Exodus 37 — Bezaleel Made the Ark
Bezaleel makes the ark of shittim wood, overlaid with pure gold. He makes the mercy seat, and two cherubim of beaten gold stretching their wings over it. The table of showbread. The candlestick of pure gold, of beaten work. The altar of incense. The holy anointing oil and the pure incense.
“And Bezaleel made the ark of shittim wood.”
— Exodus 37:1
- v.1-9 The ark and the mercy seat with cherubim
- v.10-16 The table of showbread
- v.17-24 The candlestick of pure gold
- v.25-28 The altar of incense
- v.29 The anointing oil and incense
The mercy seat — Greek hilasterion. Paul uses the same word in Romans 3:25 of Christ as the propitiation through faith in his blood. The mercy seat Bezaleel made is the picture; Christ's atonement is the reality.
Pure gold throughout. The mercy seat had no other metal mixed in. The propitiation Christ accomplished is also unmixed — pure mercy meeting pure righteousness, with no concessions to either side.
The cherubim faced each other across the mercy seat, looking down upon it. The same beings who guarded Eden after the fall (Genesis 3:24) now look toward the place of atonement.
1 Peter 1:12 — which things the angels desire to look into. The redemption of fallen man is the angels' study. The cherubim of Bezaleel's making depict heaven's ongoing fascination with what God is doing on earth in Christ.
Of beaten work. Hammered from a single piece of pure gold. The candlestick that lit the Holy Place was beaten into shape — a fitting picture of the One who would be smitten that He might be light.
Isaiah 53:5 — he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities. The Light of the World was beaten into His ministry. The bruising made the candle.
The chapter closes with the perfumes — the oil for anointing, the incense for the altar. Bezaleel did not only construct furniture; he also prepared the substances that would be used in worship.
A reminder that the practical preparation of worship matters. Someone makes the bread for communion. Someone tunes the instruments. Someone cleans the floor. The Bezaleels of every age are still needed.
Where God has assigned you a specific task, do it precisely. Do not improve on His design with your own creativity where He has been specific. Bezaleel did not add to the ark; he built what was commanded. The Christian life has both freedom and pattern; honor what God has fixed.
Every piece of furniture in this chapter prefigures Christ. He is the ark — the holy testimony covered with gold-overlaid wood (deity and humanity). He is the mercy seat — the meeting place where wrath is appeased. He is the candlestick — the light. He is the altar of incense — our intercessor. He is the anointing oil — the source of the Spirit. The whole Holy Place is one extended picture of Him.
Bezaleel — singular — is named as the maker. While he had helpers, the chief work of fashioning the most sacred items was assigned to one man. Responsibility for the holiest things often rests on a few.
The dimensions match chapter 25:10 exactly. No deviation from the divine pattern. The man Spirit-filled with wisdom built precisely what God had commanded — and not an inch otherwise.