What did the keruvim look like? 25:18-20 record that they were made of gold, attached to the sides of the cover of the aron, their wings were outstretched, and they faced each other. However, even with this information, we still do not know how they appeared. Was there any image on them? Josephus (1st century) wrote “that no one can tell us what they were like” (Antiquities, 8:3,3), but we can still try our best.
Rashi, (on 25:18, based on Talmud, Sukkah 5b) records that they had a baby face, which would correspond to the modern day image of cherubs. However, on 26:1 and 26:31, Rashi explains that keruvim were animals (see also Ibn Ezra on Bereshit 3:23). Furthermore, on Bereshit 3:24, Rashi quotes from the Midrash that they were angels of destruction. These explanations would seem to be contradictory since one would not expect that angels of destruction or animals would look like babies.
Rashbam and Hizkuni (on 25:18) explain that the keruvim were some type of bird, which accords with the reference to wings. A variation on this idea (based on Yehezkel 1) is to connect this idea with Rashi’s explanation that they were animals, and to understand that the keruvim were some type of flying animals, sphinxes. This corresponds to archeological findings of the ancient world of winged animals being guardians, and then the keruvim would have been symbolic guardians of the aron and the Garden of Eden.
While all the above suggestions are possible, they all suffer from one major problem. 20:20 records that one is not permitted to make any image of gold or silver even to be used in the worship G-d. If the keruvim had images on them, how could G-d have commanded for them to be in the mishkan? Rashi (on 20:20) notes that 20:20 forbids one from putting keruvim in synagogues, but then how could they be in the mishkan?
Rashbam (on 20:20, also see Abravanel) explains that the keruvim were in the mishkan as a model for the heavenly throne of G-d, and they were permitted since they were never intended to be worshipped. Hizkuni (on 25:18) adds that there are cases where exceptions are made to laws, as for example, we do circumcisions on Shabbat. Yet, the case of circumcisions on Shabbat is that we have two conflicting obligations and we rule that circumcision takes precedence. With regard to the keruvim, they did not have to be in the mishkan and then there would have been no need to make an exception for the keruvim. It seems that according to Rashbam and Hizkuni, the keruvim had to be in the mishkan to make the mishkan similar to the heavenly throne. Yet this still seems to contradict the prohibition of 20:20 to make an image even for the worship of G-d, and a possible parallelism between the mishkan and the heavenly throne could have been forgone.
Yehuda ha-Levi (The Kuzari 1:96) writes that certain images were forbidden and some such as the keruvim were permitted. G-d can decide what is permitted and what is forbidden. Yet, why should G-d act in such an arbitrary manner? Why was a there a need to put keruvim in the mishkan and break the general rule? It is usually thought that one cannot worship images in the worship of G-d since one might be led to idol worship, so why should this danger not exist also by the keruvim?
Cassuto (1967, p. 407) follows the idea that the keruvim were sphinxes and suggests that 20:20 only forbids images of real items, but does not forbid the keruvim who were imaginary beings. Cassuto argues that people will not be led to worship imaginary beings. Yet, one could argue that people are equally or even more apt to worship an imaginary being then a real being such as a calf (see Jose Faur, 1971, 8:1229,1231).
I believe that the keruvim could not have had a human or animal image in order not to violate the law of 20:20 forbidding images. 25:18-20 can be understood as describing golden arches, a geometric form with no human or animal imagery. 25:20 refers to outstretched wings, but this is to explain the shape of the keruvim, as outstretched wings joined together form an arch. 25:20 also uses the word face, panim, but it is clear from Bemidbar 8:2,3, and Vayikra 6:7, that panim also means the front and implies a sense of direction. The keruvim faced each other and they faced down towards the aron, which means that the arches joined together on the top of the aron as opposed to arching away from each other. When the keruvim joined together they formed a portal, and thus we always read of two keruvim together. The imagery of a portal applies both to the aron and to the curtains, as the symbolism is that G-d is on the other side of the keruvim. Therefore, the keruvim on top of the aron and on the curtains represent a portal that divides this world from G-d. Similarly, by the Garden of Eden, the keruvim formed a portal to the Garden but there was a fiery sword by the keruvim that stopped one from entering the portal.
Bibliography:
Faur, Jose, 1971, Idolatry in Encyclopedia Judaica, Jerusalem: Keter Publishing House, 8, pp. 1227-1233.
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