Today’s
Scripture Reading (June 18, 2012): Exodus 30
In ancient Egypt there were actually two ways that a Pharaoh would move
about the country. If he was going to war or involved in a sport then the
Pharaoh would either ride in a chariot with a driver or may even be the driver
of the chariot. When speed was important, speed was also available. But that
was not the only way that the Pharaoh would travel.
When speed was not important, then the Pharaoh would have been carried
by trusted servants on a raised chair. The reason for the alternate form of
travel might have been twofold. Maybe one of the reasons was simply that the
Pharaoh would have been easier to be seen when he was carried on a raised chair.
The Pharaoh himself was a symbol of justice and equality for all of the Egyptian
citizens, so he was a symbol that needed to be seen. But another reason was
that when he was carried on a chair by his servants he was actually in a more
stable position; it would be less likely that the Pharaoh could be hurt by an
unexpected bump or hole in the road.
The generation of Israelites that God was beginning to mold into a
nation grew up watching the Egyptians Pharaohs. They were the only royalty that
Israel had ever really known. And what they had seen was that Royalty was
carried. God was designing the nation of Israel to be a theocracy, a nation
ruled by God – a nation where God served as the king. And the seat of God on
earth, a God that would come to symbolize equality and justice, was the Ark of
the Covenant. So the Ark would be carried in the same manner as the only king
that Israel had known – the Pharaohs of Egypt.
God is many things to us; he is father, mother, friend, confident,
Savior, comforter, but among all of the attributes we must not forget that he
is King – and, one day, all nations will bow down to him – the God who is the
King of kings.
Tomorrow’s
Scripture Reading: Exodus 31
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