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Chapter 14: The Ark Of The Covenant
God commanded Moses and the Israelites to build the Ark of the Covenant during their sojourn in the wilderness, after he had delivered them from slavery in Egypt. Exodus 25:9-11 & 21 "Have them make a chest of acacia wood--two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. Overlay it with pure gold, both inside and out, and make a gold molding around it. Place the cover on top of the ark and put in the ark the Testimony, which I will give you. The Ark of the Covenant was originally a portable wooden chest containing the two stone tablets of the ten commandments. In ancient Israel's history it served as a symbol of God's presence and as a military rallying point. It was carried at the head of the column when the Jews fled from Egypt, and before the army in battle. The Software Toolworks Encyclopedia Exodus 40:2-3 "Set up the tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the first month. Place the ark of the Testimony in it and shield the ark with the curtain. God commanded Moses to have the most skillful workmen build the ark and to place inside of it three items. These items were, Aaron’s staff, with which he performed the miracles in Egypt, the stone tablets on which were written the ten commandments, and a jar of manna. This chest, was known as the "Ark of the Covenant. It was to be carried by the Levites to lead the Israelites when they went to war, and in times of peace it was to reside in the most holy place in the tabernacle, and later in the temple. Moses heard the voice of God speaking to him from above the Ark of the Covenant. Hebrews 9:3-4 Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered Ark of the Covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron's staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. Numbers 7:89 When Moses entered the Tent of Meeting to speak with the LORD, he heard the voice speaking to him from between the two cherubim above the atonement cover on the ark of the Testimony. And he spoke with him. By the time the temple was built, Aaron’s staff and the jar of manna had disappeared. 1 Kings 8:1, 6, & 9 King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs of the Israelite families, to bring up the ark of the Lord's covenant from Zion, the City of David. The priests then brought the ark of the Lord's covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim. There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb, where the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt. The Disappearance Of The Ark
The Ark of the Covenant disappeared during the time of Jeremiah the prophet, when the Jews were conquered and carried off to Babylon, and the temple was destroyed. Some of the Jews fled to Egypt to escape from the Babylonian army, and they forced Jeremiah to accompany them. Jeremiah 43:6-7 They also led away all the men, women and children and the king's daughters whom Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard had left with Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, and Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch son of Neriah. So they entered Egypt in disobedience to the LORD and went as far as Tahpanhes. In the 2nd book of Maccabees, which is found in the Catholic and Orthodox bible, there is an account of what happened to the Ark of the Covenant. 2 Maccabees 2:4-8 RSV It was also in the writing that the prophet, having received an oracle, ordered that the tent and the ark should follow with him, and that he went out to the mountain where Moses had gone up and had seen the inheritance of God. (Mount Sinai) And Jeremiah came and found a cave, and he brought there the tent and the ark and the altar of incense, and he sealed up the entrance. Some of those who followed him came up to mark the way, but could not find it. When Jeremiah learned of it, he rebuked them and declared: "the place shall remain unknown until God gathers his people together again and shows his mercy. And then the Lord will disclose these things, and the glory of the Lord and the cloud will appear, as they were shown in the case of Moses, and as Solomon asked that the place should be specially consecrated. There is a prophecy in the book of Maccabees concerning the Ark of the Covenant. The prophecy states the ark will be found when God gathers the Israelites back to their own land, in the last days. The two books of the Maccabees are disputed books, the Catholic church included them in their bible, while the Protestants left them out. Whether inspired or not, the books of the Maccabees are useful because they contain the fulfillment's of the prophecies of Daniel concerning Alexander the great and the Greek empire. The true test of the Maccabean books will be to see if the prophecy concerning the lost ark comes true. After seventy years in Babylon the Israelites returned to their own land as God had promised, and the temple was rebuilt. The Ark of the Covenant however, was never found by the people who returned to Israel. There is also a legend that the ark was taken to Ethiopia before the Babylonian invasion by the descendants of Solomon, and that it still resides in a church in the city of Aksum to this day. Aksum is a town in Tigre province of northern Ethiopia. According to Coptic Christians, it is the traditional site of the Ark of the Covenant, supposedly brought from Jerusalem by the descendants of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. The Software Toolworks Encyclopedia Some say that there are two arks, a real one and a replica. They claim that the descendants of Solomon made a replica of the ark and switched it with the one that was in Jerusalem. The reason for studying the ark is because the finding of an ancient ark, be it the original or a replica could be the catalyst that motivates the Jews to rebuild the temple. One of the purposes of building the first temple was to house the ark. David made Jerusalem the capital of his kingdom, and Solomon built the first Temple to house the Ark of the Covenant. The Software Toolworks Encyclopedia 1 Kings 8:20-21 The LORD has kept the promise he made: I have succeeded David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the LORD promised, and I have built the temple for the Name of the LORD, the God of Israel. I have provided a place there for the ark, in which is the covenant of the LORD that he made with our fathers when he brought them out of Egypt." To the Jews the Ark of the Covenant is a symbol of their God, their history, and their national heritage. Today, a holy ark can be found in every synagogue. It is placed in the wall facing Jerusalem (the eastern wall in Europe and America) and contains the Torah scrolls. The Software Toolworks Encyclopedia. Every synagogue contains a replica of the ark. It is clear that the Ark of the Covenant is still a prominent feature in the minds of the Jews. But, it will not be that way forever. Jeremiah 3:12 & 14-16 Go, proclaim this message toward the north: "'Return, faithless Israel,' declares the LORD, 'I will frown on you no longer, for I am merciful,' declares the LORD, 'I will not be angry forever. "Return, faithless people," declares the LORD, "for I am your husband. I will choose you--one from a town and two from a clan--and bring you to Zion. Then I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding. In those days, when your numbers have increased greatly in the land," declares the LORD, "men will no longer say, 'The Ark of the Covenant of the LORD.' It will never enter their minds or be remembered; it will not be missed, nor will another one be made. When Jesus Christ returns and saves the Israelites from destruction at the hands of Antichrist they will no longer put their trust in man made objects like temples and wooden chests. Then they will be satisfied to trust only in the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation 11:19 Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. The last mention of an Ark of the Covenant in the bible is in the book of Revelation, where an ark is seen in heaven by the apostle John. This ark must be the one that the ark which Moses built was patterned after. It will be interesting to watch and see if the ark that Moses built, or a replica of it, will be found before or during the "Great Tribulation." It is also possible that the staff of Moses and Aaron which was once in the Ark will be found and used by the Two Witnesses to perform their miracles. |