At the moment when the Ark of the Covenant was brought into the Temple, there was nothing in the Ark except the tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments...
At the moment when the Ark of the Covenant was brought into the Temple, there was nothing in the Ark except the tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments. The Lord’s invisible presence had no need of symbols, none of which could express Him in all His fullness, but any of which could be turned into an object of idolatry, as happened, for example, with the bronze serpent. Yet another symbol was preserved as sacred over the centuries: the tablets, which symbolized the Lord’s relationship with the human world. The commandments inscribed on them are the foundation of life for those who remain faithful to Him, and they are also a sign of His presence in the world.
At the same time, we see once more how incommensurable His manifestations are with everything accessible to human beings. Even the priests, to whom the prayer of the Temple had been entrusted, could not remain standing to minister when the glory of the Lord filled the Temple.
But it is all the more astonishing that the Lord does not reject the little that we can offer Him. For we are dear to Him...
5 Solomon brings the dedicated treasures into the house, and the ark into the sanctuary, Ch2 5:1-10.
While the priests and Levites sing praise, the glory of God fills the house, Ch2 5:11-14.
5:1 The gold - The remainder of those vast sums mentioned, Ch1 22:14.
5:5 The ark - The ark was a type of Christ, and a token of the presence of God. That gracious promise, Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world, does in effect bring the ark into our religious assemblies, if we claim it by faith and prayer. And this we should be earnest for: the temple itself, if Christ leave it, is a desolate place. Those etc - As many of them as were fit for use, it is probable, were still used. The rest were carefully laid up, as monuments of antiquity.
5:9 To this day - When this history was first written; not when it was reviewed by Ezra: for after the return from Babylon, neither staves nor ark were any more seen.
5:11 By course - According to David's appointment, Ch1 24:1-31, Ch1 25:1-22, which was only for the ordinary service,but in extraordinary solemnities, such as this, they all came together.
5:14 Glory of the Lord - And this beautified it more than all the gold with which it was overlaid, or the precious stones with which it was garnished. Yet even that was no glory, in comparison of the glory of the gospel - dispensation.