Gnarly Nature Within. Godliness Without.

“Every one that did offer an offering of silver and brass brought the LORD’S offering: and every man, with whom was found shittim wood for any work of the service, brought it.” (Ex 35:24 AV)

By reading this verse, one might get the impression that shittim wood was rarer than the precious metals that were taken up for the offering of the tabernacle.  In a manner of speaking, one would be right.  The tree from which this wood comes is known as the Acacia tree.  It is found on the eastern side of the Jordan river in the land of the Moabites.  Later to be occupied by Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh.  This tree is also found in the salt river valley and in Egypt.  The tree is a beautiful tree often given the appearance of an open umbrella.  The wood is aromatic and because of the oils which give it its aroma is a natural insecticide making the wood impervious to insect damage.  What makes the wood rare in not the absence of the tree.  It is the nature of the tree.  The tree can grow up to two feet thick.  However, the tree is knotty and twisted, making the planking process extremely difficult.  The wood itself is a hard wood.  It is a gnarly wood whose grain changes direction.  The wood can splinter rather easily if the tools used are not super sharp.  Considering the walls of the Holy of Holies itself, these planks would have been extremely rare.  It would have been easier to find gold, silver, and brass for the construction of the tabernacle and its implements that to find plank wood of the acacia tree useful enough to use in tabernacle construction.

Much is made of the symbology of the tabernacle.  And rightly so.  The book of Hebrews tells us the old testament tabernacle and temple were a picture of the heavenly reality.  These structures declared in type and picture the reality of Christ’s coming sacrifice and nature of the Messiah.  However, sometimes it can be overdone.  This shittim wood was used in every aspect of the tabernacle other than the candlestick and tapestry.  The walls and furniture had as its core this wood.  To meditate on this truth, we have to consider this material was not easily found.  It took some forethought and preparation to be in a place to provide it for the construction of the tabernacle.  A man would have to harvest this tree as they were on their journey from Egypt to Canaan.  It would have to be milled along the way.  Great care would have to be used to make usable boards from this tree.  Not many would have some.  When used in the construction of the temple, this wood would have been covered in gold.  All but the staves which carried the ark.  As we wrote before, there are many applications and pictures to be drawn here.  The picture we may want to consider is the acacia tree is a common tree that thrives in the desert.  The tree is not rare.  It is very common.  However, being a useful tree for the construction of the tabernacle was rare.  It takes great skill and an extremely sharp instrument.  The wood must yield to the master’s hand that it might be milled to something which would eventually be covered by the beauty of another material.  This wood is the inner structure prepared by a master’s hand which would be the foundation upon which the glory of another resided.  And it is rare. 

Rare is the saint who is all gnarly and twisted inside who grain is wild and non-conforming who will allow the sharp and cutting events of life to shape him or her into something to which the glory of God might cover.  We buckle under the pressure of God’s hand.  We chaff at the events of life designed to whittle away all our rough spots.  We refuse to yield to the forty-grit sandpaper that changes who we are so that others can see Christ in us.  Those who yield fully and completely to the hand of the Master are rare indeed.  They take the trials and troubles of life as they were intended to be; opportunities for personal growth and transformation into the likeness of Christ.  These individuals are rare.  As rare as they are, so is their calling.  Like Moses whose face shone from the presence of God, the people are the torch which bears the light of Christ’s love.  They show forth the praised of God in such a way there can be no argument of the reality of God.  These dear saints are rare.  Praise the LORD for them!