He made an altar of bronze, twenty cubits[a] long and twenty cubits wide and ten cubits high. 2 Then he made the sea of cast metal. It was round, ten cubits from brim to brim, and five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits measured its circumference. 3 Under it were figures of gourds,[b] for ten cubits, compassing the sea all around. The gourds were in two rows, cast with it when it was cast. 4 It stood on twelve oxen, three facing north, three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east. The sea was set on them, and all their rear parts were inward. 5 Its thickness was a handbreadth.[c] And its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily. It held 3,000 baths.[d] 6 He also made ten basins in which to wash, and set five on the south side, and five on the north side. In these they were to rinse off what was used for the burnt offering, and the sea was for the priests to wash in.
7 And he made ten golden lampstands as prescribed, and set them in the temple, five on the south side and five on the north. 8 He also made ten tables and placed them in the temple, five on the south side and five on the north. And he made a hundred basins of gold. 9 He made the court of the priests and the great court and doors for the court and overlaid their doors with bronze. 10 And he set the sea at the southeast corner of the house.
11 Hiram also made the pots, the shovels, and the basins. So Hiram finished the work that he did for King Solomon on the house of God:12 the two pillars, the bowls, and the two capitals on the top of the pillars; and the two latticeworks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; 13 and the 400 pomegranates for the two latticeworks, two rows of pomegranates for each latticework, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars. 14 He made the stands also, and the basins on the stands, 15 and the one sea, and the twelve oxen underneath it. 16 The pots, the shovels, the forks, and all the equipment for these Huram-abi made of burnished bronze for King Solomon for the house of the Lord. 17 In the plain of the Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zeredah.[e]18 Solomon made all these things in great quantities, for the weight of the bronze was not sought.
19 So Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of God: the golden altar, the tables for the bread of the Presence, 20 the lampstands and their lamps of pure gold to burn before the inner sanctuary, as prescribed; 21 the flowers, the lamps, and the tongs, of purest gold;22 the snuffers, basins, dishes for incense, and fire pans, of pure gold, and the sockets[f] of the temple, for the inner doors to the Most Holy Place and for the doors of the nave of the temple were of gold. 2 Chronicles 4 ESV
The altar has increased in size from that of the tabernacle, but Israel has also increased in size and settled now from their wandering. It stands tall, unembarrassed and forthcoming with what transpires upon it's table. If it's too sad or morbid to you, then turn away. If it's just foolish and beneath an enlightened society, a gross waste, then speak out against it. But if you look at it, and only know the sorrow of your own sin, then hang your head and pound your chest, cry out, "have mercy on me, a sinner." Son of David, SON OF DAVID, have mercy on me. God, please let me see. Not only is there an altar, but there is a sea.
Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. Ezekiel 36: 25-28
In Egypt they worshiped the bull as Apis, and here the sea sits upon the backs of the bull. The bull testifies to the service of the Creator, not to it's own glory. When the people of Israel left Egypt, they walked through the Red Sea, that same sea which washed away the Egyptian army. The water is used to clean the priest, first to consecrated them as a bath, then to clean their feet ever after in the service of the temple. Once, before all this, God cleansed the earth by water, and there were no heights to which one could climb from this deluge, no creature that could save you. The people of Israel were known most unbecomingly for their creation of the golden calf, they kept the idolatries of Egypt close to their hearts, even in the times after Solomon, Jeroboam of Israel created 2 calves in a political move to keep the people from the place of true worship. He feared that they would not follow him, that their hearts would turn toward Jerusalem.
Later, king Ahaz of Judah will reject the Creator for the more contemporary worship of the cultures around him. He will reach out in admiration of power, to the king of Assyria for aid, which will come
and further justify what Ahaz has already chosen for his world view and religion. He must no longer look to the temple for wisdom, as seen in the removal of it's view from the house of government. He dedicates his own children to Molech and removes the brazen sea from the backs of the oxen. They were not made to stand alone as idols but to carry the burden of the sea upon their backs, to serve. Those that do not see themselves as unclean, shall never find a reason for the sea, and he rejects the position of the oxen as underneath, for his deliverance has not come from above. He holds high the king of Assyria, and he will do as he does.
2 Kings 16 Ahaz
The lampstands are made of that which is not only precious for it's scarcity but also tested by fire. What are lamp stands for but to hold light, and Who is it that brings light into the world, but the Word which became flesh and dwelt among us. The design is branches and in Revelation we see the lampstands representing the churches, for we are God's light here on earth, spreading the gospel of Christ. He is the first fruits, that budding almond branch, the high priest of this body to which we are all members in Christ.
The lampstands are made of that which is not only precious for it's scarcity but also tested by fire. What are lamp stands for but to hold light, and Who is it that brings light into the world, but the Word which became flesh and dwelt among us. The design is branches and in Revelation we see the lampstands representing the churches, for we are God's light here on earth, spreading the gospel of Christ. He is the first fruits, that budding almond branch, the high priest of this body to which we are all members in Christ.
Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 9 Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them. 10 We have an altar from which those who serve the tent[a] have no right to eat. 11 For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. 12 So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. 13 Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. 14 For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. 15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. 16 Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. Hebrews 13: 7-16
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