And thou shalt make a lamp-stand of pure gold; [of] beaten work shall the lamp-stand be made its base and its shaft, its cups, its knobs, and its flowers shall be of the same.
The instructions for the tabernacle now turn to the lampstand that stood in the holy place. The whole piece was one metal, hammered into shape, with base, stem, cups and flowers all part of a single body. Every detail carries meaning: why gold only, why hammered, why one piece, and why no size is given.
The lampstand held the light but was not itself the light, and the metal chosen says why.
The lampstand was placed on the left side of the sanctuary as one entered. This was made of one piece of beaten gold (v. 31). The lampstand is distinct from the light, for it is really the light-bearer, and speaks of Christ as the Sustainer of all testimony for God. Light is the very nature of God: "God is light" (1 John 1:5). So the humanity of Christ — pictured by the acacia wood — is not involved in this at all. There is only pure gold. As the eternal Son of God He sustains all testimony for God.
Other furniture in the tent combined wood with gold. Here there is no such mixture, and one writer draws out what light itself means in that setting.
The candlestick was entirely of gold, signifying what was wholly divine — the divine nature, for God is necessarily light. Light is not exactly display or manifestation, but it is what makes manifest (Eph. 5:13). It represents to us what in itself is spiritually perfect; there is no human element here.
Gold can be poured into a mould. This gold was hammered instead, and writers see meaning in that choice.
Again and again we are told that the lampstand was of "beaten work". It was not cast, but hammered out. Is this not significant? If the True Vine is to have fruit-bearing branches, if the True Lampstand is to have light-bearing branches, if the True Grain of Wheat is not to stay alone but bear much fruit, then "the sufferings of Christ" must come. That "beaten work" surely points to them. Because He died, we live; because He went through the darkness of Calvary, we are now "children of light".
The base, the stem and the six side branches were not joined together — they were one object. Commentators take that as a picture of union.
Turn to the pattern of heavenly things, and we find the beautiful lampstand with its central shaft, six branches and seven lamps. It "was one beaten work of pure gold" — made from one talent of pure gold. Was this not very fine as a figure of Christ and the Church, all of one, both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified? … Each branch was of the same piece of pure gold. Each lamp had the same pure oil. So the Church is one with Christ, and the one Spirit dwells in each member of His body.
The cups were shaped like almond flowers, with buds between them — the "calyxes" of the verse. Unlike the ark or the table, Scripture gives no measurements for this piece.
The Golden Lampstand is clearly a picture of our Lord. First, it was made of "pure gold", which always pictures our Lord's glory as God. Then it had no measurement, for it sets forth Christ in glory in all the fullness and blessedness of His person and work. … Aaron's rod budded, blossomed and bore almonds overnight, and that pictured our Lord in His resurrection, which meant life out of death. These ornaments teach the same thing. They show that the lampstand pictures Christ in the place He has secured for us in resurrection, as the result of His atoning death.
One writer reads three features together: the number seven, the gold, and the oil.
The people supplied the oil. Only the priest tended the lamps, and even his tools were gold.
First, the children of Israel were to bring the pure olive oil. This points to the responsibility of God's people on earth, the vessel meant to display that light — Israel then, now the church. Aaron was to tend the lamps. This teaches that only the care and intercession of Christ as priest can keep the light of the Spirit shining. He alone could use "the tongs and the snuff dishes", for both were made of pure gold (v. 38). Every ray of light that shines out below, whether through the church or the individual believer, is only the answer to His priestly work.
- Gold — no wood anywhere in it; the material speaks of what is wholly divine, since God is light.
- Beaten — the gold was hammered, not poured; the shaping points to the sufferings through which light came to us.
- One — base, stem and six branches are a single piece: the One who sanctifies and those sanctified are all of one.
- Unmeasured — Scripture gives no size for it. The almond blossoms speak of resurrection life, and the fullness of Christ in glory has no measure.
- Burning — the people bring the oil, but Christ as priest tends the lamps. Every ray that shines below answers to His work above.
And six branches shall come out of the sides thereof -- three branches of the lamp-stand out of one side thereof, and three branches of the lamp-stand out of the other side thereof;
The lampstand's design moves from the central shaft to what grows out of it: three branches on one side, three on the other. Two questions follow: how do the branches relate to the stem they grow from, and why six?
One writer sets this design beside another picture of branches joined to a centre.
It consisted of the central shaft with triple branches at each side, something in the form of a vine. Its meaning runs partly parallel with the vine, though it is distinct. There is the same basic idea of the branches abiding in Christ as their centre and support. But in the vine the chief thought is fruit-bearing; here it is light-giving. The two services, though continually mingled, are distinct operations.
The six branches and the central shaft together make seven. That number carries its own lesson.
Seven is clearly a symbol of perfection, and nothing is perfect outside of what is divine. We read of the "seven Spirits who are before His throne" (Rev. 1:4). This does not mean there are seven Holy Spirits. It means a sevenfold perfect activity of the one Holy Spirit. In the same way there were seven lamps, but only one lampstand, that is, viewing it as a whole. To go one step further, each lamp depended on oil for its light. Oil pictures the Holy Spirit, who alone can shed spiritual light.
Nothing but gold went into this lampstand. One writer takes that as the key to what it pictures.
This was made of one piece of beaten gold (v. 31). The lampstand is distinct from the light, for it is really the light-bearer, and speaks of Christ as the Sustainer of all testimony for God. Light is the very nature of God: "God is light" (1 John 1:5). So the humanity of Christ (the acacia wood) is not involved in this at all — only pure gold.
The branches were not bare supports. They carried the same ornaments as the stem, and one writer applies that to Christ's followers.
As there was a lamp on the central stem, so also there was a lamp on each branch. And as the central stem bore flowers and fruit, so also did every branch bear flowers and fruit — not in the same quantity as the central stem, but of the same kind. Could anything picture the lesson more plainly? He who is the Light would have His followers "shine as lights." To them He says, "for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light" (Ephesians 5:8).
Commentators differ. One writer draws the line the other way:
The lampstand of the sanctuary was one only, with its six branches set into the central stem. It speaks of Christ, not the Church. The seven lampstands [of Revelation 1] are lights in the world, not in the sanctuary, where Christ alone is the light.
One word in the design keeps coming back: the lampstand was beaten work, not poured into a mould. One writer asks what that means.
Again and again we are told that the lampstand was of "beaten work." It was not cast, but hammered out. Is this not significant? If the True Vine would have fruit-bearing branches, if the True Lampstand would have light-bearing branches, if the True Grain of Wheat would not stay alone but bear much fruit, then there must of necessity be "the sufferings of Christ." That "beaten work" surely points to them. Because He died, we live.
Where the lampstand stood explains how much the priests needed it.
Remember that no natural light entered the tabernacle. A window was appointed for the roof of Noah's ark, but no window was provided for the tabernacle. Four curtains covered the tabernacle, two of them made of skins. So the priests depended entirely on the lampstand for light.
- One piece. The six branches were not attached to the shaft. They came out of it, hammered from the same gold, and they abide in the centre that supports them.
- One cost. The lampstand was beaten, not cast. The light-bearing branches exist because of the sufferings of Christ.
- One light. No window let daylight into the tent; the priests had nothing to see by except these lamps.
- One perfection. Six branches plus the shaft make seven. Seven lamps on one lampstand picture the sevenfold activity of the one Spirit.
- One kind of fruit. Every branch bore the same flowers and fruit as the stem, but not in the same quantity. Commentators differ over whether the branches picture Christ's people or Christ alone.
three cups shaped like almonds in the one branch, a knob and a flower and three cups shaped like almonds in the other branch, a knob and a flower so in the six branches that come out of the lamp-stand.
The instructions for the lampstand turn from its shape to the fine detail of its ornament. Why would God name one particular tree for the decoration of a lamp?
One writer works through the three ornaments named here, and admits that translators read them differently.
These branches, and the central shaft as well, were decorated with "bowls, knops and flowers," "made like almonds." The "bowl" is said to have been like an almond. The "flower" speaks for itself, and the "knop" or "knob" might suggest the rounded unopened bud. Others translate the first word "almond-flower." In that case the rounded "knop" might suggest the fruit, and the "flower" would be the bud. Either way we may have the three parts of the almond — its bud, flower and ripened fruit, clustering together on the branches.
The result was a tree of gold standing in the holy place.
So the candlestick would look like a golden almond bush, with buds, flowers and fruit. From the tip of each branch and of the central stem the light burst out.
The name of the tree in Hebrew has a meaning, and its habit in nature earns it.
The Hebrew word for almond means "wakeful," or "hastener," and people say it was given that name because it is the first of trees to wake after winter, putting out its buds in January. This suits Him who is "the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep" (1 Cor. 15:20). The buds bring this out, for in them the life shows itself, while flower and fruit are its full display. So our Lord's resurrection was not, if we may say so, the mere start of a life that would ripen later. It was divinely perfect and complete as He took His seat upon His Father's throne.
One writer links this to Aaron's rod — the staff that budded, blossomed and bore almonds — though he is careful about how far the wording of this verse takes it.
It is thought likely that this compares with Aaron's rod that "sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds" (Num. 17:8). The language is not that plain here in Exodus 25, but the lesson of resurrection is unmistakable. The almond is the first tree in Israel to blossom, speaking of Christ as "the firstfruits" (1 Cor. 15:20-23).
Each stage of the tree stands for something, and the light of the lamps is what brought it out.
Each branch of the lampstand was built with the marks of an almond tree: its buds, flowers and fruit. These no doubt remind us of the varied expressions of life. We see the evidence of it in the buds, its beauty and fragrance in the blossom, and its mature results in the fruit. The pure light of the lamps brought out all these features as it fell upon the beautiful lampstand. There was not a single feature on the lampstand that did not bring out something of Christ.
Each side branch carries the same ornament as the central stem in the next verse. One writer reads that repetition as a picture of Christ and His people.
There was a lamp on the central stem, and a lamp on each branch too. The central stem bore flowers and fruit, and every branch bore flowers and fruit as well — not in the same quantity as the central stem, but of the same kind. Could the lesson be more plainly pictured? He who is the Light would have His followers "shine as lights." To them He says, "at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light."
Three clusters on each of six branches, four on the stem: one number shapes both the form and the ornament.
The candlestick had seven branches: a central shaft with three branches springing out from either side. There were, therefore, seven lamps upon the one candlestick. The number seven also plays an important part in its ornamentation. There were "three bowls made like almonds" in each of the six branches (v. 33), and "four bowls made like almonds" in the candlestick (v. 34) — that is, in the central stem the branches spring from. So the number seven is a marked characteristic.
- Almond — the tree's name means "wakeful." It wakes first after winter, so the ornament pictures resurrection.
- Cluster — bowl, knob and flower give bud, blossom and ripe fruit at once: life starting, life in beauty, life in full result.
- Firstfruits — the tree that wakes first pictures Christ, "the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep."
- Branches — every side branch carries its own lamp and the same ornament as the stem: the same in kind, not in quantity.
- Seven — seven branches, seven lamps, seven-fold ornament. The light fell back on the golden tree and showed every detail.
And in the lamp-stand four cups shaped like almonds, its knobs and its flowers;
Each of the lampstand's six side branches carried three almond-shaped cups. This verse turns to the central stem, which carried four — raising two questions: why the almond, and why four here when the branches had three?
One writer pictures how the four clusters sat along the upright stem.
The central shaft had four bowls or almonds, with buds and flowers. One cluster (bowl, bud and flower) came between each of the three pairs of branches, just under it, while the fourth cluster may have been at the top, to hold the lamp. In the same way each branch had three clusters... The candlestick would then look like a golden almond bush, with buds, flowers and fruit; and from the tip of each branch and of the central stem the light broke out.
The lampstand was gold all through, with no wood in it. One writer takes that material as a clue to what it pictures.
The vessel was entirely of gold, with no wood. So while it gives us some view of Christ, it is a divine view rather than a human one. It presents God in Christ, just as the pure gold mercy seat expresses divine grace in Christ, who is the true mercy seat now.
The cups were shaped like almond blossom. One writer explains that choice from what the Hebrew name for almond means.
The Hebrew word for almond means "wakeful" or "hastener." It is said to have been given that name because it is the first of the trees to wake after winter, putting out its buds in January. This fits Him who is "the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep" (1 Cor. 15:20). The buds bring this out, for they are the first sign of the life that flower and fruit display in full.
Another writer links the same ornament to the staff of Aaron, Israel's first high priest.
We call to mind what we said about Aaron's rod that budded, blossomed and bore almonds overnight as a picture of our Lord in His resurrection, which meant life out of death. These ornaments tie in with that teaching, and show that it pictures Christ in the place He has secured for us in resurrection, as the result of His atoning death.
One writer adds the ornaments up and lands on a familiar number.
The candlestick was made of a central shaft with six branches, three springing out from each side — seven lamp-holders in all. Each branch was given three bowls, and four bowls graced the central shaft, so the number seven is again prominent. Seven is the clear symbol of perfection, and there is nothing perfect outside of what is divine.
Shaft and branches formed one piece, and one writer reads that oneness as a picture of Christ and His people.
In this candlestick we may also see a picture of the wonderful connection between Christ and His people. It is hard to look at this golden tree, with its central stem and its six spreading branches, and not think of our Lord's words, "I am the vine; you are the branches"... "All of it was one" is the telling description of the candlestick with all its branches; and "He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all of one" is the assurance about Christ and His redeemed ones.
One writer sets the lampstand beside the vine and marks the difference.
There is the same basic idea of the branches remaining in Christ as their centre and support. But in the vine the main thought is bearing fruit; here it is giving light... And each branch of the candlestick is made with a flower, and the growing fruit (bud) behind it. As light-givers, though, our source of power is the Holy Spirit, pictured by the usual figure of the oil. Even our Lord Himself, the central shaft, gives light in this way — that is, by the power of the Holy Spirit.
- Gold — No wood anywhere in the lampstand. What it shows is divine, not human: God in Christ, as the mercy seat shows His grace.
- Almond — The name means "wakeful," the first tree to wake after winter. The buds on the stem say resurrection: Christ the firstfruits, alive out of death.
- Four — Three bowls on each branch, four on the shaft: seven in all. Seven is the symbol of perfection, and nothing is perfect outside of what is divine.
- One piece — Shaft and branches formed one object: all of it was one. Christ and His redeemed ones are all of one in the same way.
- Light — Every branch bore blossom and a lamp. Fruit is the vine's picture; here it is light, and the oil that feeds it is the Spirit.
and a knob under two branches of it, and [again] a knob under two branches of it, and [again] a knob under two branches of it, for the six branches that proceed out of the lamp-stand.
Exodus 25:35 works down the central stem of the golden lampstand. Under each of the three pairs of branches sits one rounded ornament, made of the same gold as the stem. The verse says it three times, and that repeat raises one question: how do six separate branches belong to one object?
The decorations named here come from a tree. One writer sets out what each term means, and where the meaning is uncertain:
These branches, and the central shaft as well, were decorated with "bowls, knops and flowers," "made like almonds." The "bowl" is said to have been like an almond. The "flower" speaks for itself. The "knop" or "knob" might suggest the rounded unopened bud. Others, like the Revised Version, translate the first word "almond-flower." In that case the rounded "knop" might suggest the fruit, and the "flower" would be the bud. Either way, we may have the three parts of the almond — its bud, flower and ripened fruit — clustering together on the branches.
The placing is what this verse adds. The same writer works out where the clusters on the stem fall:
The central shaft had four bowls or almonds, with knops and flowers. One cluster (bowl, knop and flower) sat between each of the three pairs of branches, below it. The fourth cluster may have been at the top, to serve as a resting place for the lamp.
The three knops mark the three joints. Each pair of branches starts at its own point on the stem, and every pair starts from the same shaft. One writer draws out both halves:
The branches of the lampstand each have their own distinct place. But they are all united in the central Shaft from which they originate. Not only do their various lights blend into one glory flowing together, but, distinct as they are individually, the flowers and knops (that is, the promise and power of fruitfulness) are spread out in a way that suggests working together, and rules out any exclusive claim.
The words "of one piece with it" govern the whole verse. The ornament is not fastened on. It is part of the same metal. One commentator reads this joining of branch to stem as a picture of Christ and His people:
In this lampstand we may also see a picture of the wonderful connection between Christ and His people. Think of this golden tree, with its central stem and its six spreading branches. It is hardly possible to do so without remembering our Lord's words, "I am the vine; you are the branches." How close the likeness is between the two pictures! Each one stresses the connection of branch with tree, and of every believer with his living Lord. "All of it was one" is the telling description of the lampstand with all its branches. "He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source" is the assurance about Christ and His redeemed ones.
The tree behind the design is the almond, and its name holds the reason:
The Hebrew word for almond means "wakeful," or "hastener." The tree is said to have that name because it is the earliest of trees to awaken after the winter, putting out its buds in January. This would fittingly suggest Him who is "the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep" (1 Cor. 15:20). The buds would emphasise this, for they show the life, and flower and fruit are that life in full display.
Nothing in this lampstand came out of a mould. Hammers shaped the gold, and that method carries its own message:
Again and again we are told that the lampstand was of "beaten work." It was not cast, but hammered out. Is this not significant? If the True Vine would have fruit-bearing branches, and the True Lampstand light-bearing branches, and the True Grain of Wheat would not stay alone but bear much fruit, then there must of necessity be "the sufferings of Christ." That "beaten work" surely suggests them. Because He died, we live; because He went through the darkness of Calvary, we are now "children of light."
- One piece. The knop under each pair of branches is part of the same gold, not an attachment. No branch stands apart from the stem.
- One source. Each branch keeps its own place. Yet every branch grows out of the central shaft, and their separate lights blend into one glory.
- One life. The almond is the first tree to wake after winter. Commentators differ on whether the knop is the bud or the ripening fruit. Either way, the tree points to Christ, "the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep."
- One cost. Hammers shaped the gold; no mould cast it. That beating suggests the sufferings of Christ — because He died, we live and have light.
- One claim. The buds and flowers spread across stem and branches alike. So no branch can claim the fruitfulness as its own.
Their knobs and their branches shall be of itself -- all of one beaten work of pure gold.
The buds, the branches and the central stem of the lampstand were not separate pieces joined together, but one mass of pure gold hammered into shape. Why does God insist on a single piece, and why hammered rather than cast?
The branches were made of the stem's own gold. One writer finds Christ and His people in that shared metal, and in the shared oil that fed each lamp:
Turn to the pattern of heavenly things, and we find the beautiful golden lampstand with its centre shaft, six branches and seven lamps. It "was one beaten work of pure gold" — made from one talent of pure gold. Was this not a very fine figure of Christ and the Church, all of one; both He who sanctifies and they who are sanctified? … Each branch was of the same piece of pure gold. The same pure oil fed each lamp. So the Church is one with Christ, and the one Spirit dwells in each member of His body.
The lamps and the shaft belong together. One writer shows why the Spirit's light can never be separated from Christ's finished work:
"The seven lamps," which "gave light over against the lampstand," express the perfection of the light and energy of the Spirit. They rest on the perfect efficacy of the work of Christ, and are bound to it. The work of the Holy Spirit can never be separated from the work of Christ. This beautiful figure of the golden lampstand shows it in two ways. "The seven lamps" are joined to "the shaft" of "beaten gold." That points us to Christ's finished work as the only basis on which the Spirit is shown in the Church. The Holy Spirit was not given until Jesus was glorified. It was as "exalted to the right hand of God" that the Lord Jesus "shed forth" the Holy Spirit on His church, so that she might shine according to the power and perfection of her position.
The material matters as much as the shape. One writer reads the missing wood as deliberate:
As in the mercy seat, so in the lampstand, there was nothing but pure gold. Its structure holds no acacia wood, so it pictures nothing human. All is divine. … Put the three together in what each pictures — the number seven, the gold and the oil. The lampstand then means this: divine light in its perfection in the power of the Spirit.
The verse names the method as well as the metal. A mould shapes metal without resistance; a hammer shapes it by blows. Older translations call this hammered work "beaten work," and one writer sees meaning in the repetition:
Again and again the record says the lampstand was of "beaten work." It was not cast, but hammered out. … If the True Vine is to have fruit-bearing branches, if the True Lampstand is to have light-bearing branches, if the True Grain of Wheat is not to stay alone but bear much fruit, then there must be "the sufferings of Christ." That "beaten work" surely points to them. Because He died, we live. Because He went through the darkness of Calvary, we are now "children of light."
A Bible dictionary adds that beaten work also set the lampstand apart from idols. Much of the tabernacle was beaten work, "in contrast to 'molten,' as idols were often made" (Morrish Bible Dictionary).
The branches matched the stem in what they carried:
Look at the lampstand as a picture of Christ and His people. There was a lamp on the central stem, and there was a lamp on each branch too. The central stem bore flowers and fruit, and so did every branch — not in the same quantity as the central stem, but of the same kind. Could the lesson be pictured more plainly? He who is the Light would have His followers "shine as lights."
God shapes His light-bearers the same way, and that has a cost:
Gold goes into the crucible so that what is not pure gold may be taken out of it. The crucible is sharp, short, and separates; the hammer is slow, sure, and forms. … The Lord did not command Moses to make a mould of a seven-branched lampstand and to run the gold into it. No, it was to be hammered out of a solid block of pure gold. … We are not fit to be light-bearers for God if we shrink from the crucible and the hammer! If we really want to be light-bearers for Him, we shall welcome the crucible because it separates, and the hammer because it forms. If we saw that, we should see how wonderfully God sends all the trials and difficulties that come on us.
- Gold — no wood, no alloy, no human element; the lampstand stands for what is wholly divine.
- Hammer — beaten, not poured into a mould. The shaping speaks of the sufferings of Christ, and sets it apart from cast idols.
- One piece — stem and branches share a single mass of gold: Christ and His people are all of one.
- Same lamp — each branch carries flowers, fruit and light, like the stem. The measure is smaller; the kind is the same.
- Shine — those who want to bear light accept the crucible that separates and the hammer that forms.
And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof, and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may shine out before it;
God finishes the lampstand of pure gold with seven lamps, then says where their light must fall. Commentators treat that one detail — light aimed back at the lampstand — as the heart of the verse.
Three details of the lampstand carry its meaning: the number of the lamps, the metal, and the oil that fed them.
As in the mercy seat, so in the lampstand, there was nothing but pure gold. There is no acacia wood in its structure, so it pictures nothing human. All is divine. From Exodus 27 we learn what fed the light: "pure beaten olive oil for the light, that a lamp may regularly be set up to burn." In Scripture, oil is always a symbol of the Holy Spirit... Put these three things together as symbols — the number seven, the gold, and the oil. The lampstand then means this: divine light in its perfection in the power of the Spirit. It is God giving the light of the Holy Spirit, displayed in its sevenfold perfection.
The ESV has the lamps giving light "on the space in front of it." Older translations read "over against it." Commentators take this to mean the lamps shone back onto the lampstand itself.
The term translated "over against" is unusual. It carries the thought of lighting up the lampstand itself, illuminating it. This is quite distinct from shining on the showbread, and it is an extra idea. It is the light showing believers the beauty of the vessel itself — God fully revealed in Christ.
Why should the light fall back on the stand it came from? One writer answers from what the Spirit does.
The lampstand was all of gold. Remember that the Spirit's work is always to glorify Christ (John 16:14). As the light was to shine on the lampstand, so the Spirit displays the glories and perfections of the Lord Jesus... The Spirit is divine, one with the Father and the Son. Yet His ministry is not to occupy us with Himself, but with the Lord Jesus Christ.
These seven lamps were not decoration added to daylight.
There was no window in the Tabernacle. No light of nature entered the Holy Place. The light of the Golden Lampstand, and that alone, made up the light of the Holy Place. It reminds us of the Scripture, "And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb" (Revelation 21:23).
Older translations read the clause as "they shall light the lamps." Commentators look closely at that verb.
The word "light" means to cause to ascend. It is a word used regularly for the burnt offering. In that precious aspect of the death of Christ, everything ascended to God as a sacrifice of supreme excellence. It was to Him a sweet aroma of rest, yet it was necessary for our acceptance.
The picture does not stay inside the tent. One writer traces it forward, then asks who keeps such a light burning.
Christ when here answered to it perfectly. He was the light of men, the light of the world... Never for one moment was the light of the Spirit dimmed in Him; it shone purely and steadily. He was a perfect vessel. After He left this scene and ascended, the church became the light-bearer. That is her character, however grievous her failure. The individual believer answers to it also in the measure in which he presents Christ in his walk and ways. Aaron was to set the lamps in order. This teaches that the light of the Spirit, in its display, can only be maintained by the priestly care and intercession of Christ.
Lamps need wicks, and the chapter later lists tools for trimming them.
The seven lamps also imply believers identified with Christ. There were "wick trimmers," which shows there were also wicks. The oil for the light is the Holy Spirit. The wicks picture believers, who by the power of the Spirit may shine in witness to the Lord Jesus. But they need to be "trimmed" often, to clear away the remains of past witness and let a fresh witness burn. Remember too that the lights were meant to light up the lampstand itself (Exodus 25:37), just as believers are meant to illuminate Christ.
- Source: Gold with no wood, oil, seven lamps. Together they mean one thing: divine light, in perfection, by the power of the Spirit.
- Direction: The light fell back on the lampstand. Commentators read this as the Spirit throwing light on Christ, not on Himself.
- Scope: The holy place had no window. This was the only light there was, and nothing from nature added to it.
- Cost: The verb for lighting the lamps means "to cause to ascend." It is the word used for the burnt offering. This light rests on sacrifice.
- Carriers: Christ shone perfectly. Then the church became the light-bearer. Each believer shines as far as he shows Christ — a wick that needs trimming to keep burning.
and the snuffers thereof, and the snuff-trays thereof, of pure gold.
The lampstand's description ends with its tools: tongs to trim the wicks and trays to carry off the burnt ends. Even these small tools had to be pure gold — so who keeps the light of God's house burning, and by what means?
Gold marks what comes from God, not from man. In the quotations that follow, "snuff dishes" is the older translation's name for the trays.
There is no wood in the lampstand: it is all gold. Every tool is divine. The only part that could suggest anything merely human is the wick, and the wick burned away as it did its good work. Even the tongs and snuff dishes — the instruments for trimming the wick and keeping it in order — must be of gold... The pattern is divine and the construction perfect. Even so, the work of discipline and affliction must still take its course: the gold must be beaten and the wick must be cut back.
Scripture describes the stand, the lamps and the oil, but never names the wick. The tools for trimming it prove it was there.
We have spoken of the lampstand, or lamp-holder, as a type of Christ Himself, and the oil as a type of the Holy Spirit. But Scripture never mentions the wick, or cotton, and without it there would be no light. But the snuff dishes clearly imply this. They served to remove the charred part of the wick after hours of burning, so that the light might shine unhindered and at full strength. We cannot refer the snuffers to the Holy Spirit of God. That is clear. But we do know that the Holy Spirit uses human vessels through which His ministry may flow.
The lamps did not keep burning on their own. Keeping them lit was the priest's work.
It was one of Aaron's specific duties to light and trim those seven lamps... "The seven lamps" were there, no doubt, but it took priestly energy and diligence to keep them trimmed and lit. The priest constantly needed "the tongs and snuff dishes" to remove anything that would not be a fit carrier for the "pure beaten oil." Those tongs and snuff dishes were of "beaten gold" too, for the whole matter was the direct result of God's own work. If the Church shines, it is only by the energy of the Spirit, and that energy is founded upon Christ.
Trimming was not a rebuke for a lamp that had gone out. The priest trimmed the wick before the light ever failed.
Trimming the lamp did not mean that it had failed to give light. The priest would not let it reach that stage. He removed the charred part of the wick so that a fresh portion was ready, for the oil to pass through unhindered and to feed the lamp. The wick was not the fuel, but the channel for the fuel... So with the child of God: he is the channel the Spirit flows through, to spread the light that glorifies Christ... The blame is ours, and ours alone, that we are not fully given up to the priestly hand of Him who in love would trim, not quench, the "smoking flax" of our testimony.
What obscures the light is close to home.
You will find in the tabernacle that Aaron had to use the snuffers. And why? In order that the light might be pure, that it might shine without obstruction. We all know what it is to see a candle with a long wick, and the light dim as a result... Some of us Christians may have bad habits — they will obscure the light. Suppose I were hasty in temper — that would obscure the light. If I were worldly, that would obscure the light; so would evil associations. So you can see that you have to judge yourselves.
The tongs removed the burnt wick, and the dishes caught it. What happens to the ash matters.
The wicks picture believers who may by the Spirit's power shine in witness to the Lord Jesus, but who need to be "trimmed" often, to free them from the remains of previous witness and let a fresh witness burn... The tools, the snuffers and snuff dishes, were of gold too, for it is God's work to trim away any excess from us. Yet when He has done this, He puts the ash in the dish. That is, He remembers it, though we are not to occupy ourselves with it. He alone can value at its true worth whatever we have done in witness for Christ. But if we forget it, we shall burn more brightly.
- Gold tools. Every instrument of the light was pure gold. The means of keeping God's testimony bright are as divine as the light itself.
- Hidden wick. Snuffers only make sense where something burns away. The wick Scripture never names is the human vessel the Spirit's ministry flows through.
- Priestly hand. The lamps needed constant care to remove anything unfit to carry the oil. The Church shines only by the Spirit's energy.
- Trimmed early. Trimming came before failure. Its aim was a fresh channel for the oil, not the quenching of a faint flame.
- Ash kept. Bad habits, temper and worldliness dim the flame and call for self-judgment. What He trims away He remembers, so we can forget it and burn brighter.
Of a talent of pure gold shall they make it, with all these utensils.
The instructions for the golden lampstand end with a weight, not a size: one talent of pure gold for the stand and all its tools. Why a weight instead of measurements, and why gold even for the small tools?
Other pieces of the tabernacle furniture combined acacia wood with a gold overlay. This one did not, and one writer reads the lampstand's meaning out of what went into it.
As in the mercy-seat, so in the lampstand, there was nothing but pure gold. No acacia wood is found in its structure, so it pictures nothing human. All is divine... Oil in Scripture is always a symbol of the Holy Spirit... Put these three things together as pictures — the number seven, the gold, and the oil — and the lampstand means divine light in its perfection, in the power of the Spirit.
One writer notes how unusual the lampstand was among the tabernacle vessels:
Turning to the left hand, or south side, one would have seen the Golden Lampstand, all of gold. It was the only vessel connected with the Sanctuary that had no wood in it, unless we count the Mercy-Seat as separate from the Ark of the Covenant. In the Laver all was of brass. In the Lampstand all was of gold.
The ark, the table and the altar all have their length and breadth recorded. Here God names the metal and its weight, and stops.
There was no measurement given for the Golden Lampstand, setting forth the infinite fullness of our risen Lord. He carried Manhood to the throne of God, never to lay it aside. Yet here is the answer to the measureless Lampstand: "For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily" (Col. 2:9).
Where size is missing, something else supplies the sense of completeness:
We are not told the lampstand's dimensions. The whole interest centres on its material, form and use. All was perfect. Measured size usually suggests number; here the number given is seven, the perfect number. This is the Spirit's witness to a glorified Christ — He is perfect, divine. Christ is all.
A talent was a huge weight of gold. One writer put a price on it:
It was made of one talent of gold, said to be equivalent to $27,000 [in 1914]; which would seem to allow for a large and magnificent article.
All that gold served one purpose:
The lampstand was made of one piece of pure gold, of a talent weight — about 130 pounds. The lampstand was to bear the light of the seven lamps, so it pictures Christ as the Sustainer of the testimony (the light) of God. No wood is found here, for light is altogether divine. "God is light" (1 John 1:5).
The same talent supplied the central shaft and all six branches.
If we turn to the pattern of heavenly things, we find the beautiful golden lampstand. It has its centre shaft, six branches and its seven lamps, "all of it one piece of hammered work of pure gold" — made from one talent of pure gold. Was this not very fine, as a figure of Christ and the Church, all of one — both He who sanctifies and those He sanctifies?... Each branch was of the same piece of pure gold. Each lamp burned the same pure oil. So the Church is one with Christ, and the one Spirit dwells in each member of His body.
The talent was not spent on the showpiece alone. The tongs and the trays for the burnt wick-ends came out of the same gold.
All the appliances are divine. The only element that could suggest anything merely human is the wick, and that was consumed in doing its beneficent work. Even the tongs and snuff-dishes — those instruments for trimming the wick and keeping it in order — must be of gold... The pattern is divine and the construction perfect. Even so, the work of discipline and affliction must take its course: the gold must be beaten and the wick must be shorn.
Those small gold tools did daily work in the priest's hands:
The priest would need "the tongs and snuff-dishes" again and again, to remove anything that would not be a fit carrier for the "pure beaten oil." Those tongs and snuff-dishes were of "beaten gold" too, because the whole thing was the direct result of divine work. If the Church shines, it is only by the energy of the Spirit, and that energy is founded on Christ.
- Gold: No wood went into the lampstand, unlike almost every other vessel. Nothing human appears here; all is divine.
- Weight: God records the material, not the size. The missing measurements point to a fullness no one can measure.
- One: One talent, beaten into one piece, joins shaft and branches — a figure of Christ and His people, all of one.
- All: The same pure gold reaches down to the tongs and trays, so even the work of trimming the light is God's work, not ours.
- Light: The stand exists to carry the light. The Church shines only by the Spirit's energy, and that energy rests on Christ.