“The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘You shall also make a laver of bronze, with its base of bronze, for washing; and you shall put it between the tent of meeting, and the altar, and you shall put water in it. Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet from it; when they enter the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water, so that they will not die; or when they approach the altar to minister, by offering up in smoke a fire sacrifice to the LORD. So they shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they will not die; and it shall be a perpetual statute for them, for Aaron and his descendants throughout their generations’” (Ex. 30:17-21).
The instructions for the sanctuary* can be found in Exodus 24-31.
The Laver stood between the altar of burnt offerings and the Tabernacle itself. The Laver was made of polished brass that shone as ‘lookingglasses’ which were collected from the ‘women assembling at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation’ (Ex. 38:8).
The picture of sinners’ justification will become clear in the courtyard. Before God wrote His law on tables of stone and gave them to the Israelites, He saved them from bondage in Egypt by virtue of their faith in the Passover Lamb (symbolized by the altar) and baptized them in the Red Sea (represented by the laver).
Old Testament Types
Priests at the Laver
It was a receptacle for water. The priests were instructed to wash at the laver before performing the work of the holy office, which was ministering at the altar of sacrifice or before entering the tabernacle to serve (Exodus 30:17-21). So, the priest drew water out in a pitcher for the purposes of washing his feet and hands.
Death was the penalty for performing service at the altar or within the tabernacle without first washing according to the instructions (Exodus 30:17-21). As the people in the court beheld the priests wash in preparation to performed the services, it was to teach them:
- the truth that Christ gave to Nicodemus, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5, Titus 3:5, Ephesians 5:26).
The laver’s polished brass was reflective like a mirror. It symbolizes sincerely and honestly reflection is necessary in order to search out the imperfections and failings of our character. When we have examined our life, we bring everything and lay it at the foot of the cross through confession and repentance, and ask Christ for forgiveness.
Here is outlined the process by which God cleanses us. The priests had to wash before going into the Holy Place (first compartment). Water is a symbol of the cleaning work of the Holy Spirit, where we die to self (John 7:37-39). The washing in the laver offers the cleansing by water (baptism) as a renunciation and cleansing of sin before appearing in the presence of God (John 3:5).
As we prepare ourself for baptism, the symbol of cleansing represented by the laver in the courtyard, we need to study the New Testament. It open with baptism, from John the Baptist in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; and in the book of Acts you find the baptism of the early church which is by immersion.
Baptism is the memorial to Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. Christ’s death and resurrection provides forgiveness of our sins; and in the process, we proclaim to accept His sacrifice and acknowledge Him as our personal Savior. Coming out of the water symbolizes rising to a new life in Christ. We are justified through faith that He is faithful to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 Jn. 1:9). All our past sins are thrown into the depth of the sea and remembered no more (Micah 7:18-19), and they are blotted out (Col. 2:14; Ps. 51:1-2,9; Acts 3:19). This is Good News brothers and sisters! Read more about what Jesus does with our forgiven sins: Isa. 1:18, 38:17, 43:25; Jer. 31:34, Heb. 8:12, 10:16-17; Ps. 32:2, 103:12; 1 Jn. 1:9; Jn. 1:29; Rom. 4:8.
With our cleansed heart we can love for we were created to love, with our hands we can do the will of God, and with our feet we can walk in Jesus’ footsteps…in the straight and narrow way. - the truth that Christ gave to the Samarian woman at the well, “But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:14).
Jesus is ‘Living Water’ and he invites to partake of it freely. He is interested in cleansing us from the inside out. It is only through Jesus that we change into the image that he intended us to be, for we are ‘image bearers.’ See: Acts 22:16, Eph. 5:26, 1 Cor. 6:11.
God takes us just as we are and forgives our sins. When we accept Christ, confess our sins, and ask for forgiveness, our heavenly record of sin is covered by Jesus’ blood. He does not leave us there, though we are justified, the work of sanctification and glorification begins. It is a journey, and our destination is heaven.
So, the laver of water symbolizes that God purifies or cleanses us from the stain of sin. This is reflective of His work of sanctification in our life.
Sanctification – growing in holiness and purity – is a process: it is an ongoing war between the spiritual and the flesh. We should put on the full armor of God: belt of truth, breastplate of righteousness, sandals with the preparation of the gospel of peace, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the spirit/word of God; in order to prepare for battle. Reading and meditating on God’s Word every day, provides knowledge, courage, strength, and hope. Engaging in prayer daily including: adoration – praising God’s goodness and majesty (i.e., Ps. 111), confession – searching our hearts and bearing our sins and forsaking them (1 Jn. 1:9), give words of thanksgiving in all of life situations (1 Thess. 5:16-18), and supplication – lifting up our requests before God (Phil 4:6), so we know and are reminded of what God defines as sin. We need to be in prayer daily, confessing and repenting our sins and asking God to help us in the struggle. We need to be tender to the Holy Spirit when He convicts us of sin (John 16:8). We shouldn’t neglect meeting with other believers because we encourage each other and spur each other on to love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24-26).
Old Testament Examples
The Flood Experience
Peter used the experience of Noah during the Flood to illustrate the relationship between baptism and salvation. In antediluvian times sin had reached such proportions that, through Noah, God warned the world to repent or face destruction. Only eight persons believed, entered the ark, and “were saved through water.” “There is also an antitype which now saves us,” Peter said, “namely baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 3:20, 21).
Peter explained that we are saved by baptism as Noah and his family were saved through water. Of course God, not the flood waters, saved Noah. By analogy, it is the blood of Christ, not the water of baptism, that removes sin from the believer. “But baptism, like [Noah’s] obedience in
entering the ark, is ‘the answer of a good conscience toward God.’ When man by God’s power gives ‘the answer,’ salvation provided ‘by the resurrection of Jesus Christ’ becomes effective.” Jemison, Christian Beliefs, p. 244.
Red Sea Experience
The whole lot of Israelites go down this this dry passage that opened up through the Red Sea. Standing upright, on each side stood walls of water. When they reach the other side, the sea closes in behind them drowning Pharaoh and all his army. Pharaoh was coming to taking the slaves and to kill them.
Before they crossed, on the other side of the Red Sea, they had been fugitive slaves in bondage; but now having crossed over they were free to live as free men and women.
This crossing of the Red Sea is rich with meaning, but we will focus on the notion that it prefigures baptism and illustrates the concept of salvation. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:1-2:
“Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;”
The Jonah Experience
Another Old Testament foreshadowing of baptism is seen in the story of Jonah. The prophet goes down into the waters to what seemed like certain death only to be delivered by God via a great fish that rescues the prophet, thus giving him a “resurrection” of sorts. Jonah references this fact in his prayer: “Water encompassed me to the point of death. The great deep engulfed me . . . but You have brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God” (Jonah 2:5-6).
Also, Jesus later used the story of Jonah as a type of His own resurrection (Luke 11:29-30).
While the ordinance of baptism is practiced in the Old Testament, there are biblical events that represented ‘a type’ of baptism, and those events pointed to and eventually found fulfillment in the New Testament practice commanded by Christ.
New Testament
Jesus’ Command – Fulfillment of the Old Testament Type
At the end of His ministry Christ commanded His disciples:
“‘Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you'” (Matt. 28:18-20).
In this commission, Christ made it clear that He required baptism of those who wished to become a part of His church, His spiritual kingdom. As, through the disciples’ ministry, the Holy Spirit brought people to repent and to accept Jesus as their Savior they were to be baptized in the name of the triune God. Their baptism would demonstrate that they had entered into a personal relationship with Christ and were committed to living in harmony with the principles of His kingdom of grace. Christ concluded His mandate to baptize with the assurance:
‘Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”’ (Matt. 28:19-20).
After Christ’s ascension the apostles proclaimed the necessity and urgency of baptism (Acts 2:38; 10:48; 22:16). In response, multitudes were baptized, forming the New Testament church (Acts 2:41, 46-47; 8:12) and accepting the authority of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Laver – Part 5 will be continued.
Amazing Discoveries, further study: The Laver and Altar of Offering.
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2 Timothy 2:15, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” AND 1 Thessalonians 5:21, “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.”