Exodus 37:1-9 (ESV)

Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half was its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. And he overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and made a molding of gold around it. And he cast for it four rings of gold for its four feet, two rings on its one side and two rings on its other side. And he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold and put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark. And he made a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. And he made two cherubim of gold. He made them of hammered work on the two ends of the mercy seat, one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat he made the cherubim on its two ends. The cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, with their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat were the faces of the cherubim.

The ark is the centerpiece of the tabernacle. The point of the whole thing is to provide a place for the LORD to meet with His people. The ark is where that will be. He will dwell above the mercy seat. But why call it the mercy seat? It could have been called the judgment seat, or the throne, or any number of alternatives. The answer becomes clear when we examine what will be done with it.

“And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times. Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, sprinkling it over the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat. Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleannesses of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions, all their sins. – Leviticus 16:14-16a (ESV)

The blood sprinkled on the seat is to make atonement. This propitiates God’s wrath and unleashes His mercy. This is the function that was fulfilled once and for all by Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. – Romans 3:23-25 (ESV)

God’s mercy is the heart of the gospel and the mercy seat is the heart of the tabernacle.

Imagine how bad things would be if this was anything other than a mercy seat. Given how quickly the Israelites strayed from their promises and did things like worship a golden calf, a judgment seat would mean they’re toast.

Praise God for His brilliant, creative mercy. Just think how the LORD set this up in advance to play out – from the naming of the mercy seat to the cross.

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