Cherubim in Jewish Tradition

Rabbi Melanie Aron

February 27, 2004

I’ve been told by those who have visited the Pyramids in Egypt, that the Sphinx are particularly impressive and memorable. These mythological figures, combining elements of humans, beasts and birds, were common throughout the ancient Middle East. They stood guard the entrance to the Pharaohs’ tombs, which was understood as the passageway from one world to the next.

We have some sphinx like creatures in the Torah as well. Ezekiel’s chariots are creature which combine elements of lions, oxen, eagles and humans and we imagine that the cherubim, found in the second chapter of Genesis, guarding the entrance to the Garden of Eden wherein is found the Tree of Life, are similarly fearsome creatures.

Cherubim figure in this week’s Torah portion, Parashat Terumah. Again these are not the cherubs we know from Valentines Day, the chubby little boys named for Cupid, son of Zeus, but rather are like the sphinx, part human, part animal, part bird. Two cherubim we are told are placed on the top of the Ark, at either end of the kaporet, at the exact spot, where God spoke to Moses. Here too the cherubim are guarding a point of contact between the finite world of mortal beings and the infinite world of God.

Given our traditions strong stance against any representation of God, any hint of idolatry, it is surprising to find these sculpted images, not just in the Tabernacle, but in the Holy of Holies itself.

Yet they were a long standing feature of Jewish worship. They are mentioned not just in the building of the Mishkan but also in the description of the Temple found in the book of Kings and in references to the Second Temple. We are told that Titus took them as trophies when he destroyed the Temple in the year 70 CE. Their potential for abuse as a lure to idolatry becomes realized in the time of the Roman Empire when Herod sets up statutes of the Cherubim in Jerusalem, placing them amongst other statuary of the Greek and Roman gods.

Given Judaism strong stance against idolatry and the propensity to confuse these graven images with idols, why were they included originally in the Mishkan and why was this custom allowed to persist?

I have not found great answers to these questions.

In general the rabbis insist that the cherubim were God’s chariot and not gods. They quote verses about God yoshev keruvim, riding on the cherubim, and point to the grandeur of a human Emperor riding on his chariots, and thus feel that they add to the grandeur of God.

The rabbis tell beautiful stories about the cherubim, that they faced away from the people when they sinned, but turned back towards the people when they repented.

Some of the rabbis insisted that the two cherubim were a heterosexual couple, and that their embrace, like man and wife, was a sign of God’s love for the people Israel.

For me the most personally meaningful interpretation comes from Rabbi Michael Gold, who notes that it is in the place where two beings stand face to face, that we are able to meet God. He writes: “ If we are to meet God anywhere, it is between two human beings who stand face to face.”       He quotes an article , "There are forty five muscles in the face, most of them unnecessary for the biological functioning of the face.  Their major purpose is to express emotional depth and nuance.  They are the muscles of the soul."  We humans have been biologically created to face one another and communicate.  It is in such human interaction that God's presence dwells.  As Martin Buber put it, "Every Thou is a glimpse through to the Eternal Thou." Every intimate human interaction points the way to the GodWho made us humans in God’s image.