Exodus 37:1-3

The Making of the Ark

37:1 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; its length was three feet nine inches, its width two feet three inches, and its height two feet three inches. 37:2 He overlaid it with pure gold, inside and out, and he made a surrounding border ¹  of gold for it. 37:3 He cast four gold rings for it that he put ²  on its four feet, with ³  two rings on one side and two rings on the other side.

Deuteronomy 10:1-3

The Opportunity to Begin Again

10:1 At that same time the Lord said to me, “Carve out for yourself two stone tablets like the first ones and come up the mountain to me; also make for yourself a wooden ark. ⁴  10:2 I will write on the tablets the same words ⁵  that were on the first tablets you broke, and you must put them into the ark.” 10:3 So I made an ark of acacia ⁶  wood and carved out two stone tablets just like the first ones. Then I went up the mountain with the two tablets in my hands.

Deuteronomy 10:2

10:2 I will write on the tablets the same words ⁷  that were on the first tablets you broke, and you must put them into the ark.”

Deuteronomy 8:11

Exhortation to Remember That Blessing Comes from God

8:11 Be sure you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping his commandments, ordinances, and statutes that I am giving you today.

Hebrews 9:4

9:4 It contained the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered entirely with gold. In this ark ⁸  were the golden urn containing the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant.

Revelation 11:19

11:19 Then ⁹  the temple of God in heaven was opened and the ark of his covenant was visible within his temple. And there were flashes of lightning, roaring, ¹⁰  crashes of thunder, an earthquake, and a great hailstorm. ¹¹ 

[37:2]  ¹ tn Or “molding.”

[37:3]  ² tn “that he put” has been supplied.

[37:3]  ³ tn This is taken as a circumstantial clause; the clause begins with the conjunction vav.

[10:1]  ⁴ tn Or “chest” (so NIV, CEV); NLT “sacred chest”; TEV “wooden box.” This chest was made of acacia wood; it is later known as the ark of the covenant.

[10:2]  ⁵ sn The same words. The care with which the replacement copy must be made underscores the importance of verbal precision in relaying the Lord’s commandments.

[10:3]  ⁶ sn Acacia wood (Heb “shittim wood”). This is wood from the acacia, the most common timber tree of the Sinai region. Most likely it is the species Acacia raddiana because this has the largest trunk. See F. N. Hepper, Illustrated Encyclopedia of Bible Plants, 63.

[10:2]  ⁷ sn The same words. The care with which the replacement copy must be made underscores the importance of verbal precision in relaying the Lord’s commandments.

[9:4]  ⁸ tn Grk “in which”; in the translation the referent (the ark) has been specified for clarity.

[11:19]  ⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence on events within the vision.

[11:19]  ¹⁰ tn Or “sounds,” “voices.” It is not entirely clear what this refers to. BDAG 1071 s.v. φωνή 1 states, “In Rv we have ἀστραπαὶ καὶ φωναὶ καὶ βρονταί (cp. Ex 19:16) 4:5; 8:5; 11:19; 16:18 (are certain other sounds in nature thought of here in addition to thunder, as e.g. the roar of the storm?…).”

[11:19]  ¹¹ tn Although BDAG 1075 s.v. χάλαζα gives the meaning “hail” here, it is not clear whether the adjective μεγάλη (megalh) refers to the intensity of the storm or the size of the individual hailstones, or both.