Daniel Molyneux's Blog - Posts Tagged "ark"
EGYPTIAN ORIGIN OF THE ARK
In the Book of Exodus, God commanded Moses to build an ark. The Ark of the Covenant may seem unique and unusual - to have a decorated “box” as the central object inside the Tabernacle’s Holy of Holies. But the Ark has precedence within Egyptian Temples.
The Bible is the revelation of Yahweh to human-kind. God repeatedly utilizes things familiar to people, to reveal aspects of God’s true nature, and plan of salvation.
To discover the origin of the Ark, one must remember the Hebrews lived in Egypt for more than four-centuries, where they were immersed in Egyptian culture, including Egyptian religion.
Boats (arks) were a central part of Egyptian religious practice. Egyptians primarily lived on the eastern side of the Nile, but the Pyramids and tombs were on the western side of the river. A person’s coffin (sarcophagus) would be carried across the Nile in a boat. When reaching the western bank of the Nile, the boat would be pulled on a sledge to the place of burial. Boats were frequently buried with the pharaohs and other people, for use in the afterlife. Boats were a symbol of salvation from death.
Furthermore, Egyptian gods had boats (arks) that stood on pedestals in their temples’ Holy of Holies. During religious festivals, these boats were carried in procession by priests, using poles attached to the god’s boat. An example of this can be seen today in the Holy of Holies of the Edfu Temple, where there is a small wooden boat having poles protruding by which it may be carried. This is similar to the wooden poles inserted through rings to carry Yahweh’s Ark of the Covenant.
Yahweh borrows aspects of Egyptian culture that the Hebrews are familiar with, empties them of anything idolatrous, and then redefines these things to reveal Yahweh’s true nature and plans.
The Ark of the Covenant shares traits with the “sacred boats” that sat in the Holy of Holies of Egyptian Temples. But the Ark of the Covenant is not an idol. Rather God uses the Ark, this sacred boat or chest, as a reminder of God’s covenant with the Chosen People – and the Ark is a “footstool” over which the Spirit of God hovers.
Yahweh repeatedly “stoops down” to the cultural level of God’s People, to reveal the true nature of God and salvation. The ultimate expression of this is when God stooped down to take on human flesh, as Jesus of Nazareth. By doing this, God was revealed physically and intimately. And by Jesus death on the cross, God defeated evil and death.
Judas Son of Simon
The Bible is the revelation of Yahweh to human-kind. God repeatedly utilizes things familiar to people, to reveal aspects of God’s true nature, and plan of salvation.
To discover the origin of the Ark, one must remember the Hebrews lived in Egypt for more than four-centuries, where they were immersed in Egyptian culture, including Egyptian religion.
Boats (arks) were a central part of Egyptian religious practice. Egyptians primarily lived on the eastern side of the Nile, but the Pyramids and tombs were on the western side of the river. A person’s coffin (sarcophagus) would be carried across the Nile in a boat. When reaching the western bank of the Nile, the boat would be pulled on a sledge to the place of burial. Boats were frequently buried with the pharaohs and other people, for use in the afterlife. Boats were a symbol of salvation from death.
Furthermore, Egyptian gods had boats (arks) that stood on pedestals in their temples’ Holy of Holies. During religious festivals, these boats were carried in procession by priests, using poles attached to the god’s boat. An example of this can be seen today in the Holy of Holies of the Edfu Temple, where there is a small wooden boat having poles protruding by which it may be carried. This is similar to the wooden poles inserted through rings to carry Yahweh’s Ark of the Covenant.
Yahweh borrows aspects of Egyptian culture that the Hebrews are familiar with, empties them of anything idolatrous, and then redefines these things to reveal Yahweh’s true nature and plans.
The Ark of the Covenant shares traits with the “sacred boats” that sat in the Holy of Holies of Egyptian Temples. But the Ark of the Covenant is not an idol. Rather God uses the Ark, this sacred boat or chest, as a reminder of God’s covenant with the Chosen People – and the Ark is a “footstool” over which the Spirit of God hovers.
Yahweh repeatedly “stoops down” to the cultural level of God’s People, to reveal the true nature of God and salvation. The ultimate expression of this is when God stooped down to take on human flesh, as Jesus of Nazareth. By doing this, God was revealed physically and intimately. And by Jesus death on the cross, God defeated evil and death.
Judas Son of Simon
