wisdom, in the tables; power, in the rod; goodness, in the
manna--both by reason of its sweetness, and because it was through
the goodness of God that it was granted to man, wherefore it was
preserved as a memorial of the Divine mercy. Again, these three
things were represented in Isaias' vision. For he "saw the Lord
sitting upon a throne high and elevated"; and the seraphim standing
by; and that the house was filled with the glory of the Lord;
wherefrom the seraphim cried out: "All the earth is full of His
glory" (Isa. 6:1, 3). And so the images of the seraphim were set up,
not to be worshipped, for this was forbidden by the first
commandment; but as a sign of their function, as stated above.

The outer tabernacle, which denotes this present world, also contained
three things, viz. the "altar of incense," which was directly opposite
the ark; the "table of proposition," with the twelve loaves of
proposition on it, which stood on the northern side; and the
"candlestick," which was placed towards the south. These three things
seem to correspond to the three which were enclosed in the ark; and
they represented the same things as the latter, but more clearly:
because, in order that wise men, denoted by the priests entering the
temple, might grasp the meaning of these types, it was necessary to
express them more manifestly than they are in the Divine or angelic
mind. Accordingly the candlestick betokened, as a sensible sign
thereof, the wisdom which was expressed on the tables (of the Law) in
intelligible words. The altar of incense signified the office of the
priest, whose duty it was to bring the people to God: and this was
signified also by the rod: because on that altar the sweet-smelling
incense was burnt, signifying the holiness of the people acceptable to
God: for it is written (Apoc. 8:3) that the smoke of the
sweet-smelling spices signifies the "justifications of the saints"
(cf. Apoc. 19:8). Moreover it was fitting that the dignity of the
priesthood should be denoted, in the ark, by the rod, and, in the
outer tabernacle, by the altar of incense: because the priest is the
mediator between God and the people, governing the people by Divine
power, denoted by the rod; and offering to God the fruit of His
government, i.e. the holiness of the people, on the altar of incense,
so to speak. The table signified the sustenance of life, just as the
manna did: but the former, a more general and a coarser kind of
nourishment;