of the Old Testament
The Holy Place
The Menorah
David Rolph Seely (professor of ancient scripture, BYU):
The golden lampstand—the menorah—is described in Exodus 25:31–40. It was made of pure gold, and its construction is described in terms of an almond tree with its branches, buds, blossoms, and flowers. The Bible does not describe its height, but Jewish oral tradition maintains that it was just over 5 feet tall (Babylonian Talmud Menahot 28b). The menorah had a central axis with three branches on either side, each bearing a cup at the top that was filled with pure olive oil and that served as a lamp. The function of the seven lamps was to light the Holy Place in the tabernacle.
Olive oil in the Old Testament is connected with the Spirit. When Saul and David were anointed with olive oil, the Spirit came upon them (see 1 Sam. 10:1–10; 16:13). The oil in the lamps of the 10 virgins (see Matt 25:1–13), as described in the Doctrine and Covenants, represents the Holy Ghost (see D&C 45:56–57). And the anointing of Jesus is described as being done through the Holy Ghost (see Acts 10:38).
The Bible never specifically explains the symbolism of the menorah. But Jewish and Christian traditions have offered many interpretations. Some Jewish commentators explained it as a symbol of human knowledge being guided by the light of God. There are also Jewish traditions associating the menorah with the tree of life. And the seven lamps were seen to represent the seven days of creation and the seven days of the week. Philo and Josephus, Jewish historians living near the time of Christ, saw the symbolism of the central lamp as representing the sun with the six other lamps representing the moon and the planets. The apocryphal book Ben Sira described the central lamp as a metaphor for Sarah and her virtue that shines forth (see 26:16–17). In Christian tradition Jesus identified himself as “the light of the world” (John 8:12; see also John 1:9), which may have been a reference to the menorah. The Book of Revelation contains a vision in which the seven lamps represent the seven churches (see 1:12, 20).
The Altar of Incense
Shon D. Hopkin (associate professor of ancient scripture, BYU):
Exodus 30:1–10 describes the altar of incense. It stood inside the Holy Place just before the veil that separated that room from the Holy of Holies. It was made of wood and overlaid with gold. Each corner had golden “horns,” which were also found on the altar for burnt offerings, and which likely symbolized the power of God (see, for example, Deut. 33:17; 1 Sam. 2:10).
The priests burned incense daily on this altar, bringing coals from the altar of burnt offerings. The burning of incense marked the culmination of the morning and evening burnt-offering services. As the priest burned the incense, he offered the priestly blessing. The altar of incense came to symbolize the place of prayer in the tabernacle, as indicated in Revelation 8:4: “And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.”
In the New Testament Zacharias was chosen to conclude one of the morning sacrificial services. He stood at the altar of incense praying when the angel Gabriel appeared with the message of the birth of John the Baptist (see Luke 1:5–17). The angel thus appeared to God’s servant at the place of sacred prayer, before the veil upon which were stitched angelic cherubim, with a message of restored gospel truth that Zacharias had to decide to accept or reject. This revelation through an angelic messenger effectively opened the dispensation of the meridian of time, particularly when Zacharias later chose to accept the message and his mouth was opened to prophesy before the people (see Luke 1:63–79).
The Table of Shewbread
George A. Pierce, (assistant professor of ancient scripture, BYU):
The table of shewbread was one of three pieces of ritual furniture found within the Holy Place of the tabernacle. The material of which the table was made—wood overlaid with pure gold (see Ex. 25:23–30)—and its position within the structure signify its importance within tabernacle worship: the rites conducted outside using the altar of sacrifice and the laver were oriented toward individuals, while the worship inside the Holy Place focused on the people of Israel as a whole.
The bread on the table, which could be translated from the Hebrew lehem hapanim as “bread of the Presence,” symbolizes the people of Israel as a whole and their covenant with the Lord. It serves as a reminder of Israel’s need to have its life sustained by God’s presence.
Priests baked 12 loaves weekly and installed them on the table every Sabbath day (see Lev. 24:5–9). The old bread was taken from the table and consumed by the priests in an act of communion between deity and the people of Israel. While many Christian interpretations of the table of shewbread invoke Jesus’s “bread of life” teaching (John 6:35), the context of Jesus’s statement refers to the manna that was given to Israel while they were in the wilderness. Rather, Christians, and Latter-day Saints in particular, can connect with the table of shewbread and its 12 loaves as a metaphor for a gathered Israel in the presence of the Lord, and the consumption of that bread by the priests as a symbol of sacrament bread consumed in remembrance of the Savior and His atoning sacrifice.