Schoolmaster to Christ
EXODUS CHAPTER 27

Scripture Reading: Exodus 27 (KJV)

We have now arrived at the Brazen Altar which stood at the door of the Tabernacle; and we now give attention to the order of the Holy Spirit in this portion of Exodus. We have already remarked that Exodus 25 to Exodus 27:19 forms a distinct division in which we are furnished with a description of the Ark and Mercy-seat, the Table and Candlestick, the curtains and the veil; and, lastly, the Brazen Altar and the court in which that altar stood. A reading of Exodus 35:15; Exodus 37:25; Exodus 40:26 points out that the golden Altar of Incense is between the Candlestick and Brazen Altar. However, when Jehovah is giving directions to Moses, the Brazen Altar is introduced immediately after the Candlestick and the curtains of the Tabernacle. Now, because there must be a Divine reason for this difference, it is the privilege of every diligent and serious student of the Word of God to inquire what that reason is.

Why, then, when giving directions about the furniture of the "holy place," does the Lord omit the Altar of Incense and pass on to the Brazen Altar, which stood at the door of the Tabernacle? The reason is because first He describes the mode in which He would manifest Himself to man: and then He describes the mode of man's approach to Him. He took His seat upon the throne, as "the Lord of all the earth." The beams of His glory were hidden behind the veil – type of Christ's flesh (Heb. 10:20); but there was the manifestation of Himself, in connection with man, as in "the pure table," and by the light and power of the Holy Spirit, as in the Candlestick. Then we have the manifested character of Christ as a man down here on this earth, as seen in the curtains and coverings of the Tabernacle. And, finally, we have the Brazen Altar as the grand exhibition of the meeting-place between a holy God and a sinner. This conducts us, as it were, to the extreme point, from which in company with Aaron and his sons, we return to the Holy Place, the ordinary priestly position, where stood the golden Altar of Incense. Thus the order is strikingly beautiful. The golden altar is not spoken of until there is a priest to burn incense thereon, for Jehovah showed Moses the patterns of things in the heavens according to the order in which these things are to be apprehended by faith. On the other hand, when Moses gives directions to the congregations (Ex. 35), when he records the labors of "Bezaleel and Aholiab" (Ex. 37, 38), and when he sets up the Tabernacle (Ex. 40), he follows the simple order in which the furniture was placed.

The prayerful investigation of this interesting subject, and a comparison of the passages referred to above, will amply repay any serious study. We now consider the Brazen Altar.

This altar was the place where the sinner approached God, in the power and efficacy of the blood of atonement. It stood "at the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation," and on it all the blood was shed. It was composed of "shittim wood and brass." The wood was the same as that of the golden altar of incense; but the metal was different, and the reason for this difference is obvious. The altar of brass was the place where sin was dealt with according to Divine judgment. The altar of gold was the place from whence the precious fragrance of Christ's acceptableness ascended to the throne of God. As the figure of Christ's humanity, "the shittim wood" must be the same in each case; but in the Brazen Altar we see Christ meeting the fire of Divine justice; in the Golden Altar, we behold Him feeding the Divine affections. At the former the fire of Divine wrath was quenched, at the latter the fire of priestly worship is kindled. The soul delights to find Christ in both; but the altar of brass is what meets the need of a guilty conscience. It is the first thing for a helpless, needy, convicted sinner. Regarding the question of sin, there cannot be settled peace until the eye of faith rests on Christ as the antitype of the Brazen Altar. Before enjoying rest of conscience in the presence of God, the sinner must see sin reduced to ashes in the pan of the altar. It is when, by faith we know that God Himself has dealt with our sins in the Person of Christ, at the Brazen Altar – that He has put away our sins from His holy presence, so they can never come back – then, and only then, can we enjoy everlasting peace.

Regarding the real meaning of the "gold" and "brass" in the furniture of the Tabernacle: "Gold" is the symbol of divine righteousness, or the divine nature in "the man Christ Jesus;" "Brass" is the symbol of righteousness, demanding judgment of sin, as in the Brazen Altar; or the judgment of uncleanness, as in the Brazen Laver. This will account for the fact that inside the tent of the Tabernacle, all was gold – the Ark, the Mercy-seat, the Table, the Candlestick, the Altar of Incense. All these were symbols of the Divine nature – the inherent personal excellence of the Lord Jesus Christ. On the other hand, outside the tent of the Tabernacle was brass – the Brazen Altar and its vessels, the Laver and its foot.

Regarding sin and uncleanness, the claims of righteousness must be divinely met before there can be any enjoyment of the precious mysteries of Christ's Person, as unfolded in the inner sanctuary of God. It is when we see sin and uncleanness judged and washed away, that as a priest, we can draw nigh and worship in the Holy Place, enjoying the full display of all the beauty and excellency of the God-man, Christ Jesus.

It is proper to consider this thought in some detail, not merely in a study of the Tabernacle and the Temple, but also in various passages of the God's Word; for example, in the first chapter of Revelation, Christ is seen "girt about the paps with a golden girdle," and having "his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace." "The golden girdle" is the symbol of His intrinsic righteousness. The "feet like unto the brass," express the unmitigated judgment of evil – He cannot tolerate evil, but must crush it beneath His feet.

Such is the Christ – He judges sin, but He saves the sinner. Faith sees sin reduced to ashes at the Brazen Altar; it sees uncleanness washed away at the Brazen Laver: and, finally, it enjoys Christ, as He is unfolded by the light and power of the Holy Spirit. It finds Him at the Golden Altar, in all the value of His intercession. It feeds on Him at the pure Table. It recognizes Him in the Ark and Mercy-seat as the One who answers all the claims of justice, and, at the same time, meets all human need. It beholds Him in the veil, with all its mystic figures. It reads His precious name on everything. We pray for a heart to prize and praise this matchless, glorious Christ.

Nothing can be of more vital importance than a clear understanding of the teaching taught by the Brazen Altar. Many today are mourning because they do not clearly understand this. They have never had a clean, thorough settlement of the whole matter of their guilt at the Brazen Altar. They have never really beheld, by faith, God Himself settling the entire question of their sins on the cross. They are seeking peace for their uneasy consciences in regeneration and its evidences – in the fruits of the Spirit, frames, feelings, experiences – in things right and valuable in themselves, but which are not the grounds of peace. What fills the soul with perfect peace is the knowledge of what God has done at the Brazen Altar. The ashes in yonder pan tell us the peace-giving story that ALL IS DONE. The Christian's sins were put away by God's own hand of redeeming love. "He hath made Christ to be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him" (2 Cor. 5). All sin must be judged: but the Christian's sins have already been judged in the cross; hence, a child of God is perfectly justified. To suppose that there could be anything against the very feeblest believer is to deny the entire work of the cross. If we are born again, then our sins and iniquities have been put away by God Himself. They all went with the outpoured life of the Lamb of God. We need to make sure that our heart is thoroughly established in the peace that Jesus has made "by the blood of His cross."

In the two preceding chapters, we have observed the priesthood being instituted; here we are introduced to the position of priestly worship and communion. The order is marked and instructive; precisely corresponding with the order of the believer's experience. At the Brazen Altar, we see the ashes of our sins; we then see ourselves linked with One who, though personally pure and spotless, has, nevertheless, associated us with Himself in life, righteousness, and favor. Finally, in the Golden Altar, we behold the preciousness of Christ – the material on which Divine affections feed.

There must always be a Brazen Altar and a priest before there can be a Golden Altar and Incense. Many children of God have never passed the Brazen Altar. They have not yet entered into the power and reality of true priestly worship. They do not rejoice in a full, clear, divine sense of pardon and righteousness; they have never reached the Golden Altar. They hope to reach it when they die; but it is their privilege to be there now. The work of the cross has removed everything that could act as a barrier to their free and intelligent worship. The present position of all true believers is at the Golden Altar of Incense.

This altar typifies a position of wondrous blessedness. There we enjoy the reality and efficacy of Christ's intercession. Forever done with self, we are to be occupied with what He is before God. We find nothing in self but defilement. Every exhibition of it is defiling; in the judgment of God, it has been condemned and set aside and not a shred or particle of self is to be found in the pure incense and pure fire, on the altar of pure gold: it could not be. "By the blood of Jesus," we have been introduced into the sanctuary – a sanctuary of priestly service and worship, in which there is not a trace of sin. We see the pure Table, the pure Candlestick, and the pure Altar; but there is nothing to remind us of the wretchedness of self. If self meets our view, it will prove the death knell of our worship, mar our priestly food, and dim our light. Human nature has no place in the sanctuary of God. Together with all its belongings, Christ has consumed it to ashes; and we are now to have before our souls the fragrant odor of Christ, ascending in grateful incense to God: in this He delights. Everything that presents Christ in His own proper excellence is sweet and acceptable to God. Even the feeblest expression or exhibition of Him in the life or worship of a saint, is an odor of a sweet smell in which God is well pleased.

Too often, we are occupied with failures and infirmities. If the working of indwelling sin is allowed to rise to the surface, we must deal with it through repentance, because God cannot go on with sin. He can forgive it and cleanse us; He can restore our souls by the gracious ministry of the great High Priest; but He cannot be in company with a single sinful thought. A light or foolish thought as well as an unclean or covetous one, is amply sufficient to mar a Christian's communion, and interrupt worship. Should any such thought spring up, it must be judged and confessed, before the elevated joys of the sanctuary can be known. A heart, in which lust is working, is not enjoying the proper occupations of the sanctuary. When we are in our proper priestly condition, when self has no existence; then we can feed on Christ. We can taste the divine luxury of being removed from ourselves, and engrossed with Christ.

All this can be produced only by the power of the Spirit. There is no need of seeking to work up self's devotional feelings, by the various appliances of systematic, institutionalized religious organizations. There must be pure fire as well as pure incense (Compare Leviticus 10:1, with Leviticus 16:12). Efforts at worshipping God by the unhallowed powers of human nature, come under the head of "strange fire." God is the object of worship; Christ the ground and material; and the Holy Spirit is the power.

So, in the Brazen Altar, we have Christ in the value of His sacrifice; in the Golden Altar, we have Christ in the value of His intercession. This furnishes us with a clearer sense of the reason why the priestly office is introduced between the two altars. As might be expected, there is an intimate connection between the two, because Christ's intercession is founded on His sacrifice.

"And Aaron shall make an atonement upon the horns of it, once in a year, with the blood of the sin-offering of atonement: once in the year shall he make atonement upon it throughout your generations: it is most holy unto the Lord."

All rests on the immovable foundation of SHED BLOOD. "Almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. It was therefore necessary that the pattern of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us" (Heb. 9:22-24).

From verses 11-16, we have the atonement money for the congregation. All were to pay alike. "The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls." In the matter of atonement, we all stand on one common platform. There may be a vast difference in knowledge, experience, capacity, attainment, zeal, and devotedness, but the ground of atonement is alike to all. The great apostle of the Gentiles and the feeblest lamb in the flock of Christ, stand on the same level regarding atonement. This is a simple and blessed truth. We may not all be alike in ability or fruitfulness; but "the precious blood of Christ," and not ability or fruitfulness, is the solid and everlasting ground of the Christian's rest. The more we enter into the truth and power of this, the more fruitful we will be.

In Leviticus 27, we find another kind of valuation. When any one made "a singular vow," Moses valued him according to his age. In other words, when any one ventured to assume the ground of capacity, Moses, as the representative of the claims of God, estimated him "after the shekel of the sanctuary." If he were "poorer" than Moses' estimation, then he was to "present himself before the priest," the representative of the grace of God, who was to value him "according to his ability that vowed."

Blessed be God, we know that all His claims have been answered, and all our vows discharged by One who was at once the Representative of His claims and the Exponent of His grace, finishing the work of atonement on the cross, and now at the right hand of God. Here is sweet rest for the heart and conscience. Atonement is the first thing we get hold of, and we shall never lose sight of it. Let our range of intelligence be wide, our fund of experience rich, our tone of devotion elevated. May we always fall back on the one simple, Divine, unalterable, soul-sustaining teaching of THE BLOOD. So it has always been in the history of God's people. So it is, and so it always will be. The most deeply-taught and gifted servants of Christ always come back to "that one well-spring of delight," where their thirsty spirits drank when they first knew the Lord; and the eternal song of the church in glory will be, "Unto Him that; loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood." The courts of heaven will forever resound with the glorious doctrine of the blood.

From verses 17-21 we are presented with "the brazen laver and its foot" – the vessel of washing and the basis thereof. These two are always presented together (See Exodus 30:28; 38:8; 40:11). In this laver the priests washed their hands and feet, maintaining purity essential to the proper discharge of their priestly functions. It was not a fresh presentation of blood; but simply an action by which their fitness was preserved for priestly service and worship. "When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water that they die not; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the Lord: so they shall wash their hands and their feet that they die not."

There can be no true communion with God unless personal holiness is diligently maintained. "If we say that we have fellowship with Him and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth" (1 Jn. 1:6). This personal holiness flows only from the action of God's Word on our works and ways. "By the words of thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer." Our failure in priestly ministry is the result of neglecting use of the Laver. If our ways are not submitted to the purgative action of the Word – if we continue in the pursuit or practice of that which God's Word distinctly condemns, the energy of our priestly character will certainly be lacking. Deliberate continuance in evil, and true priestly worship, are totally incompatible. "Sanctify them through thy truth, thy word is truth." If there is any uncleanness on us we cannot enjoy the presence of God. The effect of His presence would then be to convict us by its holy light. But when, through grace, we are enabled to cleanse our way by taking heed thereto according to God's Word, then, and only then, are we morally capacitated for the enjoyment of His presence.

There is a vast field of practical truth laid open to us here, and also in the New Testament where the teaching of the Brazen Laver is brought out. Oh! That all those who are privileged to tread the courts of the sanctuary in priestly robes, and to approach the altar of God in priestly worship, may keep their hands and feet clean by the use of the true Laver.

It is interesting to note that the Laver, with its foot, was made "of the looking-glasses of the women assembling, which assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation" (see Ex. 38:8). This fact is full of meaning. We are  always prone to be "like a man beholding his natural face in a glass; for he beholdeth himself and goeth away, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was." Nature's looking-glass can never furnish a clear and permanent view of our true condition. "But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the word, this man shall be blessed in his deed" (James 1:23-25). The man who has constant recourse to the Word of God, and who allows that Word to touch his heart and conscience, will be maintained in the holy activities of the divine life.

Intimately connected with the searching and cleaning action of God's Word is the efficacy of the priestly ministry of Christ.

"For the word of God is quick and powerful (i.e., living and energetic), and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart; neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight; but all things are naked and open to the eyes of him with whom we have to do" (emphasis added).

The inspired writer immediately adds, "Seeing then that we have a great High Priest, that is passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with a feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find Grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:12-16).

The more keenly we feel the edge of the Word of God, the more we shall prize the merciful and gracious ministry of our High Priest – the two go together; inseparable companions of the Christian's path. The High Priest sympathizes with the infirmities the Word of God detects and exposes. He is "a faithful" as well as "a merciful High Priest." Hence, it is only as we are making use of the Laver that we can approach the Altar. Worship must always be presented in the power of holiness. We must lose sight of self, as reflected in a looking-glass, and be completely occupied with Christ, as presented in the God’s Word. Only in this way shall the "hands and feet," the works and ways be cleansed, according to the purification of the sanctuary.

From verses 22-23 we have the "holy anointing oil," with which the priests, together with all the furniture of the Tabernacle, were anointed. In this we discern a type of the varied graces of the Holy Spirit, which are found in all their divine fullness in Christ. "All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad" (Ps. 45:8). "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power" (Acts 10:38). In their perfect fragrance, all the graces of the Spirit centered in Christ; and it is only from Him they can flow. As to His humanity, He was conceived of the Holy Spirit; and, before entering public ministry, He was anointed with the Holy Spirit. Finally, in token of an accomplished redemption, when He had taken His seat on high He shed forth on His body the precious gift of the Holy Spirit – the Church (See Matthew 1:20; 3:16, 17; Luke 4:18, 19; Acts 2:33; 10: 45, 46; Ephesians 4:8-13).

It is as those who are associated with this ever blessed and highly-exalted Christ that Christians are partakers of the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit. The unrenewed man knows nothing of this. "Upon man's flesh it shall not be poured." The graces of the Spirit can never be connected with man's flesh. Not one of the fruits of the Spirit has ever been produced "in nature's barren soil." "We must, be born again." It is only as connected with the new man, as being part of "the new creation," that we can know anything of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. There is no value in seeking to imitate those fruits and graces. In their highest state of cultivation, the fairest fruits growing in nature's field, the most amiable traits nature can exhibit must be utterly disowned in the sanctuary of God.

"Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured; neither shall ye make any other like it, after the composition of it: it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you. Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people."

There must be no counterfeit of the Spirit's work; all must be of the Spirit – that which is of the Spirit must not be attributed to man. "The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1 Cor. 2:14).

There is a beautiful allusion to this "holy anointing oil" in one of the "songs of degrees." "Behold," says the Psalmist, ‘How good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard; that went down to the skirts of his garments’ (Ps. 133:1, 2).

The head of the priestly house being anointed with holy oil, the very "skirts of his garments" must exhibit the precious effects. May each of us experience the power of this anointing. May we know the value of having "an unction from the Holy One," and of being "sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise." In the Divine estimation, nothing is of any value save that which connects itself immediately with Christ – only those who are so connected can receive the holy anointing.

In the concluding paragraph of this most comprehensive chapter, we have the "sweet spices tempered together, pure and holy." This surpassingly precious perfume presents to us the unmeasured and Immeasurable perfections of Christ. There was no special quantity of each ingredient prescribed, because the graces that dwell in Christ, the beauties and excellencies that are concentrated in His adorable Person, are without limit. Nothing but the infinite mind of Deity could scan the infinite perfections of Him in whom all the fullness of Deity dwells; and as eternity rolls along its course of everlasting ages, those glorious perfections will always be unfolding themselves in the view of worshipping saints and angels. Forever and ever, as some fresh beams of light shall burst forth from that central Sun of divine glory, the courts of heaven and the wide fields of creation beneath shall resound with thrilling Alleluias to Him who was, who is, and who ever shall be the object of praise to all the ranks of created intelligence.

But not only was there no prescribed quantity of the ingredients; we also read, "of each there shall be a like weight." Every feature of moral excellence found its due place and proper proportion in Christ. No one quality ever displaced or interfered with another; all was "tempered together, pure and holy," and emitted an odor so fragrant that only God could appreciate it.

"And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy." There is uncommon depth and power in the expression "very small.” It teaches us that every little movement in the life of Christ, every minute circumstance, every act, every word, every look, every feature, every trait, every lineament, emits an odor produced by an equal proportion – "a like weight" of all the divine graces that compose His character. The smaller the perfume was beaten, the more its rare and exquisite temper was manifested.

"And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the Lord. Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people."

This fragrant perfume was designed exclusively for Jehovah. Its place was "before the testimony." There is that in Jesus which only God could appreciate. True, we can draw close to His matchless Person, and more than satisfy our deepest and most intense longings; still, after all God's redeemed have drunk to the utmost of their capacity; after angels have gazed on the peerless glories of the man Christ Jesus as earnestly as their vision is capable of; after all, there will be that in Him which God alone can fathom and enjoy. No human or angelic eye can trace the exquisitely minute parts of that holy perfume "beaten very small." Nor could earth afford a proper sphere in which to emit its divine and heavenly odor.

Footnote:
¹It is interesting to note the position of this most solemn and startling denunciation. It occurs at the close of a long epistle, in which the apostle rebuked some of the grossest practical evils and doctrinal errors. Therefore, how solemn, therefore, how full of meaning the fact, that when He comes to pronounce His anathema, it is not hurled at those who had introduced those errors and evils, but at the man who loves not the Lord Jesus Christ. Why is this? Is it because the Spirit of God makes little of errors and evils? No; the entire epistle unfolds His thoughts about these. But the truth is, when the heart is filled with love for the Lord Jesus Christ there is an effectual safeguard against all manner of false doctrine and malpractice. If a man does not love Christ, there is no accounting for the notions he may adopt, or the course he may pursue – thus the form and position of the apostolic anathema.

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