Exodus 25:18
in Exodus 25Make two cherubim of hammered gold at the ends of the mercy seat,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And thou shalt make two cherubim of gold; of beaten work shalt thou make them, at the two ends of the mercy-seat.
KJV
And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy seat.
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This verse in Exodus 25
Commentary
10 notes on this verseThou shalt make two cherubims - What these were we cannot distinctly say. It is generally supposed that a cherub was a creature with four heads and one body: and the animals, of which these emblematical forms consisted, were the noblest of their kinds; the lion among the wild beasts, the bull among the tame ones, the eagle among the birds, and man at the head of all; so that they might be, says Dr. Priestley, the representatives of all nature. Concerning their forms and design there is much difference of opinion among divines.
This site's exposition
And you are to construct a mercy seat of pure gold
on Exodus 25:17-19
The mercy seat occurs here for the first time in Scripture. The Septuagint renders it hilasterion, the word Romans 3:25 uses of Christ presented as a propitiation through faith in his blood. It is solid gold with no wood beneath, and the cherubim are hammered from the same piece.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
We are told too that "the words of the Lord are pure words, as silver tried in the fire"; again, in another place "the tongue of the just" is said to be "as silver tried by fire." And the cherubim are described as golden, because they are by interpretation the plentitude of knowledge. And it is commanded also that a candlestick of solid gold should be put in the tabernacle of the testimony; and that, it seems to us, is a type of the natural law in which the light of knowledge is contained.
The Medieval Church1 voice
A commentator
Gregory the Dialogist40 Homilies on the Gospels, Homily 25 · Written before 604.
proposed
We can also understand the two Testaments by the two angels. Hence also the two cherubim that cover the mercy seat look upon one another with their faces turned toward the mercy seat. For cherubim means fullness of knowledge. And what is signified by the two cherubim except both Testaments? And what is figured by the mercy seat except the incarnate Lord? Of whom John says: For he is the propitiation for our sins. And while the Old Testament proclaims that this was to be done which the New Testament declares was done concerning the Lord, it is as if both cherubim look upon one another, while they turn their faces toward the mercy seat, because while they see the incarnate Lord placed between them, they do not disagree in their view, for they narrate the mystery of his dispensation in harmony.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
This propitiatory covering, as it might well be translated, was a type of Christ, the great propitiation, whose satisfaction fully answers the demands of the law, covers our transgressions, and comes between us and the curse we deserve. Thus he is the end of the law for righteousness.
The apostle calls them cherubim of glory shadowing the mercy-seat, Heb. ix. It denotes their attendance upon the Redeemer, to whom they were ministering spirits, their readiness to do his will, their special presence in the assemblies of saints ( Ps. lxviii. 10 ), and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel which they diligently contemplate, 1 Pet. i.
And these holy places made with hands were the figures of the true, Heb. ix, 24. The gospel-church is the true tabernacle which the Lord pitched, and not man, Heb. viii, 2. The body of Christ, in and by which he made atonement, was the greater and more perfect tabernacle, Heb. ix, 11.
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3 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
1 Cor. xi, 10, and their desire to look into the mysteries of the gospel, which they diligently contemplate, 1 Pet. i, 12. God is said to dwell or sit between the cherubim, on the mercy-seat, Psalm lxxx, 1, and from thence he here promiseth for the future to meet with Moses, and to commune with him.
And thou shalt make two cherubim of gold,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
two cherubim--The real meaning of these figures, as well as the shape or form of them, is not known with certainty--probably similar to what was afterwards introduced into the temple, and described in Eze 10:8-22. They stretched out their wings, and their faces were turned towards the mercy seat [Ex 25:20], probably in a bowing attitude.
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The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְעָשִׂ֛יתָ | veasita | and you will make | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| שְׁנַ֥יִם | shenayim | two | H8147 → | 768 times |
| כְּרֻבִ֖ים | keruvim | cherubim | H3742 → | 91 times |
| זָהָ֑ב | zahav | gold | H2091 → | 389 times |
| מִקְשָׁה֙ | mikshah | hammered work | H4749 → | 9 times |
| תַּעֲשֶׂ֣ה | taaseh | you will make | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| אֹתָ֔ם | ʾotam | <obj.> them | H853 → | 10935 times |
| מִשְּׁנֵ֖י | mishenei | from [the] two | H8147 → | 768 times |
| קְצ֥וֹת | ketzot | [the] ends of | H7098 → | 35 times |
| הַכַּפֹּֽרֶת׃ | hakaporet | the atonement cover | H3727 → | 27 times |
וְעָשִׂ֛יתָand you will make
veasitaH6213 →2628 times
שְׁנַ֥יִםtwo
shenayimH8147 →768 times
כְּרֻבִ֖יםcherubim
keruvimH3742 →91 times
זָהָ֑בgold
zahavH2091 →389 times
מִקְשָׁה֙hammered work
mikshahH4749 →9 times
תַּעֲשֶׂ֣הyou will make
taasehH6213 →2628 times
אֹתָ֔ם<obj.> them
ʾotamH853 →10935 times
מִשְּׁנֵ֖יfrom [the] two
misheneiH8147 →768 times
קְצ֥וֹת[the] ends of
ketzotH7098 →35 times
הַכַּפֹּֽרֶת׃the atonement cover
hakaporetH3727 →27 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Hebrews 9:5Above the ark were the cherubim of glory, overshadowing the mercy seat. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now.
it leads to
- Numbers 7:89
When Moses entered the Tent of Meeting to speak with the LORD, he heard the voice speaking to him from between the two cherubim above the mercy seat on the ark of the Testimony.…
- Leviticus 16:2
And the LORD said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron not to enter freely into the Most Holy Place behind the veil in front of the mercy seat on the ark, or else he…
- 1 Kings 8:6–7
Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, beneath the wings of the cherubim.
- Exodus 25:17–22
And you are to construct a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide.
- Numbers 7:89
Through
Ezekiel 10:2And the LORD said to the man clothed in linen, “Go inside the wheelwork beneath the cherubim. Fill your hands with burning coals from among the cherubim and scatter them over the city.” And…
it leads to
- Revelation 8:5
Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it to the earth; and there were peals of thunder, and rumblings, and flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.
- Ezekiel 1:13
In the midst of the living creatures was the appearance of glowing coals of fire, or of torches. Fire moved back and forth between the living creatures; it was bright, and lightning flashed out…
- Revelation 8:5
Through
1 Chronicles 28:18the weight of the refined gold for the altar of incense; and the plans for the chariot of the gold cherubim that spread their wings and overshadowed the ark of the covenant of the…
it leads to
- Exodus 25:18–22
Make two cherubim of hammered gold at the ends of the mercy seat,
- Exodus 25:18–22
Through
Ezekiel 10:20These were the living creatures I had seen beneath the God of Israel by the River Kebar, and I knew that they were cherubim.
it leads to
- Ezekiel 1:1
In the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, while I was among the exiles by the River Kebar, the heavens opened and I saw visions of God.
- Ezekiel 1:1
Where this verse is studied
On this page
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On this verse
About Exodus
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Gregory the Dialogist, 40 Homilies on the Gospels, Homily 25; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Origen of Alexandria, COMMENTARY ON THE SONG OF SONGS 2:8 and Sir Robert Anderson, Types in Hebrews.