“and I knew they were cherubim”
(Ezek. 10:20, NKJV)
The image above, of the cherubs woven into the veil that has been opened, so that the viewer can see into the Holy of Holies in the ark of testimony, with additional cherubs on top, is obviously not Biblically correct, but presented as such for the sake of the viewer.
The veil obviously did not have a natural opening, and in this representation it seems to be made of a thin type of fabric. This was however not the case. In the dispensation of the tabernacle the veil was understandably not a very heavy item, as it was part of a mobile unit that had to be easily packed up and transported. The veil of the temple, on the other hand, was a magnificent wall of a curtain. Nowhere in Scripture do we find an explicit indication of just how thick it was, and neither is it indicated in the descriptions of Josephus, the secular historian of that period. In his The War of the Jews he provides his own interpretation of, for instance, the colours of the veil, and what he sees as the symbolism of the cherubs “and all that was mystical in the heavens” (5.5.4) that is represented on the curtain, but says nothing about the curtain’s weight. In his book The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Alfred Edersheim provides the following information, most likely drawn from Talmud commentaries: “The Veils before the Most Holy Place were 40 cubits (60 feet) long, and 20 (30 feet) wide, of the thickness of the palm of the hand, and wrought in 72 squares, which were joined together; and these Veils were so heavy, that, in the exaggerated language of the time, it needed 300 priests to manipulate each. If the Veil was at all such as is described in the Talmud, it could not have been rent in twain by a mere earthquake or the fall of the lintel, although its composition in squares fastened together might explain, how the rent might be as described in the Gospel.”
What is important to remember about the veil is that it was primarily used to cover something. The fact that the cherubs are also represented upon it, also points to covering (“the anointed cherub who covers” – Ezek. 28:14), and thus emphasises the intentional doubled cover. The Hebrew word for cover is śâkak which, in addition to the obvious meanings, is also defined as “to hedge, fence about, shut in, to block, overshadow, screen, stop the approach, shut off,” and can even mean “to weave, weave together” (BDB)! Different elements are thus woven together here, but fundamentally it is concerned with making a cover. One could use 1Cor. 2:7 to describe the cherubs on the veil: the cherubs point to “the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory”. Amen!
The fact that the cherubs were originally positioned by God to prevent (cover) entry to Eden, and the fact that its representation functions in the same way, preventing (covering) entry to the Holy of Holies, creates the impression that this was the primary function or task of these beings. In accordance with this idea, Jonathan Cahn, in his book, The Book of Mysteries, writes that “the sign of the cherubim represents everything that separates us from God …” (Day 112). He concludes with this thought toward the end of his book: “In Messiah all barriers are gone. Move forward this day in that power, through every veil, wall, separation, hindrance, and cherubim.” But this is not the correct interpretation. Within the tabernacle, as well as the temple, we find many representations of the cherubs that are not torn or broken. In the Holy of Holies there are also dramatic and focal representations of the cherubs, made of olive wood and covered in gold, that are not broken or torn – in fact, these images are the central point where the glory of God manifests.
Obviously, the placement of the cherubs in the gate to Eden was not just a (strange) symbol of dead representation of Godly authority. Therefore, we find the idea, throughout the ages, that cherubs are a special type of angel. Important physical representations offer them as naked, fat boyish angels, resembling the Cupido-figure in Greek mythology. Despite the fact that certain sources describe the cherubs as terrible beings that need to be feared, this extreme view, running counter to their actual nature, points to the great confusion, and mystery, that runs rampant concerning what exactly the cherubs are.
What renders the cherubs even more complex is the fact that in the Israel-cult there was an explicit decree against the making of any imagery. In the Ten Commandments it is spelled out as follows: “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.” (Ex. 20:4). In Deut. 4:23 it is spelled out in equally strong terms: “Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God which He made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything which the Lord your God has forbidden you.” Why then would God dictate that this image be created, and give careful instructions about its construction, as He did with Moses in Ex. 25:18-22?
There could only be one reason for this: the representation or image of the cherubs on the mercy seat is NOT AN IMAGE, OR A REPRESENTATION, as God would certainly not go against His explicit decree, and also task someone with making the cherubs. This means that the ‘image’ in the Holy of Holies, even though it was made from olive wood and gold (1 Kings 6:23), was not a mere representation of anything, but a symbolic pointer to something else, as is the case with the rest of the details and furniture and objects in the tabernacle/temple. The fact that they are made from olive wood, offers the key – it is wood (flesh), but also anointed (oil). The anointing is not applied with oil, it is the inherent flesh of the olive tree. In addition, the wood is covered with gold, which points to divinity, but also to revelatory knowledge (Nadia Julien: The Mammoth Book of Lost Symbols: A Dictionary of the Hidden Language of Symbolism). Remember: revelatory knowledge is knowledge that reveals what has been covered! This necessarily leads to a restored and anointed man of eternal flesh – as Adam was before the fall, and Jesus after He arose. The cherubs are thus clearly a pointer to the Christ, whose mortal bodies are brought to life by the spirit of Christ (Rom. 8:11). Selah.
The prototype of the cherubs in the Holy of Holies is a pointer to “living beings”, as the cherubs are called in Ezek. 1:15. In reality they are clearly alive, and they (the word cherubs is always plural!) have a spirit (Ezek. 1:20-21). The cherubs in front of the gates of Eden are not symbols – the cherubs that are placed at the gates are living things that carry symbolic meanings. To say that the Christ, or the Bride, resembles cherubs, is one of many metaphors or images that are used to describe the Bride. The cherubs are thus not a type of angelic being, but pointers to the Christ.
- Selah: It is important to ponder which elements of the cherubs are real, and which are symbolic.
- Read: 3-8
- Memorise: 5:1 (what would this Scripture mean in the light of this teaching?)
- For a more in-depth understanding: Read one of the books mentioned above.
