The Spiritual Ark of the Covenant

[RabbiBarry]

What made the Tent or Mishkan that the Hebrews had in the desert a sacred place? The answer is obviously the Ark of the Covenant. It was believed that the Ark was the Footstool of G-d and that the Stone Tablets, which represent his treaty or covenant with the Hebrews was under his feet. The true Ark holds the Stone Tablets, the Pot of Manna, the Rod of Aaron and at one point, Nehustan, the Brazen Serpent. Likewise, when Solomon built a wonderous building, he built it to hold the Ark of the Covenant. Each successive Temple had an Ark. The rebuilt Temple after the Babylonian Exile had a new perfect copy of the Ark, but without the sacred objects inside. Likewise after Onias IV took the Ark to Egypt, Herod's Temple had another perfect copy of the Ark.

The Nasorean sect of Judaism along with our Enochian forbears and our Essenian teachers rejected the Temple of Herod as a true Temple. We awaited a perfect Temple that would come down from heaven just as promised by the Prophecy of Ezekiel. Instead the Nasoreans believed that a spiritual building existed consisting of the believers of Yisrael. They were living stones in this new Temple. Now the Nasoreans passed this idea on to the Christians and Peter and Paul both speak of this spiritual building and it has become the central focus of the Masonic Order.

However, just like the physical buildings, the spiritual Temple must have a spiritual Ark of the Covenant. We are told by the Early Church that the Apostles and Prophets are the foundation of the spiritual Temple. Ephesians 2:20. So we can assume with reasonable certainty that they are not the Spiritual Ark of the Covenant. Likewise, the Early Church believed that Yeshua was the Capstone, i.e., the Stone from which Sabbath was proclaimed high on top of the Temple. Ephesians 2:21. We can therefore state that he is not the Ark of the Covenant. So then we must ask, if this is a temple not made with hands and if a Jewish temple is not a Temple without an Ark, who or what is the Ark of the Covenant in this spiritual Temple?

There have been really good books written to explicate the character of the Ark of the Covenant and its place in the economy of spirituality within Ancient Judaism. I will not attempt in a short statement to replicate those excellent monographs. Instead I will note some relevant points about the Ark of the Covenant so that we might look closer for an institution or person who might embody those characteristics. First, this box was made of Acacia wood. Acacia is a symbol of eternal life and the symbol was no doubt received from the the Egyptians whose myth of Isis and Osiris mentions the nature of Acacia as a symbol of resurrection. Next, the box had the symbol of divine revelation, the Word made physical, the Stone Tablets. It held the Pot of Manna, a symbol of divine providence and promise of personal protection, for G-d gave the Manna to the children as bread in the desert. It held the Rod of Aaron which G-d used to prove that Aaron was appointed to the High Priesthood and is therefore a symbol of divine governance. Lastly, it held, until the time of King Hezekiah and his murderous repression of authentic Hebrew religion, the Brazen Serpent, Nehustan. Nehustan represented the willingness of G-d to constantly maintain peace between Himself and His People and to heal them not only of physical illness, but also of spiritual illnesses. Lastly, on top of the box was placed the Mercy Seat, or Ha Kapporet protected by the Archangels spreading their wings over the Bowl for the Blood. The HaKapporet is not only the symbol of sacrifice, but also forgiveness and mercy.

What, if anything, embodies all these elements into one concept? First, let us look at the concept of immortality and resurrection. As we can eliminate Yeshua as the Ark, as stated before, we must look to an institution to provide the eternal quality. I would propose that the Institution of the Three Pillars comprising a True Prophet, a True High Priest, and a True King is the only institution that can vie for this eternal quality. If we see the Three Pillars as the box itself, then we must look into the character of the offices that comprise the Three Pillars for the remainder of symbols. The Office of the Prophet represents G-d's continual Voice within the spiritual Temple. However, that office must be subject to Messianic Offices of the High Priest and King. They alone are given the final authority to validate the Voice that speaks through the Prophet. Together, the Three comprise the Embodying of the Word into Flesh. It is the certainty that Yeshua and the Holy Spirit will be with the Spiritual Temple until the end of the age that makes us certain that that Word will Be True when Embodied in this way. The King represents the symbol of Divine Providence. It devolves upon Him to make the Word effective in the World by doing what the Word requires. This Spiritual Temple, like the Jewish faith, is place of orthopraxy. Lastly, the High Priest, by his acts of Intercession and Sacrifice, in the form of the Kiddush ritual of bread and wine, exercises the Divine Governance with the King over the Spiritual Temple. The Fourth Pillar, unseen but always present, is the Holy Spirit, which filled the Temple and sanctified the Ark. It is the Holy Spirit that represents the Divine Intervention in the form of Healing, both of physical ailments and sin. Lastly, because of their willing discharge of their duties and the selfless acts of the True Officers of G-d, they become the repositories of the Blood of the Lamb which truly will bring reconciliation between G-d and Man. The influence then of the Spiritual Ark is felt throughout this spiritual building when people act in Prophetic, Kingly, and Priestly ways.

Now, I am still contemplating these things and trying to understand, but I feel comfortable right now with this explanation.

[David Kone]

Thank you, that is a very beautiful explaination. I will be contimplating these things for a long time to come. I am particularly interested in what you have to teach about Nehustan. I would like to know if we share a common insight on this matter. The serpent is not usually thought of as sacred but there it was in the Ark. This special item seems to be at the center of salvation.
:twisted:

[RabbiBarry]

It is indeed strange that a Saraph Serpent raised on a pole should have become the universal sign of healing. The Cadeucis of Greeks seems to follow in this line. The idea of Serpent as a healer is almost as strong as the Serpent as the Enemy. Another interesting idea is the shape of the spermatoza, which is snake like as well. And why did the writer of the longer ending of Mark include picking up snakes as a sign of believers.

[David Kone]

In Eastern thought it represents the kundalini energy rising through the centers of our spiritual body. I am very interested in the relationship between spiritual and physical health.

There is another aspect that I might as well ask you about. The helpless wonderers in the Sinai desert were getting snake bit. One can imagine there were perhaps innocent horned vipers, whose natural habitat was the very sand that thousands of tenderfoots from the delta of Egypt suddenly decided to trek through. The pole with the snake on it was raised to ward off this plague of snakes. It was a miracle and also maybe it served as a warning to those strangers to the desert to be wary of the hidden dangers. Anyway the serpent was raised on a pole and the people were saved from snakes.

Now here is this question that comes to my mind. The man who is the center of our religion was most likely raised on a pole not a cross. He and those who believed as he did were like the snakes innocent before God; indeed he was at the very least a very great saint. The people of Jesus' time were plagued not by snakes but by dangerous men. Did not God send a message as to what was the real danger, which is the hidden man, to ward off the poisons of man? Did not Jesus save us by sending us a message from God that could not be ignored? Something profound did happen. The changes that took place were like a catalyst. It affected everybody whether they believed or not. The serpent on the pole must be of extreme significance or it would not have been preserved in the Ark. Did it not foreshadow the greatest of all miracles?

[RabbiBarry]

There is another aspect that I might as well ask you about. The helpless wonderers in the Sinai desert were getting snake bit. One can imagine there were perhaps innocent horned vipers, whose natural habitat was the very sand that thousands of tenderfoots from the delta of Egypt suddenly decided to trek through.

These serpents were not horned vipers. The Hebrew words indicate that they were fiery serpents. The word used comes from the same root as Seraphim, one of the Heavenly choirs. There is obviously a direct connection between their sin of complaining and the Archangel of the Presence who is YHVH. He is said to be like a Fiery One yet in a human form.


The pole with the snake on it was raised to ward off this plague of snakes. It was a miracle and also maybe it served as a warning to those strangers to the desert to be wary of the hidden dangers. Anyway the serpent was raised on a pole and the people were saved from snakes.

The Hebrew suggests that this pole was a nem. No one today knows for sure what a nem is, but it is certain from the words that the Bronze Serpent rested upon the pole. That implies that it had a crossbar. It is easy to see how tradition transforms this into a symbol of the Meshiach or Christ as you would say.

Now here is this question that comes to my mind. The man who is the center of our religion was most likely raised on a pole not a cross.

You will have to cite reputable sources for that claim. He was executed by the Romans for treason and sedition. The normal way for them to execute was by crucifixion. This nem also has a crossbar.

He and those who believed as he did were like the snakes innocent before God; indeed he was at the very least a very great saint. The people of Jesus' time were plagued not by snakes but by dangerous men. Did not God send a message as to what was the real danger, which is the hidden man, to ward off the poisons of man? Did not Jesus save us by sending us a message from God that could not be ignored? Something profound did happen. The changes that took place were like a catalyst. It affected everybody whether they believed or not. The serpent on the pole must be of extreme significance or it would not have been preserved in the Ark. Did it not foreshadow the greatest of all miracles?[/QUOTE]

I would suggest that the easier metaphor is that when we complain against G-d and his actions in our lives, we are like the Hebrews in the desert. We fear that we will die without the things of the world and we are not willing to live on heavenly promises and food. Specifically, we reject the Eucharist as the healing and saving food that it is.

[David Kone]

You are a wonderful source of information. Hope no one is offended but I find information quickly by asking foolish questions. I am by trade a high tech industrial mechanic and solve problems by first formulating hypotheses then testing their validity. The Mysteries of God are certainly far above ordinary physics but inquiry is the general prerequisite to finding answers so I will continue to ask. Your generous response proves that I have certainly asked the right person as your answers demonstrate both scholarship and insightfulness.

The Hebrew words indicate that they were fiery serpents. The word used comes from the same root as Seraphim, one of the Heavenly choirs.

This is the first that I have heard of this in this way. Now I am really going to have to look closer into this most intriguing teaching. There was also the serpent that transformed from Moses’ staff, was that of the same root word as Seraphim? Please tell me more about these Seraphim. :innocent:

[RabbiBarry]

There was also the serpent that transformed from Moses’ staff, was that of the same root word as Seraphim?

No. The word is ltnain, not saraph. It means a sea-serpent or any supernaturally formed serpent.

Please tell me more about these Seraphim.

Father Mackenzie's Dictionary of the Bible suggests that they are the inner retinue of YHVH. He says that they have six wings, two to cover their face, two to fly and two to cover their feet. They are instruments of justice in the case of the Brazen Serpent. They are instruments of G-d's plan elsewhere. They are one of the smallest of the Heavenly Choirs and normally are called Archangels. They are nine in number even though we generally say that there are only seven Archangels. Metatron of the Jews is Jesus of the Christians and is the King of the Seraphim. Sandalphon, the angel of death is included in their number as well. The nine therefore are Metatron Yeshua, Michael, Gavriel, Raphael, Uriel/Ariel, Helel, Ba'alzebul, Ashmodai, and Sandalphon.

[David Kone]

Excellent! Now I think we need to discuss the view you presented on King Hezekiah. I am aware that there are other opinions about this but I thought that the O.T. makes it pretty clear that he was righteous and it was a good thing that he removed the high places. I believe the high places had something to do with worshiping the sun. How do we find more information on the different views held by those of northern Israel who I understand were less inclined towards the Aaronic priests and fervent believers in Moses?:confused:

[RabbiBarry]

You need to read Margaret Barker's The Great Angel: A Study of Israel's Second G-d.

[dark_knight]

Could the ancien Central American cult of the god Quetzalcoatl be somehow a corrupt form of the Biblical Serpent symbolism you are discussing?
Just came to my head!

Quetzalcoatl was basically a serpent, but sometimes in human form.
His cult included animal sacrifice, but not human sacrifice (unlike in many other Central American cults). He symbolized dying and resurrection.
I remember long ago reading about mesoamerican belief in some sort of angelic beings also, which were in snake form, but I couldn't find any verifying to it yet.

[RabbiBarry]

We know that Jews were active in the American Southwest in the period circa 100 BC. The Mormons suggest that a tribe of Jews came much earlier. The Feathered Serpent was an Aztec G-d who had once lived among the Aztecs, probably before they moved south toward the Mexica Plain around the lake that was drained to become Mexico City. They would probably have come into contact with the Jewish soldiers and others that were in New Mexico.

[RabbiBarry]

At this web page -- http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20061130/sc_livescience/startlingdiscoverythefirsthumanritual -- there is a discussion of a new find in Southern Africa. It relates to the discussion that we have been having about Nehustan. In the article, the scientists have discovered a carved idol of a python which is over 70,000 years old. They have found ritually sacrificed red spear heads buried beside it. This marks the earliest known example of human ritual worship. What makes it interesting to this discussion is the belief that the San People of Namibia have that mankind came from the Python. If one looks at the story of the snake as the source of or impetus to mankind getting the power of discernment of good and evil, one can argue that what we call mankind, namely our mental faculties, truly were received from the snake at the will of the Most High. Even the heretic Catholics acknowledge that Adam's Sin was blessed and beneficial in their Easter worship. The Snake takes on even greater significance if one sees the double edge character of discernment. Man can choose in a free will way to either follow the way of Nephesh which is coarse or bestial or the way of Ruach which is thoughtful and rational. Only discernment gives us this gift. Nehustan in that context becomes not only the healer, the forgiver, but also the giver of free will. If one sees then that the Brazen Serpent was an emblem of the Archangel and therefore a symbol of the Christ soul, then we see Yeshua in his Risen Form, that is, as Son, is the giver of freewill, the greatest of human gifts.

[David Kone]

A great site that shows and explains the archeological evidence of Semitic people, probably Hebrews, present in the American Southwest 3000 years ago is found at http://www.ancient-hebrew.org/15_home.html ;-)

[RabbiBarry]

Dr. James Tabor, Professor at UNC at Chapel Hill, archaeologist and biblical scholar, guiding theologian of the B'nai Noach movement, expert in the early church, has done extensive investigations of Los Lunas. Most scholars put the inscriptions at 100 BCE.

[David Kone]

The two cherubim that bracket the seat of God in many illustrations appear very simular to some of the depictions of what I believe is the Egyptian god Isis. You have mentioned the acacia wood that was associated with Isis. Are there perhaps other connections to the Egytian mysteries? I find in the Wikipeadia that … “The Shekinah is held by many to represent the feminine attributes of the presence of God (shekhinah being a feminine word in Hebrew), based especially on readings of the Talmud.” Can you add more of your perspective on this? :innocent:

[RabbiBarry]

We are taught in the Zohar, which of course is an early Nasorean document, but which is the major work of the Kabbalah, that the Ten Sephiroth begin with the Descent of Light. The Descent of Light is the Holy Spirit. It is the essence of G-d (G-d is light, 1 John 1:5). We are taught that the Light as it descends fills first the Great One, Holy Kether, the Crown, who is called Metatron and Yeshua. Then it descends through Holy Wisdom, Holy Intelligence, Holy Mercy, Holy Strength, Holy Beauty, Holy Victory, Holy Glory, the Great Foundation and finally comes to rest in the Holy Mother, who is called Malkuth, the Kingdom. The Holy Shekinah is said to be the Light that fills the Last Vessel, the Holy Mother, the Kingdom. So, the Son, the Holy Kether, the Crown and the Holy Spirit, the Shekinah, constitute the Father and the Mother of Creation.

I am currently studying Origen and his theology. I would deviate from him in that for me G-d, the Ain Sof, the Endless One, is Father. The Son, Kether and the Shekinah K'vod, the Mother nurture all of Creation as it continues to evolve. He sees the Trinity as the Father, G-d, the unbegotten, the Son, Christ, the begotten, and from the Son, the Holy Spirit. Now, there is support for this concept in Sefer Yetzirah, but it is a misunderstanding to claim that Kether is superior to Malkuth. Both the Male, the Son and the Female, the Holy Shekinah are equal, but created before time.

There is no doubt that Origen is following the teachings of Philo and the Kabbalah, both of which predate him, in establishing his systematic theology.
I would prefer to wait on the rest of this exposition, especially as it applies to the theology of Arius, until I have finished my studies. But this short explanation will affirm that the Holy Spirit is represented in the Proverbs and Wisdom of Solomon as Sancta Sophia, the Holy Wisdom, and is clearly feminine.

[dark_knight]

Thank you guys for contributing information and links.
I'm going to study them...
Nice to see that my observation wasn't completely foolish! :D
I'd really like to study cultural antropology in the benefit of theological truth!

Just keep posting this "esoteric" findings!

[David Kone]

Wow! Thank you for this peek into the Holy of Holies. The introduction to the Zohar and the archeological wandering have set an ambiance of mystery that I hope this site will grow upon in the spirit of understanding. Already I am afraid, however, that I have trespassed beyond my station and it would be safer to retreat into the court with its, edenic décor, outside the curtain where I will stand safe from the blinding Glory. Though I would love to peer deeper into these mysteries, for now, it is probably better to return back to the main topic. More precisely, the effect of the representatives of those three pillars had on St. Arius.

From my reading of the Bible it appears that one of the things that really makes God angry is the unjust practices of those who have power over the people. Of the three pillars, it was the prophets who gave warning and direction of God's judgment but it was the kings and the priests that sat in judgment. Civil disputes were settled by kingly authority as he sat in the gate. Moral matters were settled by the priests as they declared who was unclean, who was a false prophet and who was a heretic. There was a logical requirement that the pillars that supported the the Mystical Ark are also participants of the Covenant. A pledge must have been made and lived by. This was entirely different than the common dictatorial rule that most at that time lived under. To enter into a covenant the participants themselves must be capable of self rule.

The events at the Council of Nicaea speak more of an unruly mob than of a common covenant. No one is quite sure what covenant Constantine was party to other than self interest. Many of the Bishops seemed to be obsessed with identifying heretics. It also just happens that they were consolidating their own power bases. Most likely those who attended represented mostly the more wealthy Greco-Roman communities. The chances are those who were still being persecuted, those who had to hide their works in desert caves, those who had been concurred and oppressed and the poor were not represented at all.

Certainly there existed some Gnostic groups whose doctrines it would be difficult to defend from many of the accusations made against them. I would posit that likely there were many others who followed the commandments of God, were of pious and devout natures and who believed that Jesus Christ was the messiah. Yet because of their henotheistic beliefs they were not accepted into the new covenant being formed by the machinations of devious men. In great irony their charges of heterodoxy were like the pot calling the kettle black.

It is my opinion that they stacked the deck in their favor at the council held just previously to the famous Nicaean event. Those in favor of not narrowing the creed, never had a chance by design. The church domination of many wealthy cities like Alexandria was threatened as long as splinter groups were allowed to exist.

It would be well if the church would admit that there were devoted Christians hiding their sacred long held traditions in caves while they were creating new traditions of intolerance and narrow-mindedness. :krolleyes:

[yngwie7]

Each successive Temple had an Ark. The rebuilt Temple after the Babylonian Exile had a new perfect copy of the Ark, but without the sacred objects inside. Likewise after Onias IV took the Ark to Egypt, Herod's Temple had another perfect copy of the Ark.

Interesting discussion on the Ark and the fiery serpents. I was wondering where you found that the second temple and Herod's temple had an ark of the covenant? I was always under the impression that they didn't have one.

God bless you

[RabbiBarry]

The Three True Copies are respectively at Axum in the hands of the Coptic Church; Cairo in the hands of the Egyptian government and found 10 years ago; and in uncertain hands in Iraq stolen from the Mandeans by Saddam Hussein.

[Postulare42]

If there remains no "Ark", then why is Jerusalem still "sacred", especially since reliable history declares that even the stones of the "Wailing Wall" are of Roman construction; put into place after the total destruction of the city.

I find it sadly ironic that Jews from all over the world weep, pray, and direct so much worship and longing towards a Roman artifact, and slip pieces of paper with their supplications between it's stones. A most poetic and poignant image, that speaks loudly of their disenfranchised position and relationship to the RCC, EOC and Islamic controlled societies of the past two millennia.

If it is true that "...the earth is His footstool...", how can one place be more "sacred" than another? ;)

[David Kone]

If it is true that "...the earth is His footstool...", how can one place be more "sacred" than another? ;)

Excellent point!

I suspect that the draw towards the Wailing Wall has nothing to do with the stones themselves but something more mysterious; that it is an expression of their collective memory of injustice to their most sacred spiritual legacy. Perhaps they are sent by an unseen force in strange 'madness' to wail at the wall to focus our collective attention on an important set of events that were incorrectly explained away then conveniently swept under the carpet.

Having reread this thread I have pondered another possibility. First, the Arc had not been complete for some time for it lacked Nahustan. It does not matter if there are still three Arcs in existence or where they are, if they all lack that which God gave to his people to save them from the consequences of their own weaknesses. We all wail in our helplessness; I do not need to go far away to find my own sacred wall. Where is Nahustan? Was it really to prevent idol worship that this sacred object was removed or was it removed to nullify the special teaching that corresponded with it disempowering those who had maintained that ancient sacred faith?

Rabbi Barry said earlier in this thread; “If one sees then that the Brazen Serpent was an emblem of the Archangel and therefore a symbol of the Christ soul, then we see Yeshua in his Risen Form, that is, as Son, is the giver of freewill, the greatest of human gifts.”

People wail at the very walls that confine their freedom loving spirit. Yes, it is irrational, but on a spiritual level quite understandable.
:innocent: