12. How The Altar Of The Oracle Was Of Cedar: And Gold
BOOK ONE
you who have followed me will also sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.15 The latter belong figuratively to the temple wall made of white stone, the former to the cedarwood boardwork,
[I761 and both expect from the Lord the rewards of eternal light, the gold leaf, as it were, with which (the walls) are adorned. There are in the recesses of the temple precious stones, planks of aromatic wood, both of them covered with gold because both those who have walked without blemish in the law of the Lord16 and those who have fully received the grace of the Gospel equally enjoy eternal life.
12. HOW THE ALTAR OF THE ORACLE WAS OF CEDAR
AND GOLD 12.1 (6:19) And he made the oracle in the middle of the house in its innermost part to set the ark of the Lord's covenant there. The exposition of this has been anticipated' to the effect, namely, that the secret inner house of our heavenly homeland designated the ark of the covenant, the Lord our saviour in whom alone we have a covenant of peace with the Father, (our saviour) who ascending into heaven after his resurrection placed at the right hand of his Father the flesh which he had taken from the virgin.
12.2
(6:20) Now the oracle was twenty cubits long, twenty cubits wide and twenty cubits high. And the altar also he covered with cedar.
What he says about twenty cubits in height signifies the cedarwood which separated the oracle, i.e. the Holy of Holies, from the outer building, as we have said above.2 Therefore, the oracle where the ark was kept measured twenty cubits in length, breadth and height, i.e. it was square, because in the heavenly fatherland where the eyes of the saints see Christ the king in his glory? the grace of divine and fraternal love alone shines over all. This is added also in the following words when it is said: And he covered and overlaid it with most pure gold, which is to state clearly that the grace of charity filled the walls of the heavenly city. l5 Mt 19:28 l6 cf. Ps 118:l supra 9.2 ** supra 9.2 * * cf. Is33:17
BEDE: ON THE TEMPLE
12.3 And the altar he also covered with cedar. He means the altar of incense which was in front of the ~ r a c l e , ~ about which a little further down are added the words: Also the whole altar which belonged to the oracle he covered with From this we are given to understand that the same altar was indeed made of stone and overlaid with cedar and then covered with gold. It signifies typically the life of the perfectly righteous who are, as it were, placed near the oracle and giving up the basest pleasures concentrate all their attention merely on entering the kingdom of heaven. Hence quite appropriately it was not the flesh of victims that was burned on this altar but only incense, because such people no longer need to sacrifice in themselves carnal sins or seductive thoughts but only offer up the fragrance of spiritual prayers and heavenly desires through the fire of eternal love in the sight of their creator. Now what the stone, cedar and gold represent in this kind of altar can be easily understood from what has been said above.
( I 771 12.4 (6:21) And the house in front of the oracle he overlaid with most pure gold, and fastened the plates on with nails of gold. We have said that the house in front of the oracle contained a type of the present Church where we are so on fire with the love of our redeemer that we are not yet able to see him face to face. Hence this house is aptly covered with the purest gold indeed but separated from the oracle by the interposition of a dividing wall. For it is called an oracle when God or an angel addresses human beings to reveal their respective secrets. Hence the oracle was aptly built in a hidden place, i.e. in the inner house, because in the heavenly homeland the sight and the utterance of angels and the very presence of God will be revealed to us according to what he who is Truth itself promises to those who love him when he says, And he who loves me will be loved by my Father; and I will love him and manifest myself to him;g and again:
The hour is coming when I shall no longer speak to you in figures but tell you plainly of the Father.? The reason why the house in front of the oracle was covered with gold was that all the righteous who are perfect in this life where they cannot hear of the Father plainly, i.e. supra 9.3 **; infm 12.5 **
3 K 6 2 2
Jn 1421 '
Jn 16:25
BOOK ONE
cannot see him plainly, enhance the faith and work of righteousness with divine love through which they may earn the perfect vision and full knowledge of God. The gold leaf with which the house was covered are the manifold works of piety which pure love exhibits in the service either of its creator or of a brother's need. The gold nails with which the gold leaf was attached are the very precepts of charity or promises of eternal glory through which by the gift of the grace of Christ we are kept constant in the exercise and pursuit of virtue in case we should fail. Hence of these nails it is well written in the Book of Paralipomenon: He also made nails of gold, so that the weight of every nail was fiffy shekels.8 The number fifty in the scriptures is usually a figure of the remission of sins and the grace of the Holy
Spirit and eternal rest since the fiftieth Psalm is a psalm of repentance and pardon; the fiftieth year is the year of jubilee and on the fiftieth day after Easter the Holy Spirit came and consecrated the primitive
Church. And each of the nails with which the gold leaf was affixed to the walls of the house of the Lord weighed fifty shekels, no doubt because the heavenly words by which we advance in the love of good works and are saved, promise us the pardon of our sins by the grace of the Holy Spirit, and eternal rest in the world to come. And these indeed are nails of love. But there are other nails (nails) of fear, by which, as beginners and not having yet attained perfection, each of us
( I 781 mortifies the enticements of the vices and carnal inclinations; (these nails are) the words of truth by whose instruction we are taught to crucify our flesh with its vices and passion^,^ nails which the prophet desired to have when he said, Pierce my flesh with your fear as with nails, for I am afraid of your judgements;10 and again as he attains greater perfection he says of the nails of love, But it is good for me to adhere to my God.
12.5 (6:22) And there was nothing in the temple that was not covered with gold; the whole of the altar of the oracle he also covered with gold. The altar has been spoken of above.12 But these matters are more fully explained in the Book of Paralipomenon where the 2 Paralip 3:9 cf. Ga 5:24 l o Ps118120 l1 Ps 72:28 l2 supra 9.3 **; 12.3 **