TABERNACLE STUDIES PART 9 THE LAVER
THE LAVER IS DESCRIBED IN THE BIBLE, THE CHRISTIAN SCRIPTURES, IN THE BOOK OF EXODUS CHAPTER 30, VERSES 17 TO 31, AND ALSO IN CHAPTER 38 VERSE 8:
30:17 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
30:18 Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein.
30:19 For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat:
30:20 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:
30:21 So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not: and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations.
38:8 And he made the laver of brass, and the foot of it of brass, of the lookingglasses of the women assembling, which assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
The meaning of the word laver The word laver means “a bored-out thing”, and the word is elsewhere translated “washbowl”. We shall see the significance of the latter meaning when we refer to John chapter 13. Apart from things suggested by these two ideas, we are not told the actual shape or size of the laver. It was clearly bowl-shaped, and had a foot to give it stability.
The material of the laver The laver was made solely of brass, whereas the altar was brass and shittim wood. We have thought of the brass of the altar as that which stood the test of the fire, reminding us of the Lord Jesus, the one able to stand the test of the fire of Divine holiness. The brass of the laver, however, is Christ as the one able to withstand the test of this world’s unholiness. Brass resists, as we saw from Jeremiah 1:18,19, and the Lord Jesus was certainly attacked as He passed through this world. He was attacked by the Devil, and by unbelieving men, as they sought to make Him deviate from His Father’s will. He withstood consistently, for to have not done so would have been unholiness. There was one direction, however, from which no attack came, and that was from within. No evil desire rose up in His heart; all the opposition to holiness came from outside of His person.
The bulk of the materials from which the tabernacle in the wilderness was made was given by the people of Israel, as they gave willingly to the Lord. They had sung on the banks of the Red Sea, “He is my God, and I will prepare Him a habitation”, Exodus 15:2. The Lord had instructed Moses as follows: “Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver and jewels of gold”, Exodus 11:2. Then we read, “And the Lord gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians”, verse 3. So it was that on the night of the Passover the Israelites “spoiled the Egyptians”, Exodus 12:36. This was the fulfilment of what God had said to Abraham 430 years before, “And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance”, Genesis 15:14. It was only just that the Israelites should be recompenced for their many years of hard labour making bricks for the Egyptians. It was an example of what James speaks of when he writes, “Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are edntered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth”, James 4:4.
We have seen in connection with the sockets of the tabernacle boards, that the silver was given by the warriors, who anticipated their numbering, and gave beforehand. The brass was also given by a specific section of the people. We learn from Exodus 38:8 that it was given in the form of looking glasses, and came from those women who assembled at the door of the tabernacle. The word “assemble” means “to serve in an army”, and is also used of Levites, Numbers 4:35. Clearly there was a large gathering of spiritual women, who gathered in the court of the tabernacle. No doubt they were found there praying and praising, and perhaps even prophesying, like Miriam. This is no doubt how the court of the temple beyond the middle wall of partition, (the barrier that prevented Gentiles from entering any further), became known as “The Court of the Women”. This would be where Anna was found prophesying, fasting and praying, Luke 2:36-38. In this court were the thirteen collection boxes, into which the widow placed her mites, Luke 21:1,2.
These women came as near to God as they could. This highlights the difference between the old system, and that which prevails now. No believer can advance further than another into the presence of God. Each has the right to approach into the very presence of God. Any system of worship now which erects its rails, and segregates its devotees so that some may approach and others may not, is clearly un-Christian.
It is highly significant that the Lord Jesus began to reveal these things to a woman. He did not introduce the subject to Nicodemus, but to the woman of Samaria, John 4:19-24. Said He to her, “Woman, believe Me”, verse 21. So the only requirement now is faith. We draw near “with full assurance of faith”, Hebrews 10:22. The Father seeketh worshippers, and He makes no distinction between male and female in this connection.
So the brass for the laver was provided by the women who gathered in the courts of the Lord. Instead of sitting at home gazing at themselves in the mirror, they were found serving God. They anticipated the words of the apostle Peter, “Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, or of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; put let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price”, 1 Peter 3:3,4.
So it is that whereas the warriors gave beforehand, but knew they would be required to do so anyway, these women went further in the devotion, for they gave that which they were not going to be required to give. Their spontaneous giving is a noble example to follow.
It may be that the brothers are to a certain extent constrained by duty when they take audible part in the gatherings; they may even do so merely for the sake of appearances. Not so the sisters as they silently worship, for theirs is not mere duty, but loving response to God.
It is significant what vessel the mirrors were made into. For the laver was the means of the removal of defilement. How appropriate then, that it should be made of that which shows up defilement. The apostle Paul wrote about “beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord”, 2 Corinthians 3:18. As we fix our gaze on Christ, the great contrast between His purity and our defilement becomes apparent. Yet the person who shows up the defilement is the one who supplies the means of dealing with it. As He said to His disciples, “Ye are clean through the word that I have spoken unto you”, John 15:3. As we listen to His words, as recorded in the Scriptures, our hearts are purified from “all filthiness of the flesh and spirit”, 2 Corinthians 7:1.
How dangerous it would have been for a priest to look into the brass of the laver, and refuse to avail himself of the water of the laver. James warned against this when he wrote, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straitway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed”, James 1:22-25. The position of the laver The Lord instructed Moses, “Thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar”, Exodus 30:17. So it was positioned in relation to both. Believers now are exhorted to “Draw near….having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water, Hebrews 10:22. The order for the priests on the day of their consecration was first to be bathed all over, and then to be sprinkled with blood. So the order was laver then altar; and this was the case also in their day-to-day duties, for they must first go to the laver, and then either attend to the altar, or enter the holy place.
But since the thought in Hebrews 10 is that of drawing near, then it is appropriate that the order in which the vessels are met with should be in view. As the priest arrived for his daily duties in the court and the sanctuary he would first pass the alter, and is reminded that he was sprinkled with blood on the day of his consecration. Then he passed to the laver, and is reminded that he was also washed all over on that day. Thus the altar and the laver both remind him of his consecration to the priesthood, and this gives him confidence to enter further into his duties, after having duly washed his hands and feet at the laver.
We, too, have boldness, because the judicial value of the blood of Jesus has been applied to our hearts, and we are accepted by God. We also have been bathed in the water of the word of God, and thereby the moral value of the precious blood of Jesus is brought to bear, through the Scriptures, on our persons as living in this world with all its defilement, so that all that is contrary to His person and nature is removed from us, and we are fitted for the presence of God. The righteousness and the holiness of God are both satisfied, and continue to be satisfied. The heart is a figurative expression, denoting the inner being that seeks after God. The body is that which is in contact with the earth, so is figurative of our life as lived in the world. The water in the laver John does not mention the Lord’s Supper, but he does give to us the words of the Lord Jesus about feet-washing so that we may be in the right condition to eat the Supper that is detailed for us in Matthew, Mark and Luke. Not only do they tell of the Lord’s Supper, but Mark and Luke also tell of the sign to Peter and John, so that they would know where to prepare the Passover, after which the Lord’s Supper was instituted, Mark 14:12-16; Luke 22:7-13. They were to follow a man with a pitcher of water, and where he entered in was the place the Lord had chosen, Matthew And so it came to pass, and the water for the feet-washing was ready. The Lord Jesus clearly marked out the upper room as a place where water was available, thus linking the idea of cleansing from defilement with the eating of the Lord’s Supper.
The psalmist asked the question, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way?” he answered his own question by saying, “by taking heed thereto unto Thy word”, Psalm 119:9. So the word of God, (which is the subject of all 176 verses of Psalm 119), is the means whereby defilement is cleansed away.
It is interesting to notice that Psalm 119 is an alphabetic psalm, with each of the verses of the 22 stanzas beginning with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet in their order. No doubt this was an aid to memory, since the psalm is 176 verses long. It is as if every subject that could be covered by using the letters of the alphabet, is embraced in the word of God. No wonder we are not told the size of the laver, for that would place a limit on the amount of water in it, and by implication would place a limit on the word of God, so that it might not be capable of cleansing our way in every circumstance. The washing at the laver As he began his daily duties, the priest was required to go to the laver and wash his hands and his feet. He must wash his hands because he will be touching the altar and the pieces of the sacrifice offered thereon, and these are holy to the Lord. He must be ritually cleansed, so that none of the defilement he may have contracted since he left his duties the previous evening defiles the altar of the Lord. He must wash his feet, too, for he is going to venture into the Holy Place, and nothing that defiles must enter there.
The Lord Jesus alluded to these things in John 13:3-11. He first of all washed His disciples’ feet. Peter protested, but had to learn that if he did not allow the feet-washing to take place, it would signify that he had no part with Christ, verse 8; in other words, he was not a believer. In response to this statement Peter went to the other extreme, and asked not only that his feet be washed, but also his hands and his head. Which was another way of saying, “all over”. Peter shows that he does have part with Christ, for he wanted the washing to take place. But he has made another mistake now, which the Lord corrects. “He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit”, verse 10. Peter, even though he was no doubt a religious Jew, had needed to be converted to Christ. And this had happened, and he had begun to follow Him. At that moment he accepted the authority of Christ, and he was credited with the “washing of regeneration” of which the apostle Paul later speaks, Titus 3:5. Regeneration is a state, not a process. It is a condition of fitness for the recognition of the authority of Christ, whenever and however that is expressed. One day the authority of Christ will be asserted in this world in His kingdom. This is why He Himself called that time “the regeneration”, Matthew 19:28. Peter had responded to the message, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye and believe the gospel”, Mark 1:15, and he had been made fit for that coming glorious age. It was afterwards revealed that before the kingdom age is brought in, there would be an age of grace, in which the church would be formed. It is the members of the church that the apostle is addressing when he reminds his readers that by the mercy of God the washing of regeneration had taken place in their hearts, and they were fit to respond to the authority of Christ now, even though His kingdom is not yet manifest on the earth.
So Peter, and all true believers, have been washed all over. Every part of their being has had the word of God applied to it, and that which is contrary to His holiness as expressed in Christ, has been cleansed away. They are fit for a new state of things, for “if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature, 2 Corinthians 5:17. Of such people it can be said, and of these only, that they have part with Christ. In the temple precincts there were bathing pools, so that those who came to worship God might be washed all over. But in the short journey from the pools to the courts of the Lord, defilement might again be contracted, so there were stone foot-lavers, (some of which are still available to see), so that the feet might be washed. It is this to which the Lord Jesus alludes in His words to the disciples. Having been made clean every whit by the all-over bathing, there is only need to wash the feet when approaching near to God. It is the harmonising of our state with our standing. It is the reminder of our personal responsibility to ensure that we are in a state compatible with what God has made us. We are to examine ourselves, as the apostle Paul exhorted in connection with eating the Lord’s Supper, 1 Corinthians 11:28. All that is incompatible with the eating of that Supper is to be rigorously dealt with, before we venture to break bread. It is not that we are able to effect cleansing by our own effort, but a recognition of the importance of what God has done.