Under the greater ledge is the lesser ledge. This ledge also has two edges of one cubit each, making it a total of sixteen cubits. The number sixteen is composed of eight times two, signifying a witness (two) in resurrection (eight). Christ is a living witness in resurrection.
The base also has two edges of one cubit each, making it a total of eighteen cubits wide. The number eighteen is composed of six times three or three times six, signifying man, the Triune God, and resurrection.
Because of its unique design, the altar is very solid and stable. It is wider at the base than it is at the top. The base is eighteen cubits square, the lesser ledge is sixteen cubits square, the greater ledge is fourteen cubits square, and the altar is twelve cubits square. This type of construction makes the altar very stable. If the top were wider than the bottom, the altar would not be stable. But because the bottom is much wider than the top, the altar can stand solidly. Nothing can shake it.
On every story, on every section, there are edges, which spread out like two arms to hold something. The borders of the edges also rise up to hold something. This clear picture shows us that the altar is not only solid and stable but is also able to hold things. This indicates that the death of Christ on the cross is not only stable and solid but also able to hold things. His wonderful, marvelous, all-inclusive death is able to hold all of us.
At each of the four corners of the hearth of God, a horn points upward. In the Bible horns signify strength and power. The horns on the altar, which are toward the four corners of the earth and which are also upward, signify the power of the cross of Christ. The power of the church and of the saints depends on the cross. The more we experience the cross, the more spiritual power we will have.
The steps up to the altar are toward the east. The east indicates the glory of the Lord. It is the direction of the rising of the sun, which signifies the glory of the Lord (Num. 2:3; Ezek. 43:2). This indicates that the cross always points to God’s glory and always leads to God’s glory.
The cubit used by Ezekiel is not the common human cubit; rather, it is a cubit plus a handbreadth (43:13). This is called a great cubit and is not a human measurement but a divine measurement. Thus, the altar is not measured by the human cubit but by the divine cubit. We should never measure ourselves by our human measurement. Our measurement may be of value to us, but it is of no value to God. We may feel that, according to our human measurement and standard, we are qualified, but according to the divine measurement, we fall short.
The last point concerning the altar is the relationship of the altar with the temple. Only after passing through the altar can we come to the temple. This means that without the proper realization and experience of the cross of Christ, we cannot have the reality of the church life. The temple signifies Christ, and it also signifies the church. We can have the genuine church life only after we have had the experience of the altar. If we desire to have the proper church life, we need an adequate realization and experience of the altar, of the cross of Christ. It is only after we realize that we have been thoroughly terminated on the cross that we can have the real church life.
To be in the outer court having the enjoyment of Christ is wonderful, but it is far from the experience of the temple. To be in the inner court where the ministry begins is also wonderful, but even this is far from the experience of the temple. To be in the temple is to be in something that is altogether in resurrection. Therefore, we need to go on until we pass through the altar, through the cross of Christ, and come to the temple. There we will have the reality of the church life.
We need to be impressed with the fact that only by passing through the altar can we come to the temple. Whereas the altar signifies the cross, the temple signifies both Christ and the church, the Body of Christ. The cross, Christ, and the church are the central subject not only of the New Testament but also of the whole Bible. First we come to the altar, the cross, and then we come to the temple. This indicates that we cannot have the church apart from the cross. Through the experience of the cross, we are brought into the reality of the church. Only as we pass through the cross do we have the real church life. On the one hand, as saved ones we come together to practice the church life; on the other hand, we can have the reality of the church only after we have passed through the cross.
We all need to be brought to the point where we know and accept the cross. Then as we pass through the cross, our flesh, our old creation, our self, and our natural man with the natural life will all be dealt with. Everything that has its source in our humanity will be terminated at the cross. Then we will have the reality of the church. Then we will be one in the Lord, we will have genuine coordination, and we will have harmony, rest, and the presence of Christ. This is the temple, the place where God dwells. This is the expression of Christ, the reality of the church.