The Table for Bread

                                                                 Exodus 25:23-30

 

September 30, 2024

 

The Table for Bread

“You shall make a table of acacia wood. Two cubits shall be its length, a cubit its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. You shall overlay it with pure gold and make a molding of gold around it.  And you shall make a rim around it a handbreadth wide, and a molding of gold around the rim.  And you shall make for it four rings of gold, and fasten the rings to the four corners at its four legs.  Close to the frame, the rings shall lie, as holders for the poles to carry the table.  You shall make the poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold, and the table shall be carried with these.  And you shall make its plates and dishes for incense, and its flagons and bowls with which to pour drink offerings; you shall make them of pure gold.  And you shall set the bread of the Presence on the table before me regularly.

I find myself as a gentile not fully understanding the fullness of the orders God is giving to Moses on the items going into the Temple.  They were only using the most precious medals, the best items that could be found, the best of what the Egyptian people had given them, to get rid of them after the ten plagues.   I do get that, but I feel as if I’m missing so much.  The items of worship were not to be handled by the people; the Levites used the poles to carry the items, and only certain priests were allowed to touch the table and what was on it.

Its dimensions were to be two cubits long and one cubit wide, and one and a half cubits high. Assuming that a cubit was around 18 inches, this would make the table three feet long (36 inches), 1 ½ feet (18 inches) wide, and 2 ¼ feet (27 inches) tall.

In almost all of the Ancient Near East, pagan worshippers would leave food for their gods and goddesses to eat. They believed that their deities needed sustenance, so they would put food out for them to eat. Since the LORD never gets hungry (Psalms 50:12), the purpose of the food and the items on the table was to serve as a reminder that the LORD was the Provider of His people's physical needs. The bread and sacrifices at the table were to be done with gratitude and thanksgiving for His gracious provision. The cover on the ark represented the place of atonement (Exodus 26:34). The table possibly represented a place of provision, to remind the Israelites that God provided for them (Exodus 16:32-34).

Finally, the LORD instructed Moses to set the bread of the Presence on the table before Me at all times. The bread of the Presence meant that the bread was to be in the presence of the LORD constantly. The bread itself consisted of twelve loaves (one for each tribe) placed in two rows (six in each row) on the table. The twelve loaves were to be replaced every Sabbath as an "everlasting covenant" (Leviticus 24:5 - 8) (From the Bible says. com)

How does this apply to my walk as a follower of Jesus Christ?   I do not have or need the twelve loaves on a gold table, but I must fully understand the need to give thanks to God for His provision, for God is as much your and my provider as the chosen people coming out of Egypt.

Many a man sees himself as the provider of his family; that is his duty, but if he does not understand who has given him the skills, the tools, the mind, and the abilities to do so, he will not lead his family into Truth. Jesus is the Truth,

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice