Exodus 39:14
And the stones were according to the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet, every one with his name, according to the twelve tribes. And the stones were according to the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet, every one with his name, according to the twelve tribes.
The verse describes the twelve stones set in the high priest's breastplate, each cut like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. It belongs to the building of the sanctuary after Israel's deliverance from Egypt, raised from free-will offerings so that God might dwell among His people, made by divinely endowed workmen after the divine pattern as an object-lesson of the plan of salvation, and finished exactly as commanded until blessing and glory rested upon it. The earthly sanctuary and its furnishings were a pattern of the heavenly sanctuary, with rites pointing to Christ whose power forgives sin and transforms character, a typical service that ended at His death. Worn over the heart on the tenth-day atonement for the house of Israel, which shadows the investigative judgment of the church before Christ's second coming, the twelve names show that Christ the great High Priest bears upon His heart every repentant, believing soul.
Context and Wording
The twelve stones were set in the high priest's breastplate, twelve in number corresponding to the twelve tribes of Israel. Each stone carried the name of one tribe, every one with his own name according to the twelve tribes. The names were cut into the stones like the engravings of a signet. They formed part of the furnishings of the sanctuary and part of the detailed account of its construction work.
The verse stands in the last chapters of Exodus, in Exodus 33-40, and more particularly in the last six chapters, chapters 35-40. Those chapters relate the preparation and fitting of the Tabernacle and record its building and setting up. That building work came in chronological order after the events of Exodus 19 to 32 and immediately after the instruction concerning the sanctuary in Exodus 25-31 given to Moses in the mount. The Tabernacle was set up on the first day of the first month of the second year from the Exodus.
The tabernacle work to which the verse belongs accords with the skill of ancient artisans. Fine linen was used in many ways in that work, goldworking had been practiced long before the Exodus, and finely wrought jewelry was made in ancient Egypt. The verse is part of the laws God gave through Moses. Those laws included ceremonial laws as well as moral laws and other statutes and judgments.
Sanctuary Meaning and Application
The verse belongs to the directions for building and the description of the marvelously beautiful sanctuary structure, erected after Israel's deliverance from Egyptian bondage as a great multiple object-lesson comprehending the great plan of salvation. It was made from the free-will offerings of the children of Israel so that God might dwell among them, and was built by workmen specially endowed by God according to the divine pattern given to Moses in the mount. It belongs to the explicit instructions God gave Israel after leading them out of Egypt for making Him a sanctuary that He might dwell among them in order to reveal His great love more fully. It belongs to the building and particulars of the sanctuary God instructed Israel to make so He might dwell among them.
The verse is part of the carrying out of the sanctuary instructions given in Exodus 25 to 31, showing the ark with all its furniture and equipment made just as God directed, after which blessing and glory came down upon the congregation and the building when it was completed. It describes twelve engraved stones, each bearing the name of one of Israel's twelve tribes, as part of the sanctuary furnishings, and the sanctuary and its services were built and inaugurated with God's glory manifested as a sign that He accepted the people's repentance. It belongs to the detailed account of the sanctuary's construction, whose completed work was inspected and found to match God's commands. Exodus 39 is part of the account stating that the Lord's directions for building the sanctuary were carried out explicitly.
The earthly sanctuary and its furnishings described in the chapter were made according to God's directions and served as a pattern pointing to the heavenly sanctuary. Its rites and ceremonies were object lessons that pointed to Christ, whose power forgives sin, transforms character, and delivers people from their burdens, and the earthly sanctuary's typical service ended with Christ's death. The high priest wore the breastplate of judgment bearing the twelve tribes of Israel on the tenth-day atonement of the house of Israel. That day was in a certain sense a day of judgment, and it shadows forth the investigative judgment of the house or church of God that takes place before the second coming of Christ.
The twelve stones on the high priest's breastplate, each engraved with the name of one of Israel's tribes, show that Christ, the great High Priest, bears on His heart the name of every repentant, believing soul.