Jachin and Boaz

2Ch 3:15 Also he made before the house two pillars of thirty and five cubits high, and the chapiter that was on the top of each of them was five cubits. 2Ch 3:16 And he made chains, as in the oracle, and put them on the heads of the pillars; and made an hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains. 2Ch 3:17 And he reared up the pillars before the temple, one on the right hand, and the other on the left; and called the name of that on the right hand Jachin, and the name of that on the left Boaz. In this chapter (and its counterpart, 1KI 7), some details of Solomon’s building of the temple are given. It may be noted that this house of God was built according to instructions God had given to Solomon’s father, King David: 1Ch 28:11 Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch, and of the houses thereof, and of the treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers thereof, and of the inner parlours thereof, and of the place of the mercy seat, 1Ch 28:12 And the pattern of all that he had by the spirit, of the courts of the house of the LORD, and of all the chambers round about, of the treasuries of the house of God, and of the treasuries of the dedicated things:... 1Ch 28:19 All this, said David, the LORD made me understand in writing by his hand upon me, even all the works of this pattern. We therefore have reason to believe that Solomon’s temple spoke of Christ and heavenly things, as did the Tabernacle which preceded it (HEB 8:1-5). According to the first verse of our chapter (2CH 3:1), this temple would be built in the place where sin had been put away after David had erred (1CH 21:17-27). This order is constant: 1) before the gospel church could be built by the power of the Holy Ghost in Jerusalem, sin had to first be put away at Calvary, 2) the spread of the gospel to Judea, Samaria and then to the Gentiles began at Jerusalem (ACT 1:8) where sin had been put away by Christ, 3) the building of the gospel church by baptism comes only after sin is put away by repentance and faith (ACT 2:38-41), 4) the building of a temple for God in a heart is where sin has been put away (1CO 6:18-20), has been laid aside (1PE 2:1-2). Many of the features of Solomon’s temple as described in 2CH 3; 1KI 6; 1KI 7 had a correspondence with features of the earlier Tabernacle of Witness. But the addition of two immense brass pillars (1KI 7:15) “...before the house...” (2CH 3:15), “...before the temple...” (2CH 3:17), “...in the porch...” (1KI 7:19) was an innovation. These were not part of the house, i.e., of the temple proper. They seem to have stood independently, serving no function as far as supporting anything. They were ornamental and evidently emblematic. Each pillar was “crowned” with chains and pomegranates (2CH 3:16) on a huge brass chapiter (1KI 7:16). A chapiter is a capital, the head of a crown or pillar. The pillars were named Jachin (“He shall establish”) and Boaz (“In it is strength”) and these names are significant. Based upon the observation that Solomon’s temple was according to God’s pattern as was the previous Tabernacle which spoke of Christ and heavenly things, we might note some interesting inferences (and that is all these are---inferences) that indicate that the pillars spoke of the victorious, redeeming and reigning Christ: 1) As none could enter the temple proper into the presence of God without going through the pillars, so none shall ever come into God’s presence in heaven but through Christ: Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. Joh 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. 2) As there were two pillars and one entrance, so Christ is both God and man (JOH 1:14; 1TI 3:16), both King and Priest (HEB 6:20; HEB 7:1-2), the ONE mediator between God and men (1TI 2:5). 3) Because of sin, we were “...without strength...” (ROM 5:6) or righteousness (ISA 64:6); we were powerless to stand before the Holy God by futilely establishing our own righteousness (ROM 10:3). But in Christ God laid help “...upon one that is mighty...” (PSA 89:19), “...The mighty God...” (ISA 9:6) of Messianic promise for Whose saving work’s sake heaven declares, “...Worthy is the Lamb to receive power...and strength...” (REV 5:12). God established righteousness for His children through Christ’s righteousness (ROM 5:19; 2CO 5:21), the stronger than the strong (LUK 11:21-22) Who overcame Satan, this world, death and the grave for us. 4) The height of the angelic cherubims over the mercy seat in the temple itself was ten cubits (1KI 6:26) but the height of the pillars was eighteen cubits (1KI 7:15). So Christ was only for the task of redemption “...made a little lower than the angels...” (HEB 2:9) but now towers over all: “Far above all principality, and power, and might...” (EPH 1:21), “...angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him” (1PE 3:22). 5) As the two pillars were crowned, so we now see Jesus “...crowned with glory and honour...” (HEB 2:9). 6) As the two pillars had chapiters/capitals of chains and pomegranates (emblems of bondage and rich red juice), so Christ was “bound” to the Father’s will (JOH 6:38), “...obedient unto death...” (PHIL 2:8), redeeming us with His blood (EPH 1:7) and is “Far above all...the head...” (EPH 1:20-23). 7) As there was apparently nothing over the pillars and their “crowns,” so there is nothing over “...Jesus Christ, and Him crucified...” (1CO 2:2) that is needed to access God. We should therefore add nothing to the crowning achievement of His ministry for those the Father had given Him to save with a finished work (JOH 17:2-4). Let us only glory in Him and His cross (GAL 6:14), nothing more. Trying to add anything to absolute perfection only denies its absolute perfection. Solomon’s pillars were without the temple of God. Contrast this with the promise made to those who overcome through Christ: “Him that overcometh will I make a pillar IN the temple of God...” (REV 3:12). Behold, “...a greater than Solomon is here” (MAT 12:42).