the table with its utensils, the pure gold lampstand with all its utensils, the altar of incense, the table with its utensilsThe "table" referred to here is the Table of Showbread, which was a significant piece of furniture in the Tabernacle. In Hebrew, the word for table is "שֻׁלְחָן" (shulchan). This table held the Bread of the Presence, symbolizing God's provision and fellowship with His people. The "utensils" (כֵּלִים, kelim) associated with the table were used for the service and maintenance of the bread, emphasizing the care and reverence required in worship. Historically, the table signifies God's sustenance and the covenant relationship between God and Israel, reminding believers of the spiritual nourishment provided through Christ, the Bread of Life. the pure gold lampstand with all its utensils
The "pure gold lampstand" is the Menorah, a central symbol in Jewish worship, crafted from a single piece of gold (מְנוֹרָה, menorah). Its design, as described in Exodus 25, includes branches and almond blossoms, symbolizing life and light. The lampstand's purpose was to provide light in the Holy Place, representing God's presence and guidance. The "utensils" (כֵּלִים, kelim) here include the tongs and trays used for maintaining the lamps. Theologically, the Menorah points to Jesus as the Light of the World, illuminating the path of righteousness and truth for believers. the altar of incense
The "altar of incense" (מִזְבַּח הַקְּטֹרֶת, mizbeach haqtoret) was located in the Holy Place, just before the veil leading to the Holy of Holies. This altar was used for burning incense, symbolizing the prayers of the people ascending to God. The incense, made from a specific blend of spices, was to be burned continually, signifying the perpetual intercession and worship due to God. In a broader scriptural context, the altar of incense foreshadows the intercessory work of Christ, who mediates on behalf of believers, and the prayers of the saints, which are described as incense in Revelation 5:8. This highlights the importance of prayer and worship in maintaining a close relationship with God. Persons / Places / Events 1. MosesThe leader of the Israelites, who received the instructions for the tabernacle and its furnishings from God on Mount Sinai. 2. Bezalel and OholiabSkilled craftsmen chosen by God to construct the tabernacle and its furnishings, including the table, lampstand, and altar of incense. 3. The TabernacleThe portable dwelling place for the presence of God among the Israelites, where the table, lampstand, and altar of incense were to be placed. 4. The Table of ShowbreadA table in the Holy Place of the tabernacle where the bread of the Presence was placed, symbolizing God's provision and fellowship with His people. 5. The Golden Lampstand (Menorah)A lampstand in the Holy Place, representing the light of God and His guidance. 6. The Altar of IncenseAn altar in the Holy Place where incense was burned, symbolizing the prayers of the people ascending to God. Teaching Points God's Detailed InstructionsGod cares about the details of worship and how His people approach Him. This teaches us the importance of reverence and obedience in our worship practices. Symbolism of the FurnishingsEach item in the tabernacle had a symbolic meaning, pointing to deeper spiritual truths. The table, lampstand, and altar of incense remind us of God's provision, guidance, and the importance of prayer. The Role of Skilled WorkersGod equipped Bezalel and Oholiab with skills for His purposes. This shows that our talents and abilities are gifts from God to be used for His glory. The Presence of GodThe tabernacle was a physical representation of God's presence among His people. Today, believers are the temple of the Holy Spirit, and we are called to live in a way that honors His presence within us. Prayer as IncenseThe altar of incense symbolizes the prayers of the faithful. We are encouraged to maintain a consistent prayer life, knowing that our prayers are precious to God. Bible Study Questions 1. How do the detailed instructions for the tabernacle furnishings reflect God's character and His expectations for worship? 2. In what ways can we use our skills and talents to serve God, as Bezalel and Oholiab did? 3. How does the symbolism of the table, lampstand, and altar of incense enhance our understanding of God's relationship with His people? 4. What are some practical ways we can honor the presence of God in our lives today, knowing that we are the temple of the Holy Spirit? 5. How can we cultivate a more meaningful prayer life, inspired by the symbolism of the altar of incense? Connections to Other Scriptures Exodus 25:23-40Provides detailed instructions for the construction of the table and lampstand, emphasizing their significance in the tabernacle. Leviticus 24:5-9Describes the preparation and placement of the showbread on the table, highlighting the ongoing covenant relationship between God and Israel. Revelation 8:3-4Connects the altar of incense to the prayers of the saints, illustrating the continuity of this symbol from the Old Testament to the New Testament. People Aaron, Ahisamach, Aholiab, Bezaleel, Dan, Hur, Israelites, Moses, UriPlaces Mount SinaiTopics Accessories, Altar, Articles, Burning, Candlestick, Furniture, Gold, Holy, Incense, Lampstand, Lamp-stand, Light-support, Perfume, Pure, Spices, Table, Utensils, VesselsDictionary of Bible Themes Exodus 31:8 5373 lamp and lampstand
7386 incense Exodus 31:1-11 5272 craftsmen Exodus 31:2-11 6641 election, responsibilities Library The Flood-Tide of Power.
God's Highest Ideal. A flood-tide is a rising tide. It flows in and fills up and spreads out. Wherever it goes it cleanses and fertilizes and beautifies. For untold centuries Egypt has depended for its very life upon the yearly flood-tide of the Nile. The rich bottom lands of the Connecticut Valley are refertilized every spring by that river's flood-tide. The green beauty and rich fruitage of some parts of the Sacramento Valley, whose soil is flooded by the artificial irrigation-rivers, are in sharp …
S.D. Gordon—Quiet Talks on PowerThe True Manner of Keeping Holy the Lord's Day.
Now the sanctifying of the Sabbath consists in two things--First, In resting from all servile and common business pertaining to our natural life; Secondly, In consecrating that rest wholly to the service of God, and the use of those holy means which belong to our spiritual life. For the First. 1. The servile and common works from which we are to cease are, generally, all civil works, from the least to the greatest (Exod. xxxi. 12, 13, 15, &c.) More particularly-- First, From all the works of our …
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety Appendix viii. Rabbinic Traditions About Elijah, the Forerunner of the Messiah
To complete the evidence, presented in the text, as to the essential difference between the teaching of the ancient Synagogue about the Forerunner of the Messiah' and the history and mission of John the Baptist, as described in the New Testaments, we subjoin a full, though condensed, account of the earlier Rabbinic traditions about Elijah. Opinions differ as to the descent and birthplace of Elijah. According to some, he was from the land of Gilead (Bemid. R. 14), and of the tribe of Gad (Tanch. on …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Gifts and Talents.
"And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him."--Judges iii. 10. We now consider the Holy Spirit's work in bestowing gifts, talents, and abilities upon artisans and professional men. Scripture declares that the special animation and qualification of persons for work assigned to them by God proceed from the Holy Spirit. The construction of the tabernacle required capable workmen, skilful carpenters, goldsmiths, and silversmiths, and masters in the arts of weaving and embroidering. Who will furnish Moses …
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit Thy Name: My Name
'I have called thee by thy name.'--ISAIAH xliii. 1. 'Every one that is called by My name.'--ISAIAH xliii. 7. Great stress is laid on names in Scripture. These two parallel and antithetic clauses bring out striking complementary relations between God and the collective Israel. But they are as applicable to each individual member of the true Israel of God. I. What does God's calling a man by his name imply? 1. Intimate knowledge. Adam naming the creatures. Christ naming His disciples. 2. Loving friendship. …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture The Work of the Holy Spirit in Prophets and Apostles.
The work of the Holy Spirit in apostles and prophets is an entirely distinctive work. He imparts to apostles and prophets an especial gift for an especial purpose. We read in 1 Cor. xii. 4, 8-11, 28, 29, R. V., "Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.... For to one is given through the Spirit wisdom; and to another the word of knowledge, according to the same Spirit; to another faith, in the same Spirit; and to another gifts of healings, in the one Spirit; and to another workings …
R. A. Torrey—The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit Hiram, the Inspired Artificer
BY REV. W. J. TOWNSEND, D.D. The Temple of Solomon was the crown of art in the old world. There were temples on a larger scale, and of more massive construction, but the enormous masses of masonry of the oldest nations were not comparable with the artistic grace, the luxurious adornments, and the harmonious proportions of this glorious House of God. David had laid up money and material for the great work, but he was not permitted to carry it out. He was a man of war, and blood-stained hands were …
George Milligan—Men of the Bible; Some Lesser-Known That Whereas the City of Jerusalem had Been Five Times Taken Formerly, this was the Second Time of Its Desolation. A Brief Account of Its History.
1. And thus was Jerusalem taken, in the second year of the reign of Vespasian, on the eighth day of the month Gorpeius [Elul]. It had been taken five [34] times before, though this was the second time of its desolation; for Shishak, the king of Egypt, and after him Antiochus, and after him Pompey, and after them Sosius and Herod, took the city, but still preserved it; but before all these, the king of Babylon conquered it, and made it desolate, one thousand four hundred and sixty-eight years and …
Flavius Josephus—The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem Questions About the Nature and Perpetuity of the Seventh-Day Sabbath.
AND PROOF, THAT THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK IS THE TRUE CHRISTIAN SABBATH. BY JOHN BUNYAN. 'The Son of man is lord also of the Sabbath day.' London: Printed for Nath, Ponder, at the Peacock in the Poultry, 1685. EDITOR'S ADVERTISEMENT. All our inquiries into divine commands are required to be made personally, solemnly, prayerful. To 'prove all things,' and 'hold fast' and obey 'that which is good,' is a precept, equally binding upon the clown, as it is upon the philosopher. Satisfied from our observations …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 The Development of the Earlier Old Testament Laws
[Sidenote: First the principle, and then the detailed laws] If the canon of the New Testament had remained open as long as did that of the Old, there is little doubt that it also would have contained many laws, legal precedents, and ecclesiastical histories. From the writings of the Church Fathers and the records of the Catholic Church it is possible to conjecture what these in general would have been. The early history of Christianity illustrates the universal fact that the broad principles are …
Charles Foster Kent—The Origin & Permanent Value of the Old Testament The Preface to the Commandments
And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God,' &c. Exod 20: 1, 2. What is the preface to the Ten Commandments? The preface to the Ten Commandments is, I am the Lord thy God.' The preface to the preface is, God spake all these words, saying,' &c. This is like the sounding of a trumpet before a solemn proclamation. Other parts of the Bible are said to be uttered by the mouth of the holy prophets (Luke 1: 70), but here God spake in his own person. How are we to understand that, God spake, …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments Exposition of the Moral Law.
1. The Law was committed to writing, in order that it might teach more fully and perfectly that knowledge, both of God and of ourselves, which the law of nature teaches meagrely and obscurely. Proof of this, from an enumeration of the principal parts of the Moral Law; and also from the dictate of natural law, written on the hearts of all, and, in a manner, effaced by sin. 2. Certain general maxims. 1. From the knowledge of God, furnished by the Law, we learn that God is our Father and Ruler. Righteousness …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion Jesus Heals on the Sabbath Day and Defends his Act.
(at Feast-Time at Jerusalem, Probably the Passover.) ^D John V. 1-47. ^d 1 After these things there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. [Though every feast in the Jewish calendar has found some one to advocate its claim to be this unnamed feast, yet the vast majority of commentators choose either the feast of Purim, which came in March, or the Passover, which came in April. Older commentators pretty unanimously regarded it as the Passover, while the later school favor the feast …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Blasphemous Accusations of the Jews.
(Galilee.) ^A Matt. XII. 22-37; ^B Mark III. 19-30; ^C Luke XI. 14-23. ^b 19 And he cometh into a house. [Whose house is not stated.] 20 And the multitude cometh together again [as on a previous occasion--Mark ii. 1], so that they could not so much as eat bread. [They could not sit down to a regular meal. A wonderful picture of the intense importunity of people and the corresponding eagerness of Jesus, who was as willing to do as they were to have done.] 21 And when his friends heard it, they went …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel Of the Trinity and a Christian, and of the Law and a Christian.
EDITOR'S ADVERTISEMENT. These two short treatises were found among Mr. Bunyan's papers after his decease. They probably were intended for publication, like his 'Prison Meditations' and his 'Map of Salvation,' on a single page each, in the form of a broadside, or handbill. This was the popular mode in which tracts were distributed; and when posted against a wall, or framed and hung up in a room, they excited notice, and were extensively read. They might also have afforded some trifling profit to aid …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Exodus
The book of Exodus--so named in the Greek version from the march of Israel out of Egypt--opens upon a scene of oppression very different from the prosperity and triumph in which Genesis had closed. Israel is being cruelly crushed by the new dynasty which has arisen in Egypt (i.) and the story of the book is the story of her redemption. Ultimately it is Israel's God that is her redeemer, but He operates largely by human means; and the first step is the preparation of a deliverer, Moses, whose parentage, …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Exodus 31:8 NIVExodus 31:8 NLTExodus 31:8 ESVExodus 31:8 NASBExodus 31:8 KJV
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