Exposition of the Laws of Moses, Exegesis 1 · Part 10
EXERCITAT. X. Of the golden Candleſticke. A eremoniall Appendix of Command 2.
Exod. 25.31. And thou ſhalt make a Candleſticke of pure Gold, of beaten worke ſhall the Candleſticke be made; his ſhaft and his branches, his bowels, his knops, and his flowers ſhall be of the ſame.
THe matter of which this Candleſticke was made, was pure Gold, and it had a ſhaft, branches, bowlse, knops and flowers.
The pure gold ſignified how excellent the word of God is, Pſal. 19.10. more to be deſired are they then gold, The ſignification of the Candleſticke.yea then much fine gold.
We are not curiouſly here to ſeeke the difference of the knops, branches and flowers, but onelyonly to reſt in the generall, that the Candleſticke ſignified the Word.
The Candleſticke had ſeven branches, it ſignified the divers gifts beſtowed upon his Church by the word,The branches of the Candleſticke ſignified the divers gifts beſtowed upon the Church. and Iohn alludeth to the ſeven branches of this Candleſticke, Revel. 1.13. And in the midſt of the ſeven Candleſticks one like the Sonne of man cloathed with a garment; this was but typus arbitrarius, or an alluſion; for the golden Candleſticke was not made to be a type of the ſeven Churches in Aſia, but it is onelyonly an alluſion to it. So Prov. 11.30. The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, here is an alluſion onelyonly, that it is like to the tree of life.
The oyle in the Tabernacle was pure oyle.The oyle which was in this Candleſticke was pure oyle, Levit. 24.2. Command the children of Iſrael that they bring unto thee pure oyle Olive, beaten, for the light, to cauſe the lampes to burne continually: foreign aurum, hic eſt oleum, ſic dictum, quod pur…m ſplendidum & nit idum fuit & ſine mixtura.This pure oyle is called golden oyle, or gold for the puritie of it, Zach. 4.12. becauſe the oyle was bright, cleare and gliſtering like gold. So Iob. 37.22. Gold commeth out of the north, that is, faire and cleare weather. It was beaten oyle, to ſignifie with what paine and travell the word is prepared, and with patience preached and made to ſhine in his Church.
No Waxe might be burnt in theſe lampes, becauſe Honey was uncleane, therefore Waxe was uncleane; Honey might be in no Sacrifice, becauſe it fermenteth, Levit. 2.11. So no Waxe might ſerue for light. So there was no ſilke in the Tabernacle, becauſe the Worme which maketh ſilke was an uncleane thing.
foreign baccae foreign ſpicaeThe Prophet Zacharie in a viſion ſaw two Olive branches empyting themſelves thorow the two golden pipes into the Candleſticke, and they are compared to two eares of corne,What the two Olive trees were in the viſion of Zacharie. becauſe they were full of Olive berries, as the eares were of graines.
Theſe Olive trees were the cauſe of the preſervation of the Church, and the cauſe of the maintenance in the Candleſticke.
The two annointed ones which ſtand before the Lord of the whole earth, verſ. 14. Targum paraphraſeth them to be Zerubbabel and Ioſhua, who repreſented the Church and commonwealth.
The Lord commanded to make ſnuffers of pure gold for the ſnuffing of the lampes,The ſnuffers of gold what they ſignified. and ſnuffe-diſhes to receive the ſnufle; he would have the ſnuffe taken from the light, to ſignifie that he would have the word kept in ſinceritie and puritie; and hee would have the ſnuffers of gold, to teach them to be blameleſſe and holy, who are cenſurers and correctors of others; and he would have the ſnuffe-diſhes of gold, to teach them that the covering of the offences of their brethren was a moſt excellent thing.
Laſtly, in what manner the Prieſts dreſſed the lamps;The manner how the Prieſts trimmed the lampes. when the lampe was out, he lighted it, and when it was not out, he dreſſed it; when the middlemoſt lampe was out, he lighted it from the Altar; but the reſt of the lampes every one he lighted from the lampe that was next; and he lighted one after another, to ſignifie, that one Scripture giveth light to another; & they ſay in the Talmud, that the cleanſing of the innermoſt Altar was before the trimming of the five lamps; and the trimming of the five lamps before the blood of the daily ſacrifice; and the blood of the daily ſacrifice before the trimming of the two lamps; and the trimming of the two lamps, before the burning of incenſe.
That the Prieſts ſhould order and trimme the lamps,The ſignification of the trimming of the lamps. ſignifieth how Chriſt and his Miniſters ſhould continually looke unto the purity of doctrine and preaching of the light of the Goſpel from evening to morning, in the darke place of this world, untill the day dawne and the day ſtarre ariſe in our hearts, Reve. 1.13. 2 Pet. 1.19.