Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Exodus 25:37
And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it.
37. the lamps ] probably of the type called Phoenician, of which numerous specimens, made in terra cotta, have been found at Gezer, and other places excavated recently in Palestine: they are in shape like a shell or saucer, round or oval, open or covered in, as the case may be, and with the rim on one side pinched together, so as to form an orifice for the wick (see illustr. in DB. iii. 24).
light ] fix on (cf. marg.), viz. every evening (Exo 30:8). The Heb. is lit, bring up, i.e., as we should say, fix on (so Exo 27:20; Exo 30:8; Exo 40:4; Exo 40:25, Lev 24:2, Num 8:2-3 ): the Rabb. interpretation ‘light’ is destitute of the smallest probability (for to ‘make the lamp go up’ is not the same thing as to ‘make the flame go up’).
over against it ] in front of it, or straight forward, as the same expression is rendered in Eze 1:9; Eze 1:12; Eze 10:22; cf. Num 8:2-3. The candlestick was to stand at the S. side of the Holy place; and the lamps were to be so adjusted that their wick-mouths turned northwards, and they lighted the space in front of the candlestick. ‘Over against’ is an old English expression meaning opposite to: but it is so little used now that it fails to convey a clear idea to the average reader.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
They shall light the lamps, whom I shall appoint for that work. Over against it, i.e. either,
1. The table of shewbread. Or rather,
2. The candlestick, as it is expressed, Num 8:2, where by the candlestick you are to understand, as here, Exo 25:33,34, the stem or main body of it; and the sense is, that the lamps shall be so placed, that they and their light may look towards that stem; unless you will suppose that the seven lamps were distinct and separated from the candlestick, and fastened to the sides of the tabernacle in several places, and all giving light to or over against the great candlestick, which was in the midst, as the candlestick did over-against them, which is also, now usual among us.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
37. they shall light the lamps . . .that they may give lightThe light was derived from pure oliveoil, and probably kept continually burning (compare Exo 30:7;Lev 24:2).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And thou shall make the seven lamps thereof,…. Which were, six of them, on the top of the six branches that came out of the sides of the candlestick, and the seventh on the top of the shaft which ran up in the middle of it; which no doubt were made of gold as well as the rest, and may signify the many members of churches bearing the lamp of a profession: or the several gifts and graces of the Spirit, which are sometimes, because of the perfection of them, called the seven spirits of God, and are compared to seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, Re 4:5 or else the ministers of the Gospel, who are the lights of the world:
and they shall light the lamps thereof; Aaron and his sons, the priests in successive generations:
that they may give light over against it to the table of shewbread, which was opposite to it on the north side of the tabernacle, and so by the light of these lamps the priests could see to place the shewbread in its order; or the candlestick itself, the lamps being so placed as to give light to the whole body of it, that it might be seen in all its parts very distinctly; unless it can be thought that these lamps were separate from the candlestick, and set around the sides of the holy place, and gave light to it: and this may rather seem to be the case, since these lamps are spoken of after the whole of it is said to be one beaten work of pure gold; but then we have no account of the lamps of the candlestick, unless they are supposed to be included in the branches; wherefore the first sense seems best.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(37) Thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof.Literally, thou shalt make its lamps seven. Each branch, as well as the stem, was to have its own lamp. The Arch of Titus shows them to us as hemi-spherical bowls.
They shall light.See Note on Exo. 25:31-39, and comp. Exo. 27:21; Exo. 30:8; Lev. 24:3.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
37. Seven lamps One for each of the side stems or branches, and one for the central shaft .
They shall light the lamps Or, cause the lamps to go up, that is, they shall elevate or place the lamps (the lighted, shining lamps) in their position, that they may give light over against it, that is, opposite the place where it stood, the opposite side of the room.
The above description of the golden candlestick is somewhat obscure. The exact form of the shafts, or branches, and the knops and flowers is left to conjecture, nor can we determine from what is here written whether the central shaft and the six branches were all carried up to the same height, and whether the branches proceeded out of the shaft at right angles or formed a curve in their upward turn. No dimensions are given, and we can judge of its size only by supposing that its height would have been as high, and probably somewhat higher, than the table, and its breadth between the two outer lamps at least two feet. Josephus ( Ant., 3: 6, 7) describes it as having a shaft rising from a single base and spreading itself into as many branches as there are planets, including the sun among them. Its seven heads terminated in one row, and all stood parallel to one another. A conspicuous object among the spoils of Jerusalem pictured on the Arch of Titus at Rome is a figure of the candlestick, with its central shaft and six arms. It is not certain that this is an exact copy of even the one captured at the fall of the temple, for the Roman artist may have modified some of its parts; but in its main outline it doubtless truly represents the original. The two additional cuts herewith given exhibit two slightly different models, the one showing all the lamps on the same level, and the other at various elevations. Either of these will illustrate the statements of the text commented on above. Here is seen, first, the pedestal or base ( shaft of Exo 25:31) from which rises the main shaft with its four knops and associated ornamentation, (Exo 25:31; Exo 25:34-35,) and from which three pipes branched out on each side, one above the other, and formed so many arms to hold the lamps. Each of these branches had three bowls or cups (Exo 25:33) along with knop and flower, as the central shaft had four, placed as described in Exo 25:35. Most writers believe that the seven lamps were all elevated to the same level, which is probable, but not made certain by what is here written. That they were all in a row, or in the same plane, as shown in all these cuts, is evident from Exo 25:32, where the six branches are described as coming out of two sides of the main shaft.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Exo 25:37 And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it.
Ver. 37. Seven lamps. ] Signifying the manifold graces and diversity of gifts in the Church. Zec 4:2
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
it. Hebrew the face of it. Figure of speech Prosopopceia (App-6).
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
seven: Exo 37:23, Zec 4:2, Rev 1:4, Rev 1:12, Rev 1:20, Rev 2:1, Rev 4:5
they shall: Exo 27:21, Exo 30:8, Lev 24:2-4, 2Ch 13:11
light: or, cause to ascend
give: Exo 40:24, Num 8:2, Psa 119:105, Pro 6:23, Isa 8:20, Mat 5:14, Luk 1:79, Joh 1:9, Joh 8:12, Joh 12:5, Act 26:18, Rev 21:23-25, Rev 22:5
it: Heb. the face of it, Num 8:2
Reciprocal: Exo 25:6 – Oil for Exo 40:25 – General Mat 5:15 – it giveth