Contributor: Alex Kokobili
INTRODUCTION
The emphasis of this study on the throne of mercy aims to deepen our understanding of the previous study, in which Moses communicated God’s commands to His people before he went up to Sinai, and by Exodus 24:15-18, Moses ascended Mount Sinai and remained there in God’s presence for 40 days and nights to receive the stone tablets and instructions for the Tabernacle. Today’s study examines the instructions Moses received from God in Sinai to build the tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant, with special attention to God’s mercy.
Exodus 25: 1- 9: God spoke to Moses while on Mount Sinai to instruct the people to give a free-will special offering for the building of the tabernacle. Below are items collected for the building of the tabernacle:
Precious metals: (Gold, Silver, and Bronze), Fabrics: (Blue, purple and scarlet thread, fine linen), Animal hide: (Goat hair, dyed red ram skin, badger skins), Acacia wood, Special oil: Oil for the light (This oil is used for the Menorah - light), Species: (For the anointing oil and sweet incense), Precious stones: (Onyx stones).
Significance of some of the items for the tabernacle:
• The scarlet thread is dyed red using the tola (scarlet worm), which attaches itself to a tree to lay its eggs and dies, leaving a crimson stain. The scarlet is to serve as a purification of the sins of the people (Leviticus 14: 4 the priest shall order that two live clean birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop be brought for the person to be cleansed). Theologians also relate the Hebrew word tola to Psalm 22:6 “But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people”. This relates to how Christ bled for the purpose of the redemption of humanity. The function of the scarlet as a purifier can be related to the function of the Blood of Jesus (Isaiah 1:18, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow"), 1 John 1:7 and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
• The gold. This represents holiness and God's presence, appearing in the Mercy Seat and sacred furnishings (Exodus 25:11, Rev 21: 18); bronze represents judgment, as seen in the altar of sacrifice. This symbolism is linked to Revelation 1, where Jesus is described with a golden sash (holiness) and brass-like feet (judgment).
The reason for the tabernacle:
Exodus 25: 8-9 “And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.9 According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it.
1. God wanted to dwell among His people and for them to have a physical structure patterned after His divine essence of justice, love, and power.
2. To establish priesthood. Though Moses functioned as a priest, prophet, and king, Aaron was to hold the office of a priest (which was later dedicated to the Levites (Exo 28).
Hebrews 5: 4 And besides, one does not appropriate for himself the honor [of being high priest], but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was.
3. The tabernacle would later serve as a pattern for the building of the temple (Solomon later built the first temple - 1 Kings 6). This would then also later metamorphose into Christ as the progenitor of a temple without human handles in the New Testament - John 2: 19- 20. Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” 21 But he was speaking about the temple of his body. As a result, through Christ, we are now God’s temple (1 Corinthians 3: 16- 17). Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?17 If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.
We are now God’s tabernacle on earth. 2 Peter 1:13 - 14 I think it right, as long as I am in this tabernacle (tent, body), to stir you up by way of remembrance.14 Since I know that the laying aside of this body of mine will come speedily, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me.
See the description of the tabernacle.
Verses 10 - 22 (The Ark of Testimony or Ark of the Covenant)
The word covenant also refers to the Ark of the Testimony. The word eduth (עֵדוּת ) means testimony, which translates into a binding ordinance. A covenant (berit) is a binding legal agreement establishing a relationship between God and humanity, while testimony (edut) refers to the tangible stipulations (like the Ten Commandments) that serve as physical evidence and perpetual witness to that covenant. For instance, the Old and New Covenants are testimonies of God’s commands and acts.
Significance of the Mercy Seat
Exo 25:17. The mercy seat was made of two and a half cubits of gold (This means purity/holiness, 1 Peter 1:7 “Being refined by gold” These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Gold also represents kingship or royalty (Mathew 2:11).
Exo 25:18 - 20: Two cherubim of gold are hammered on the mercy seat, at each end, and facing the mercy seat with their wings stretching over the mercy seat.
Exo 25:21. The Ten Commandments were to be placed beneath the mercy seat.
• A Reference for the Atonement of Sins and Redemption
Leviticus 16:15-16 Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering that is for [the sins of] the people and bring its blood within the veil [into the Holy of Holies] and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat.16 Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place because of the uncleanness of the Israelites and because of their transgressions, even all their sins; and so shall he do for the Tent of Meeting, that remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness.
Romans 9:15 "For he says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion’.
o God speaks or meets humanity from the place of mercy (Exodus 25:22 And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat).
o Mercy is in God's throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16). Once we get into the throne of Grace to obtain mercy, then God’s grace enables us with the appropriate help over any problem or issue.
o God’s mercy is rooted in His love for humanity through His Son, Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 2: 4- 5 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).
o Jesus is now our mercy seat. Romans 3: 25-TPT. Jesus’ God-given destiny was to be the sacrifice to take away sins, and now he is our mercy seat because of his death on the cross. We come to him for mercy, for God has made a provision for us to be forgiven by faith in the sacred blood of Jesus.
o The BLOOD served as a sign of His mercy. (Hebrews 12: 24 and to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel).
Verses 23 - 30: Other Parts of the Tabernacle (The Table of Showbread)
o The twelve loaves represented the 12 tribes of Israel (Genesis 49; Numbers 1), to partake of God’s divine provision.
o Oneness of the bread and humanity in Christ (1 Corinthians 10:17 For we are one bread and one body, for we are partakers of that one bread (which is Christ).
o The bread now represents the body of Christ (Mathew 26: 26), “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35). The bread is the word of God (Matthew 4:4)
Exodus 25: 31 - 40: The Golden Lampstand
The lampstand in the tabernacle was made of pure, hammered gold, consisting of a central shaft with six branches extending outward. The branches featured almond blossoms, buds, and flowers, ultimately holding seven individual oil lamps. It was the only source of light in the holy place, maintained continuously by the priests.
Spiritual connection of the Golden lampstand with the 7 Churches in Revelation
In Revelation 1:12-20, Jesus revealed that the seven golden lampstands represented the seven churches. The meaning transitions in several ways:
o The light of the lampstand was to give light to the tabernacle (Exo 25:37)
o Pure olive oil was required to keep the lights burning (Exodus 27:20-21)
o The seven lampstands and their lights can be related to the 7 spirits of God in Isaiah 11:2, which helps us to reveal the nature of God’s essence to our humanity.
o The church as the giver of light to the world. In Revelation 1:13, John sees the risen Christ standing in the midst of the lampstands, signifying His active, living presence, protection, and oversight within the congregation. See also the seven churches in Revelation 2 & 3.
CONCLUSION
Mercy is God’s way of showing us His love and the riches of His glory (Rom 9: 22- 23), which differentiates the almighty God from all other gods or deities. Believers must never take God’s mercy for granted and consider it as a gateway to sin (Rom 6:1). The prayer of mercy should be accompanied by the act of genuine repentance (1 Sam 7: 3 - 5). This brings us into continuous engagement with God’s presence that led to growth as a people who represent His tabernacle on earth (Rev 21: 3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God).
