Exodus 30:1-81And thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it. 2A cubit shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof; foursquare shall it be: and two cubits shall be the height thereof: the horns thereof shall be of the same. 3And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, the top thereof, and the sides thereof round about, and the horns thereof; and thou shalt make unto it a crown of gold round about. 4And two golden rings shalt thou make to it under the crown of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two sides of it shalt thou make it; and they shall be for places for the staves to bear it withal. 5And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold. 6And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony, before the mercy seat that is over the testimony, where I will meet with thee. 7And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. 8And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the Lord throughout your generations. (Exodus 30:1‑8)
“AND THOU shalt make an altar to burn incense upon: of shittim wood shalt thou make it.... And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold.”
The various articles of furniture in the tabernacle that have occupied us thus far had to do with God’s displaying Himself. Now it becomes a matter of man’s approach to God; therefore we have had in the last two chapters, the consecration of the priests, who alone could enter into God’s presence.
There remained two sacred vessels of approach, which we have not yet had brought before us, and the first of these is the golden altar, or altar of incense. This altar is not mentioned until now because there had to be a way opened up first of all by which the sinner could approach God. That is why we have the brazen altar first, and this speaks of the cross. There it is that God meets the sinner in love and accepts him, when he believes, in the value of the sacrifice of Christ, His beloved Son, who died there to put away sin.
The altar of incense was made of shittim wood, overlaid with gold, and sets forth in all its details Christ both God and man. It stood within the holy place, before the veil. This teaches us that apart from Christ there can be no approach to God, no worship rendered to Him. But Christ is the meeting place between God and His people. He meets the sinner at the brazen altar, but at the golden altar He meets the saint. The gold speaks of that which is divine—that which suits God’s own nature. Knowing this the believer can enter into His presence with boldness, for Christ is there.
Aaron was to take sweet spices and burn them on the golden altar before God. The incense spoke of Christ, so precious to God, who will ever have His beloved Son before Him. The coals which brought out the sweet fragrance of the incense were to come only from the brazen altar, where the sacrifice was consumed. The judgment that consumed the burnt offering was the same which would bring out the sweet savor of the golden altar. This tells us that the sweetest fragrance to God is that which has come from His own dear Son being bruised and smitten upon the cross.
Aaron at the golden altar is also a type of the believer, for the burning of the incense speaks of worship. The believer is before God in all the value of Christ, the burnt offering; there He can praise, worship and adore, and present to God the merits and worthiness of Christ. We are told that the altar was most holy and we should always remember this when we come into the presence of God in worship.
The offering of this incense was to never cease — it was to be offered morning and evening, day after day year after year. The believer is told to “Rejoice in the Lord always.’ Phil. 4:44Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. (Philippians 4:4); “singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,” Eph. 5:19, 2019Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; 20Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; (Ephesians 5:19‑20) and enjoying with Him all the preciousness of Christ.
ML-11/22/1970