Hebrews 9:1-5

Hebrews 9:1-5

[1] Then  verily  the first  covenant had  also  ordinances  of divine service,  and  a worldly  [2] For  a tabernacle  made;  the first,  wherein  was the candlestick,  and  the table,  and  the shewbread;  which  is called  [3] And  after  the second  veil,  the tabernacle  which  is called  [4] Which had  the golden  censer,  and  the ark  of the covenant  overlaid  round about  with gold,  wherein  was the golden  pot  that had  manna,  and  Aaron's  rod  that budded,  and  the tables  of the covenant;  [5] And  over  it  the cherubims  of glory  shadowing  the mercyseat;  of  which  we cannot  now  speak  particularly. 

What does Hebrews 9:1-5 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

The "first covenant" was the Mosaic Covenant. The writer compared it first to the New Covenant that replaced it. The outer tabernacle (lit. dwelling place) was the holy place ( Hebrews 9:2), and the inner tabernacle was the holy of holies ( Hebrews 9:3). "The table and the sacred bread" ( Hebrews 9:2) is a hendiadys for "the table of sacred bread." A hendiadys is a figure of speech in which a writer expresses a single complex idea by joining two substantives with "and" rather than by using an adjective and a substantive.
Some readers have understood Hebrews 9:4 as saying that the altar of incense was in the holy of holies in the tabernacle. [1] This seems to contradict the Old Testament, which located this altar in the holy place ( Exodus 30:6; Exodus 40:3-5; Exodus 40:21-27). The writer of Hebrews probably meant that the veil, not the holy of holies, had the altar of incense and the ark of the covenant connected with it ( Hebrews 9:3; cf. 1 Kings 6:22). These pieces of furniture were on either side of the veil. Describing it this way clarified that the writer meant the veil that hung between the holy place and the holy of holies. "Having" (Gr. echousa) should be understood in the sense of "belonging to" rather than "standing within." [2]
A second problem is that this writer described the ark as having a golden jar of manna and Aaron"s rod that budded in it. The Old Testament says that these items were beside the ark in the holy of holies ( Exodus 16:32-34; Numbers 17:10-11).
"It would at least seem reasonable to suppose that if the urn and the rod were originally placed in front of the ark, yet subsequently, for the sake of convenience (for example, when carrying the ark from one place to another), they were placed inside it." [3]
"According to the rabbis, the ark disappeared at the time of the early prophets (Mishnah, Yoma Hebrews 5:2; Shekalim Hebrews 6:1 f.); and there was a tradition that Jeremiah hid it ( 2 Maccabees 2:4 ff.)." [4]
The writer declined to speak of the tabernacle furnishings in more detail ( Hebrews 9:5) because his main purpose was to contrast the two rituals and the two covenants.