b>TABERNACLE (1.) A house or dwelling-place (Job 5:24; 18:6, etc.).

(2.) A portable shrine (comp. Acts 19:24) containing the image of Moloch (Amos 5:26; marg. and R.V., “Siccuth”).

(3.) The human body (2 Cor. 5:1, 4); a tent, as opposed to a permanent dwelling.

(4.) The sacred tent (Heb. mishkan, “the dwelling-place”); the movable tent-temple which Moses erected for the service of God, according to the “pattern” which God himself showed to him on the mount (Ex. 25:9; Heb. 8:5). It is called “the tabernacle of the congregation,” rather “of meeting”, i.e., where God promised to meet with Israel (Ex. 29:42); the “tabernacle of the testimony” (Ex. 38:21; Num. 1:50), which does not, however, designate the whole structure, but only the enclosure which contained the “ark of the testimony” (Ex. 25:16, 22; Num. 9:15); the “tabernacle of witness” (Num. 17:8); the “house of the Lord” (Deut. 23:18); the “temple of the Lord” (Josh. 6:24); a “sanctuary” (Ex. 25:8).

A particular account of the materials which the people provided for the erection and of the building itself is recorded in Ex. 25–40. The execution of the plan mysteriously given to Moses was intrusted to Bezaleel and Aholiab, who were specially endowed with wisdom and artistic skill, probably gained in Egypt, for this purpose (Ex. 35:30–35). The people provided materials for the tabernacle so abundantly that Moses was under the necessity of restraining them (36:6). These stores, from which they so liberally contributed for this purpose, must have consisted in a great part of the gifts which the Egyptians so readily bestowed on them on the eve of the Exodus (12:35, 36).

The tabernacle was a rectangular enclosure, in length about 45 feet (i.e., reckoning a cubit at 18 inches) and in breadth and height about 15. Its two sides and its western end were made of boards of acacia wood, placed on end, resting in sockets of brass, the eastern end being left open (Ex. 26:22). This framework was covered with four coverings, the first of linen, in which figures of the symbolic cherubim were wrought with needlework in blue and purple and scarlet threads, and probably also with threads of gold (Ex. 26:1–6; 36:8–13). Above this was a second covering of twelve curtains of black goats’-hair cloth, reaching down on the outside almost to the ground (Ex. 26:7–11). The third covering was of rams’ skins dyed red, and the fourth was of badgers’ skins (Heb. tahash, i.e., the dugong, a species of seal), Ex. 25:5; 26:14; 35:7, 23; 36:19; 39:34.
Internally it was divided by a veil into two chambers, the exterior of which was called the holy place, also “the sanctuary” (Heb. 9:2) and the “first tabernacle” (6); and the interior, the holy of holies, “the holy place,” “the Holiest,” the “second tabernacle” (Ex. 28:29; Heb. 9:3, 7). The veil separating these two chambers was a double curtain of the finest workmanship, which was never passed except by the high priest once a year, on the great Day of Atonement. The holy place was separated from the outer court which enclosed the tabernacle by a curtain, which hung over the six pillars which stood at the east end of the tabernacle, and by which it was entered.
The order as well as the typical character of the services of the tabernacle are recorded in Heb. 9; 10:19–22.

The holy of holies, a cube of 10 cubits, contained the “ark of the testimony”, i.e., the oblong chest containing the two tables of stone, the pot of manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded.

The holy place was the western and larger chamber of the tabernacle. Here were placed the table for the shewbread, the golden candlestick, and the golden altar of incense.

Round about the tabernacle was a court, enclosed by curtains hung upon sixty pillars (Ex. 27:9–18). This court was 150 feet long and 75 feet broad. Within it were placed the altar of burnt offering, which measured 7 1/2 feet in length and breadth and 4 1/2 feet high, with horns at the four corners, and the laver of brass (Ex. 30:18), which stood between the altar and the tabernacle.
The whole tabernacle was completed in seven months. On the first day of the first month of the second year after the Exodus, it was formally set up, and the cloud of the divine presence descended on it (Ex. 39:22–43; 40:1–38). It cost 29 talents 730 shekels of gold, 100 talents 1,775 shekels of silver, 70 talents 2,400 shekels of brass (Ex. 38:24–31).

The tabernacle was so constructed that it could easily be taken down and conveyed from place to place during the wanderings in the wilderness. The first encampment of the Israelites after crossing the Jordan was at Gilgal, and there the tabernacle remained for seven years (Josh. 4:19). It was afterwards removed to Shiloh (Josh. 18:1), where it remained during the time of the Judges, till the days of Eli, when the ark, having been carried out into the camp when the Israelites were at war with the Philistines, was taken by the enemy (1 Sam. 4), and was never afterwards restored to its place in the tabernacle. The old tabernacle erected by Moses in the wilderness was transferred to Nob (1 Sam. 21:1), and after the destruction of that city by Saul (22:9; 1 Chr. 16:39, 40), to Gibeon. It is mentioned for the last time in 1 Chr. 21:29. A new tabernacle was erected by David at Jerusalem (2 Sam. 6:17; 1 Chr. 16:1), and the ark was brought from Perez-uzzah and deposited in it (2 Sam. 6:8–17; 2 Chr. 1:4).

The word thus rendered (‘ohel) in Ex. 33:7 denotes simply a tent, probably Moses’ own tent, for the tabernacle was not yet erected. 1

TABERNACLE. 1. The tabernacle of the congregation (av), more properly ‘tent of meeting’, as in rv, rsv: a small, provisional meeting-place of God and his people in use before the large tabernacle was built (Ex. 33:7-11). This tent of meeting was pitched outside the camp. Moses would enter it and the Cloud, marking the divine Presence, would descend and stand outside it at the door. In this the function of the tent resembled that of the cleft of the rock in which Moses was placed (Ex. 34:22-23), and that of the cave in which Elijah stood (1 Ki. 19:9-18), to be addressed by God while the glory of God passed by outside. The tabernacle, by contrast, was erected in the midst of the camp, and the Cloud of glory rested not outside but inside it, so that at first Moses had to stay outside (Ex. 40:34-35).

2. The tabernacle commonly so-called was the portable sanctuary in which God dwelt among the Israelites in the desert. After their entry into Canaan, it was stationed successively at Shiloh (Jos. 18:1), at Nob (1 Sa. 21) and at Gibeon (1 Ch. 16:39). Eventually Solomon brought it up to the Temple (1 Ki. 8:4). It is called simply misûkaµn = ‘dwelling’ (evv ‘tabernacle’), as in Ex. 25:9; or misûkaµn YHWH = ‘dwelling of Yahweh’ as in Lv. 17:4; or misûkaµn haÔeµd_uÆt_ = ‘dwelling of the *covenant terms’ (av, rsv ‘of the testimony’), because it housed the covenant tablets, as in Ex. 38:21; or Õoµhel moÆÔeµd = tent (av ‘tabernacle’) of meeting’, i.e. the appointed meeting-place between God and his people, as in Ex. 28:43; or misûkaµn Õoµhel moÔeµd = ‘dwelling of the tent of meeting’, as in Ex. 39:32; or miqdaµsû = ‘sanctuary’ as in Ex. 25:8; or qoÆd_esû = ‘holy place’ (av, rsv ‘sanctuary’), as in Ex. 38:24. It is also called bet_ YHWH = ‘house of Yahweh’, as in Ex. 34:26.

The materials used in its construction are listed at Ex. 25:3-7. The metal translated ‘bronze’ (av ‘brass’) was more probably copper. The colour ‘blue’ was probably a violet-blue and the colour ‘purple’ a reddish-purple. The material translated ‘goatskins, (rsv; av ‘badgers’ skins’) was probably dugong (or ‘porpoise’, neb) skin.

I. Tabernacle, tent, coverings and frames

In its stricter technical meaning the term ‘tabernacle’ refers to a set of ten linen curtains, which when draped round a structure of wooden frames formed God’s dwelling-place. The curtains were of linen with figures of cherubim woven into the violet-blue, reddish-purple and scarlet tapestry-work. Each measuring 28 cubits by 4, they were sewn together along their length into two sets of five, which when assembled were held together by fifty golden clasps (av ‘taches’) passing through loops on the edge of each set (Ex. 26:1-6). The tabernacle was covered by eleven goats’-hair curtains, called in strict terminology ‘the tent’ (Ex. 26:7-15). They each measured 30 cubits by 4, were sewn together into two sets, one of five, the other of six, which when assembled were held together, like the tabernacle, by loops and clasps, only their clasps were of copper.
Over the tent went a covering of tanned (literally, ‘reddened’) rams’ skins, and over that again (cf. neb ‘an outer covering’; av, rv ‘above’,) a covering of dugong skin (Ex. 26:14).
These curtains were spread over the top, back and two sides of a framework (Ex. 26:15-30) assembled from forty-eight units, each 10 cubits high and 1 1/2 wide, called qeraµsûéÆm. The most likely interpretation of these qeraµsûéÆm is that given by A. R. S. Kennedy (HDB, 4, pp. 659-662); they were not solid boards (as av, rv), nor planks (as neb), but open frames, each consisting of two long uprights yaµd_oÆt_: not ‘tenons’ as in most versions) joined by cross-rails somewhat like a ladder. Such frames would have three advantages over solid planks: they would be much lighter, less liable to whip, and instead of hiding the beautiful tabernacle curtains would allow them to be seen from the inside all round the walls. The feet of the two uprights in each frame stood in sockets made of silver obtained from the census tax (Ex. 30:11-16; 38:25-27). Twenty frames in their sockets, stationed side by side, formed each side of the tabernacle; six formed the rear. In each corner at the rear was an extra frame. The purpose of these extra frames, to give rigidity to the whole structure, is clear; but the details of the specification are not.

Perhaps the best explanation is that given by U. Cassuto: each corner frame was coupled (not ‘separate’ as rsv) at the bottom and the top so as to form a twin with the end frame in the side, and then clamped to its twin by means of a metal ring (translating v. 24 ‘into the one ring’ and not ‘at the first ring’, as rsv). To keep the frames in alignment five bars ran along the sides and rear through gold rings attached to the cross-rails of each frame. The middle bar ran the whole length, the other four only part of the way. The frames and bars were made of acacia wood overlaid with gold.

When the frames were assembled the distance from the top of the frames at the front along the roof and down to the bottom of the frames at the rear was 20 x 1 1/2 + 10 = 40 cubits. The assembled tabernacle curtains measured 28 cubits by 10 x 4 = 40 cubits. They were spread over the frames so that the 40 cubits ran from the top front of the frames to the rear bottom. The assembled tent curtains measured 30 cubits by 11 x 4 = 44 cubits. When they were spread over the tabernacle curtains, the extra 2 cubits (30 as against 28) gave an overhang of 1 cubit on each side (Ex. 26:13). The extra 4 cubits in the other direction (44 as against 40) were disposed as follows: at the rear the tent extended 2 cubits beyond the tabernacle curtains (v. 12), and at the front the other 2 cubits were doubled back and, presumably, tucked under the tabernacle curtains all the way along the top and sides, so protecting what otherwise would have been an exposed edge of tabernacle curtain (v. 9). The word used for arranging the curtains over the frames is not the normal word for pitching a tent, nataÆ, but paµrasŒ, which means ‘to spread’ (it is used of wrapping cloths round the furniture). The roof was flat. To prevent the curtains from sagging at the roof and so causing the frames to collapse inwards, there were probably (the text does not say so, but it omits many details which one would need to know to make a tabernacle) wooden struts running across the top of the framework from side to side (see, for comparison, the portable pavilion of Hetep-heres). J. Fergusson (Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, 3, pp. 1452-1454) and many others have argued unconvincingly that the curtains must have been spread over a ridge-pole. Some of their arguments presuppose that the sides and rear of the tabernacle were formed of solid planks; since they were formed not of planks but of open fragments, their arguments are invalid, and would lead to the impossible result of exposing the holy place and the most holy to view from the outside. Other arguments are invalidated by their failure to observe that the term ‘tabernacle’ in Ex. 26:1-13 refers not to the building in general but to the ten linen curtains.

II. The interior

The interior of the dwelling was divided into two compartments by a veil hung under (not ‘from’ as rsv) the clasps that joined the tabernacle curtains (Ex. 26:31-34). Hence we know that the first compartment was 20 cubits long, the second 10. The height of the frames, 10 cubits, gives us the second dimension, and in all probability the breadth of both compartments was 10 cubits likewise: for while the six frames at the back give a total breadth of 9 cubits, allowance must be made for the thickness of the side frames and corner frames.The first compartment is called ‘the holy place’, the second ‘the holy of holies’, i.e. the most holy place, or simply ‘the holy place’ (Lv. 16:2-3; Heb. 9:12; 10:19, rv. rsv ‘sanctuary’ in these latter two verses is misleading: entry into the holy of holies is intended). Again, the first compartment is sometimes called ‘the first tabernacle’ and the second ‘the second tabernacle’ (Heb. 9:6-7, av, rv; rsv ‘the outer tent’ and ‘the second’ respectively). The dividing veil (paµroµk_et_: a term used of no other hanging), made of the same material, colours and design as the tabernacle curtains, was hung by gold hooks on four acacia-wood pillars overlaid with gold and standing in silver sockets. The pillars had no capitals. At the door (= doorway) was a linen screen of violet-blue, reddish-purple and scarlet (but without cherubim).It hung by gold hooks on five acacia-wood pillars overlaid with gold standing in copper sockets. These pillars did have capitals and were overlaid with gold, as were their fillets (Ex. 26:36-37). To distinguish the paµroµk_et_ from this screen, the paµroµk_et_ is sometimes called the second veil.

III. The furniture

In the most holy place stood the *ark of the covenant (Ex. 25:10-22). A slab (av, rsv ‘mercy seat’) of pure gold with a cherub at each end rested on top. The name of this slab, kappoµret means not ‘lid’ but ‘propitiatory’, i.e. place where the blood of propitiation was sprinkled. This is how the lxx (hilasteµrion) understood it as does the NT (Heb. 9:5; rsv ‘mercy seat’). The poles for carrying the ark ran through rings attached to the feet (not ‘corners’, as in av) of the ark (Ex. 25:12). There is no implied discrepancy between Ex. 25:15 and Nu. 4:8. The latter verse indicates that to facilitate the covering of the ark for transport the poles were temporarily removed and immediately replaced: the former verse directs that at all other times the poles were to be left in their rings even when the ark was not travelling.

In the holy place in front of the veil was the incense-altar (Ex. 30:1-10). Made of acacia wood and overlaid with pure gold—hence its other name, ‘the golden altar’—it was a cubit square and 2 cubits high, with horns projecting at the four corners and an ornamental gold moulding round the top. (For a pagan, stone incense-altar with horns, see *Altar.) For transport, two poles were shot through gold rings attached just under the moulding. The altar stood directly opposite the ark (note the emphasis of 30:6), and so was regarded as ‘belonging to’ the most holy place (cf. 1 Ki. 6:22 and Heb. 9:4, where ‘golden altar of incense’ and not ‘censer’ seems to be the right translation). With the position of the altar compare the position of the two incense-altars in the temple at Arad (BA 31, 1968, pp. 22ff).
On the N side (Ex. 26:35) stood a table for the Bread of the Presence (av ‘shewbread’; *Showbread) (Ex. 25:23-29). One such table and a lampstand (see below) from Herod’s Temple are represented on Titus’ Arch at Rome. Some doubt is cast, however, on the accuracy of these sculptures, since on the lampstand’s base various non-Jewish figures appear. The detail of v. 25 is uncertain. Some translators envisage an 8-cm wide horizontal border, some an 8-cm high vertical rim, or frame, running round the top of the table, others, in agreement with apparent vestiges on Titus’ Arch, envisage 8-cm broad cross-struts between the legs of the table.

The vessels connected with the table were: plates, presumably for the bread; dishes (kappoµt_: for incense, so rsv; cf. kap_, in Nu. 7:14 = av ‘spoon’); and flagons and bowls for drink-offerings (not as av ‘to cover withal’).
On the S side (Ex. 26:35) stood the *lampstand, menoµraÆh (av ‘candlestick’) (Ex. 25:31-40), in the form of a stylized tree. In strict technical parlance the base and central shaft form the lampstand proper; the six branches are then described as ‘going out of the lampstand’ (v. 33). In v. 31 the rsv‘s literal translation, ‘its cups, its capitals, and its flowers’, i.e. three items, is to be preferred to interpretative renderings such as that of neb ‘its cups, both calyxes and petals’, i.e. one item made up of two parts. The capitals were round protuberances of some kind, in the arms and shaft of the lampstand (not, as ‘capital’ might suggest, on the ends of them). It is probable, but not completely certain, that the six branches rose to the same height as the central shaft. The seven lamps were presumably placed one on the end of each of the six branches and one on the central shaft. There were provided *snufflers and *trays.

IV. Court

The tabernacle stood in the W half of a courtyard, 100 x 50 cubits, the long sides running N and S (Ex. 27:9-19). The tabernacle door faced E.
The courtyard was bounded by a linen screen (evv ‘hangings’) 5 cubits high hung on pillars. There was an opening for a gate, 20 cubits wide, set centrally in the E end. The gate screen was linen, embroidered in violet-blue, reddish-purple and scarlet.

The pillars were apparently made of acacia wood (they are not mentioned in the list of copper articles, Ex. 38:29-31), and stood in copper sockets. They were stabilized by guy-ropes and pegs, and had capitals overlaid with silver, and silver bands, called fillets, round the neck.
Three main methods are advocated for spacing the pillars:

(1) On the basic assumption that there was one pillar per 5 cubits of hanging, and that no pillar was counted twice, sixty pillars in all are placed to make twenty spaces along the two long sides and ten spaces along the two ends. The gate screen then hangs on four of its own pillars and one of the others.

It is questionable whether this satisfies the direction for the 20 cubits of gate-screen ‘ . . . their pillars four. . .‘.

(2) The Baraitha on the Erection of the Tabernacle, 5, has it that the pillars stood in the middle of each imaginary space of 5 cubits and that there were no pillars in the corners. (For an attempted solution of the difficulties this would create at the corners and the gate, see M. Levine, The Tabernacle, 1969, pp. 76, 81.).

(3) Since the text nowhere says that the pillars were 5 cubits apart, maybe at the corners the two end pillars stood together. Or perhaps the corner pillars were counted twice (the text does not explicitly state that the total was sixty). The gate could then be recessed (or advanced). But this system gives very awkward measurements for the spaces between the pillars.

In the E half of the court stood an altar. It was called the copper altar from its covering material and the altar of burnt-offering from the chief *sacrifice offered on it (Ex. 27:1-8). It was a hollow framework of acacia wood, 5 cubits square and 3 high, with projecting horns at the top corners. The whole was overlaid with copper. Halfway up the altar, on the outside, was a horizontal ledge (av ‘compass’) running all round. (For a stone altar of comparable dimensions with horns, see Y. Aharoni, BA 37, 1974, pp. 2-6; *Altar.) Running vertically all round from the ground up to the ledge (not ‘extending halfway down the altar’ as rsv) was a grating of copper network, on the four corners of which were the rings for the carrying-poles. The grating was not a hearth, and the altar was topless and hollow. Some suppose that in use it was filled with earth and stones, others that it acted like an incinerator, draught being supplied through the grating. Its service vessels were *pots for ashes, *shovels, *basins, *forks (av *’fleshhooks’) and *firepans.

Between the altar and the door of the tabernacle stood the laver (Ex. 30:17-21; 38:8; 40:29-32). It was a copper basin standing on a copper base. Nothing is told us of its size, shape and ornamentation (nor of its means of transport, though the absence of this detail from the MT of Nu. 4 may be accidental: lxx gives the expected information). It held water for the priests’ ablutions.

In camp the tabernacle court was surrounded first by the tents of the priests and Levites, and outside them by those of the twelve tribes (Nu. 2; 3:1-30).

V. Problems arising

Revision of source-critical theories, particularly those relating to the so-called Priestly texts, together with archaeological discoveries have considerably modified the earlier arguments of the liberal school against the historicity of the tabernacle. See e.g. G. Henton-Davies, IDB, 3, pp. 503-506; Y. Aharoni, Orient and Occident (ed. H. A. Honner, Jr), 1973, p. 6; C. L. Meyers, IDBS, p. 586. Allegations that the instructions for the building of the tabernacle are in parts impracticable, and thus evidently the work of an idealist, would be valid only if the records were intended to be fully detailed blueprints. They are not that, of course, but records ‘for our learning’. Hence many practical details of no aesthetic, symbolic or spiritual value are omitted. At the same time portable pavilions, employing practically the same constructional techniques as the tabernacle, are known to have been in actual use in Egypt long before the time of Moses; see K. A. Kitchen, THB 5-6, 1960, pp. 7-13. From the fact that the instructions for the making of the incense-altar stand in Ex. 30, and not as expected in Ex. 25, it used to be argued that its description is a late addition to Exodus and that the incense-altar was not introduced into Israel’s worship until a comparatively late date. But since incense-altars have been discovered at Arad and at various Canaanite sites dating from the 10th century bc, it is highly improbable that Israel lacked one in the early period. Similarly, on the basis of the wide divergence of the lxx from the MT in Ex. 36-40, it used to be argued that the last chapters of Exodus in Heb. had not yet reached their final form when the lxx was translated, and that the lxx followed in part a Heb. tradition which knew of no incense altar. But the argument is not valid: see D. W. Gooding, The Account of the Tabernacle, 1959.

VI. Significance

Theologically the tabernacle as a dwelling-place of God on earth is of immense importance, as being the first in the series: tabernacle, Temple, the incarnation, the body of the individual believer, the church. It follows from the fact that the tabernacle was built to God’s design as ‘a copy and shadow of heavenly things’ (Heb. 8:5) that its symbols conveyed spiritual meaning to the Israelites of the time. What that meaning was is often stated explicitly, as with the ark and mercy seat (Ex. 25:16, 22; Lv. 16:15-16), the veil and the two-compartment structure (Lv. 16:2; Heb. 9:8), the incense-altar (Ps. 141:2; cf. Lk. 1:10-13; Rev. 5:8; 8:3-4), the laver (Ex. 30:20-21), the copper altar (Lv. 1:3-9; 17:11); and where it is not stated explicitly, as with the table and the lampstand, it is self-evident from their declared function. How far these symbols were also types of spiritual realities later to be revealed to us is disputed. Understandably, the extravagant interpretations that from the early centuries have been placed upon the subject have brought it into disrepute. But the NT declares that the law had ‘a shadow of the good things to come’, which good things actually came with Christ (Heb. 10:1; 9:11). So Christ is said to have entered through the veil (Heb. 6:19-20), and to be set forth as a propitiatory, or mercy seat (Rom. 3:25, hilasteµrion; cf. Lxx Ex. 25:17-22; Lv. 16:15-16. rsv ‘expiation’ is scarcely exact); while the writer to the Hebrews indicates that he could have expounded in this fashion all the tabernacle vessels and not simply the one feature which was relevant to his immediate argument (Heb. 9:5).

Bibliography. A. H. Finn, JTS 16, 1915, pp. 449-482; A. R. S. Kennedy, HDB, 4, pp. 653-668; M. Haran, HUCA 36, 1965, pp. 191-226; U. Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Exodus, 1967, pp. 319ff.; R. K. Harrison, IOT, 1970, pp. 403-410; R. P. Gordon, A Bible Commentary for Today, 1979, pp. 173ff. 2


ALTAR — (Heb. mizbe ah, from a word meaning “to slay”), any structure of earth (Ex. 20:24) or unwrought stone (20:25) on which sacrifices were offered. Altars were generally erected in conspicuous places (Gen. 22:9; Ezek. 6:3; 2 Kings 23:12; 16:4; 23:8; Acts 14:13). The word is used in Heb. 13:10 for the sacrifice offered upon it—the sacrifice Christ offered.

Paul found among the many altars erected in Athens one bearing the inscription, “To the unknown God” (Acts 17:23), or rather “to an [i.e., some] unknown God.” The reason for this inscription cannot now be accurately determined. It afforded the apostle the occasion of proclaiming the gospel to the “men of Athens.”

The first altar we read of is that erected by Noah (Gen. 8:20). Altars were erected by Abraham (Gen. 12:7; 13:4; 22:9), by Isaac (Gen. 26:25), by Jacob (33:20; 35:1, 3), and by Moses (Ex. 17:15, “Jehovah-nissi”).

In the tabernacle, and afterwards in the temple, two altars were erected.

(1.) The altar of burnt offering (Ex. 30:28), called also the “brasen altar” (Ex. 39:39) and “the table of the Lord” (Mal. 1:7).

This altar, as erected in the tabernacle, is described in Ex. 27:1–8. It was a hollow square, 5 cubits in length and in breadth, and 3 cubits in height. It was made of shittim wood, and was overlaid with plates of brass. Its corners were ornamented with “horns” (Ex. 29:12; Lev. 4:18).

In Ex. 27:3 the various utensils appertaining to the altar are enumerated. They were made of brass. (Comp. 1 Sam. 2:13, 14; Lev. 16:12; Num. 16:6, 7.)

In Solomon’s temple the altar was of larger dimensions (2 Chr. 4:1. Comp. 1 Kings 8:22, 64; 9:25), and was made wholly of brass, covering a structure of stone or earth. This altar was renewed by Asa (2 Chr. 15:8). It was removed by Ahaz (2 Kings 16:14), and “cleansed” by Hezekiah, in the latter part of whose reign it was rebuilt. It was finally broken up and carried away by the Babylonians (Jer. 52:17).

After the return from captivity it was re-erected (Ezra 3:3, 6) on the same place where it had formerly stood. (Comp. 1 Macc. 4:47.) When Antiochus Epiphanes pillaged Jerusalem the altar of burnt offering was taken away.

Again the altar was erected by Herod, and remained in its place till the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans (70 A.D.).

The fire on the altar was not permitted to go out (Lev. 6:9).

In the Mosque of Omar, immediately underneath the great dome, which occupies the site of the old temple, there is a rough projection of the natural rock, of about 60 feet in its extreme length, and 50 in its greatest breadth, and in its highest part about 4 feet above the general pavement. This rock seems to have been left intact when Solomon’s temple was built. It was in all probability the site of the altar of burnt offering. Underneath this rock is a cave, which may probably have been the granary of Araunah’s threshing-floor (1 Chr. 21:22).

(2) See ALTAR OF INCENSE 1

ALTAR.

I. In the Old Testament

In all but four of the OT occurrences of the word ‘altar’, the Heb. is mizbeµah, which means ‘place of sacrifice’ (from zaµb_ah, ‘to slaughter for sacrifice’), and one of the remaining occurrences (Ezr. 7:17) is simply its Aram. cognate mad_bah. While etymologically the term involves slaughter, in usage it was not always so restricted, being applied also to the altar for burning incense (Ex. 30:1). For other occurrences of ‘altar’ in the evv, see g, below.

a. The Patriarchs

The Patriarchs built their own altars and offered their own sacrifices on them without having any recourse to a priesthood. Noah built one after the flood and made burnt-offerings on it (Gn. 8:20). Abraham built altars to Yahweh at Shechem, between Bethel and Ai, at Hebron and at Moriah, where he offered a ram instead of Isaac (Gn. 12:6-8; 13:18; 22:9). Isaac did likewise at Beersheba (Gn. 26:25), Jacob erected altars at Shechem and Bethel (Gn. 33:20; 35:1-7), and Moses erected one at Rephidim after the victory of the Israelites over Amalek (Ex. 17:15). The altars were evidently erected mainly to commemorate some event in which the principal had had dealings with God. No information is given as to their construction, but it is reasonable to suppose that they were of the same type as those later allowed in the Mosaic law see d, below).

b. Pre-Israelite altars in Palestine

In the early days of Palestine exploration it was ‘ customary to see altars in many things which today are understood as domestic, agricultural or industrial installations. True altars have, however, been uncovered at several sites from different periods. At Ai, Mme J. Marquet-Krause discovered a small temple of the Early Bronze Age in which was an altar of plastered stones, against the wall, on which animal and food-offerings had been made. In Middle Bronze Age *Megiddo (level XV) two temples were found containing rectangular altars, one of mud bricks and the other of lime-plastered stones. Temples of the Late Bronze Age containing altars of similar type have been found at Lachish, Beth-shean and Hazor. In the levels of this period at Hazor a great hewn block of stone was discovered, with two hollowed basins on one face, perhaps for catching the blood of sacrificed animals. At Megiddo and Nahariyeh great platforms of stones which were probably used as places of sacrifice were uncovered, but these were more *’high places’ than they were true altars.
A number of hewn limestone altars with four horns at the upper corners, dating from about the period of the conquest, were found at Megiddo. These, however, to judge from their relatively small size (largest c. 70 cm high), were probably incense altars. Numerous clay stands which may have been for burning incense have been uncovered at such sites as Megiddo, Beth-shean and Lachish, from Bronze and Iron Age Levels.

Thus altars were in use among the Canaanites in the Promised Land, a fact that gives point to the careful regulations on this matter in the Sinai revelation. That altars were not limited to Palestine is shown by the discoveries at such sites as Eridu, Ur, Khafajah and Assur in Mesopotamia, and the episode in which Balaam erected, and offered bullocks on, 7 altars at Kiriath-huzoth (Nu. 23) may perhaps be understood in this light.

c. The altars of the tabernacle

At Sinai God revealed to Moses the specifications for two altars which were to be used in the *tabernacle: the altar of burnt-offering and the altar of incense.

d. Built altars

In Ex. 20:24-26, God instructed Moses to tell the people to make an altar of earth (mizbah Õad_aµmaÆ) or (unhewn) stones (mizbah ÕabaµnéÆm), upon which to sacrifice their offerings. In neither case were there to be steps, so that the ‘nakedness’ of the offerer might not be uncovered. The form of this passage, in which God tells Moses to pass on this instruction to the people, suggests that it, like the Ten Commandments at the beginning of the chapter, was addressed to each Israelite individually, rather than to Moses as their representative as in Ex. 27. It may be that under this provision the layman was permitted to perform this himself, and it is perhaps in the light of this that the altars built by Joshua on Mt Ebal (Jos. 8:30-31; cf. Dt. 27:5), by Gideon in Ophrah (Jdg. 6:24-26), by David on the threshing-floor of Araunah (2 Sa. 24:18-25) and by Elijah on Mt Carmel (1 Ki. 18), as well as the episodes described in Jos. 22:10-34 and 1 Sa. 20:6, 29, are to be viewed (cf. Ex. 24:4).

e. The Temple of Solomon

In building his *Temple, Solomon, though influenced by his Phoenician associates, sought to follow the basic layout of the tabernacle and its court. Though David had already built an altar of burnt-offerings (2 Sa. 24:25), Solomon probably built a new one, as is indicated by 1 Ki. 8:22, 54, 64 and 9:25 (not mentioned in the main description, 1 Ki. 6-7). Altars of this period are well illustrated by the finds (IA II period) at Arad where in the temple courtyard stood an altar made of brick and rubble for burnt-offerings (cf. Ex. 20:25) which measured 5 cubits sq. (2.5 m) like that of the tabernacle (Ex. 17:1; cf. 2 Ch. 6:13). Two stone incense-altars with concave bowl-shaped tops were found on a step leading up to the ‘holy of holies’. Other Israelite incense-altars of the Israelite period have been recovered from Beersheba, etc.

f. False altars

Unlawful altars were in use in both Israel and Judah, as is shown by the condemnations of the prophets (Am. 3:14; Ho. 8:11) and the account of Jeroboam’s sins in 1 Ki. 12:28-33, as well as by archaeological finds.

g. Ezekiel’s vision

During the Exile, Ezekiel had a vision of Israel restored and the Temple rebuilt (Ezk. 40-44), and while no incense altar is mentioned, the altar of burnt offering in this visionary temple is described in detail (43:13-17). It consisted of 3 stages reaching to a height of 11 cubits on a base 18 cubits square. It was thus in form reminiscent of a Babylonian ziggurat, and this impression is furthered by the names of some of its parts. The base, heÆq haµÕaµres (Ezk. 43:14, av ‘bottom upon the ground’, literally ‘bosom of the earth’) recalls the Akkadian irat irsiti with the same meaning, and the terms harÕeµl and ariÕeÆl translated ‘altar’ in vv. 15-16 may be Hebraized forms of Akkadian arallu, one of the names for the underworld, which had the secondary meaning ‘mountain of the gods’. Such borrowings from the Babylonian vocabulary, which would be independent of their etymological meaning, would have been normal after an exile of many years in Babylonia. The altar was ascended by a flight of steps, and the 4 upper corners bore horns.

h. The second Temple

When the Temple was rebuilt after the Return it was presumably provided with altars. These are referred to in Josephus (Contra Apionem 1. 198) and in the Letter of Aristeas, but on this period neither of these authors can be followed uncritically. In 169 bc Antiochus Epiphanes carried off the ‘golden altar’ (1 Macc. 1:21), and 2 years later he surmounted the altar of burnt offering with a ‘desolating sacrilege’ (1 Macc. 1:54), probably an image of Zeus. The Maccabees built a new altar and restored the incense altar (1 Macc. 4:44-49), and these must have continued in use when Herod enlarged the *Temple in the latter part of the 1st century bc. In his time the altar of burnt offering was a great pile of unhewn stones, approached by a ramp.

II. In the New Testament

In the NT two words for altar are used, that most frequently found being thysiasteµrion, which is used often in the lxx for mizbeµah. This word is used of the altar on which Abraham prepared to offer Isaac (Jas. 2:21), of the altar of burnt offering in the Temple (Mt. 5:23-24; 23:18-20, 35; Lk. 11:51; 1 Cor. 9:13; 10:18; Heb. 7:13; Rev. 11:1), and of the altar of incense, not only in the earthly Temple (Lk. 1:11) but also in the heavenly (Rev. 6:9; 8:5; 9:13; 14:18; 16:7; cf. also Rom. 11:3; Heb. 13:10). The other word, boµmos, is used once (Acts 17:23). It was used in the lxx for both mizbeµah and baµmaÆ (*High place), and had primarily the meaning of a raised place.

Bibliography. R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel. Its Life and Institutions, 1961, pp. 406-414, 546; B. F. Westcott, The Epistle to the Hebrews, 1889, pp. 453ff.; A. Edersheim, The Temple, Its Ministry and Services as they were at the Time of Jesus Christ, 1874, pp. 32-33. 2


LAVER (WASHING BASIN) — (Heb. kiyor, a “basin” for boiling in, a “pan” for cooking (1 Sam. 2:14), a “fire-pan” or hearth (Zech. 12:6), the sacred wash-bowl of the tabernacle and temple (Ex. 30:18, 28; 31:9; 35:16; 38:8; 39:39; 40:7, 11, 30, etc.), a basin for the water used by the priests in their ablutions.

That which was originally used in the tabernacle was of brass (rather copper; Heb. nihsheth), made from the metal mirrors the women brought out of Egypt (Ex. 38:8). It contained water wherewith the priests washed their hands and feet when they entered the tabernacle (40:32). It stood in the court between the altar and the door of the tabernacle (30:19, 21).

In the temple there were ten lavers used for the sacrifices, and the molten sea for the ablutions of the priests (2 Chr. 4:6). The position and uses of these are described 1 Kings 7:23–39; 2 Chr. 4:6. The “molten sea” was made of copper, taken from Tibhath and Chun, cities of Hadarezer, king of Zobah (1 Chr. 18:8; 1 Kings 7:23–26).

No lavers are mentioned in the second temple.
Easton, M. G., M. A. D. D., Easton’s Bible Dictionary, (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.) 1996. 1


(TABLE OF) SHEWBREAD — Ex. 25:30 (R.V. marg., “presence bread”); 1 Chr. 9:32 (marg., “bread of ordering”); Num. 4:7: called “hallowed bread” (R.V., “holy bread”) in 1 Sam. 21:1–6.

This bread consisted of twelve loaves made of the finest flour. They were flat and thin, and were placed in two rows of six each on a table in the holy place before the Lord. They were renewed every Sabbath (Lev. 24:5–9), and those that were removed to give place to the new ones were to be eaten by the priests only in the holy place (see 1 Sam. 21:3–6; comp. Matt. 12:3, 4).

The number of the loaves represented the twelve tribes of Israel, and also the entire spiritual Israel, “the true Israel;” and the placing of them on the table symbolized the entire consecration of Israel to the Lord, and their acceptance of God as their God. The table for the bread was made of acacia wood, 3 feet long, 18 inches broad, and 2 feet 3 inches high. It was plated with pure gold. Two staves, plated with gold, passed through golden rings, were used for carrying it.
Easton, M. G., M. A. D. D., Easton’s Bible Dictionary, (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.) 1996. 1

(TABLE OF) SHOWBREAD. Heb. lehem happaµnéÆm, lit. ‘bread of the face’, i.e. bread set before the face or presence of God (Ex. 25:30; 35:13; 39:36, etc.) or lehem hammaÔ arek_et_, lit. ‘bread of ordering’ (1 Ch. 9:32, etc.). After Moses had received divine instructions concerning the making of a table, dishes, spoons, covers and bowls for the holy place of the tabernacle, he was directed to place ‘showbread’ on the table. This arrangement was never to cease (Ex. 25:30). The showbread consisted of twelve baked cakes, made of fine flour, each containing two-tenths of an ephah (*Weights and Measures). These were set in two rows, six to a row (maÔarek_et_ Lv. 24:6). Upon each row (lit. ‘the row’, Lv. 24:7) of cakes frankincense was placed ‘as a memorial’ (leÕazkaµraÆ) and was offered by fire to the Lord (Lv. 24:7). It was the duty of the priest each sabbath day to place fresh or hot bread on the table (1 Sa. 21:6). The old cakes then became the perquisite of Aaron and his sons who ate them in the holy place because they were ‘most holy’ (Lv. 24:5-9). It was these loaves that David requested of Ahimelech, the priest, for himself and his men (1 Sa. 21:1-6; cf. Mt. 12:4; Mk. 2:26; Lk. 6:4).
The position of the table upon which the showbread was placed was in the holy place on the N side of the tabernacle opposite the lampstand (Ex. 26:35). The table was made of acacia wood overlaid with gold and bordered with a golden crown. It had a ring at each corner for the rods by which it was carried (Ex. 25:23-28). According to the original commandment it never failed to appear in the appointed place of God’s worship (2 Ch. 4:19; 13:11). The Kohathites had charge of the showbread (1 Ch. 9:32).

The passages referred to do not themselves indicate the significance of the showbread, but it is possible to infer from these data that God is man’s provider and sustainer, and that man lives constantly in the presence of God. This truth makes it obligatory for man to offer his life to God (Rom. 12:1). d.f. 2


CANDLESTICK (LAMPSTAND) — the lamp-stand, “candelabrum,” which Moses was commanded to make for the tabernacle, according to the pattern shown him. Its form is described in Ex. 25:31–40; 37:17–24, and may be seen represented on the Arch of Titus at Rome. It was among the spoils taken by the Romans from the temple of Jerusalem (A.D. 70). It was made of fine gold, and with the utensils belonging to it was a talent in weight.

The tabernacle was a tent without windows, and thus artificial light was needed. This was supplied by the candlestick, which, however, served also as a symbol of the church or people of God, who are “the light of the world.” The light which “symbolizes the knowledge of God is not the sun or any natural light, but an artificial light supplied with a specially prepared oil; for the knowledge of God is in truth not natural nor common to all men, but furnished over and above nature.”

This candlestick was placed on the south side of the Holy Place, opposite the table of shewbread (Ex. 27:21; 30:7, 8; Lev. 24:3; 1 Sam. 3:3). It was lighted every evening, and was extinguished in the morning. In the morning the priests trimmed the seven lamps, borne by the seven branches, with golden snuffers, carrying away the ashes in golden dishes (Ex. 25:38), and supplying the lamps at the same time with fresh oil. What ultimately became of the candlestick is unknown.

In Solomon’s temple there were ten separate candlesticks of pure gold, five on the right and five on the left of the Holy Place (1 Kings 7:49; 2 Chr. 4:7). Their structure is not mentioned. They were carried away to Babylon (Jer. 52:19).

In the temple erected after the Exile there was again but one candlestick, and like the first, with seven branches. It was this which was afterwards carried away by Titus to Rome, where it was deposited in the Temple of Peace. When Genseric plundered Rome, he is said to have carried it to Carthage (A.D. 455). It was recaptured by Belisarius (A.D. 533), and carried to Constantinople and thence to Jerusalem, where it finally disappeared. 1

LAMPS, LAMPSTAND: Small open pottery bowls with one or more slight lips, which can be identified as lamps (Heb. neµr, Gk. lychnos, lampas), first appear in the Middle Bronze Age. This simple form continued in use throughout the Iron Age, the lip becoming more pronounced. The final development took place in the Hellenistic period when the Greek style of lamp with inward curving rim became completely enclosed, a small central hole alone remaining for feeding the oil (cf. Mt. 25:4). These lamps were mass-produced from moulds, one making the base, the other the lid. A very long spout for the wick characterizes Hellenistic lamps; this was shortened in the Roman period. Small handles were sometimes added. The moulds for the lids were frequently impressed with floral and other patterns, and, in the Roman period when the lid became broad and concave, with pictures that appear in relief on the lamps. from the 3rd century ad Christian symbols (cross, fishes, alpha and omega) form decorative motifs, while the seven-branched candlestick (menorah) marks Jewish lamps. The standard Palestinian lamp of the Gospel period was plain, round, with a fairly wide flanged filling hole, and a flared nozzle for the wick, sloping downwards.

Lamps could be held in the hand, set on a shelf or placed on a stand (Heb. menoÆraÆ, 2 Ki. 4:10; Aram. neb_rasûtaÆ, Dn. 5:5; Gk. lychnia, Mt. 5:15; cf. ANEP, no. 657, left edge). A simple wooden stand would serve most households, but some Iron Age lamps were provided with thick bases or separate hollow pedestals. Where brighter light was needed lamps with several spouts were employed, seven-spouted examples having been found in Palestine from this and earlier times, and many with provision for multiple wicks are known from the Roman era.

Pottery forms were copied in metal, although few examples survive from the OT period. In the tabernacle stood the elaborate golden lampstand (Ex. 25:31ff.). Three branches ending in flower-shaped lamp-holders protruded from either side of the main stem, which also supported a lampholder. Representations on certain Maccabean coins, a Herodian period drawing on stone found in Jerusalem and a relief on the arch of Titus supplement Hebrew descriptions, and it may be assumed the pattern given in Exodus was followed closely throughout. Ten similar lampstands were made for Solomon’s Temple (1 Ki. 7:49).
The single lamps described burnt coarse olive oil or fat, and could stay alight for 2 to 4 hours, it seems, with an occasional trimming of the wick which was made of flax or other fibre (Heb. pisûtaÆ, Is. 42:3; 43:17). It might be allowed to die away at night, or be kept alight (1 Sa. 3:3; Pr. 31:18).

Out-of-doors lamps could be carried in pottery vessels, although no examples are known earlier than the Roman era. These were dome-shaped with a flat base, a handle at the top and an opening at one side for the light. Such may have been the ‘lantern’ of Jn. 18:3 (Gk. phanos), or it may have been a more elaborate metal form. Gk. phanos can also mean ‘torch’, and that could be the sense here. Gideon’s men had torches at an earlier date (Heb. lappéÆd_, Jdg. 7:16). 2

THE ALTAR OF INCENSE
(2.) The altar of incense (Ex. 30:1–10), called also “the golden altar” (39:38; Num. 4:11), stood in the holy place “before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony.” On this altar sweet spices were continually burned with fire taken from the brazen altar. The morning and the evening services were commenced by the high priest offering incense on this altar. The burning of the incense was a type of prayer (Ps. 141:2; Rev. 5:8; 8:3, 4).

This altar was a small movable table, made of acacia wood overlaid with gold (Ex. 37:25, 26). It was 1 cubit in length and breadth, and 2 cubits in height.

In Solomon’s temple the altar was similar in size, but was made of cedar-wood (1 Kings 6:20; 7:48) overlaid with gold. In Ezek. 41:22 it is called “the altar of wood.” (Comp. Ex. 30:1–6.)

In the temple built after the Exile the altar was restored. Antiochus Epiphanes took it away, but it was afterwards restored by Judas Maccabaeus (1 Macc. 1:23; 4:49). Among the trophies carried away by Titus on the destruction of Jerusalem the altar of incense is not found, nor is any mention made of it in Heb. 9. It was at this altar Zacharias ministered when an angel appeared to him (Luke 1:11). It is the only altar which appears in the heavenly temple (Isa. 6:6; Rev. 8:3,4). 1

INCENSE. A common feature of OT ritual, incense was a costly offering and a sign essentially of the acknowledgment of deity (cf. Mal. 1:11). The word has a double application: it refers both to the substance used for burning and to the aromatic odour which is produced. Two Heb. words are thus rendered: (1) leb_oenae, ‘frankincense’; and (2) qetouret_, the ‘sweet smoke’ (evv ‘incense’) of Is. 1:13. Among the Israelites only priests were allowed to offer incense. When the Lord gave Moses instructions for Aaron, these included strict regulations concerning the use of incense in the holy place (Lv. 16:12f.). Incense is also used in Scripture as a symbol for prayer (e.g. Ps. 141:2; Rev. 8:3f., Gk. thymiama).

Frankincense (Heb. leb_oÆnaÆ). This substance consisted of the resinous exudate of certain Boswellia trees, the principal species being B.frereana, B. carteri and B. papyrifera in NE Africa, B. sacra in Dhofar, S. Arabia, and B. serrata in NW India, where they grow in semi-desert mountains. They furnished much of the wealth acquired by traders who followed the old spice-routes from S Arabia to Gaza and Damascus (Is. 60:6).

The whitish-yellow aromatic resin was obtained by incising the bark, and, although acrid to the taste, frankincense was extremely odoriferous. It comprised one ingredient of the holy anointing oil (Ex. 30:34), and was also burnt with other substances during the cereal-offering (Lv. 6:15). Frankincense was placed in purified form on the showbread in the tabernacle (Lv. 24:7). While it gratified the senses (Ct. 3:6; 4:6, 14), it was also symbolic of religious fervour (cf. Mal. 1:11). The gift of frankincense presented to Christ by the wise men (Mt. 2:11) has been interpreted as symbolizing his priestly office.
See F. N. Hepper, ‘Arabian and African Frankincense’, JEA 55, 1969, pp. 66-72.
Galbanum (Heb. h/elbenae; etymology uncertain). A strong-smelling spice (Ex. 30:34), usually regarded as the gum of an umbelliferous plant, Ferula galbaniflua, native to Persia.
The other constituents of the sacred incense were stacte and onycha (*Herbs and Spices).
See also *Sacrifice And Offering (OT), IV. a; *Cosmetics And Perfumery, V. b (which includes bibliography). 2

ARK — Noah’s ark, a building of gopher-wood, and covered with pitch, 300 cubits long, 50 cubits broad, and 30 cubits high (Gen. 6:14–16); an oblong floating house of three stories, with a door in the side and a window in the roof. It was 100 years in building (Gen. 5:32; 7:6). It was intended to preserve certain persons and animals from the deluge which God was about to bring over the earth. It contained eight persons (Gen. 7:13; 2 Pet. 2:5), and of all “clean” animals seven pairs, and of “unclean” one pair, and of birds seven pairs of each sort (Gen. 7:2, 3). It was in the form of an oblong square, with flat bottom and sloping roof. Traditions of the Deluge, by which the race of man was swept from the earth, and of the ark of Noah have been found existing among all nations.

The ark of bulrushes in which the infant Moses was laid (Ex. 2:3) is called in the Hebrew teebah, a word derived from the Egyptian teb, meaning “a chest.” It was daubed with slime and with pitch. The bulrushes of which it was made were the papyrus reed.

The sacred ark is designated by a different Hebrew word, <aronÕ, which is the common name for a chest or coffer used for any purpose (Gen. 50:26; 2 Kings 12:9, 10). It is distinguished from all others by such titles as the “ark of God” (1 Sam. 3:3), “ark of the covenant” (Josh. 3:6; Heb. 9:4), “ark of the testimony” (Ex. 25:22). It was made of acacia or shittim wood, a cubit and a half broad and high and two cubits long, and covered all over with the purest gold. Its upper surface or lid, the mercy-seat, was surrounded with a rim of gold; and on each of the two sides were two gold rings, in which were placed two gold-covered poles by which the ark could be carried (Num. 7:9; 10:21; 4:5,19, 20; 1 Kings 8:3, 6). Over the ark, at the two extremities, were two cherubim, with their faces turned toward each other (Lev. 16:2; Num. 7:89). Their outspread wings over the top of the ark formed the throne of God, while the ark itself was his footstool (Ex. 25:10–22; 37:1–9). The ark was deposited in the “holy of holies,” and was so placed that one end of the poles by which it was carried touched the veil which separated the two apartments of the tabernacle (1 Kings 8:8). The two tables of stone which constituted the “testimony” or evidence of God’s covenant with the people (Deut. 31:26), the “pot of manna” (Ex. 16:33), and “Aaron’s rod that budded” (Num. 17:10), were laid up in the ark (Heb. 9:4). (See TABERNACLE ) The ark and the sanctuary were “the beauty of Israel” (Lam. 2:1). During the journeys of the Israelites the ark was carried by the priests in advance of the host (Num. 4:5, 6; 10:33–36; Ps. 68:1; 132:8). It was borne by the priests into the bed of the Jordan, which separated, opening a pathway for the whole of the host to pass over (Josh. 3:15, 16; 4:7, 10, 11, 17, 18). It was borne in the procession round Jericho (Josh. 6:4, 6, 8, 11, 12). When carried it was always wrapped in the veil, the badgers’ skins, and blue cloth, and carefully concealed even from the eyes of the Levites who carried it. After the settlement of Israel in Palestine the ark remained in the tabernacle at Gilgal for a season, and was then removed to Shiloh till the time of Eli, between 300 and 400 years (Jer. 7:12), when it was carried into the field of battle so as to secure, as they supposed, victory to the Hebrews, and was taken by the Philistines (1 Sam. 4:3–11), who sent it back after retaining it seven months (1 Sam. 5:7, 8). It remained then at Kirjath-jearim (7:1,2) till the time of David (twenty years), who wished to remove it to Jerusalem; but the proper mode of removing it having been neglected, Uzzah was smitten with death for putting “forth his hand to the ark of God,” and in consequence of this it was left in the house of Obed-edom in Gath-rimmon for three months (2 Sam. 6:1–11), at the end of which time David removed it in a grand procession to Jerusalem, where it was kept till a place was prepared for it (12–19). It was afterwards deposited by Solomon in the temple (1 Kings 8:6–9). When the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and plundered the temple, the ark was probably taken away by Nebuchadnezzar and destroyed, as no trace of it is afterwards to be found. The absence of the ark from the second temple was one of the points in which it was inferior to the first temple. 1

ARK OF THE COVENANT. Called also ‘ark of the Lord’, ‘ark of God’, ‘ark of the covenant of the Lord’ (Dt. 10:8) and ‘ark of the testimony’ (eµd_uÆt_ = covenant-terms: *Witness). The ark was a rectangular box (OauroEn) made of acacia wood, and measured 2 1/2 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 cubits (i.e. c. 4 x 2 1/2 x 2 1/2 feet or c. 1.22 m x 76 cm x 76 cm). The whole was covered with gold and was carried on poles inserted in rings at the four lower corners. The lid, or ‘mercy-seat’, was a gold plate surrounded by two antithetically placed cherubs with outspread wings.

The ark served (i) as receptacle for the two tablets of the Decalogue (Ex. 25:16, 21; 40:20; Dt. 10:1-5) and also for the pot of manna and Aaron’s rod (Heb. 9:4-5); (ii) as the meeting-place in the inner sanctuary where the Lord revealed his will to his servants (Moses: Ex. 25:22; 30:36; Aaron: Lv. 16:2; Joshua: Jos. 7:6). Thus it served as the symbol of the divine presence guiding his people. The ark was made at Sinai by Bezalel to the pattern given to Moses (Ex. 25:8ff.). It was used as a depository for the written law (Dt. 31:9; Jos. 24:26) and played a significant part at the crossing of Jordan (Jos. 3-4), the fall of Jericho (Jos. 6) and the ceremony of remembering the covenant at Mt Ebal (Jos. 8:30ff.).

From Gilgal the ark was moved to Bethel (Jdg. 2:1; 20:27), but was taken to Shiloh in the time of the Judges (1 Sa. 1:3; 3:3), remaining there till captured by the Philistines on the battlefield at Ebenezer (1 Sa. 4). Because its presence caused 7 months of plagues, the Philistines returned it to Kiriath-jearim, where it remained for 20 years (1 Sa. 5:1-7:2), except possibly for a temporary move to Saul’s camp near Beth-aven (1 Sa. 14:18—where, however, lxx indicates that the original reading was probably ‘ephod’).

David installed the ark in a tent at Jerusalem (2 Sa. 6), and would not remove it during Absalom’s rebellion (2 Sa. 15:24-29). It was placed in the Temple with great ceremony in the reign of Solomon (1 Ki. 8:1ff.), and re-sited in the sanctuary during Josiah’s reforms (2 Ch. 35:3) when Jeremiah anticipated an age without its presence (3:16). It was presumably lost during the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 587 bc. There was no ark in the second Temple (Josephus, BJ 5. 219).
Gold-overlaid wooden receptacles or portable shrines are known from the ancient Near East in pre-Mosaic times. The ark is unique, however, as the repository of the covenant-tablets, i.e. documents bearing the ‘covenant-stipulations’ (Oeud_uEt_). 2

1. Easton, M. G., M. A. D. D., Easton’s Bible Dictionary, (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.) 1996.

2. The New Bible Dictionary, (Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.) 1962.