Exodus 25: What were the Cruvim?

The holiest object in the Temple/Mishkan was the Ark. The cover of the ark had two כרובים (cherubim) on top. What exactly was a כרוב?The כרובים first appear in Genesis chapter 3 after Adam and Chava are expelled from Gan Eden:“It was driven out; and east of the garden of Eden were stationed the cherubim and the fiery ever-turning sword, to guard the way to the tree of life.” (Genesis 3:24)וַיְגָ֖רֶשׁ אֶת־הָֽאָדָ֑ם וַיַּשְׁכֵּן֩ מִקֶּ֨דֶם לְגַן־עֵ֜דֶן אֶת־הַכְּרֻבִ֗ים וְאֵ֨ת לַ֤הַט הַחֶ֙רֶב֙ הַמִּתְהַפֶּ֔כֶת לִשְׁמֹ֕ר אֶת־דֶּ֖רֶךְ עֵ֥ץ הַֽחַיִּֽים׃ (בראשית ג:כד)The Torah does not give any explanation as to what the כרובים are in Genesis except that they act as some sort of guard or gatekeeper. שמות רבה explains that the כרובים were angels of destruction. חזקוני adds that the very sight of the כרובים would frighten anyone who glanced at the creatures.The rest of the mentions of כרובים in the Torah refer mostly to those on the Ark and on the curtains of the Mishkan:“And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work you shall make them, at the two ends of the cover.” (Exodus 25:18)וְעָשִׂ֛יתָ שְׁנַ֥יִם כְּרֻבִ֖ים זָהָ֑ב מִקְשָׁה֙ תַּעֲשֶׂ֣ה אֹתָ֔ם מִשְּׁנֵ֖י קְצֹ֥ות הַכַּפֹּֽרֶת׃ (שמות כה:יח)When Shlomo builds the Beit Hamikdash, he places two giant כרובים towering over the Ark:“And he set the cherubim inside the inner house; and they spread out the wings of the cherubim so that the wing of the one touched one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house.” (1 Kings 6:27)וַיִּתֵּ֨ן אֶת־הַכְּרוּבִ֜ים בְּתֹ֣וךְ הַבַּ֣יִת הַפְּנִימִ֗י וַֽיִּפְרְשׂוּ֮ אֶת־כַּנְפֵ֣י הַכְּרֻבִים֒ וַתִּגַּ֤ע כְּנַף־הָֽאֶחָד֙ בַּקִּ֔יר וּכְנַף֙ הַכְּר֣וּב הַשֵּׁנִ֔י נֹגַ֖עַת בַּקִּ֣יר הַשֵּׁנִ֑י וְכַנְפֵיהֶם֙ אֶל־תֹּ֣וךְ הַבַּ֔יִת נֹגְעֹ֖ת כָּנָ֥ף אֶל־כָּנָֽף׃ (מלכים א ו:כז)Later, the כרובים appear in Ezekiel’s vision of the throne of ה׳ in chapter 10:“And there appeared in the cherubim the form of a man’s hand under their wings.” (Ezekiel 10:8)וַיֵּרָ֖א לַכְּרֻבִ֑ים תַּבְנִית֙ יַד־אָדָ֔ם תַּ֖חַת כַּנְפֵיהֶֽם׃ (יחזקאל י:ח)And later:“And each one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, the second face was the face of a man, the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle.” (Ezekiel 10:14)וְאַרְבָּעָ֥ה פָנִ֖ים לְאֶחָ֑ד פְּנֵ֨י הָאֶחָ֜ד פְּנֵ֣י הַכְּר֗וּב וּפְנֵ֤י הַשֵּׁנִי֙ פְּנֵ֣י אָדָ֔ם וְהַשְּׁלִישִׁי֙ פְּנֵ֣י אַרְיֵ֔ה וְהָרְבִיעִ֖י פְּנֵי־נָֽשֶׁר׃ (יחזקאל י:יד)What the actual כרובים look like is unclear from the text. Rashi, working off of the Aramaic word for כרוב, explains that the כרובים had the face of a young child. Ibn Ezra is not as sure as he looks at the visions of Ezekiel and explains that the כרובים seemed to have different faces. Rashbam believes that the כרובים had bird faces. Interestingly, Moshe must have understood what the כרובים should look like based on the fact that the text itself does not provide any description of the face Nechama Leibowitz Highlights a paradox: the Torah forbids graven images yet commands cherubim. She sees their vagueness as intentional, to stress symbolism over physicality—they represent God’s presence and covenant, not a literal form. Building on this idea, perhaps because the כרובים walked the thin line between an idol and the holiest object in the Mishkan/Temple, the Torah was intentionally vague on their appearance. This is also why in the Second Temple, the aron itself was the only item in the beit hamikdash that was not replaced. Building something so close to idolatry would need to impetus and direction from God alone. Once it was hidden away, man alone could not recreate it.