“The Candlestick” was one of those ordinances which stood alone, giving a character to the Wilderness Journey, in the Book of Numbers. We have already noticed several of these special things, some of them not even mentioned elsewhere, which are peculiar to this Book. Before the journey commenced, and the Levites were set apart to serve, the “Candlestick” was the first thing spoken of.
When the Lord addressed Moses, from off the Mercy Seat that was upon the Ark; “And when Moses was gone into the tabernacle of the congregation to speak with him (God), then he heard the voice of one speaking unto him from off the mercy seat, that was upon the ark of testimony, from between the two cherubims: and he spake unto him: And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak thou unto Aaron, and say unto him, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick (Num. 7:89;8:1,289And when Moses was gone into the tabernacle of the congregation to speak with him, then he heard the voice of one speaking unto him from off the mercy seat that was upon the ark of testimony, from between the two cherubims: and he spake unto him. (Numbers 7:89)
1And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 2Speak unto Aaron, and say unto him, When thou lightest the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light over against the candlestick. (Numbers 8:1‑2)).” Here only, of all the furniture of the Sanctuary is the Candlestick found. Just as the Trumpets alone belong to this book; and the Rod of Priesthood; and the Ashes of the Heifer; and the Ribband of Blue; — The Candlestick — though heretofore directed to be made, stands alone. This is full of instruction for our souls. How blessed it is to find some grand apparent difficulty in the Word of God! Be assured that when something comes across our path there which seems irrational, and out of context; in fact something that we are afraid to entertain — tempted to fear some mistake; it is in such a place that the richest ore crops out from the Word; yielding to us its sweetest lessons!
But the mistake we sometimes fall into is, making efforts to master the difficulty at once, never giving a thought to the great fact that we may not yet be ready for the truths which are there. Our souls are not fit for the lesson, and we must wait; we must grow in fitness; we must not give the matter up as hopeless, nor as not being for us at all. But we must wait for God’s time, and look for light to Him. Jesus spake to His disciples, as they were able to bear it.
Have I not at times feared to make my difficulties known to another? Has not my soul trembled — tempted to think I had placed my confidence in some statement of the Word in vain? Yet I have waited on my God, and not in vain; ‘and, it may have been in years after, the truth was made clear in the Word, and my soul was filled with praise! The great thing is never to lose confidence in it: God will sometime make it plain to the exercised heart.
I do not say that there is such a difficulty here, in the ordinance of the Candlestick. There may be absurdity in the matter, to the soul of the infidel. He may sneer at the hopeless jumble which the word of God here, as elsewhere, presents, to him. He may found theories about disjointed narratives and of collected manuscripts, and other wise deductions while the beauties of Scripture, like the starry skies to the blind man, are lost upon him. Alas — he wants eyes to see!
How suitably then is the Candlestick here introduced. The people of God are about to start on their Wilderness journey (Num. 10); in their Levite character they are about to be set apart to serve the Lord (Num. 8), and ere they start on their pilgrimage all must partake of the Paschal Feast — the symbol of the unity of a redeemed people (Num. 9). The first thing therefore is this, that they are to shine as the “Epistle of Christ — known and read of all men”! They are to “Let their light so shine among men, that they may see their good works, and glorify their Father, which is in heaven.” “Christ” is to be made known through them on earth, He is to shine out in all their ways: this on the one hand; but on the other, it is their works which are seen; but they are to shine so that men may trace them to the source of all — their Father in heaven revealed by Jesus; the Father of lights with whom is no variableness, nor shadow of turning! Here then most suitably is the Candlestick found.
Remark too in this ordinance of the Candlestick — the seven lamps, lit up by the oil of the Spirit, are to shine where no light was, within the holy place, but “over against the Candlestick — the shaft of which was of beaten gold. The lamps were to shine so that its beauty should be seen.
In the inner Sanctuary, or “Holiest of all” there was no light needful: the God of Israel was the Light thereof: the glory “Shekinah-ed” there; and in that glorious light none could dwell. What a wondrous “shadow” was this of Him, who “dwelleth in the light to which no one can approach, whom no one hath seen nor can see,” to whom be glory forever and ever ascribed! (1 Tim. 6).
But in the outer Sanctuary, or “Holy Place,” this light was there. “The candlestick shone over against the shaft thereof.” God would have a light to display His Son. And here it is of profound interest and instruction to us, to note that when the vail was rent which divided the Holy place from the most Holy, the now blended light still shined on — when both were but one “Holy”! The light of Him who sits upon the Throne or Mercy Seat; and that from the seven branched Candlestick, both combined; the light from the glory in the face of Jesus, and the light of the Spirit lit up in the Church of God on earth, formed one bright and glorious effulgence. The day will come when in the glorified Church on high (Rev. 21), we read, that “the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof”; and yet “Her light was like a stone most precious; like a jasper and a sardine stone.” This effulgence all combined will shine forth —
If we turn to the Gospel of John (ch. 12 — 14) we have a lovely hint at this “Candlestick” — where the Lord unfolds the gift of the coming Comforter to His People, when He was going away.
He had entered Jerusalem as her King. “Hosannah! Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord,” resounded from the voices of “much people,” “which had gone forth to meet him” (John 12). They waved the branches of palm trees, and spread their garments in the way. The Romans looked on and were silent. The Greeks came up and laid hold on His followers, saying, “Sirs, we would see Jesus.” All seemed lifelike, and promised great things.
But the Lord was not deceived. He could not yet “silence the enemy and the avenger”; nor “rise to reign over the Gentiles”; nor bless His people as their King. Nay. “The corn of wheat must die or abide alone” (John 12:2424Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. (John 12:24)); but if it die, it would bring forth much fruit. Another scene must darken the world. The cross must ensue, and the judgment of the world must come (John 12:3131Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. (John 12:31)). But the end would be — “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” No more an earthly Messiah seeking in vain to draw the Jew — “His own”; but a wider glory would shine from the cross: Christ must leave the earth: He “must be lifted up” from it — not yet to heavenly glory; but between the heavens and the earth — upon the cross, He would be no more merely the object to the Jew as walking here; but to draw all men unto Himself! He would thus — as the crucified, be the object for the world. The “Brazen Altar” must be satisfied; its claims must be set at rest forever, ere He could pass into the holiest in virtue of the work there done.
When the camp stood at rest in the Desert, surrounded by the Tribes of Israel, it figured the dwelling place of God. When one approached God’s dwelling place, he left the world outside. Inside the curtains which surrounded the Court of the Sanctuary, he met the Altar of Brass. It did not stand in the world outside, nor did it reach the dwelling place of God. Like the cross, it stood between them both — for the Mediator between God and man; the “Daysman,” to stand between. But the sinner had left the world, and all hope from man behind, when he lifted his eyes to the meeting place between God and man. The cross where Jesus was lifted up, was this Brazen Altar. “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me!” He would thus be the “Zaphnath-Paaneah”; the true Joseph — the “Savior of the world” (Gen. 41:4545And Pharaoh called Joseph's name Zaphnath-paaneah; and he gave him to wife Asenath the daughter of Poti-pherah priest of On. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt. (Genesis 41:45)).
When the “Brazen Altar” was thus passed by, ere the saved one reached the presence of God, the “Brazen Laver” met him by the way. He must not only be cleansed according to the need of man; but fitted for communion according to the thoughts of God! The Laver met his daily need, and the defilements contracted by his feet were removed — that no soil might hinder his fellowship with the Father and Son. Jesus becomes the true Laver (John 13) to wash their feet, that they might have “part with me.” “If I wash thee not thou hast no part with me.”
When the Brazen Layer was now passed, the “Holiest” the “Father’s House” — was entered (John 14) to prepare a place for those who had been cleansed. The vail was yet unrent till Jesus died; He enters it, as yet, alone. He would come again and receive them there Himself. But Jesus — “The way the truth, the life,” must prove in death, by being rent in twain as it were, that “no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” This was the vail — His flesh.
In the “Holy” place “the Candlestick” was set to shine meanwhile. The oil was about to be given; the Spirit of God, the other Comforter should be bestowed. Then the lights of the lamps would shine over against the Candlestick. Jesus had declared the Father; “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father also.” This was natural in Him and true. None but He — the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, had declared Him.
But a new thing would come. One which would be supernatural indeed. “The believing one on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do, because I go to my Father.” This was the ‘Candlestick.” The sevenfold light would shine from the believer, in the power of the Spirit, “over against the Candlestick.” Believers would show forth the Son of God, as he had shown the Father!
These were not Apostles: doubtless they too were amongst those who would so shine; but we do not find Apostles named in John. It is “believers” of which He speaks here. Were this not so, they would lose the joy and blessedness of these Scriptures in John.
The “great work” of Jesus — so natural to Him; would be replaced by “greater works” in them. It was the Father known in the Son was His great work here. But when poor lost ones, now saved, would show forth Him, by the power of the Spirit given them: these things were beyond what man could do. The seven lamps would show their light, but they would shine when no light was seen, revealing the beauty of the shaft and knops and flowers of the Candlestick.
Look at Stephen —”Full of the Holy Ghost,” gazing steadfastly into heaven. The glory from the Holiest shone out upon him. The Lamp of the Candlestick was lit up on earth, and no power of Satan could quench the light. It was “ Christ” that shone in him. It shone over against the Candlestick. He beholds his Master in the heavens, and he is like his Master in the darkness outside. His face shines, as a child of the resurrection, like the face of an angel. His words are like his Master’s prayer. He was telling forth, without the words, the virtues of Him who had called him out of darkness into His marvelous fight.
Surely this was a “greater work” than Christ had done. With Him all was perfect; all shone out because it was within. But not so with us. If the God who caused light to shine of old out of darkness had lit a Lamp in our hearts, it is tor the shining forth of the light of the knowledge of His glory in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:66For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:6)).
May His own “Shine, as lights in the world, holding forth (exhibiting) the Word of Life!”