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The Ark of the Covenant

The Ark of the Covenant is described in the Bible as a sacred container, wherein rested the
Tablets of stone containing the Ten Commandments as well as Aaron's rod and manna.
According to the Biblical account, the Ark was built at the command of God, in accord with
Moses' prophetic vision on Mount Sinai (Exodus 25:10-16). God communicated with Moses
"from between the two cherubim" on the Ark's cover (Exodus 25:22). The Ark and its sanctuary
were "the beauty of Israel" (Lamentations 2:1). Rashi and some Midrashim suggest that there
were two arks - a temporary one made by Moses, and a later one made by Bezalel.

The Biblical account relates that during the exodus of the Israelites, the Ark was carried by the
priests ~2,000 cubits (Numbers 35:5; Joshua 4:5) in advance of the people and their army or host
(Num. 4:5-6; 10:33-36; Psalms 68:1; 132:8). When the Ark was borne by priests into the bed of
the Jordan, the river was separated, opening a pathway for the whole of the host to pass over
(Josh. 3:15-16; 4:7-18). The Ark was borne in a seven-day procession around the wall of Jericho
by seven priests sounding seven trumpets of rams' horns, the city taken with a shout (Josh. 6:4-
20). When carried, the Ark was always wrapped in a veil, in tachash skins (the identity of this
animal is uncertain), and a blue cloth, and was carefully concealed, even from the eyes of the
Levites who carried it.

Description

The Ark of the Covenant may have looked similar to this chest (found in the Tomb of
Tutankhamun).

The Bible describes the Ark as made of shittah-tree wood (acacia), known to the Egyptians as the
Tree of Life and an important plant in traditional medicine containing in many cases
psychoactive alkaloids. It was 1.5 cubits broad and high, and 2.5 cubits long, conforming to the
golden ratio. The Ark was covered all over with the purest gold. Its upper surface or lid, the
mercy seat, was surrounded with a rim of gold.

On each of the two long sides were two gold rings, wherein were placed two wooden poles (with
a decorative sheathing of gold), to allow the Ark to be carried (Num. 7:9; 10:21; 4:5,19, 20; 1
Kings 8:3, 6). Over the Ark, at the two extremities, were two cherubim, with their faces turned
toward one another (Leviticus 16:2; Num. 7:89). Their outspread wings over the top of the Ark
formed the throne of God, while the Ark itself was his footstool (Ex. 25:10-22; 37:1-9). The Ark
was placed in the "Holy of Holies," so that one end of the carrying poles touched the veil
separating the two compartments of the tabernacle (1 Kings 8:8). The Book of Deuteronomy
describes the Ark as a simple wooden container with no mention of ornaments or gold. Similarly,
the Quran makes a reference to the Ark as a wooden box with holy relics inside it.

Contents

According to the Bible, the two tablets of stone constituting the "testimony" or evidence of God's
covenant with the people (Deuteronomy 31:26) were kept within the Ark itself. The Tanakh
states in I Kings 8:9 that there "was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone". Some see
this as contradictory with other verses, claiming the presence of the "pot of manna" (Ex. 16:34),
and "Aaron's rod that budded" (Num. 17:25) before the Ark (Heb. 9:4 - in the Ark). The items
were placed "before the Ark with the testimony"; the correct meaning of that phrase is open to
interpretation.

Sanctity and consecration

Even Aaron, brother of Moses and the High Priest, was forbidden to enter the place of the Ark
too often. He was enjoined to enter the Holy of Holies only once per year on a designated day,
and to perform certain ceremonies there (Lev. 16). Moses was directed to consecrate the Ark,
when completed, with the oil of holy ointment (Ex. 30:23-26); and he was also directed to have
the Ark made by Bezaleel, son of Uri of the tribe of Judah, and by Aholiab, the son of
Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan (Ex. 31:2-7). These instructions Moses carried out, calling upon
"every wisehearted" one among the people to assist in the work (Ex. 35:10-12). Bezaleel the
artist made the Ark (Ex. 37:1); and Moses approved the work, put the testimony in the Ark, and
installed it.

In Deut. 10:1-5 a different account of the making of the Ark is given. Moses is made to say that
he constructed the Ark before going upon Mount Sinai to receive the second set of tablets. The
charge of carrying the Ark and the rest of the holy implements was given to the family of Kohath
(of the tribe of Levi). They, though, were not to touch any of the holy things that were still
uncovered by Aaron (Num. 4:2-15).

Prophets' Mentions

The Ark of the Covenant is mentioned by prophets in both the Bible and the Qur'an.

In the Bible

The Ark carried into the TempleThe only mention of the Ark in the books of the prophets is the
reference to it by Jeremiah, who, speaking in the days of Josiah (Jer. 3:16), prophesies a time
when the Ark will no longer be needed because of the righteousness of the people. In the Psalms,
the Ark is twice referred to. In Ps. 78:61 its capture by the Philistines is spoken of, and the Ark is
called "the strength and glory of God"; and in Ps. 132:8, it is spoken of as "the ark of the strength
of the Lord."
The Ark is mentioned in one passage in the deuterocanonical 2 Maccabees 2:4-10, which
contains a reference to a document saying that the prophet Jeremiah, "being warned of God,"
took the Ark, and the tabernacle, and the altar of incense, and buried them in a cave on Mount
Nebo (Deut 34:1), informing those of his followers who wished to find the place that it should
remain unknown "until the time that God should gather His people again together, and receive
them unto mercy." Hebrews 9:4 states that the Ark contained "the golden pot that had manna,
and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant." Finally, in Revelation 11:19, the
Ark is described as being in heaven, just before the woman clothed with the sun appears (Book
of Revelation 12).

In the Qur'an

According to some Muslim scholars, the Ark of the Covenant does not have a religious basis in
Islam and Islam does not give it any special significance while others believe that it will be
found by Mahdi near the end of times. These Islamic scholars believe inside there will be relics
left by the people of Moses and the people of Aaron. There might be the sceptres of Moses (eg.,
Nehushtan), Aaron's rod, Plates of the Torah, and Aaron's turban.

History

Mobile vanguard

In the march from Sinai, and at the crossing of the Jordan, the Ark preceded the people, and was
the signal for their advance (Num. 10:33; Josh. 3:3, 6). The Ark of the Covenant burned the
thorns and other obstructions in the wilderness roads. According to tradition, sparks from
between the two cherubim killed serpents and scorpions. (Canticles iii)

During the crossing of the Jordan, 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 (Josh. 3:15-17; 4:10, 11, 18). As memorials, twelve stones were taken
from the Jordan at the place where the priests had stood (Josh. 4:1-9).

The Ark was carried into battle, such as in the Midian war (Num. 31). During the ceremonies
preceding the capture of Jericho, the Ark was carried round the city in the daily procession,
preceded by the armed men and by seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams' horns (Josh.
6:6-15). After the defeat at Ai, Joshua lamented before the Ark (Josh. 7:6-9). When Joshua read
the Law to the people between Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal, they stood on each side of the
Ark. The Ark was again set up by Joshua at Shiloh; but when the Israelites fought against
Benjamin at Gibeah, they had the Ark with them, and consulted it after their defeat.

Captured by the Philistines

The Ark is next spoken of as being in the tabernacle at Shiloh during Samuel's apprenticeship (1
Sam. 3:3). After the settlement of the Israelites in Canaan, the ark remained in the tabernacle at
Gilgal for a season, then was removed to Shiloh until the time of Eli, between 300 and 400 years
(Jeremiah 7:12), when it was carried into the field of battle, so as to secure, as they supposed,
victory to the Hebrews; and it was taken by the Philistines (1 Sam. 4:3-11), who sent it back after
retaining it seven months (1 Sam. 5:7, 8) because of the events said to have transpired. After
their first defeat at Eben-ezer, the Israelites had the Ark brought from Shiloh, and welcomed its
coming with great rejoicing.

In the second battle, the Israelites were again defeated, and the Philistines captured the Ark (1
Sam. 4:3-5, 10, 11). The news of its capture was at once taken to Shiloh by a messenger "with
his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head." The old priest, Eli, fell dead when he heard it;
and his daughter-in-law, bearing a son at the time the news of the capture of the Ark was
received, named him Ichabod - explained as "Where is glory?" in reference to the loss of the Ark
(1 Sam. 4:12-22).

The Philistines took the Ark to several places in their country, and at each place misfortune
resulted to them (1 Sam. 5:1-6). At Ashdod it was placed in the temple of Dagon. The next
morning Dagon was found prostrate, bowed down, before it; and on being restored to his place,
he was on the following morning again found prostrate and broken. The people of Ashdod were
smitten with boils; a plague of mice was sent over the land (1 Sam. 6:5). The affliction of boils
was also visited upon the people of Gath and of Ekron, whither the Ark was successively
removed (1 Sam. 5:8-12).

After the Ark had been among them seven months, the Philistines, on the advice of their
diviners, returned it to the Israelites, accompanying its return with an offering consisting of
golden images of the boils and mice wherewith they had been afflicted. The Ark was set in the
field of Joshua the Beth-shemite, and the Beth-shemites offered sacrifices and burnt offerings (1
Sam. 6:1-15). Out of curiosity the men of Beth-shemesh gazed at the Ark; and as a punishment
over fifty thousand of them were smitten by the Lord (1 Sam. 6:19). The Bethshemites sent to
Kirjath-jearim, or Baal-Judah, to have the Ark removed (1 Sam. 6:21); and it was taken to the
house of Abinadab, whose son Eleazar was sanctified to keep it. Kirjath-jearim was the abode of
the Ark for twenty years. Under Saul, the Ark was with the army before he first met the
Philistines, but the king was too impatient to consult it before engaging in battle. In 1 Chronicles
13:3 it is stated that the people were not accustomed to consult the Ark in the days of Saul.

In the Days of King David

At the very beginning of his reign, David removed the Ark from Kirjath-jearim amid great
rejoicing. On the way to Zion, Uzzah, one of the drivers of the cart whereon the Ark was carried,
put out his hand to steady the Ark, and was smitten by the Lord for touching it. David, in fear,
carried the Ark aside into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite, instead of carrying it on to Zion,
and here it stayed three months (2 Sam. 6:1-11; 1 Chron. 13:1-13).

On hearing that the Lord had blessed Obed-edom because of the presence of the Ark in his
house, David had the Ark brought to Zion by the Levites, while he himself, "girded with a linen
ephod," "danced before the Lord with all his might"‹a performance for which he was despised
and scornfully rebuked by Saul's daughter Michal (2 Sam. 6:12-16, 20-22; 1 Chron. 15). This
unjustified derision on her part resulted in the permanent loss of her fertility. In Zion, David put
the Ark in the tabernacle he had prepared for it, offered sacrifices, distributed food, and blessed
the people and his own household (2 Sam. 6:17-20; 1 Chron. 16:1-3; 2 Chron. 1:4).

Levites were appointed to minister before the Ark (1 Chron. 16:4). David's plan of building a
temple for the Ark was stopped at the advice of God (2 Sam. 7:1-17; 1 Chron. 17:1-15; 28:2, 3).
The Ark was with the army during the siege of Rabbah (2 Sam. 11:11); and when David fled
from Jerusalem at the time of Absalom's conspiracy, the Ark was carried along with him until he
ordered Zadok the priest to return it to Jerusalem (2 Sam. 15:24-29).

In Solomon's Temple

When Abiathar was dismissed from the priesthood by Solomon for having taken part in
Adonijah's conspiracy against David, his life was spared because he had formerly borne the Ark
(1 Kings 2:26). It was afterwards placed by Solomon in the temple (1 Kings 8:6-9). Solomon
worshiped before the Ark after his dream in which the Lord promised him wisdom (1 Kings
3:15). In Solomon's Temple, a Holy of Holies was prepared to receive the Ark (1 Kings 6:19);
and when the Temple was dedicated, the Ark -- containing nothing but the two Mosaic tables of
stone -- was placed therein. When the priests emerged from the holy place after placing the Ark
there, the Temple was filled with a cloud, "for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the
Lord" (1 Kings 8:10-11; 2 Chron. 5:13, 14).

When Solomon married Pharaoh's daughter, he caused her to dwell in a house outside Zion, as
Zion was consecrated because of its containing the Ark (2 Chron. 8:11). King Josiah had the Ark
put into the Temple (2 Chron. 35:3), whence it appears to have again been removed by one of his
successors.

The Babylonians and Afterwards

When the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and plundered the temple, the Ark entered the
domain of legend. Many historians suppose that the ark was probably taken away by
Nebuchadnezzar and destroyed. The absence of the ark from the Second Temple was
acknowledged.

Fate of the Ark

In contrast to the general consensus of historians (that supposes that the ark was taken away and
destroyed), variant traditions about the ultimate fate of the Ark include the intentional concealing
of the Ark under the Temple Mount, the removal of the Ark from Jerusalem in advance of the
Babylonians (this variant usually ends up with the Ark in Ethiopia), the removal of the Ark by
the Ethiopian prince Menelik I (purported son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba),
removal by Jewish priests during the reign of Manasseh, and the miraculous removal of the Ark
by divine intervention (C.f. 2 Chronicles).

Concealment
Some believe that the Ark of the Covenant and the Tabernacle of the Lord was hidden. This is
referenced by four separate sources:

1. the Mishnayot of Rabbi Hertz

2. the Marble Tablets of Beirut

3. the Copper Scroll

4. the ancient Ben Ezra Synagogue sacred texts

Mishnayot

The Mishnayot introduction included ancient records that Rabbi Hertz called the "Mishnayot".
Hertz used the term "Mishnayot", since the text of the Mishnayot is missing from the Mishnah
(Mishna), which is the first section of the Talmud, a collection of ancient Rabbinic writings
including also the Gemara, "the summary", and containing the Jewish religious law.

The "missing" Mishnaic text in the Mishnayot is called the Massakhet Keilim, written in twelve
chapters. Each chapter of the Mishnayot describes vessels which were hidden under the direction
of Jeremiah the Prophet by five holy men (Shimor HaLevi, Chizkiah, Tzidkiyahu, Haggai the
Prophet and Zechariah the Prophet), seven years prior to the destruction of Solomon's First
Temple, because the dangers of Babylonian conquest were imminent. The Mishnayot describing
this hiding was then written in Babylon during the Babylonian Captivity.

The first chapter of the Mishnayot describes the vessels that were hidden - including the Ark of
the Covenant and the Tabernacle of the Lord, i.e. the Mishkan, the Tablets of Moses, the altar
(with cherubim) for the daily and seasonal sacrifices (the ushebtis), the Menorah (candelabra),
the Qalal (copper urn) containing the Ashes of the Red Heifer (ashes from a red cow sacrificed
under Moses, necessary for ritual purification of the priests), and numerous vessels of the
Kohanim (priests).

The second chapter of the Mishnayot states that a list of these treasures was inscribed upon a
copper tablet. This is the Copper Scroll found at Qumran.

Marble Tablets of Beirut

In 1952 two large marble tablets were found in the basement of a museum in Beirut, stating they
were the words of Shimor HaLevi, the servant of HaShem, and the writing on the tablets is the
entire missing text of "Massakhet Keilim" (Mishnayot) including reference to the Copper Scroll.

Copper Scroll

The first of the Dead Sea Scrolls was discovered in 1947, and the famed Copper Scroll - made of
pure copper - was found at Qumran in 1952. The Copper Scroll is an inventory - written in
Hebrew - of the holy treasures of Solomon's First Temple, treasures hidden before the
destruction of that temple by the Babylonians and treasures which have not been seen since.

The Copper Scroll states that a silver [or alabaster?] chest, the vestments of the Cohen Gadol
(Hebrew High Priest), gold and silver in great quantities, the Tabernacle of the Lord (the
Mishkan) and many treasures were hidden in a desolate valley - under a hill - on its east side,
forty stones deep. The Mishkan was a "portable" Temple for the Ark of the Covenant. The
writings in the Copper Scroll were confirmed 40 years later in the 1990s through an ancient text
found in the introduction to Emeq HaMelekh ("Valley of the King(s)") -- a book published in
1648 in Amsterdam, Holland, by Rabbi Naftali Hertz Ben Ya¹acov Elchanon (Rabbi Hertz).

Ben Ezra Synagogue Texts

Work in the 1990s showed that in 1896, almost one hundred years previous, Solomon Schechter
at Cambridge University in England had acquired 100,000 pages of ancient Hebrew texts from
the Genizah (repository for aged sacred Jewish texts) of the Ben Ezra Synagogue in Cairo,
Egypt. A copy of the "Tosefta" (supplement to the Mishnah) was found in these texts, included
among the text on Keilim (vessels). This "Tosefta" is the same text as cited by Rabbi Hertz as his
source for the Mishnayot.

Where is it now?

Some have claimed to have possession or discovered the Ark.

Middle East

In 1989, Ron Wyatt claims to have broken into a chamber while digging underground beneath
Mount Moriah, also known as The Temple Mount. He claimed to have seen the ark and taken
photographs. All photos came out blurry (leading to skepticism of the claim). According to
Wyatt the excavations were closed off (because of private property concerns) and, to the extent
of knowledge, no one has seen the ark since. Ron Wyatt is widely seen in the Biblical archeology
community as an attention seeker, often announcing he has found Biblically important objects
with little or no hard evidence to back up his claims.

Vendyl Jones claimed to have found the entrance to the chamber in the cave of the Column -
Qumran. Here, he stated, is where the Ark was hidden prior to the destruction of the First
Temple. Arutz Sheva quoted Jones stating he would reveal the ark on Tisha B'Av (August 14,
2005), the anniversary of the destruction of both the First and Second Temples. However, this
did not occur. On Jones' website he states that he was misquoted and actually said it would be
appropriate if he discovered the ark on Tisha B'Av. Jones is waiting for funding to explore the
cave.

Modern excavations near the Temple Mount in Jerusalem have found tunnels, but digging
beneath the Temple Mount is somewhat restricted. One of the most important Islamic shrines,
the Dome of the Rock, sits in the location where the Temple Mount in Jerusalem once stood. The
late Ron Wyatt claimed he felt it unwise to fully excavate the Ark for a variety of reasons,
including bloody ownership disputes and divine inspiration.

Africa

Some sources suggest that during the reign of King Manasseh (2 Chron 33) the Ark was
smuggled from the temple by way of the Well of souls and taken to Egypt, eventually ending up
in Ethiopia. There are some carvings on the Cathedral of Chartres that may refer to this.

Ethiopian Orthodox Church

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Axum, Ethiopia claims to still possess the Ark of the
Covenant. Local tradition maintains that it was brought to Ethiopia by Menelik I following a visit
to his father King Solomon. Although it was once paraded before the town once each year, it is
now kept under constant guard in a "treasury" near the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion, and
only the head priest of the church is allowed to view it. Most Western historians are skeptical of
this claim.

Valley of Kings

Andis Kaulins claims that the hiding place of the ark, said specifically by ancient sources (such
as the Mishnayot), to be a desolate valley under a hill - on its east side, forty stones deep.

Today, it is believed by some that this refers to the Tomb of Tutankhamun (east side of the
Valley of Kings, ca. forty stones deep). Some believe that what was found there are the described
treasures, including the Mishkan and the Ark of the Covenant.

Media References

The Ark of the Covenant was the focus of the highly popular 1981 adventure film, Raiders of the
Lost Ark. The plot suggests that Adolf Hitler, deeply interested in supernatural power and the
occult, wants to acquire the Ark in order to rule the world. Intrepid archaeologist Indiana Jones
opposes the Nazis and succeeds in keeping it from them. The Ark is shown to be extremely
powerful, and dangerous to those who do not understand it. Jones wants to study the Ark, but it
is last seen being boxed up and stored in a vast U.S. government warehouse - presumably never
to be seen again.

A first season episode of the television series Xena: Warrior Princess uses the Ark as a plot
device. In "The Royal Couple of Thieves", Xena recruits the King Of Thieves to assist her in
stealing the Ark from a profiteering warlord. Xena returns it to its rightful people.

In the video game Halo 2 the "Ark" is a secondary control system for the ringworlds (the
"Halos") that are capable of killing all life in the galaxy. The Ark is presumably on Earth, near
the city of Mombasa. This Ark could be a reference to Noah's Ark, since activating it would
destroy all life much like the Great Flood; interestingly, the purpose of the Halos is to stop the
spread of a scourge that turns sentient beings into the "Flood", a horde of ravenous, zombie-like
creatures.

The word Ark comes from the Hebrew word 'Aron', which means a chest or box. Its dimensions
are described by the bible as 2.5 cubits by 1.5 cubits by 1.5 cubits (62.5 inches by 37.5 inches by
37.5 inches). Curiously, this is the exact volume of the stone chest or porphyry coffer in the
King's Chamber in the Great Pyramid in Egypt. This coffer was the only object within the King's
Chamber, as the Ark was the single sacred object within the Holy of Holies, in the Temple. Also
the laver, or basin, that the priests used to wash their feet had the identical cubit dimensions.

The cubit dimensions of the inner chamber of the Temple, the Holy of Holies, are precisely
identical in size to the King's Chamber in the Pyramid and the same volume as the molten sea of
water on the Temple Mount as prepared by King Solomon. Since the Pyramid was built and
sealed long before the days of Moses, when he built the Ark and the Holy of Holies, and had
remained sealed for over twenty-five centuries until the ninth century after Christ, there is no
natural explanation for the phenomenon of both structures having identical volume
measurements.

The pyramid itself possessed its own force centers: the heart of the King's Chamber, its most
vital and sacred points, where divine energy was concentrated and especially powerful. And
other chambers not yet discovered. The candidate undergoing initiation was placed in the great
granite sarcophagus in the King's Chamber at the August moment of the initiation rites (Note: the
purpose of Initiation is to bestow upon the disciple certain molecular changes in the body to
handle higher energy) because the sarcophagus was in direct alignment with the down pouring
ray of cosmic light through the Ark in the Third Eye capstone. The voltage of such a fiery light
ray could only be endured by one in whom the physical, emotional and spiritual forces were
completely aligned and purified.

The candidate with an unbalanced polarity ran the risk of injury to the physical organism, or
even death, because of the accelerated frequencies of manna-loa pouring through the capstone.

When the massive structure was first constructed, the final portion to be levitated into place was
the gleaming gold and crystal capstone containing the original Ark of the Covenant, allegedly
brought from Atlantis. This Ark and capstone graced the very summit of Knut. Once this floating
capstone was so placed, the Great Ones created several lesser Arks.

The voltage of a second Ark was integrated into the structure of the open granite sarcophagus in
the King's Chamber. Since granite is saturated with minute crystals, it was not difficult to charge
the initiatory coffer with incredible cosmic force. Hence the uninitiated unprotected sons of Earth
were not permitted to touch the Ark because of its radiating voltage, placed there by generated
cosmic rays. The priests who had charge of it, called the Arkites, wore protective garments. But
they were themselves charged with cosmic power.
Such human Arks allegedly were somewhat immune from the rays of the crystal because each
radiated frequencies harmonious with the crystal. Since the Ark radiated an energy destructive to
all inharmonious with it, a gold sheath was constructed to insulate it, to partially shield the
people from the powerful emanations.

To maintain its potency, each Ark had to be constantly recharged with a creative energy of
tremendous voltage. The principal source of that energy was man himself, and only the highest
initiates were capable of radiating the particular force required to keep the Ark active.

Much of this responsibility fell upon the high priests, the Arkites or Ptahs of the temple, who, if
they so willed it, could raise the frequency of their forms to radiate so powerful a force that an
initiate touching their bodies could be struck down, just as if he had touched the Ark itself.
Rarely was such voltage require of them, except to recharge the Arks.

The crystals and compounds of which the Ark were allegedly constructed - the silver, brass-like
substance, and pure living gold - were charged with seven octaves of energy, from the
materialistic charges of electric voltage up to the highest spiritualized forces of celestial planes -
pranic forces far beyond the voltage of Earth's electricity.

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