Ark of God

Ark of God

Exodus 25:10-22 and 37:1-9. Moses got the instructions how to build the Ark of God or the Ark of the Covenant directly from God while Moses was up the Mountain.

The details how to build the movable Tabernacle that housed the Ark of God were in such detail that today we would have used Blueprints or building plans.

The Ark of God, or Ark of the Covenant, was placed inside the Tabernacle, which was replaced by a Temple under King Solomon. The Tabernacle, or Temple, was the center of Jewish worship. The Temple of Solomon was destroyed by the Babylonians in 587BC and the Ark was lost. However the Temple was rebuilt in 516BC and remained the center of Jewish worship until the Romans destroyed it in AD70.

The Ark of God was placed in a special room of the Tabernacle, or later the Temple, and the High Priest went in this room once a year and only with a lot of ceremonial cleaning. The Ark of God was made up of a number of parts. Read below and in your Bible to find the number of parts and their names.

Background Reading:

The Ark of the Covenant

25:10 “They are to make an ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits high. 11 You are to overlay it with pure gold—you are to overlay it inside and outside—and you are to make a gold molding around it. 12 You are to cast four rings for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on one side of it and two rings on its other side. 13 You are to make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. 14 You are to put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark with which to carry it. 15 The poles are to remain in the rings of the ark and are not to be removed from it. 16 You are to put the Testimony that I will give you into the ark.

17 “You are to make a Mercy Seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide. 18 You are to make two cherubim of gold; you are to make them of hammered work at the two ends of the Mercy Seat. 19 Place one cherub at one end and one cherub at the other end. You are to make the cherubim at the two ends of the Mercy Seat, and of one piece with it. 20 The cherubim are to spread their wings upward, covering the Mercy Seat with their wings and facing each other. The faces of the cherubim is to be turned toward the Mercy Seat. 21 You are to put the Mercy Seat on top of the ark, and put the Testimony that I’ll give you into the ark. 22 I’ll meet with you there, and I’ll tell you all my commandments for the Israelis from above the Mercy Seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the Ark of the Testimony.”
Exodus 25:10-22

and

The Ark of the Covenant

37:1 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood two and a half cubits long, one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits high. 2 He overlaid it with pure gold, inside and outside, and made a gold molding around it. 3 He cast four rings for it on its four feet, two rings on one side of it and two rings on its other side. 4 He made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. 5 He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry it.

6 He made a Mercy Seat of pure gold two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide. 7 He made two cherubim of gold; he made them of hammered work at the two ends of the Mercy Seat. 8 One cherub was at one end and one cherub at the other end. He made the cherubim at the two ends of the Mercy Seat and of one piece with it. 9 The cherubim had their wings spread upward, covering the Mercy Seat with their wings and facing each other. The faces of the cherubim were turned toward the Mercy Seat.
Exodus 37:1-9


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