Guarding the Presence: The Guardians of Glory Text: 1 Kings 6:23-28
Introduction: The Furniture of Heaven
We live in a thin and flimsy age. Our worship is often shallow because our view of God is shallow. We think of God's presence as a warm feeling, a pleasant sentiment, or a vague sense of spiritual well being. We have domesticated the Almighty, treating the consuming fire as though He were a decorative fireplace. But when God condescended to dwell with His people in the Old Testament, He did not give them instructions for a cozy living room. He gave them a blueprint for a throne room. He gave them architecture that was designed to terrify.
The modern evangelical mind, when it bothers to read such passages, often treats these details about the temple as little more than historical trivia for a Bible Trivial Pursuit card. Olive wood, ten cubits, gold overlay, who cares? Let's get to the "relevant" parts. But in doing so, we reveal that we have bought into a Gnostic lie, the idea that the material world is disconnected from spiritual reality. God is the one who created matter, and He is the one who imbues it with meaning. Every detail in the construction of this temple is a word from God. It is a sermon in wood and gold. It is a shadow, a type, a pointer to the ultimate reality that would be revealed in Jesus Christ.
The Holy of Holies was the epicenter of God's manifest presence on earth. It was the most dangerous room on the planet. To enter it wrongly was to die instantly. And at the very heart of this room, flanking the Ark of the Covenant, Solomon is instructed to build two colossal guardians. These are not chubby, sentimental cherubs for a greeting card. These are terrifying angelic beings, the guardians of the divine throne. And in their construction, their size, their material, and their placement, God is teaching us about His own nature, about the nature of true worship, and about the access that we would one day have through His Son.
The Text
Also in the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high. And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub and five cubits the other wing of the cherub; from the end of one wing to the end of the other wing were ten cubits. The other cherub was also ten cubits; both the cherubim were of the same measure and the same form. The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was the other cherub. And he put the cherubim in the midst of the inner house, and the wings of the cherubim were spread out, so that the wing of the one was touching the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub was touching the other wall. And their wings were touching each other in the center of the house. He also overlaid the cherubim with gold.
(1 Kings 6:23-28 LSB)
Guardians of Peace (v. 23)
We begin with the basic description of these figures.
"Also in the inner sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits high." (1 Kings 6:23)
The first thing to notice is what they are: cherubim. Where have we seen these before? The very first time they appear is in Genesis 3, after Adam and Eve are exiled from the Garden. God places cherubim at the east of Eden with a flaming sword to guard the way to the tree of life (Gen. 3:24). Their job is to prevent sinful man from re-entering God's presence. They are guardians of holiness. They represent the unbridgeable gulf that sin creates between a holy God and unholy man. So when we see them here, in the heart of the temple, their presence is a stark reminder of this reality. They are guarding the throne, the mercy seat. They are a visible sermon on the terror of God's holiness.
But notice the material: olive wood. This is not incidental. The olive tree, throughout Scripture, is a symbol of peace, fruitfulness, and blessing. It is the olive branch that the dove brings back to Noah, signifying that God's wrath has subsided and peace is restored (Gen. 8:11). Olive oil was used for anointing, a symbol of the Holy Spirit's presence and consecration. So we have a fascinating juxtaposition. The terrifying guardians of God's holiness are carved from the wood of peace. This is a gospel paradox. The very beings who represent the barrier between God and man are constructed from a material that signifies reconciliation. It's a hint, a whisper, that God Himself intends to provide a way past the flaming sword. The path back to God's presence will be a path of peace, established by the one who will be anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows (Ps. 45:7).
Their height is ten cubits, roughly fifteen feet tall. In a room that was only twenty cubits high, these figures would have been utterly dominating. This is not subtle decoration. This is an overwhelming statement of the majesty and grandeur of the heavenly court. Earthly worship is a participation in a reality far greater than ourselves.
Symmetrical Sovereignty (v. 24-26)
The text then emphasizes their size and uniformity.
"And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub and five cubits the other wing of the cherub; from the end of one wing to the end of the other wing were ten cubits. The other cherub was also ten cubits; both the cherubim were of the same measure and the same form. The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was the other cherub." (1 Kings 6:24-26 LSB)
The repetition here is deliberate. The wingspan of each was ten cubits. The height of each was ten cubits. They were of the "same measure and the same form." This perfect symmetry and identity is meant to communicate the order and perfection of the heavenly realm. There is no chaos, no disharmony, no irregularity in the presence of God. Everything is ordered according to His perfect will. These are not wild, chaotic forces; they are servants who perfectly reflect the character of the one they serve. They are identical because they have one mind, one purpose: to glorify God and to execute His will.
This uniformity stands in stark contrast to the pagan mythologies surrounding Israel. The gods of the Canaanites were capricious, monstrous, and disharmonious. They fought with one another. Their pantheons were a mess of rivalries and conflicting wills. But the God of Israel is one, and His heavenly court is one. The perfect symmetry of the cherubim is a polemic against the chaos of the pagan worldview. It declares that reality is governed by a single, sovereign, and orderly will.
Covering the Space (v. 27)
Their placement within the Holy of Holies is described with geometric precision.
"And he put the cherubim in the midst of the inner house, and the wings of the cherubim were spread out, so that the wing of the one was touching the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub was touching the other wall. And their wings were touching each other in the center of the house." (1 Kings 6:27 LSB)
The Holy of Holies was a perfect cube, twenty cubits by twenty cubits by twenty cubits. The wingspan of each cherub was ten cubits. Placed side by side, their wings stretched the entire twenty-cubit width of the room, from wall to wall, touching in the center. They formed a complete canopy, a complete covering, over the space where the Ark of the Covenant, God's footstool, would rest. Nothing could be more clear: the entire space is under their watch. Their authority, delegated from God, fills the room.
This imagery of wings is central. God is the one who gathers His people under His wings (Ps. 91:4). Jesus lamented over Jerusalem, wishing to gather her children "as a hen gathers her brood under her wings" (Luke 13:34). These cherubim, with their wings outstretched, are a physical representation of God's protective, sovereign, and holy covering. They are forming the throne room. The psalmist declares that God is the one who is "enthroned upon the cherubim" (Ps. 99:1). This is what that looks like. The space between their wings, above the mercy seat, is the designated spot where heaven and earth meet. It is the place of atonement, the place where God's justice and mercy kiss.
Humanity and Glory (v. 28)
The final detail is the finishing touch.
"He also overlaid the cherubim with gold." (1 Kings 6:28 LSB)
The core is olive wood, a product of the earth, a symbol of peace. But the exterior is pure gold. Gold in Scripture represents that which is divine, pure, glorious, and eternal. It does not tarnish or decay. Here we have a picture of something earthly, something created, being completely covered in divine glory. The olive wood gives the form, but the gold gives the character of the object in its function. They are earthly material transfigured by heavenly glory.
This is a profound picture of what God does with His people. We are the olive wood, earthy and created. But in Christ, we are overlaid with the gold of His righteousness and glory. This is the logic of the incarnation. Jesus Christ is the true temple. He is the one in whom humanity (the wood) and divinity (the gold) are perfectly joined in one person. He is the one who passed through the angelic guardians, not as a trespasser, but as the King. And when He died, the veil of the temple, which was embroidered with cherubim, was torn in two from top to bottom (Matt. 27:51). The way past the guardians was thrown open.
The New Holy of Holies
So what does this ancient architecture have to do with us? Everything. The author of Hebrews tells us that the temple and all its furniture were copies and shadows of heavenly things (Heb. 8:5). The true Holy of Holies is in heaven, where Christ has entered as our great high priest (Heb. 9:24). Through His blood, He has opened for us a "new and living way" into the very presence of God (Heb. 10:19-20).
The barrier is gone. The cherubim with the flaming sword have been recalled. In Christ, we are invited to "draw near with confidence to the throne of grace" (Heb. 4:16). That throne is the mercy seat, the place between the cherubim. Because of Christ's finished work, the guardians of God's holiness are no longer there to keep us out; they are there to welcome us in.
And it gets better. The New Testament teaches that we, the church, are now the temple of the living God (1 Cor. 3:16). God's presence does not dwell in buildings made with hands, but in His people. We are being built together into a holy temple in the Lord (Eph. 2:21-22). We are the olive wood, being overlaid with the gold of His glory. We are the place where heaven and earth meet. When we gather for worship, we are entering the Holy of Holies by faith. We are joining the angelic host, the cherubim and seraphim, who cry "Holy, Holy, Holy" before the throne.
Therefore, let us not treat this access lightly. Let us not come into His presence with a flimsy or casual attitude. The God we worship is the same God who commanded these terrifying guardians to be built. He is a consuming fire. But because of the blood of Jesus, we who are in Christ are not consumed. We are welcomed. We are made part of the architecture of glory. We are brought past the guards and into the very heart of God.