Did You Know?

What really happened to the ark of the covenant?

For the Israelites, God’s very presence was associated with the ark of the covenant. (Exodus 25:22) This was a sacred chest of wood overlaid with gold in which Moses placed the two stone tablets of the Law. While the Israelites dwelled in the wilderness, the Ark was kept in the Most Holy compartment of the tent of meeting. (Exodus 26:33) The Ark was eventually placed in the Most Holy compartment of Solomon’s temple.​—1 Kings 6:19.

The Ark is last mentioned at 2 Chronicles 35:3 when King Josiah in 642 B.C.E. returned it to the temple. The Ark may have been removed by Josiah’s apostate predecessor, Manasseh, who put an image in the temple. Or perhaps the move had been for safekeeping during Josiah’s temple renovations. (2 Chronicles 33:1, 2, 7; 34:1, 8-11) What became of the Ark thereafter is a mystery, for it is not listed among the objects taken from the temple when the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem in 607 B.C.E.​—2 Kings 25:13-17.

The Scriptures do not say that the Ark was returned to the Most Holy of the temple rebuilt by Zerubbabel; nor does it seem that a replacement was ever made.​—Ezra 1:7-11.

Who were the different men in the Bible called James?

There were four altogether, and it is easy to be confused. * One was the father of the apostle Judas (not Iscariot), and nothing more is known of him.​—Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13.

Then we have a son of Zebedee. This James was brother of John, both being Jesus’ apostles. (Matthew 10:2) His mother, it seems, was Salome, the sister of Jesus’ mother. (Compare Matthew 27:55, 56 with Mark 15:40, 41 and John 19:25.) If so, James was Jesus’ first cousin. He was a fisherman, who along with his brother was in partnership with Peter and Andrew.​—Mark 1:16-19; Luke 5:7-10.

Next comes James the son of Alphaeus, also one of Jesus’ apostles. (Mark 3:16-18) He is described as “James the Less” at Mark 15:40. He may have been called “the Less” because of being physically smaller or younger than James, the son of Zebedee.

Last comes Joseph and Mary’s son, brother of Jude and half brother of Jesus. (Mark 6:3; Galatians 1:19) During Jesus’ ministry, James was not one of his disciples. (Matthew 12:46-50; John 7:5) However, before Pentecost 33 C.E., James prayed with his mother, his brothers, and the apostles in an upper chamber in Jerusalem. (Acts 1:13, 14) James later became a prominent member of the Jerusalem congregation and wrote the Bible book bearing his name.​—Acts 12:17; James 1:1.

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