Institutions of Israelite Worship
Part One
In the Old Testament we note certain forms and institutions for worship, and as some of these received their shaping during the wilderness life of the Is´ra-el-ites, we give a brief account of such institutions at this place in the history.
I. Earliest of all institutions for worship we find the Altar, and throughout the Old Testament the altar worship stands prominent.
1. Its Principle, the root idea underlying the altar, was of a meeting between God and man. As the subject always came to his ruler with a gift in his hands, so the worshiper brought his offering to his god, whether Je-ho´vah, the God of Is´ra-el, or Ba´al, the divinity of the Ca´naan-ites.
2. Its Origin is unknown, but it was early sanctioned by a divine approval of the worship connected with it (Gen. 4. 3, 4; 8. 20; 12. 8).
3. Its Universality. There was scarcely a people in the ancient world without an altar. We find that the worship of every land and every religion was associated with altars. (See allusions in Isa. 65. 3; 2 Kings 16. 10; Acts 17. 23, to altars outside of the Is´ra-el-ite faith.)
4. Its Material. Among the Is´ra-el-ites it was of earth or unhewn stone. Where metal or wood was used it was merely for a covering, the true altar being of earth inside. The laws of Is´ra-el forbade any carving of the stone which might lead to idol worship (Exod. 20. 24, 25).
5. Its Limitation. In the patriarchal age the chief of the clan was the priest, the altar stood before his tent, and there was but one altar for the clan, which thus represented one family. When Is´ra-el became a nation only one altar was allowed by the law, carrying out the idea that all the Twelve Tribes were one family (Deut. 12. 13, 14; Josh. 22. 16). Yet the law, if known to the Is´ra-el-ites, was constantly ignored by the prophets (1 Sam. 7. 9; 1 Kings 18. 31, 32).
6. Its Prophetic Purpose, as revealed in the New Testament, was to prefigure the cross whereon Christ died (John 1. 29; Heb. 9. 22; 1 Pet. 3. 18).