Mercy-Seat: God: Spoke from Above
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Topical Encyclopedia
The Mercy-Seat, known in Hebrew as the "kapporet," is a significant element within the Old Testament, particularly in the context of the Tabernacle and later the Temple. It is the gold cover placed on the Ark of the Covenant, which housed the tablets of the Ten Commandments, Aaron's rod, and a pot of manna. The Mercy-Seat is flanked by two cherubim, crafted from gold, with their wings spread upward, overshadowing the cover. This sacred object is central to the atonement rituals and the divine communication with Israel.

Biblical Description and Function

The Mercy-Seat is first described in Exodus 25:17-22, where God instructs Moses on its construction: "And you are to make an atonement cover of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. Make two cherubim of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. Make one cherub on one end and the second cherub on the other; make the cherubim of one piece with the cover, at the two ends. The cherubim are to have their wings spread upward, overshadowing the cover with them. The cherubim are to face each other, looking toward the cover."

The Mercy-Seat serves as the focal point of the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) rituals, as described in Leviticus 16. The high priest would enter the Holy of Holies once a year to sprinkle the blood of the sacrificial bull and goat upon the Mercy-Seat, symbolizing the atonement for the sins of Israel. This act underscores the Mercy-Seat's role as a place of reconciliation between God and His people.

God's Presence and Communication

The Mercy-Seat is not only a symbol of atonement but also a locus of divine presence and communication. In Exodus 25:22, God declares, "And I will meet with you there above the mercy seat, between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the Testimony; I will speak with you about all that I command you regarding the Israelites." This passage highlights the Mercy-Seat as the earthly throne of God, where He would manifest His presence and convey His will to Moses and, by extension, to the people of Israel.

The concept of God speaking from above the Mercy-Seat emphasizes His transcendence and holiness, while also illustrating His willingness to dwell among His people and guide them. The Mercy-Seat thus becomes a powerful symbol of God's covenantal relationship with Israel, where divine justice and mercy converge.

Theological Significance

In Christian theology, the Mercy-Seat is often seen as a foreshadowing of Christ's atoning work. The Apostle Paul, in Romans 3:25, refers to Christ as the "hilasterion," a term that can be translated as "propitiation" or "mercy seat," indicating that Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of the atonement that the Mercy-Seat symbolized. Through His sacrificial death and resurrection, Christ provides the means for reconciliation between God and humanity, echoing the role of the Mercy-Seat in the Old Testament.

The Mercy-Seat, therefore, holds profound significance in both Jewish and Christian traditions as a symbol of God's justice, mercy, and the means by which He communicates and reconciles with His people.
Torrey's Topical Textbook
Exodus 25:22
And there I will meet with you, and I will commune with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Numbers 7:89
And when Moses was gone into the tabernacle of the congregation to speak with him, then he heard the voice of one speaking to him from off the mercy seat that was on the ark of testimony, from between the two cherubim: and he spoke to him.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Mount Zion.
... His blood is sprinkled on the mercy-seat, and speaks to God ... the blood sprinkled in
heaven speaks better before God than the blood of Abel spoke from the ...
/.../the expositors bible the epistle to the hebrews/chapter xv mount zion.htm

The Ark of his Covenant
... a type is to be seen in Christ our heavenly covenant ark above. ... it exactly, and that
golden lid was called the mercy-seat, the throne ... There God spoke with men. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 41 1895/the ark of his covenant.htm

Christ and his Cross the Centre of the Universe
... as long as you believe that God spoke through prophets ... brooding cherubim who sat
above the Mercy-seat, gazing down ... Church the manifold wisdom of God.' And we ...
/.../expositions of holy scripture ephesians peter/christ and his cross the.htm

A Little Sanctuary
... Of that mercy-seat the Lord had said, "There will I meet ... In the Holy of Holies God
spoke with man, on that ... Oh, that God would gradually lift us up above all ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 34 1888/a little sanctuary.htm

The Copies of Things in the Heavens
... Our lesson does not refer to the 'mercy seat,' which covered the ark above, and
spoke the need ... be, as it were, hid from the face of the enthroned God. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture k/the copies of things in.htm

Job --Groping
... "When I was a child, I spoke as a ... was a child that God came down, and sat upon a
mercy-seat of pure ... Ghost which is in you, and which ye have of God?" And again ...
//christianbookshelf.org/whyte/lord teach us to pray/vii jobgroping.htm

The First vision "In Heaven": Chapters 4-5
... are the seven spirits of God] See above on i ... course; they were only copies of them
on the mercy-seat. ... From "between the Cherubim" God spoke; and there His glory ...
/.../bullinger/commentary on revelation/the first vision in heaven .htm

"Not by Might, nor by Power"
... in behalf of the builders, and now He spoke through His ... in the most holy place; the
ark, the mercy seat, and the ... to show wherein the promise of God, given to ...
/.../white/the story of prophets and kings/chapter 48 not by might.htm

Letter Lx. --To Adelphius , Bishop and Confessor: against the ...
... it the Cherubim of glory overshadowing the Mercy-seat [4767] ,' did ... in this proved
well-pleasing to God, are not ... stones, suppose that the Lord who spoke in the ...
/.../select works and letters or athanasius/letter lx to adelphius bishop.htm

Removing the Veil
... could come, but the golden candlestick which spoke of Jesus ... he had not yet entered
the Presence of God. ... the Holy of Holies where above the mercy seat dwelt the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/tozer/the pursuit of god/iii removing the veil.htm

Resources
What are all the different judgments in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org

What is the purpose of there being rewards in heaven? | GotQuestions.org

What was the brazen altar? | GotQuestions.org

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Subtopics

Mercy-Seat

Mercy-Seat in Solomon's Temple

Mercy-Seat: Bezaleel Given Wisdom to Make

Mercy-Seat: Christ

Mercy-Seat: Covered With a Cloud of Incense on the Day of Atonement

Mercy-Seat: Description of

Mercy-Seat: God: Appeared Over in the Cloud

Mercy-Seat: God: Dwelt Over

Mercy-Seat: God: Spoke from Above

Mercy-Seat: Made by Bezaleel

Mercy-Seat: Made of Pure Gold

Mercy-Seat: Materials of, to be a Freewill offering

Mercy-Seat: Moses Commanded to Make

Mercy-Seat: Placed on the Ark of the Testimony

Mercy-Seat: Placed Upon the Ark of Testimony

Mercy-Seat: Sprinkled With Blood

Mercy-Seat: The Blood of Sacrifices on the Day of Atonement Sprinkled

Mercy-Seat: The Cherubim Formed out of, and at Each End of It

Mercy-Seat: The Shekinah Upon

Mercy-Seat: The Throne of Grace

Related Terms

Mercy-seat (23 Occurrences)

Ark-cover (21 Occurrences)

Cherubs (52 Occurrences)

Propitiation (4 Occurrences)

Cherub (21 Occurrences)

Wings (81 Occurrences)

Upward (74 Occurrences)

Screening (3 Occurrences)

Spreading (74 Occurrences)

Ends (108 Occurrences)

Vail (44 Occurrences)

Cherubim (63 Occurrences)

Covering (191 Occurrences)

Poles (58 Occurrences)

Faces (158 Occurrences)

Curtain (60 Occurrences)

Staffs (47 Occurrences)

Dieth (192 Occurrences)

Sprinkle (37 Occurrences)

Seat (256 Occurrences)

Cover (254 Occurrences)

Staves (50 Occurrences)

Bull (114 Occurrences)

Veil (67 Occurrences)

Mercy (467 Occurrences)

Chooses (36 Occurrences)

Furniture (24 Occurrences)

People's (37 Occurrences)

Spread (257 Occurrences)

Breadth (100 Occurrences)

Behind (188 Occurrences)

Piece (93 Occurrences)

Cubits (156 Occurrences)

Holies (23 Occurrences)

Beaten (73 Occurrences)

Priest (500 Occurrences)

Slaughtered (72 Occurrences)

Cubit (51 Occurrences)

Sin-offering (115 Occurrences)

Slaughter (121 Occurrences)

Sprinkled (55 Occurrences)

Bullock (95 Occurrences)

Stretch (73 Occurrences)

Finger (35 Occurrences)

Half (135 Occurrences)

Length (135 Occurrences)

Cloud (119 Occurrences)

Met (118 Occurrences)

Whenever (123 Occurrences)

Maketh (399 Occurrences)

Ark (212 Occurrences)

Pure (160 Occurrences)

Sacrifice (300 Occurrences)

Goat (92 Occurrences)

Appear (111 Occurrences)

Thereof (845 Occurrences)

Vestibule (36 Occurrences)

Utensils (72 Occurrences)

Overshadowing (5 Occurrences)

Winged (69 Occurrences)

Ward (27 Occurrences)

Former (107 Occurrences)

Thereupon (22 Occurrences)

Rendered (30 Occurrences)

Efficacious (2 Occurrences)

Darkness (177 Occurrences)

Demonstrate (5 Occurrences)

Divination (25 Occurrences)

Dwell (474 Occurrences)

Denoting (1 Occurrence)

Detail (19 Occurrences)

Discuss (8 Occurrences)

Mercy's (2 Occurrences)

Merdiful (1 Occurrence)

Particularly (4 Occurrences)

Previously (44 Occurrences)

Parlors (1 Occurrence)

Buildings (28 Occurrences)

Mercy-Seat: God: Dwelt Over
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