will of God was, and no doubt recalled that the ark must be carried on poles.
This time it was carried correctly. It is evident from 1 Chronicles 15:13 that David realised and told the people why the calamity had befallen them because they had been disobedient and had failed to consult God. The Ark, which represented the presence of God, was a blessing to those who obeyed God, but an object of terror to those who did not. David was still afraid to bring the ark to his city but when he got back to God’s instructions and realised his mistake, he got ready to bring the ark to the place prepared, to God’s house, and he did it with joy (2 Samuel 6:16,25). The ark had been a problem, but only when God’s orders were not followed and when they were followed it was a joy to have.
Isn’t that like God’s Word and His Law? It can be a problem when we don’t want to follow it and when we want to go our own way. It is only when we “Delight to do Your way” (Psalm 1:2, Psalm 37:4, Psalm 40:8, Psalm 119:92, Romans 7:22 etc.) that God’s will becomes a delight and not a drudgery. David wrote a Psalm and gave it to Asaph and the musicians and singers to sing – 1 Chronicles 16:8-22 Psalm 105:1-15. So, it was a medley of Psalms put together to make a song of rejoicing to God.
In 1 Chronicles 16 we read that after they had brought the Ark and set it inside the tent, they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before God and David blessed the people in the name of The Lord. After the Ark had come, Asaph and a list of others were appointed to celebrate, to thank and to praise The Lord, The God of Israel and to invoke the people to do so. David composes a Song of Thanks (v8-36, also in Psalms, chiefly 105).
According to 1 Chronicles 16:39 the original tabernacle had been left at Gibeon and David had prepared a tent for the Ark in Jerusalem. All the people return to their own homes and families, no doubt rejoicing in the fact that the Ark was now back where it should be.
Before we leave this chapter let us think about the Ark which was a curse on those who disobeyed but a blessing on those who obeyed. It reminds us of Paul in 2 Corinthians 2:15,16 where he says “For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? To some the message of the Gospel is a message of hope which brings eternal life, but to others it is a stumbling block and an offence which brings eternal death. This wonderful message can have a twofold effect on its hearers.
Chapter 25 continues with instructions for the other furniture for the tabernacle. Next are the details for the mercy seat (v17-22). It was to be two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half in width. He was to make two cherubim of gold of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat, one at each end. The cherubim and the mercy seat were to be made of one piece of gold. Their wings were to be stretched out, covering the mercy seat, facing one another with their faces downwards to the mercy seat. The mercy seat was to be the lid and placed on top of the Ark in which the Testimony (Ten Commandments) was to be placed. It was as if God dwelt between the cherubim – “And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony, about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.”
The cherubim were not to be worshiped, but God who dwelt there.
Next, we had the table of showbread (v23-39). This was to be made out of acacia wood, two cubits long (3 feet), a cubit wide (1 ft 6 in) and a cubit and a half high (2 ft 3 in). It was to be overlaid with pure gold all around. Like the Ark it was to have four rings of gold placed at the four corners at its legs. Once again it was to have poles of acacia wood overlaid with gold so that it could be carried. There were also dishes, pans, pitchers and bowls made of pure gold.
Verse 30 told them what the table was for “And you shall set the showbread on the table before Me always.”
According to Leviticus 24:5-9, showbread was made of fine flour, and twelve cakes of showbread – one for each tribe of Israel – set on the table, sprinkled lightly with frankincense. Once a week, the bread was replaced, and normally only priests could eat the old bread. It was literally, ‘the bread of faces.’ It was fellowship with God at the table.
Next, we had the lampstand (v31-36) The lampstand was hammered out of pure gold, without specific dimensions. It had one middle shaft with three branches coming out of each side, for a total of seven places for lamps. A modern-day menorah seems to fit the bill. There were golden bowls like almond blossoms on each branch.
There were to be seven lamps for it to give light (v37-40). The wick trimmers were to be also of pure gold and their trays. It was all to be made out of a talent of pure gold (about 75 lb) all made according to God’s pattern (v9). This would be the only light in the tabernacle.
