The Ark :: a picture of two becoming one

1 + 1 = One 

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall become united and cleave to his wife, and they shall become ONE flesh.”  (Genesis 2:24 Amplified) 

Cleave:  Strongs #1692 dabaq:  To cleave, to adhere, specially firmly as with glue, to be glued...  

One: Strongs #259 echad: One, a unit; unity, Echad comes from the root Achad, “to bring together, to unify...”  

Note: “Compare the unity of God to the unity of man made in His image.”

God formed Adam (humankind; male and female) from the dust, then God took a piece from Adam’s side, his rib, and built Eve as a separate person.  After she was presented to Adam and he recognized her as his wife (isha), then Adam left his family of origin, to cleave to Eve.  Marriage.  

What a beautiful, unfathomable mystery.  The two become one;  1 + 1 = ONE!  They are joined, and the two pieces are glued together, yet they remain individuals.  

God is the ultimate of multifaceted creativity, and He loves giving us signs and symbols.  Imagine the Ark of the Covenant, and the Mercy Seat, and look at the specifics of how Bezalel made the Ark, according to the instructions given to Moses in Exodus 25:

“Then Bezelel made the ark of acacia wood...”  (Exodus 37:1 NKJV) 

“He also made the mercy seat of pure gold...” 

“He made the two cherubim of beaten gold; he made them of ONE piece at the two ends of the mercy seat; one cherub at one end on this side and the other cherub at the other end on that side.  He made the cherubim at the two ends of one piece with the mercy seat.”   

“The cherubim spread out their wings above, and covered the mercy seat with their wings. They faced one another; the faces of the cherubim were toward the mercy seat.” (Exodus 37:7-9 NKJV)

“And there I will met with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim....” (Exodus 25: 22 NKJV)

A friend shared this image with me a few years ago, and it has never left my mind.  The Ark of the Covenant represents the marriage bond and covenant, and the intimacy of man and wife, with God at the center.  The two become one (after being hammered by the Craftsman), they face one another, and in that sacred place, God shows up to speak to His people.  

The note in my bible says this:  “The ark was most sacred of all the furniture in the tabernacle.  Here the Hebrews kept a copy of the Ten Commandments, which summarized the whole covenant.”  

Declarations: 

Father God, thank You for the gift of Your symbolism. The unity of man and wife is so important to You, that you gave us a picture of the holiness of marriage in the design of the Ark of the Covenant.  Lord, I want that!  We ALL want to experience the purity of marriage, and becoming one, pure as gold, with our spouse, and with Your presence in the center.  

• We declare that marriage is a Holy covenant bond between one man and one woman, with God at the center of the relationship.  

• Thank you Lord, God for your hammering. Thank you Lord for removing the impurities from our lives, and we declare that we will come forth as gold. 

• We declare that according to Your divine design, and in Your perfect time, we will be united into one piece with the person You have chosen for us.  

• We declare a strengthening of the holy, golden unity for the existing marriages; that the two will face each other, and protect the presence of God in their midst.  

Amen!  

Expecting to be amazed ~

Barbara 

© Barbara Nelson – 2011