Artistic activity can be a celebration of God’s creation, drawing on motifs and patterns found in the created order. The description of the decorative work of Solomon’s temple (1 Kings 6–7) contains examples of such borrowing. The interior walls, of cedar overlaid with gold, were engraved with gourds, open flowers, palm trees, and cherubim. In the inner sanctuary stood two cherubim, carved from olive wood and covered with gold; here was placed the ark of the covenant, which had been made along with the Mosaic tabernacle (Exod. 25:10–22) and also had two cherubim of hammered gold on its cover. The lampstands were probably similar to that of the tabernacle, which was of hammered gold with cups shaped like almond blossoms (Exod. 25:31–36).
Similar designs were found on the doors to the inner and outer sanctuaries, and the linen veil of the inner sanctuary, like that of the tabernacle, had cherubim worked into it (2 Chron. 3:14). Framing the great outer door of the temple were two freestanding columns; the Bible does not ascribe any function to them, so we must assume they were purely decorative, adding to the august dignity of the house of the Lord. Their bronze capitals were “in the shape of lilies” (1 Kings 7:19), set over pomegranates, and festooned with chain-work. Next to the temple stood the bronze “sea,” a water reservoir set upon four rows of three oxen, each facing one of the cardinal directions; under the edge of the sea, which was “like the rim of a cup, like a lily blossom” (1 Kings 7:26), was a border of gourds. The lavers, where the priests washed, stood on frames decorated with lions, oxen, and cherubim. The vestments of the high priest, as described in the directions for the construction of the tabernacle, which preceded the temple (Exod. 28), included the breastpiece decorated with twelve precious gems and the robe with a hem of golden bells alternating with blue, purple, and scarlet pomegranates.
In this way, the visual imagery of the Solomonic sanctuary replicated motifs from the created order of plant and animal life. But these motifs are not actually flowers, lions, trees, or pomegranates but representations of them: blossoms engraved in gold, bulls cast in bronze, pomegranates colored blue. In other words, art is artificial, the result of the application of a humanly conceived design and human skills to materials found in the “natural” state.
Of special interest are the cherubim in the inner sanctuary, or “Holy of Holies,” and on the ark of the covenant. The Bible does not describe the appearance of these symbols. Their function, however, was to represent the throne of the Lord of Hosts, Yahveh tzva’ot, the name of the Lord as Israel’s King and leader in battle; in several places, he is referred to as dwelling “above” or “between the cherubim” (Exod. 25:22; 1 Sam. 4:4; Pss. 80:1; 99:1; Isa. 37:16).
Archaeology has revealed that the thrones of ancient rulers, such as the Assyrian kings of Nineveh, were often flanked by guardian figures in the form of a winged creature with the head of a man and a body with features of the lion and the ox. This composite motif resembles the four “living creatures” of Ezekiel’s vision and the Revelation to John, and we note that there were actually four cherubim in the temple in addition to those carved on the walls and doors. If the biblical cherubim resembled the “living creatures,” we see in them a masterful artistic transformation of imagery found inanimate life, centrally placed within the symbolism of the house of God.
Biblical worship thus may incorporate artistic motifs drawn from a creation God pronounced to be “very good” (Gen. 1:31; the Hebrew word can have the sense of “beautiful”). The appropriate use of such imagery can be an affirmation of the supreme authority of God the Creator, in the conviction that “the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it” (Ps. 24:1). On the other hand, when the motivation to glorify the Lord is lacking, such usage can be a worship and glorification of “the creature rather than the Creator” (Rom. 1:25 nasb). This is why the bronze serpent, a work of art created by Moses at the Lord’s command (Num. 21:8–9), eventually had to be destroyed in a reform of King Hezekiah (2 Kings 18:4), in the same manner as all idols and images originating in polytheistic worship outside God’s covenant.