In this message we shall consider the matter of the location of the grating inside the altar. In Exodus 27 we are told clearly that the grating was at half of the height of the altar. Since the altar was three cubits high, the grating was positioned one and a half cubits above the bottom of the altar. The ark of the testimony was one and a half cubits high. Therefore, the grating and the propitiation-cover of the ark were on the same level.
In the messages on the ark, I pointed out that the dimensions of the ark were all in halves. The ark was two and a half cubits in length, one and a half cubits in width, and one and a half cubits in height. These dimensions are precisely half of the length and height of the altar. As we have pointed out, the altar was five cubits wide, five cubits long, and three cubits high.
We have seen that there were one and a half cubits below the grating and another one and a half cubits above the grating. The fact that there were one and a half cubits underneath the grating signifies the standard according to which the redemption of Christ was accomplished. The standard of the redemption of Christ was up to the requirement of God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory. This is signified by the bronze grating of network being at the half height of the altar and thereby on the same level as the height of the ark of the testimony with the propitiation-cover.
Christ died on the cross to accomplish the all-inclusive redemption for us according to the standard of the ark. The ark was the place where God could meet with man. Man is fallen. He has been distracted from God, and he has deviated from God’s way. Nevertheless, God wants to meet with fallen man. To make such a meeting possible, something had to be done according to the standard of God.
If you closely examine the record of the ark in Exodus, you will see that the ark is related to God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory. The cherubim signify glory, and the law points to God’s righteousness. Furthermore, the gold overlaying the ark signifies God’s holiness. The righteousness, holiness, and glory of God all make demands on fallen man. If, as fallen sinners, we want to meet with God, we must fulfill the requirements of His standard. His standard involves His righteousness, holiness, and glory. Romans 3:23 says that we all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. This indicates that God’s glory is a measuring rod and that, when measured by it, we all come short. Because we cannot reach up to the height of God’s glory, we are not qualified to meet with Him.
Christ died an all-inclusive death for the accomplishment of our redemption. This was according to God’s requirements, according to the height of God’s standard related to His righteousness, holiness, and glory. This is the significance of the grating being at the same level as that of the propitiation-cover on the ark. It is on this level that God can meet with us, and it is on this level that we can be brought back to Him.
God dwells in the Holy of Holies. But one day He came out of the Holy of Holies to the outer court. This means that God came down from heaven to earth to bring man back to Himself. In order to accomplish this, God traveled from the ark to the altar, that is, to the cross. The destination of God’s journey from heaven to earth was the altar, the cross. At the altar God seemed to say, “Sinners, I want you to come back to Me. But if you want to come back to Me, something must take place so that My requirements are fulfilled. Your coming back to Me and My meeting with you must be according to the standard of My requirements.” This is the significance of the grating being on the same level as the propitiation-cover of the ark. If it were possible to draw a line from the grating in the altar to the propitiation-cover on the ark, we would see that these two were on the same level. Christ’s all-inclusive death for redemption, therefore, matches the standard of God’s requirements.