13

And Moses rose up, and his minister Joshua: and Moses went up into the mount of God.

14

And he said unto the elders, Tarry ye here for us, until we come again unto you: and, behold, Aaron and Hur are with you: if any man have any matters to do, let him come unto them.

15

And Moses went up into the mount, and a cloud covered the mount.

16

And the glory of the LORD abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud.

17

And the sight of the glory of the LORD was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel.

18

And Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the mount: and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.

These are the 613 of the covenant that God dictated to Moses, who put it by the side of the ark, never was it inside the ark.

Deuteronomy 31:24, 25, 26

²⁴ And it came to pass, when Moses had made an end of writing the words of this law in a book, until they were finished,

²⁵ That Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord, saying

King James Bible
Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee

Now we know that the book of covenant was never inside the ark. We need to know what the book of covenant is all about in the book of Hebrews chapter 9:1-

Hebrews 9: 1-28

9 Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.

² For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary.

³ And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;

⁴ Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;

⁵ And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly.

⁶ Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God.

⁷ But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people: