Reflections of Christ in the Tabernacle
Chapter VI
The Lampstand, Part I
In this study we will be examining the candlestick, also known as the lampstand, and called the menorah by the Jewish people. You will find the candlestick mentioned in the following passages in the book of Exodus 37:22, and 25:31-36. The verses we will consider can be found in Exodus 25:31-36.
And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold: of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: his shaft, and his branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be of the same.
And six branches shall come out of the sides of it; three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three branches of the candlestick out of the other side:
Three bowls made like unto almonds, with a knop and a flower in one branch; and three bowls made like almonds in the other branch, with a knop and a flower: so in the six branches that come out of the candlestick.
And in the candlestick shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their knops and their flowers.
And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick.
Their knops and their branches shall be of the same: all it shall be one beaten work of pure gold.
Through this description of the lampstand we understand that it was constructed from one piece of pure gold with one main stem or shaft and six branches — three on each side. The weight of this lampstand was to be one talent of pure gold. Outside of this general description, we have no other measurement pertaining to the lampstand.
The builder of the tabernacle, Bezaleel, received divine instructions as his name symbolized, ‘in God’s shade.’ We think of the first chapter of the Gospel of John when Philip found Nathanael under the fig tree. Nathanael had been meditating and contemplating the coming of the Messiah; thus, when he was led to Christ and after hearing the words of the Lord, Nathanael answered, “Thou art the Son of God, thou art the King of Israel.” We see through this example, God manifesting light in His Son to Nathanael; so too in the same way, God gave divine light and instruction to Bezaleel that all the articles in the tabernacle should prefigure or display all the divine glories of His beloved Son, the Lord Jesus. Bezaleel, in the same manner as Nathanael, received divine instruction by the Spirit of God, as he rested and meditated under the divine fig tree of God’s sovereignty. God, through the inspiration of His Spirit, designed in the heart, soul and mind of Bezaleel the lampstand of perfection that was shown to Moses on the mount.
And Moses said unto the children of Israel, See, the LORD hath called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship; (Exodus 35:30, 31)
And he hath put in his heart that he may teach, both he, and Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. Them hath he filled with wisdom of heart, to work all manner of work, of the engraver, and of the cunning workman, and of the embroiderer, in blue, and in purple, in scarlet, and in fine linen, and of the weaver, even of them that do any work, and of those that devise cunning work. (Exodus 35:34,35)
The believer also cannot receive the richness and vastness of the Lord Jesus Christ except through divine revelation. In Ephesians 3:16-21 we find the following concerning the measurement of the lampstand.
That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. (Ephesians 3:16-21)
It is only through divine revelation that we can see the measurements of faith and can understand what the breadth, length, depth and height of faith in Jesus Christ is. The world cannot see these things pertaining to Christ. The world considers Him a mere man, and yet some would even dare to call Him ‘a good man;’ yet, they will not accept that He is God who was manifested in the flesh. However, those who belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, as Bezaleel, receive divine light and divine dimensions to see the beauty and the perfection in this Man of Calvary. The Lord has begun a good work in us and has shared His divine riches with us through faith, so that we may put on His righteousness as symbolized by the ‘gold.’ Only as we grow in faith can we comprehend the breadth, length, depth, and height of His divine love and righteousness. Our conversation, or our way of life, is in heaven from whence we also look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ — who shall change our vile bodies that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body according to the working whereby, “he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.” (Philippians 3:21)
We also see in the lampstand the impeccability of Christ. He was rich in righteousness; thus, the ‘gold’ speaks of His righteousness. Just as the lampstand was the only light in the holy place and for the holy place, so He is the light of the world. “This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5) While on earth, the Lord Jesus manifested God’s light and glory. Hebrews 1:3 speaks of the brightness of His glory and surely the Lord Jesus radiated this glory to men.
Regarding God’s glory, He is the “Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” (James 1:17) He changes not, He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The gift og God’s love was that He sent His Son to be the light of the world. “Then spake Jesus again unto them saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” (John 8:12) In John 1:4 He is the light of men, “In him was life; and the life was the light of men.” In Hebrews 1:3 He is the light or brightness of God’s glory, “Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:6 concerning this very same glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
When we look at the lampstand, we see the incarnate Christ, the anointed of God who expressed all the glory of God. The lampstand speaks of His impeccability. He was wholly apart from sin and temptation. Although the gold was beaten (which expresses His sufferings) and although the lampstand resembles the almond tree (which speaks of life and resurrection), the emphasis is on the gold and the purity of that golf. “Thou shalt make it of pure gold.” If we are led astray by modernists and apostate religious scholars to think that a Divine Being could sin, then we have run in vain and have no faith. If we reject the counsel of these modernists then we will have joy and peace in our salvation, and hope of both resurrection and eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. There could be no resurrection or atonement without this purity — for the Lord Jesus Christ was both God and man. Thus, by believing this possibility of moral failure then the gold becomes filled with dross instead of being pure gold. This gold is a type that prefigures the one who is pure, spotless, and undefiled.
What have we seen in the lampstand thus far? We have seen that it was constructed from pure gold. We observed that in the Lord Jesus Christ, “who did no sin and knew no sin,” there was no possibility of moral failure. We also saw that He was filled with God’s righteousness and this righteousness was a part of His Deity. He was sent to be the light of God’s love to the world. The Lord Jesus Christ is the light of the world. Is He your light?
©Copyright 2007, Michael Haigh
All Scripture references are from the Authorized King James Bible. (KJV)