Exodus 25:31 – 40 “Then you are to make a lampstand of pure, hammered gold. It shall be made of one piece, including its base and shaft, its cups, and its buds and petals. Six branches are to extend from the sides of the lampstand—three on one side and three on the other. There are to be three cups shaped like almond blossoms on the first branch, each with buds and petals, three on the next branch, and the same for all six branches that extend from the lampstand. And on the lampstand there shall be four cups shaped like almond blossoms with buds and petals. For the six branches that extend from the lampstand, a bud must be under the first pair of branches, a bud under the second pair, and a bud under the third pair. The buds and branches are to be all of one piece with the lampstand, hammered out of pure gold. Make seven lamps and set them up on the lampstand so that they illuminate the area in front of it. The wick trimmers and their trays must be of pure gold. The lampstand and all these utensils shall be made from a talent of pure gold.” See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”
God wants a lampstand for His tabernacle, and what a lampstand! The craftsmen are to start with a solid block of gold and then hammer the entire thing from that. The only part of the lampstand that is to be separate is the seven lamps that will sit on top of the branches of the lampstand. To make this lampstand and all its utensils, the craftsmen are to start with a talent of pure gold. (A talent is approximately 75.4 pounds or 34.2 kilograms of gold.) God is not about to tolerate any shoddy work!
Why hammer the lampstand out of the block of gold? Not only will the lampstand be stronger, but this restriction also removes the temptation for someone to carve something out of wood, overlay it with gold, and to keep the rest of the gold for themselves.
When we first came to Ghana in 1988, we lived in Kumasi in the Ashante Region, with a Ghanaian family. The father was a wealthy local businessman and to maintain his standing in the community we had to attend many functions with him. The Ashantes LOVE funerals! While we lived with this family, every Saturday we would be hauled off to three or four elaborate Ashante funerals. One feature of these funerals was the traditional bands with their dancers dressed in Kente cloth and wearing heavy gold bracelets. We soon learned that much of this gold jewelry was not solid gold, but rather carved wood overlayed with gold.
God is not interested in half – measures. The lampstand and everything used to care for the lights is to be pure gold and nothing less! But why the use of almond buds, flowers, and calyces? Dennis Prager tells us, “The almond tree is the earliest spring plant to flower in the Land of Israel, and its blossom is used here as a symbol of renewed and sustained life. The combination of blossoms, petals, and calyx renders the menorah like a tree , and in the Bible a tree symbolizes life…in the Jewish liturgy, the Torah…is described as a Tree of Life [etz chaim]).
In Jeremiah 1:11 – 12, God uses the almond tree as a symbol for His watch – care over His Word. “And the word of the LORD came to me, asking, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” “I see a branch of an almond tree,” I replied. “You have observed correctly,” said the LORD, “for I am watching over My word to accomplish it.” (The Hebrew word for “watching” sounds like the Hebrew word for “almond tree.”)
Those of us familiar with the menorahs used at Hanukkah will realize that this menorah has seven lamps, rather than nine. Hanukkah menorahs have eight branches representing the eight days of the holiday with one that holds the candle to light the others. In the menorah that God is describing here, the central lamp represents the Sabbath, while the other six branches represent the days of the rest of the week. God repeats the number seven throughout the Scriptures to emphasize He is the Creator who brought the world into existence in six days and then rested on the seventh, thus instituting the concept of Sabbath rest.
APPLICATION: How seriously do we take God’s commandments? Here God is ordering Moses to use a huge amount of gold to create the lampstand and its tools. We have no idea how much more gold was left in the Israelite camp. It is possible that by the time the craftsmen completed their work on the tabernacle, there might not have been any gold left in the Israelite camp at all. God is ordering the Israelites to lay down their most precious possessions for His tabernacle. The Israelites have no idea how long they will be traveling or the problems they might encounter on the way. The prudent thing to do would be to save some of that gold for later.
Sometimes God calls us to make magnificent sacrifices for Him. Such a call is daunting – what if we go into a risky situation and are killed? What if we go to another country to serve as missionaries and we die of some deadly disease such as Ebola? What if we get caught in a tribal conflict? The “what ifs?” can be endless. The bottom line is this: God is not interested in your “what ifs!” 1 Samuel 15:22 tells us, “Behold, obedience is better than sacrifice, and attentiveness is better than the fat of rams.”
Jim Elliot was a missionary martyred by the remote Indian tribe he was trying to reach with the Gospel. Of the sacrifices he had already made, Elliot said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” The death of Elliot and those with him paved the way for that tribe to come to know Jesus and for many Christians to enter missions. God has already given us our lives and has sent His Son Jesus Christ to shed His Blood for our sins. Since God has already made such magnificent sacrifices, why should we hold back?
The ancient Israelites carefully created everything for the tabernacle just as God had instructed Moses. Later on, the Israelites wavered; however, in the beginning, they gave their most precious treasures. How far are you willing to go for God? How much are you willing to give up for Him?
PRAYER: Father God, many of us are clinging to all kinds of stuff! We want to serve you, but we don’t want to let go of our stuff either. Help us to freely give you our hearts and our lives. Be Lord over all of our possessions. Please help us to hold things lightly so that if you ask us to give something to you, we will do it readily. In the matchless Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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