Bird's-eye view
Numbers 7 is a chapter that, on the surface, appears to be a lengthy and somewhat repetitive accounting of the offerings brought by the leaders of the twelve tribes for the dedication of the tabernacle and its altar. It is a meticulous record, and for that reason, modern readers are tempted to skim. But we should resist that temptation. The sheer detail is part of the point, God is a God of detail, and He cares about the worship of His people down to the last silver bowl. The chapter concludes with this striking verse, which serves as the capstone for the entire dedication account. After all the gifts are given, after all the orderly worship is established, what is the result? The result is fellowship. God speaks to Moses. This verse is a profound statement about the purpose of right worship, it is not to merely fulfill a list of duties, but to open the lines of communication with the living God. It shows us that when God's people obey Him in the particulars, He meets with them in a personal and direct way.
The verse whisks us from the outer courts, with all their bustle and dedication offerings, directly into the Holy of Holies. It is here, at the very center of Israel's life and worship, that the climax of the chapter is found. The voice of God is heard, not in a thunderclap from a distant mountain, but in an intimate conversation within the tent. This is a picture of the covenant relationship God establishes with His redeemed people. He sets the terms, He provides the means of atonement, and He Himself condescends to speak with them. This is not a God who is silent or remote, but one who draws near.
Outline
- 1. The Purpose of Right Worship: Fellowship with God (Num 7:89)
- a. The Place of Meeting: The Tent of Meeting (v. 89a)
- b. The Mediator's Access: Moses Went In (v. 89b)
- c. The Personal Communication: He Heard the Voice (v. 89c)
- d. The Throne of Grace: From Above the Mercy Seat (v. 89d)
- e. The Covenant Center: The Ark of the Testimony (v. 89e)
- f. The Heavenly Guardians: From Between the Two Cherubim (v. 89f)
- g. The Divine Initiative: So He Spoke to Him (v. 89g)
Context In Numbers
This verse comes at the end of a long and detailed chapter describing the offerings of the tribal leaders for the dedication of the tabernacle. The previous 88 verses are taken up with a careful, almost legal, accounting of the carts, oxen, silver, gold, and animals brought for sacrifice. The structure is highly repetitive, with the offering of each tribe detailed in precisely the same language. This repetition emphasizes the unity and equality of the tribes before God. Each tribe, regardless of its size or prominence, brings the same prescribed gift. After this exhaustive account of man's offering to God, verse 89 provides the divine response. It shifts the focus from what the people were doing to what God was doing. Their obedience in worship created the context for God's speech. This verse, therefore, is the pinnacle of the chapter, showing that the ultimate goal of all the tabernacle furniture and all the dedicatory offerings was to establish a place where God would speak to His covenant mediator.
Key Issues
- The Nature of God's Voice
- The Mercy Seat as a Type of Christ
- The Role of the Mediator
- Worship as a Precursor to Revelation
- The Centrality of the Ark of the Testimony
Verse-by-Verse Commentary
89 Now when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with Him, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim, so He spoke to him.
Now when Moses went into the tent of meeting... The "tent of meeting" is, of course, the tabernacle. But the name itself is significant. It was not called the "tent of distant observation" or the "tent of formal ritual." It was the place where God and man were appointed to meet. This was a radical concept in the ancient world, where gods were either capricious tyrants to be appeased or remote, impersonal forces. But the God of Israel is a God who sets appointments. He designates a place, a time, and a manner for meeting. Moses, as the covenant mediator, has access. He goes in. This is not a casual stroll, it is a deliberate act of a representative entering the presence of the King.
...to speak with Him... Moses's intent is stated plainly. He goes in to have a conversation. This is a two-way street. While the end of the verse emphasizes God speaking to Moses, we see here that Moses's purpose was to speak with God. This highlights the relational, covenantal nature of their interaction. Moses was not simply a passive recipient of divine decrees, he was a participant in a relationship, bringing the needs and questions of the people before the Lord and speaking with Him. This is the privilege of a mediator.
...he heard the voice speaking to him... And when he goes in, he is met with success. He hears the voice. Not a feeling, not an intuition, not a vague impression, but a voice. God communicates in articulate, understandable language. This is fundamental to the Christian faith. Our God is a speaking God. He spoke creation into existence, He spoke the law from Sinai, and ultimately, He spoke His final Word in His Son, Jesus Christ (Heb. 1:1-2). The voice Moses hears is personal, it is "speaking to him." God is not broadcasting a general message to the cosmos, He is addressing His servant directly.
...from above the mercy seat... Now we are given the precise location of the sound's origin. It comes from above the mercy seat, the solid gold lid of the Ark of the Covenant. The Hebrew word for mercy seat is kapporeth, which is related to the word for atonement. This is not just a piece of furniture, it is the place of propitiation. It was here that the high priest would sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice on the Day of Atonement. The voice of God, therefore, emanates from the place of atonement. God speaks to sinful man from a position of mercy, a mercy made possible by substitutionary sacrifice. This is a glorious foreshadowing of the gospel. God does not speak to us from the throne of raw justice, which would only condemn us, but from the throne of grace, the mercy seat, which is Christ Himself (Rom. 3:25).
...that was on the ark of the testimony... The mercy seat rests upon the Ark. And what is the Ark called here? The Ark of the Testimony. Inside the Ark were the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, God's testimony against the sin of the people. So we have a beautiful picture here. The law, which testifies to our guilt, is contained within the Ark. But on top of the Ark, covering the law, is the mercy seat, where the atoning blood is applied. And it is from above the blood-sprinkled mercy seat that God speaks. His word of grace comes to us over the top of His righteous law, which has been satisfied by the blood. He does not set aside His law, He satisfies it through mercy.
...from between the two cherubim... These golden, angelic figures were hammered out of one piece with the mercy seat, their wings overshadowing it. What are they doing? They are guardians of the holy presence of God. We first meet them guarding the way back to the tree of life after the fall (Gen. 3:24). Here, they are guarding the throne of God. Their presence signifies the unapproachable holiness of God. Yet, paradoxically, it is from the very midst of this guarded holiness that the voice of mercy speaks. The cherubim are looking down upon the mercy seat (Ex. 25:20), perpetually gazing at the place of atonement. The whole scene in heaven is oriented toward the work of propitiation.
...so He spoke to him. The verse ends with this simple, powerful summary. The voice Moses heard was God's voice. "He spoke to him." This confirms the divine initiative. While Moses went in "to speak with Him," the ultimate action belongs to God. God speaks. This is the foundation of all true religion. It is not man's search for God, but God's gracious self-revelation to man. All the ritual, all the dedication, all the obedience of the previous 88 verses was for this moment. Not to earn God's favor, but to be in the place appointed to receive His Word. This is the pattern for us as well. We come to Him through the Mediator, on the basis of His atoning blood, and we come to hear Him speak through His Word.
Application
The pattern laid out in this verse is the pattern for all true Christian worship and fellowship with God. We do not approach God on our own terms, but we must come to the "tent of meeting" He has established, which is the person and work of Jesus Christ. He is the place where God and man meet.
Like Moses, we have a great mediator, the Lord Jesus, who has gone into the true Holy of Holies for us. Through Him, we have access to the Father. And what do we find there? We find a speaking God. He is not silent. He speaks to us from the mercy seat, from the place of atonement. We can only hear His voice rightly when we understand that His law, which testifies against us, has been satisfied by the blood of Christ. His grace does not ignore His justice, it fulfills it.
Therefore, we should approach God with confidence, but also with reverence. The cherubim are still there, reminding us that we are entering the presence of a holy God. But we approach a throne of grace, not a throne of judgment. And we should come expecting to hear from Him. God has spoken definitively in His Son, and He continues to speak to us through His written Word by the power of His Spirit. The goal of our worship, our giving, and our obedience is not just to check off a list of religious duties. The goal is this, to hear Him speak to us.