And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;

Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;

And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly [Heb. 9:3–5].

In the Holy of Holies (which was separated from the Holy Place by a veil and into which only the high priest entered), there were two articles of furniture. There was the ark, which was just a box made out of gopher wood and overlaid inside and outside with gold, and on top of the ark was a highly ornamented top called the mercy seat. It was fashioned with cherubim, made of pure gold, looking down upon the top of the box. That was where the blood was placed, and that was what made it a mercy seat—for “without shedding of blood is no remission” of sins.
“Which had the golden censer,” that is, the golden altar. Notice that a change has been made—we are told that the golden altar is inside the Holy of Holies rather than inside the Holy Place. Why has it been moved to the inside? The veil between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies was made of fine twine Egyptian byssus linen with the cherubim woven into it, and it spoke of the humanity of the Lord Jesus. When He died on the cross, He gave His life, His human life, and at that time the veil was rent in twain. So the veil which was torn in two has been removed, signifying that the way to God is wide open, because Christ has made a way. He said, “No man cometh to the Father, but by me” (see John 14:6). The veil has been rent in twain, and we can come right into God’s presence today. But what happened to the golden censer or the golden altar? It has been moved inside the Holy of Holies. Aaron on the great Day of Atonement came with the blood to sprinkle upon the mercy seat, taking a censer filled with coals and with incense in it, and he went inside the Holy of Holies. He was actually transferring, as it were, the altar of incense to the inside. He took the censer of burning coals from off the altar with sweet incense on it, and took it into the Holy of Holies, but he brought it back out again. And he had to do that again the next year and then again the next.
However, we have a Great High Priest who is our Great Intercessor always at the golden altar making intercession for us. His prayers are heard, by the way. Therefore, the golden altar is on the inside, but it is also on the outside, because you and I can come through Him by prayer. That is what Paul meant when he said, “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: by whom also we have access …” (Rom. 5:1–2).
The writer mentions also the things which were in the ark. “Wherein was the golden pot that had manna”—this speaks of the present ministry of Christ. He feeds those who are His own. He feeds them with His Word. He is the Bread of Life. The Bible is God’s bakery, and if you want bread, that is where you will go to get it.
“And Aaron’s rod that budded.” This speaks of the death and resurrection of Christ, because it was a dead rod and life came into it.
“And the tables of the covenant” speaks of the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled all the law.
“Of which we cannot now speak particularly.” The writer means he doesn’t have time to dwell upon the tabernacle, because the things that he is emphasizing are the priesthood and worship. He is concerned about what real worship is and how we are to worship.


McGee, J. V. (1991). Vol. 52: Thru the Bible commentary: The Epistles (Hebrews 8-13) (electronic ed.) (29–31). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel [Exod. 25:21–22].

The ark was a chest covered inside and outside with gold. It was made of shittim wood which was more or less indestructible and much like the redwood of California. It was a perfect symbol of the Lord Jesus Christ in His deity and humanity. Jesus Christ was the God–man; His deity was represented by the gold and His humanity was represented by the wood.
The ark could not be spoken of as merely a wooden chest because it also was a gold chest. It could not be called a golden chest because it was also a chest of wood. It required both gold and wood to maintain the symbolism pointing to Christ as the God–man. There is no mingling of the two. To overlook this duality is to entertain a monstrous notion of His person. There is no doctrine in Scripture so filled with infinite mystery and so removed from the realm of explanation as the hypostatical union of Christ, the God–man. Yet there is no symbol so simple as the ark that describes this union of God and man in one body. A mere box made of wood and gold speaks of things unfathomable. Truly God chooses the simple things to confound the wise. That simple box tells the whole story, as far as man can take it in, of the unsearchable mystery of the blessed person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The ark was covered with gold both inside and outside. Colossians 2:9 tells us, “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Jesus Christ was not merely a thaumaturgist, that is, a wonder–worker. Nor was He a man with an overdeveloped God consciousness. He was God! He spoke as God. He put Himself on the same plane as God. In John 14:1, 9, our Savior says, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me…. Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father….” Yes, He was God.
He was also perfectly man. He grew tired. He sat down to rest at a well in Samaria in the heat of the day. He slept, He ate, He drank, He laughed, He wept, and beyond all that, He suffered and died. All of these are human characteristics. The gold and the wood in the ark were both required, yet neither was mingled with the other. Nor was the identity of one lost in the other. Christ was both God and man, but the two natures were never fused or merged. He never functioned at the same time as both God and man. What He did was either perfectly human or perfectly divine.
The ark was not an empty box. It contained three items which are enumerated in Hebrews 9:4; “Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant.” The contents of the ark were also symbolic. Aaron’s rod that budded speaks of the Lord’s resurrection. The manna speaks of the fact that Christ is the Bread of Life. The Ten Commandments speak of the life He lived on earth fulfilling the Law in all points and fulfilling the prophecies spoken of Him.
The tables of the covenant speak of the Kingship of Christ. He was born a King. He lived a King. He died a King, and He rose from the dead a King. He is coming again to earth as King. God’s program is moving today and has been moving from eternity past to the time when Christ shall rule over this earth. Earth needs a ruler. Man needs a King. Someday He is coming as King of kings and Lord of lords.
The pot of manna speaks of Christ as a prophet. He spoke for God as John 6:32 clearly shows: “… Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven.” Jesus Christ was also God’s message to man. He was to Logos, the Word of God, the very alphabet of God, the Alpha and Omega. He is God’s final message to man. Since Christ came to earth as God–man, heaven has been silent because God has no addenda to place after Christ. He has no postscript to the letter because Christ is the embodiment of that letter. God told out His heart in Christ.
Aaron’s rod that budded speaks of the work of Christ as priest. The prophet spoke for God before man; the priest spoke for man before God. As priest Christ offered Himself. As a priest He passed into heaven. Even now He sits at God’s right hand in heaven. Jesus Christ the God–man was raised from the dead, and He is the unique example of resurrection up to the present hour. Easter lilies and eggs do not speak of the resurrection, but Aaron’s rod that budded does. It was an old dead stick that came alive. The ark speaks of Christ as prophet, priest, and king. “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
The mercy seat rested on top of the ark. It served as the top for the chest, the ark, but it was a separate piece of furniture. It was made of pure gold with cherubim on each end with their wings spread, overshadowing it, and looking down upon the top where the blood was placed. It was here the high priest sprinkled the blood of the sacrifice. It was the blood that made it the mercy seat. This too was symbolic of the work of Christ. Christ literally presented His blood in heaven after His death on the Cross. A critic recommended my book, The Tabernacle, God’s Portrait of Christ, but warned people that I took everything literally and must be watched carefully because I held the position that Christ offered His blood in heaven. The critic felt this was crude. I do not believe this is crude because the blood of Christ is not crude; it is precious. Peter calls his Savior’s blood “precious” in 1 Peter 1:18–19, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” Christ’s blood is more precious than silver or gold. The most valuable thing in heaven is the blood He shed for man on earth. He presented His blood as He entered heaven and that is what makes God’s throne a mercy seat for us today. We are bidden to come to God today on the basis of the fact that Jesus Christ, our great High Priest, has offered His own blood for our sins. Hebrews 4:14–16 reminds us that, “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
You and I approach God through our great High Priest in heaven. He is the living Christ at God’s right hand. Through Him we find mercy and help. Many believers are trying to fight the battle down here alone. They are trying to meet the issues of life alone. Friends, you and I are not able to do it. We are not strong enough. We need help. And we are not availing ourselves to the help Christ offers. Paul prayed for the Ephesians that the mighty power that worked in Christ, bringing Him from the dead, might work in them (Eph. 1:19–20). We see very little of that power working in believers today. We need to lay hold of it by faith because we have a High Priest who is at God’s right hand.
The high priest who served in this tabernacle rushed into the Holy Place, sprinkled the blood on the mercy seat, and rushed out again. Christ, our High Priest, when He made His offering, sat down at God’s right hand and is still there for us today. He died down here to save us. He lives in heaven to keep us saved. And we should keep in contact with Him. Have you had a talk with Him today?
We have looked now at the articles of furniture in the Holy of Holies: the ark and the mercy seat. Now we will consider the furniture in the second compartment, the Holy Place.


McGee, J. V. (1991). Vol. 5: Thru the Bible commentary: The Law (Exodus 19–40) (electronic ed.) (59–62). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.