In this post we are going to look at the candlestick, which is the first piece of furniture we will look at in the Holy Place. It looked similar to a Jewish menorah today and can be found in Exodus 25:31-40:
“Make a lampstand of pure gold. Hammer out its base and shaft, and make its flowerlike cups, buds and blossoms of one piece with them. Six branches are to extend from the sides of the lampstand – three on one side and three on the other. Three cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms are to be on one branch , three on the next, and the same for all six branches extending from the lampstand. And on the lampstand there are to be four cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms. One bud shall be under the first pair of branches extending from the lampstand, a second bud under the second pair, and a third bud under the third pair – six branches in all. The buds and branches shall all be of one piece with the lampstand, hammered out of pure gold. Then make its seven lamps and set them up on it so that they light the space in front of it. Its wick trimmers and trays are to be of pure gold. A talent of pure gold is to be used for the lampstand and all these accessories. See that you make them according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”
The main meaning of this candlestick was one of abiding in Christ and relates to John 15:1-2, 5-6 where Jesus says that He is the vine and we are the branches, so in this candlestick we see one central shaft extending from the base that is self-supporting but all the other branches extend from this branch and are dependent on it in order to be able to stay in position and shine correctly. Christ is the central branch and we are the six branches that extend off it, six being the number for man in Biblical numerology.
Another thing we read in John 15 is that God prunes us so that we will bear more fruit and so the priests in the Old Testament used to trim the wicks of the candles so that they could continue to shine brightly.
There is much more we can say about this candlestick, if you are interested in learning more we would like to encourage you to sign up for our Udemy course on Biblical Typology as it refers to the Old Testament Tabernacle.
