6 SeptemberExodus 37

Jesus the Mercy Seat.

Exodus 37:9 (NIV) “The cherubim had their wings spread upward, overshadowing the cover with them. The cherubim faced each other, looking toward the cover”. This links up with Hebrews 9:5 (AMP) “and above the ark were the [golden] cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat”.

On top of the Ark of the Covenant was a lid called the mercy seat. This was where the visible sign of God's presence, a cloud, would appear. It was believed that God was seated there, and from this place, He would show mercy to people when the blood of a sacrifice was sprinkled on it. In a way, the mercy seat protected God's people from the judgment of the Law, which always condemns. Every year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest would go into the Holy of Holies and sprinkle the blood of sacrificed animals on the mercy seat. This act symbolised that only through the offering of blood could the judgment of the Law be removed and the people's sins be covered.

This foreshadows what will ultimately happen when Jesus comes, and he will make it possible for you and me to enter God's presence through mercy. The “mercy” seat symbolised Jesus. We receive mercy because He was the “propitiation” for our sins. Hebrews 9:11 (AMP) “But when Christ appeared as a High Priest of the good things to come [that is, true spiritual worship], He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not a part of this [material] creation”.

Paul writes this in his letter to the Romans 3:25 (AMP) “whom God displayed publicly [before the eyes of the world] as a [life-giving] sacrifice of atonement and reconciliation (propitiation) by His blood [to be received] through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness [which demands punishment for sin], because in His forbearance [His deliberate restraint] He passed over the sins previously committed [before Jesus’ crucifixion].”

God presented Christ as the means of making atonement. And this atonement is received by faith in the blood of Jesus. The mercy seat in the Old Testament was God’s dwelling place among his people, which is a good description of Jesus. He was God, wrapped in human flesh and dwelling among us. Matthew 1:23 (AMP)“Behold, the virgin shall be with child and give birth to a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel”, which, when translated, means, “God with us.”

Jesus fulfilled what the Old Testament mercy seat was pointing toward. In the Old Testament, the mercy seat was where people offered the blood of a sacrifice to receive forgiveness. In the New Testament, the cross is where Jesus, our sacrifice, gave His life and shed His blood for us. The mercy seat in the Old Testament pointed forward to what Jesus would do, and the cross now reminds us of what He did. So, the cross is a powerful symbol representing the mercy seat and the sacrifice Jesus made for us.