Trenton Shelby

History 134

8 October 2017

History of The Ark

An ark is a structure that provides safety and protection. The Webster Dictionary refers

to an ark as a boat or ship held to resemble that which Noah and his family were preserved from

during the flood.i The Ark of the Covenant provides the same type of protection, but in a differ-

ent text. The Ark was built by Bezalel, son of Uri, son of Hur, who constructed the entire Tab-

ernacle the portable Temple used in the desert and during the conquest of the land of Israel.

The Tabernacle was the resting place for the Ark, and contained other vessels that were used in

the physical worship of God. the Ark is commanded by God to Moses while the Jews were still

camped at Sinai. The Ark was a box with the dimensions of two-and-a-half cubits in length, by

one-and-a-half cubits in height, by one-and-a-half cubits in width. It was constructed of acacia

wood, and was plated with pure gold, inside and out. On the bottom of the box, four gold rings

were attached, through which two poles, also made of acacia and coated in gold, were put. The

family of Kehath, of the tribe of Levi, would carry the ark on their shoulders using these poles.ii

There were three things inside of the Ark, the ten commandments, a jar made of manna and a

rod.

In the book of Exodus, God spoke to Moses saying, And there I will meet with thee, and

I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are

upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the chil-

dren of Israel (King James Version. Exodus 25:22). iii As God instructed Moses, he engraved
the 10 commandments in the stone of the Ark. The mercy seat that is referenced in the scripture

refers to the lid or the covering of the ark.

The Jar of Manna was one of the three things God instructed Moses to house inside of the

Ark. The manna was inside of a gold pot that also contained Omer. In the Book of Exodus,

This is what the Lord has commanded: Let an omer of it be kept throughout your generations,

so that they may see the bread with which I fed you in the wilderness when I brought you out of

the land of Egypt. And Moses said to Aaron, Take a jar and put an omer of manna in it, and

place it before the Lord to be kept throughout your generations ((King James Version. Exodus

16:33).iv The manna described is what God used to supply the Israelites with spiritual nourish-

ments while they were on their journey through the wilderness. Manna was like the living bread

of God. The people obeyed the commandments of God and he continued to feed them throughout

their days.

The third item inside of the ark was the rod. Numbers 17:7-8 reads, And Moses laid up

the rods before the Lord in the tabernacle of witness. And it came to pass, that on the morrow

Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi

was budded, and broth forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.v The rod was

from Mosess brother Aaron. When Pharaoh demanded to see a miracle, Aaron released his rod

which turned into a serpent, killing all of them. God placed Aaron in the position to be a

prophet for Moses.

In conclusion, the Ark of the Covenant is important to the Christian walk. The Ten Com-

mandments in the bible are the laws that governs the body of Christ. The structure even tells of

his strength and durability. The wood was made with acacia wood which is expensive and of
good quality. The gold that is mentioned in the description of the Ark, is also another resem-

blance of Jesus Christ. Gold will never fade, and the same holds true with Christ. No matter

what or where we go in life his love is everlasting and will be with us to the end of time. The

Word of God is powerful and it is he told that sharpens the lives of those who believe. Manna

can only be supplied from Jesus, it his spiritual feeding to mankind. This is the method used to

impart the Word of his father into our lives. The Ark of the Covenant has been mentioned sev-

eral times throughout the bible. The ark was before the people, just as God is ahead of their

lives. John 10:4 reads, "And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the

sheep follow him, for they know his voice.vi The Ark is still being researched today, but the

findings are still unknown.. The Ark has not been seen for over 200 years. The only man-made

object that was considered holy during this time was The Ark of the Covenant.
End Notes

i
Ark. Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2017.
Web. 7 October 2017
ii
The Ark of the Covenant, www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-ark-of-the-convenant#role.
iii
Exodus 25:22
iv
Exodus 16:33
v
Numbers 17:7-8
vi
John 10:4

Other sources
The Ark of the Covenant: Where it Stood in Solomon's Temple". Biblical Archaeology Review
22/1: 46-55, 70-73

The Holy Bible: King James Version. Dallas, TX: Brown Books Publishing, 2004