During the crossing, the river grew dry as soon as the feet of the priests carrying the Ark touched its waters, and remained so until the priests-with the Ark-left the river after the people had passed over. When the Israelites, led by Joshua toward the Promised Land, arrived at the banks of the River Jordan, the Ark was carried in the lead, preceding the people, and was the signal for their advance. Whenever the Israelites camped, the Ark was placed in a separate room in a sacred tent, called the Tabernacle. The biblical account continues that, after its creation by Moses, the Ark was carried by the Israelites during their 40 years of wandering in the desert. Joshua passing the River Jordan with the Ark of the Covenant by Benjamin West, 1800 The Ark is finally to be placed under a veil to conceal it. Missing from the account are instructions concerning the thickness of the mercy seat and details about the cherubim other than that the cover be beaten out the ends of the Ark and that they form the space where God will appear. A golden lid, the kapporet (translated as "mercy seat" or "cover"), which is ornamented with two golden cherubim, is to be placed above the Ark. Four rings of gold are to be attached to its four corners, two on each side-and through these rings staves of shittim wood overlaid with gold for carrying the Ark are to be inserted and these are not to be removed. Then it is to be gilded entirely with gold, and a crown or molding of gold is to be put around it. It is to be 2 + 1⁄ 2 cubits in length, 1 + 1⁄ 2 cubits breadth, and 1 + 1⁄ 2 cubits height (approximately 131×79×79 cm or 52×31×31 in) of acacia wood. The Book of Exodus gives detailed instructions on how the Ark is to be constructed. Moses instructed Bezalel and Aholiab to construct the Ark. He was shown the pattern for the tabernacle and furnishings of the Ark, and told that it would be made of shittim wood (also known as acacia wood) to house the Tablets of Stone. Construction and description Īccording to the Book of Exodus, God instructed Moses to build the Ark during his 40-day stay upon Mount Sinai. The covered ark and seven priests with rams' horns, at the Battle of Jericho, in an 18th-century artist's depiction. God spoke with Moses "from between the two cherubim" on the Ark's cover. Thereafter, the gold-plated acacia chest was carried by its staves by the Levites approximately 2,000 cubits (approximately 800 meters or 2,600 feet) in advance of the people when on the march or before the Israelite army, the host of fighting men. The biblical account relates that approximately one year after the Israelites' exodus from Egypt, the Ark was created according to the pattern given to Moses by God when the Israelites were encamped at the foot of Mount Sinai. According to the New Testament Book of Hebrews, it also contained Aaron's rod and a pot of manna. According to the Book of Exodus, the Ark contained the two stone tablets of the Ten Commandments. The Ark of the Covenant, also known as the Ark of the Testimony or the Ark of God, is believed to be the most sacred relic of the Israelites and is described as a wooden chest, covered in pure gold, with an elaborately designed lid called the mercy seat.
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