Exodus 25:20-21

These were coming right out of the seat, the symbol of God's throne.

What we have here (for those of you here in Charlotte) is a lectern. It is not quite the correct size, but it is close enough. It gives fairly good dimensions for you to see. What we have is an angel coming out of this side, and an angel coming out of this side. They have at least two wings. In Ezekiel, we find out that those who carry God's portable throne have six wings. But we will say that they have at least two wings.

The two angels are facing one another this way and their wings are thrown forward like this so that they could touch the other cherub's wings.

We have a picture, then, of these two angels covering God's throne.

Do you remember seeing these Oriental potentates in the old movies with somebody always with a palm frond shading them? This is the impression I get with the angels' wings. They were overshadowing, they were shading the throne of God, over His head where He sat.

Exodus 25:20-22

The mercy seat represented, symbolically, God's throne—the place where He sits and reigns over all that He has created.

The author of Hebrews here associates the throne of grace with mercy and the inference is obvious. The mercy seat and the throne of grace are one and the same. The mercy seat is that place, symbolically, from which God governs and judges. That is why the ark and its seat were shown in Revelation 11:19. God is shown symbolically sitting on the Ten Commandments. They are the legal basis of His judgments. The place is symbolic then of judgment and mercy being dispensed from the seat of God's government.