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ark

more about ark

ark


  3  definitions  found 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Ark  \Ark\,  n.  [OE.  ark,  arke,  arche,  AS  arc,  earc,  earce,  fr 
  L.  arca,  fr  arcere  to  inclose,  keep  off  akin  to  Gr  ?  to 
  keep  off.] 
  1.  A  chest,  or  coffer.  [Obs.] 
 
  Bearing  that  precious  relic  in  an  ark.  --Spenser. 
 
  2.  (Jewish  Hist.)  The  oblong  chest  of  acacia  wood,  overlaid 
  with  gold,  which  supported  the  mercy  seat  with  its  golden 
  cherubs,  and  occupied  the  most  sacred  place  in  the 
  sanctuary.  In  it  Moses  placed  the  two  tables  of  stone 
  containing  the  ten  commandments.  Called  also  the  {Ark  of 
  the  Covenant}. 
 
  3.  The  large  chestlike  vessel  in  which  Noah  and  his  family 
  were  preserved  during  the  Deluge.  --Gen.  vi  Hence:  Any 
  place  of  refuge. 
 
  4.  A  large  flatboat  used  on  Western  American  rivers  to 
  transport  produce  to  market. 
 
  From  WordNet  r  1.6  [wn]: 
 
  ark 
  n  1:  sacred  chest  where  the  ancient  Hebrews  kept  the  two  tablets 
  containing  the  Ten  Commandments  [syn:  {ark  of  the 
  covenant}] 
  2:  a  boat  built  by  Noah  to  save  his  family  and  animals  from  the 
  Flood 
 
  From  Easton's  1897  Bible  Dictionary  [easton]: 
 
  Ark 
  Noah's  ark,  a  building  of  gopher-wood,  and  covered  with  pitch, 
  300  cubits  long,  50  cubits  broad,  and  30  cubits  high  (Gen. 
  6:14-16);  an  oblong  floating  house  of  three  stories,  with  a  door 
  in  the  side  and  a  window  in  the  roof.  It  was  100  years  in 
  building  (Gen.  5:32;  7:6).  It  was  intended  to  preserve  certain 
  persons  and  animals  from  the  deluge  which  God  was  about  to  bring 
  over  the  earth.  It  contained  eight  persons  (Gen.  7:13;  2  Pet. 
  2:5),  and  of  all  clean"  animals  seven  pairs,  and  of  unclean" 
  one  pair,  and  of  birds  seven  pairs  of  each  sort  (Gen.  7:2,  3). 
  It  was  in  the  form  of  an  oblong  square,  with  flat  bottom  and 
  sloping  roof.  Traditions  of  the  Deluge,  by  which  the  race  of  man 
  was  swept  from  the  earth,  and  of  the  ark  of  Noah  have  been  found 
  existing  among  all  nations. 
 
  The  ark  of  bulrushes  in  which  the  infant  Moses  was  laid  (Ex. 
  2:3)  is  called  in  the  Hebrew  _teebah_,  a  word  derived  from  the 
  Egyptian  _teb_,  meaning  "a  chest."  It  was  daubed  with  slime  and 
  with  pitch.  The  bulrushes  of  which  it  was  made  were  the  papyrus 
  reed. 
 
  The  sacred  ark  is  designated  by  a  different  Hebrew  word 
  _'aron'_,  which  is  the  common  name  for  a  chest  or  coffer  used 
  for  any  purpose  (Gen.  50:26;  2  Kings  12:9,  10).  It  is 
  distinguished  from  all  others  by  such  titles  as  the  "ark  of  God" 
  (1  Sam.  3:3),  "ark  of  the  covenant"  (Josh.  3:6;  Heb.  9:4),  "ark 
  of  the  testimony"  (Ex.  25:22).  It  was  made  of  acacia  or  shittim 
  wood,  a  cubit  and  a  half  broad  and  high  and  two  cubits  long,  and 
  covered  all  over  with  the  purest  gold.  Its  upper  surface  or  lid, 
  the  mercy-seat,  was  surrounded  with  a  rim  of  gold;  and  on  each 
  of  the  two  sides  were  two  gold  rings,  in  which  were  placed  two 
  gold-covered  poles  by  which  the  ark  could  be  carried  (Num.  7:9; 
  10:21;  4:5,19,  20;  1  Kings  8:3,  6).  Over  the  ark,  at  the  two 
  extremities,  were  two  cherubim,  with  their  faces  turned  toward 
  each  other  (Lev.  16:2;  Num.  7:89).  Their  outspread  wings  over 
  the  top  of  the  ark  formed  the  throne  of  God,  while  the  ark 
  itself  was  his  footstool  (Ex.  25:10-22;  37:1-9).  The  ark  was 
  deposited  in  the  "holy  of  holies,"  and  was  so  placed  that  one 
  end  of  the  poles  by  which  it  was  carried  touched  the  veil  which 
  separated  the  two  apartments  of  the  tabernacle  (1  Kings  8:8). 
  The  two  tables  of  stone  which  constituted  the  testimony"  or 
  evidence  of  God's  covenant  with  the  people  (Deut.  31:26),  the 
  "pot  of  manna"  (Ex.  16:33),  and  "Aaron's  rod  that  budded"  (Num. 
  17:10),  were  laid  up  in  the  ark  (Heb.  9:4).  (See  TABERNACLE 
  ¯T0003559)  The  ark  and  the  sanctuary  were  "the  beauty  of  Israel" 
  (Lam.  2:1).  During  the  journeys  of  the  Israelites  the  ark  was 
  carried  by  the  priests  in  advance  of  the  host  (Num.  4:5,  6; 
  10:33-36;  Ps  68:1;  132:8).  It  was  borne  by  the  priests  into  the 
  bed  of  the  Jordan,  which  separated,  opening  a  pathway  for  the 
  whole  of  the  host  to  pass  over  (Josh.  3:15,  16;  4:7,  10,  11,  17, 
  18).  It  was  borne  in  the  procession  round  Jericho  (Josh.  6:4,  6, 
  8,  11,  12).  When  carried  it  was  always  wrapped  in  the  veil,  the 
  badgers'  skins,  and  blue  cloth,  and  carefully  concealed  even 
  from  the  eyes  of  the  Levites  who  carried  it  After  the 
  settlement  of  Israel  in  Palestine  the  ark  remained  in  the 
  tabernacle  at  Gilgal  for  a  season,  and  was  then  removed  to 
  Shiloh  till  the  time  of  Eli,  between  300  and  400  years  (Jer. 
  7:12),  when  it  was  carried  into  the  field  of  battle  so  as  to 
  secure,  as  they  supposed,  victory  to  the  Hebrews,  and  was  taken 
  by  the  Philistines  (1  Sam.  4:3-11),  who  sent  it  back  after 
  retaining  it  seven  months  (1  Sam.  5:7,  8).  It  remained  then  at 
  Kirjath-jearim  (7:1,2)  till  the  time  of  David  (twenty  years), 
  who  wished  to  remove  it  to  Jerusalem;  but  the  proper  mode  of 
  removing  it  having  been  neglected,  Uzzah  was  smitten  with  death 
  for  putting  "forth  his  hand  to  the  ark  of  God,"  and  in 
  consequence  of  this  it  was  left  in  the  house  of  Obed-edom  in 
  Gath-rimmon  for  three  months  (2  Sam.  6:1-11),  at  the  end  of 
  which  time  David  removed  it  in  a  grand  procession  to  Jerusalem, 
  where  it  was  kept  till  a  place  was  prepared  for  it  (12-19).  It 
  was  afterwards  deposited  by  Solomon  in  the  temple  (1  Kings 
  8:6-9).  When  the  Babylonians  destroyed  Jerusalem  and  plundered 
  the  temple,  the  ark  was  probably  taken  away  by  Nebuchadnezzar 
  and  destroyed,  as  no  trace  of  it  is  afterwards  to  be  found  The 
  absence  of  the  ark  from  the  second  temple  was  one  of  the  points 
  in  which  it  was  inferior  to  the  first  temple. 
 




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