The Ark of the Covenant

Exodus 25:1-22 click here for the reading

I love the details in which God shares the place where God will reside...The Ark.  Think about it.  God has been showing up in pillars of clouds by day and pillars of fire by night since the people left Egypt.  Wandering. Much like God's people but now God is giving instructions for the Ark of the covenant, the place where God will reside in times of wandering and in times of stability.

This is the place where God will meet with God's people.  "There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the covenant law, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites."

The ark was a sign of the covenant promise that God's mere presence could bring Joy at the promise of Land, bring defeat to enemy raids, show protection from danger, give provision for God's people.  The ark symbolized the journey of God's presence throughout their time together, reshaping their life together.  A symbol of the move and promise from slavery to inheritance, from bondage to freedom.

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