Ark of the Covenant

The ark of the covenant is the single most significant object in the Mosaic tabernacle. It is the throne of Yahweh among his people: the chest containing the tablets of the Law, with the mercy seat above it and the cherubim overshadowing it, and Yahweh’s presence dwelling between the cherubim. It is the most holy object in the most holy place, and the rules governing access to it are among the most strict in all of Leviticus.

Its history in the narrative of Israel is a series of movements that each carry theological weight. It leads Israel through the Jordan. It circles Jericho before the walls fall. It is captured by the Philistines, bringing disaster wherever it goes among them, and is returned without being asked. David brings it to Jerusalem. Solomon installs it in the temple. After the Babylonian destruction, it disappears from the narrative and is never mentioned again. Its absence from the second temple is a theological statement: Yahweh’s glory has not returned in the same way.

Hebrews 9 identifies the mercy seat above the ark as the place of atonement, and locates the true mercy seat in the heavenly sanctuary where Christ has entered with his own blood. The physical ark was always a copy of the heavenly reality. The articles below trace the ark through several of the key passages where it plays a central role.