About the Ark of the Covenant
Location and Construction
The Ark originally was in the heavens before it was copied on earth. Yehovah told Moshe to make all the items pertinent to the Tabernacle (which I will now call the Tent of Appointment according to the Hebrew literal meaning) after the pattern that Yehovah showed him:
Exodus 25:9 According to all that I show thee, the pattern of the Tent and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make.
Moshe oversaw the construction of copies, not of originals. Both the Temple and the Tent were already in the heavens. Moshe oversaw the construction of the Tent (more or less; he didn’t have to supervise, the Spirit of Yehovah doing that function), and Solomon later oversaw the construction of the Temple. Both are types (real and important items that are show-and-tell pictures of things, persons, times or items that are far more important). All the utensils are types.
A Type
The Ark is also a type.
Hebrews 8:1 Now this is the sum of the things that we have spoken: We have such a High Priest Who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, 2a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true Tent that Yehovah pitched, and not man. 3For every High Priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices. Therefore it is of necessity that this man has somewhat also to offer. 4For if He were on earth, He would not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the Torah 5who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the Tent. For, “See,” He says, “that thou make all things according to the type showed to thee in the mountain.”
Contents of the Ark
The Ark was completed, and certain items were placed inside of it:
- Aaron’s rod that budded, flowered and fruited almonds
- A gold urn with manna
- The two stone writing-slates (tablets) with the Ten Statements (the ‘ten commandments’).
Numbers 17:8 And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moshe went into the Tent of witness. And behold, the rod of Aaron was budded for the house of Levi. And he brought forth buds and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.
Hebrews 9:4 …that had the golden censer, and the Ark of the Covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the Covenant…
Palestinian Capture
That earthly Ark was later captured by the Palestinians when Israel wasn’t doing right. The Palestinians looked into it, and Yehovah struck the Palestinians with terrible hemorrhoids and an outbreak of rats. Their occult practitioners explained why: Yehovah wasn’t pleased. They determined to return the Ark back to Israel to stop this terrible scourge.
Its Gold
The top of the Ark was made of pure gold. This is not a known item at our present time, since pure gold is clear as crystal:
Revelation 21:18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper. And the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
Revelation 21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls. Every several gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.
Types of the Lid Explained
The lid of the Ark was made of one piece of gold uncut in its making, and turned so that it was the shape of the lid and two cherubim (normally a particular type of angel, but in this case being Yehovah the Father and Yehovah the Spirit) facing each other with their wings toward each other. The Cherubim faced downward, and thus through the lid to the items in the box. The box itself was made of wood covered with pure gold, so that the wood could be seen as if behind glass. Inset into the box were telescoping carrying rods that could be retracted into the box. All these things are types—every detail. The lid itself was called the cover, and typified Messiah. Thus, the Shma of Deuteronomy 6:4 was made in physical form:
Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hearken, Israel! Yehovah, our Gods, Yehovah is One!”
The Ark later was missing several of its items, those items probably having been taken when the Ark was captured.
Death Penalty
While the Israelis had a death sentence for handling the Ark (unless they were the specific priests in a specific order that had the responsibility to handle it), no such death penalty was placed on folks from the other races who might touch it when capturing it. Yehovah didn’t appreciate the Palestinians’ handling the Ark (when they captured it) or their attitude, and He struck them as mentioned, so that they feared. He did not kill them for touching it.
Once the Ark was constructed, Yehovah commanded that a cover be made, and that cover always had to be used when transporting the Ark. Thus, the Israelis never saw the Ark again once it was finished and sanctified by blood. This is also a type. They saw a covered object being carried, but the Ark was not seen. It was kept in the Tent except for a period of time when it was kept in a person’s home, covered, no one touching it.
One Israeli was struck dead by Yehovah when he reached to steady it when it was being improperly transported on an oxcart. This Israeli had become lax, the Ark having been in his father’s home. He was not a priest, and he had no right touching it for any reason. The oxen stumbled, but that did not mean that the cart was in danger.
When the Babylonian captivity occurred, all things in the Temple (including the Ark with a much larger set of Cherubim that had been constructed) were captured. As far as I know, this is the last time the Ark was in Israel, though Jewish tradition claims that it was also in the Temple that was destroyed in 70 A.D.
Millennium
Many fables of the Ark have circulated. I have found no indication of an Ark in the Millennial Temple, since what it typifies (Messiah and Israel) will be present. It cannot directly be used for instruction, since no one will be permitted to enter the Holy of Holies in the Millennium any more than at previous times. Since its description is in good detail, teaching what it typifies will be far more important and useful than seeing it.
The original Ark not made by human hands is where it always was: in the heavens.
Revelation 11:19 And the temple of God was opened in the heavens. And there was seen the Ark of His Covenant in His Temple.
Its Names
It is called by various names:
- Ark of the Testimony
- Ark of the Covenant of Yehovah
- Ark of the Covenant
- Ark of Yehovah
- Ark of God
- Ark of the God of Israel
- Ark of the Lord Yehovah
- Ark of His Testament (Covenant)