Bird's-eye view
In this section of Exodus, we move from the blueprints to the construction site. God had given Moses the detailed instructions for the Tabernacle and its furnishings up on the mountain, and now, filled with the Spirit of God, Bezalel and his craftsmen are bringing those heavenly patterns into earthly reality. This passage details the construction of the golden lampstand, the Menorah. This is not merely a piece of ornate furniture or a practical light source for a dark tent. Every detail, from the material to the shape, is dripping with theological significance. The lampstand is a picture of the Tree of Life, a symbol of God's life-giving presence, a representation of the Spirit-filled people of God who are called to be the light of the world. Its construction from a single talent of pure, hammered gold speaks of divine purity, immense value, and the shaping work of God in creating a unified, fruit-bearing people for Himself.
The meticulous repetition of the details from the instructions in Exodus 25 underscores a central theme of biblical faith: faithful obedience. True worship is not inventive; it is responsive. Bezalel does not improvise or try to improve upon the divine design. He simply builds what God commanded. The result is a glorious, golden, light-bearing tree that stands in the Holy Place, perpetually shining before the presence of the Lord, a foretaste of Christ who is the true Light, and of His Church, which is called to hold forth that light in a darkened world.
Outline
- 1. The Creation of the Light-Bearer (Ex 37:17-24)
- a. The Substance and Method: Hammered from One Piece of Gold (Ex 37:17)
- b. The Structure: A Central Shaft with Six Branches (Ex 37:18)
- c. The Decoration: Almond Blossoms, Bulbs, and Flowers (Ex 37:19-21)
- d. The Unity: A Single, Integrated Work (Ex 37:22)
- e. The Function and Tools: Seven Lamps and Utensils (Ex 37:23)
- f. The Value: One Talent of Pure Gold (Ex 37:24)
Context In Exodus
Exodus 37 is part of the final section of the book, which describes the actual construction of the Tabernacle. Chapters 25-31 laid out the divine commands, the detailed blueprints given to Moses on Mount Sinai. After the catastrophic fall of the golden calf incident in chapter 32 and the subsequent covenant renewal, chapters 35-40 describe the people's obedient and generous response. The Spirit of God fills the craftsmen (Ex 35:30-35), the people bring an abundance of materials (Ex 36:3-7), and the work begins. This passage, describing the lampstand, is a direct fulfillment of the instructions given in Exodus 25:31-40. The placement of this account, after the construction of the Ark and the Table of Showbread, follows the pattern of the blueprints. It shows Israel, having been redeemed and reconstituted as a people, now faithfully building the dwelling place for their God according to His precise Word.
Key Issues
- The Symbolism of Gold
- The Lampstand as the Tree of Life
- The Meaning of "Hammered Work"
- The Number Seven as a Symbol of Perfection
- The Church as the Light of the World
- Obedience to the Divine Pattern
A Golden, Light-Bearing Tree
When we read these detailed descriptions of the Tabernacle furniture, we are not reading an ancient interior design manual. We are reading theology, written in gold and acacia wood. The lampstand, or Menorah, was to be the only source of light within the Holy Place. Without it, the priests would have been serving in darkness. This immediately tells us that the work of God cannot be done by the light of nature or by the light of human reason. It requires a divine, supernatural light. And God is very specific about what this light source must look like.
It is to be a tree. It has a central shaft, branches, buds, and flowers. It is reminiscent of the Tree of Life that stood in the midst of the Garden of Eden. After the fall, man was exiled from that Tree, but here, in the place where God condescends to dwell with man again, we find a golden representation of that Tree. It is a symbol of life, fruitfulness, and resurrection. The almond branch, as we know from the story of Aaron's rod (Numbers 17), was the branch that budded supernaturally as a sign of God's chosen, life-giving priesthood. This lampstand is a promise that the way back to the Tree of Life is being opened once more.
Verse by Verse Commentary
17 Then he made the lampstand of pure gold. He made the lampstand of hammered work, its base and its shaft; its cups, its bulbs, and its flowers were of the same piece.
The first thing specified is the material: pure gold. Gold in Scripture consistently represents that which is divine, pure, precious, and enduring. This is God's light, not man's. The method is also crucial: it was hammered work. This was not made by casting, by pouring molten gold into a pre-made mold. It was made by taking a single, solid lump of gold and beating it into shape. This speaks of a formative, disciplinary process. The final shape was brought forth through violent, repeated, skillful blows. This is how God shapes His people, and it is preeminently how the Son of Man was perfected through suffering. Lastly, notice the unity. The base, shaft, cups, bulbs, and flowers were all of the same piece. This was not an assembly of different parts screwed or welded together. It was an organic whole, a single entity from top to bottom.
18-19 There were six branches going out of its sides; three branches of the lampstand from the one side of it and three branches of the lampstand from the other side of it; three cups shaped like almond blossoms, a bulb and a flower in one branch, and three cups shaped like almond blossoms, a bulb and a flower in the other branch, so for the six branches coming out of the lampstand.
The structure is that of a stylized tree. A central shaft with six branches, three on each side, making for a total of seven arms. Seven is the biblical number of perfection and completion. The imagery is explicitly botanical, with cups shaped like almond blossoms, along with bulbs (or buds) and flowers. This is a picture of flourishing, fruitful life. The almond tree was one of the first to blossom in the spring in Israel, a sign that winter was over and new life was coming. This golden tree in the Tabernacle is a standing prophecy of resurrection life. It declares that in the presence of God, there is life, beauty, and fruitfulness.
20-21 In the lampstand there were four cups shaped like almond blossoms, its bulbs and its flowers; and a bulb was under the first pair of branches coming out of it, and a bulb under the second pair of branches coming out of it, and a bulb under the third pair of branches coming out of it, for the six branches coming out of the lampstand.
The central shaft, which represents Christ Himself, is given special attention with four sets of decorations. The branches come out from the central shaft, drawing their life and stability from it. Jesus is the vine, we are the branches. The structure described here, with a bulb under each pair of branches, emphasizes this unity and dependence. The branches do not exist on their own; they are an extension of the main trunk. The entire structure is integrated, designed to function as one light-bearing unit.
22 Their bulbs and their branches were of one piece with it; the whole of it was a single hammered work of pure gold.
The text repeats this crucial point for emphasis. It was all of one piece. This is a powerful picture of the Church. The Church is not a collection of individuals who have decided to associate together. It is one body, one new man in Christ, forged into a single entity by the Spirit of God. This unity is not something we create, but something we are called to maintain. And it is a single hammered work. The pressures, trials, and persecutions that the world brings to bear against the Church are the very hammer blows that God uses to shape us into this unified, beautiful, light-bearing instrument.
23 He made its seven lamps with its tongs and its trays of pure gold.
A lampstand is for holding lamps. At the top of the central shaft and each of the six branches was a lamp, a small vessel for oil and a wick. These seven lamps provided the light. But the light required maintenance. The tongs were for trimming the wicks, removing the burnt char so the flame would burn brightly and without smoke. The trays were for holding the trimmings. This points to the ongoing work of ministry and church discipline. The light of the Church must be kept pure. False teaching must be dealt with, and sin must be trimmed away, so that the light we hold forth to the world is a clear and brilliant one. And this work of maintenance is also a holy task, using instruments of pure gold.
24 He made it and all its utensils from a talent of pure gold.
A talent was a measure of weight, likely around 75 pounds or 34 kilograms. This was an enormous amount of gold, a staggering display of value. God does not build His house with cheap materials. The light that shines in His presence is infinitely precious. This points to the incalculable worth of Christ, the true Light, and the immense price He paid to make us, His church, a lampstand of pure gold. Our salvation was not cheap, and the light we are called to bear is a treasure of immeasurable value.
Application
The golden lampstand has been fulfilled for us in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the true Light who has come into the world (John 8:12). He is the central shaft, the true vine, from whom all life and fruitfulness flow. But in a secondary and derivative sense, the Church is the lampstand. Jesus Himself says to the seven churches in Revelation that they are seven golden lampstands (Rev 1:20). He walks among the lampstands, trimming the wicks, tending the flame.
This passage, therefore, is a picture of what the Church is called to be. We are to be of pure gold, set apart for God, purified by His Word. We are to be a hammered work, understanding that God uses the trials and hardships of this life to shape us into His image. We are to be of one piece, demonstrating a real, organic unity that the world cannot replicate. We are to be a light-bearing tree, full of life, blossoming with the fruit of the Spirit. And we must be diligent to tend the lamps, to ensure that the light of the gospel we proclaim is pure and unadulterated.
The world is a dark place, and it has no light of its own. We are not called to curse the darkness, but to shine in it. We are not to hide this glorious, costly, golden light under a basket, but to set it on a stand, so that it gives light to everyone in the house. Bezalel faithfully built the lampstand according to the pattern. Our task is to faithfully be the lampstand, according to the Word, shining brightly until the Day dawns and the Morning Star rises in our hearts.