Exodus 25:15

Exo 25:15 The staves shall be in the rings of the ark: they shall not be taken from it.

Ver. 15. The staves shall be, &c.] That they might not touch it; for reverence’ sake, it being a visible sign of God himself among them.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

staves shall be in the rings of the ark--that is, always remain in the rings, whether the ark be at rest or in motion.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 15. The staves - shall not be taken from it.] Because it should ever be considered as in readiness to be removed, God not having told them at what hour he should command them to strike their tents. If the staves were never to be taken out, how can it be said, as in Nu 4:6, that when the camp should set forward, they should put in the staves thereof, which intimates that when they encamped, they took out the staves, which appears to be contrary to what is here said? To reconcile these two places, it has been supposed, with great show of probability, that besides the staves which passed through the rings of the ark, and by which it was carried, there were two other staves or poles in the form of a bier or handbarrow, on which the ark was laid in order to be transported in their journeyings, when it and its own staves, still in their rings, had been wrapped up in the covering of what is called badgers' skins and blue cloth. The staves of the ark itself, which might be considered as its handles simply to lift it by, were never taken out of their rings; but the staves or poles which served as a bier were taken from under it when they encamped.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(15) The staves . . . Shall not be taken from it.—The staves were to remain always in the rings, whether the ark was in motion or at rest, that there might never at any time be a necessity for touching the ark itself, or even the rings. He who touched the ark imperilled his life. (See 2Sa_6:6-7.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And thou shall put into the ark the testimony that I shall give thee. Which was the principal use of it: by the "testimony" is meant the law, written on two tables of stone; so called, because it was a testification of the mind and will of God, what he would have done or omitted; and as the Israelites had declared their approbation of it, and assent unto it, and had promised obedience to it, therefore, should they transgress it, it would be a testimony against them: now this was put into the ark, and preserved there, see Deu 10:1, which may signify that the law was in the heart of Christ, and which he undertook to fulfil, and with pleasure did it; that he is become the fulfilling end of the law for righteousness to them that believe in him; and that it remains with him as a rule of walk and conversation to his people, so far as it is of a moral, holy, and spiritual nature.

, which may signify that the law was in the heart of Christ, and which he undertook to fulfil, and with pleasure did it; that he is become the fulfilling end of the law for righteousness to them that believe in him; and that it remains with him as a rule of walk and conversation to his people, so far as it is of a moral, holy, and spiritual nature.

Exodus 25:17

exo 25:17

exo 25:17

exo 25:17And thou shall make a mercy seat of pure gold,.... Or "covering" (n); so Jarchi and Aben Ezra; for so the word properly signifies; and what is meant was no more than a cover of the ark, which was open at the top, and this was the lid of it, and exactly answered to it, as appears by the dimensions afterwards given of it; and because the root of this word in one form signifies to propitiate or make atonement, some render it the "propitiatory" or "propitiation" (o); which is favoured by the apostle in Heb 9:5 and to which he seems to refer, Rom 3:25 and the rather since God is represented sitting on this, as showing himself propitious and well pleased with men, by his communing with them from hence; the Septuagint version takes in both senses, rendering it the "propitiatory covering" (p): this being called by what name it will, was typical of Christ; he is the seat of mercy, or, as it is in the New Testament expressed, the throne of grace; whereon, or in whom God shows himself to be gracious and merciful to the children of men; all the stores of mercy are in him, and all the vessels of mercy are put into his hands; the mercy of God is displayed in the mission of him as a Saviour, and is glorified by him in a way consistent with his justice and holiness; through him only special mercy is communicated to sinful men, to whom God is only merciful in Christ: and Christ himself is all mercy to his people; his ways of old were mercy and truth, and all his works, especially his great work of redemption, are done in mercy and pity to them; he shows himself to be merciful to them, by sympathizing with them, and supporting them under all their temptations and afflictions, in granting them all the necessary supplies of grace here, and by bestowing eternal life on them hereafter: he is their "covering", the covering of their persons by his righteousness, imputed to them, and of their sins, by his blood shed for them, and sprinkled on them, and of the law, by his satisfaction for the transgressions of it; whereby they are secured from the avenging justice of God, and wrath to come: and he is the "propitiation" or "propitiatory", who has made atonement and reconciliation for sin; and in and through whom God shows himself propitious to his people, he being pacified, his wrath appeased, and his justice satisfied by his obedience and sufferings: and this mercy seat, being of "pure gold", without any alloy or mixture in it, may denote the purity of Christ's obedience, righteousness, and sacrifice, in the completeness of salvation by him, without any works of righteousness of men; the worth and excellency of Christ, and of these blessings of his, and the preciousness of his blood, and the continued virtue and efficacy of it, and of his righteousness and sacrifice, by which the propitiation is made:

two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof: which are exactly the dimensions of the ark, to which this was a lid or cover, see Exo 25:10 in the mystical sense it intimates, that Christ, in his nature, obedience, sufferings, and death, is the end of the law for righteousness, which is entirely commensurate, and answers to all its demands: his holy nature is answerable to the holiness and spirituality of the law; his righteousness to all that obedience it requires, and his sufferings and death to the penalty of it; so that, through Christ, we have a righteousness to justify us before God, as long and as broad as the law is, though the commandment is exceeding broad, Psa 119:96. Aben Ezra observes, that there is no mention made of the thickness of the mercy seat; and the same Jarchi takes notice of, but adds, that, according to their Rabbins, it was an hand's breadth, and the Targum of Jonathan says,"and its thickness an hand's breadth.''

(n) "opertorium", Montanus; "tegmen sive operimentum", Vatablus; "operculum", Piscator. (o) "Propitiatorium", V. L. Pagninus, Munster, Tigurine version. (p) Sept. "operculum propitiatorium", Junius & Tremellius.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The staves, when once inserted into the rings of the ark, were never to be taken from them. The object probably was that there might be no need of touching even the rings, when the ark was set down or taken up. The bearers took hold of the staves only, which were no part of the ark. On the danger of touching the ark itself, see 2Sa_6:6, 2Sa_6:7.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

General Information:

Yahweh continues to tell Moses what the people must do.

atonement lid

This is the lid that sits on top of the ark where the atonement offering was made.

two and a half cubits ... a cubit and a half

A cubit is 46 centimeters. AT: "2.5 cubits ... 1.5 cubits" or "115 centimeters ... 69 centimeters" (See: Biblical Distance and Fractions)

hammered gold

"beaten gold"

translationWords

ark of the covenant

atonement lid

gold

cherub

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

לא יסרו ממנו THEY SHALL NOT DEPART THEREFROM for ever (cf. Yoma 72a).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.