The tabenacle would involve
donations of gold, silver and precious stones from the congregation. I am sure
that God could have plonked them over a gold or silver deposit, but that would have
been self-defeating. If given to them how would they value it?
Rather, they would be
able to say to their children, “there is a part of us in that”. He included
everyone, gave them a place of value and made them stakeholders. That is why the
New Testament church is described as “living stones, fitly set” into the fabric
of the body.
The material of choice
was Shittim wood: the Acacia Nilotica, endemic to the Sinai. It is tough and
resilient, grows in arid conditions and thorny. The hard wood is resistant to
borers and makes beautiful furniture. The thorns in my garden are up to two
inches long.
It is a beautiful tree
to the eye and birds love it because it offers shelter from crows and cats. It
is a wonderful picture of the cross of thorns: a strength in dry places and a refuge
for the vulnerable.
Coverings of gold
The picture was of
something costly and beautiful, yet simple, practical and enduring: such a
picture of a church bought with great price, but which is also practical and enduring.
The prescriptions
related to the framework, the coverings and the major items of furniture,
notably the ark of covenant and the elements of consecration and sacrifice.
The ark would have a covering
of cherubs, all of pure gold. The candlestick would be of beaten gold without
seam or joint. It represented an astonishing vision of great craftsmanship.
The tabernacle had 3 chambers
The outer court was
separated by a veil from the camp beyond. The inner court was separated by
another veil, accessible only to the priests whose daily work related to the three elements of that court: the
candlestick, the table of shewbread and the altar of incense.
The last chamber had
the greatest and most impenetrable veil, which granted access to the high
priest only and even then only once a year, into the “Holy of Holies”. The only
furniture inside was the gold-covered ark. However it had a separate component
to it: “The Mercy Seat”.
The three chambers
speak of the first separation of lives from Egypt, the separation of hearts
through the disciplines of the wilderness, and the separation of minds through
into the fulfilment of all that God has been doing to advance His redemptive plan.
It alludes to the redemption
of body, mind and spirit, until we come to love God in the fullness of our
redemptive beings, freed forever from the tyranny of sin.
The ark
The ark was designed
to hold the tablets of stone, the preserved pot of manna and Aaron’s rod. It
remains the most sacred object of all time, although its location is an
enduring mystery.
The Mercy seat, sprinkled
with blood, overlaid the contents to offer temporary respite from the law and the
corruption implied by the manna. It pointed to a permanent solution in Jesus.
His blood made a
permanent place of sure access available to us, so we can enter in and call on the
name of our God and be heard. It is the guarantee of a surer covenant, in a
court without prejudice, a just and righteous court that is there for our
security and redemption.
When my children came
of age I put some priceless memories into a wooden box to preserve their
greatest lessons. I sense that God did that for Israel and, as for Jacob, He
watched over it all, to guarantee and perpetuate all that they stood for.
The outdoor furniture
To make up seven items
of furniture, two more items were outside in the courtyard – the brazen (brass)
altar and the laver, for ceremonial washing.
The outside elements
were all of brass, the inside items were all of gold. Gold speaks of
righteousness and refinement, but bronze speaks of sin as it is an imperfect
metal that is gold in color, heavy and costly, but not gold at all. It is an
alloy of copper and zinc.
Follow the patterns revealed in the mount
The chapter closes
with God saying, “make everything according to the pattern shown thee on the
mount”. Paul also went up into the mount of God, in a vision of heaven, which
gave him the patterns of the church. It defined how he built every aspect of
the church.
All I can say to
leaders of this age is that none of this is ours. It is His alone, His
priceless, costly legacy, entrusted to us, but to be established according to the
patterns revealed in the mount of revelation, not according to the book of good
ideas.
The coverings
Chapter 26 speaks of the
coverings, the framework and the pillars of the tent.
The first covering was the only
one visible exclusively from inside the tent. It was of purple cloth, inlaid
with gold-threaded cherubim. It had ten sections, partly for the sake of
handling, but they were all joined with blue yarn and gold clasps. It was a
picture of royalty and the glory of heaven.
The second covering of
eleven sections, covered the first layer and protected it, as it protects us.
It was made of goat’s hair. It alludes to the substitution of Jacob for Esau,
which ultimately points to the way Jesus replaced an exclusive covenant with a
universal gospel.
Over that was a layer
of ram’s skins, dyed red. That speaks of the sacrificial offering of the lamb
of God, which covered the covenant to ensure our access to heaven and glory.
The last layer was
made of coarser badger skins. It practically protected everything from the elements and cooled the interior, but it also alluded to the humanity of Christ. As the son of man, He had no
specific desirability. He was to the eye, just a man.
However, as the revelation
of God peeled away His Layers, what emerged was a savior of
surpassing wonder: the Redeemer of our hearts, our King.
The altar
Chapter 28 describes
it as a heavy piece of furniture, made of Acacia, overlaid with brass so it
could endure the heat of the fire, but with insets of silver.
Silver was added in
various places throughout the tabernacle, as a reminder of the price of
redemption paid when Jesus was sold by Judas.
The closing point is about the reservoir of
olive oil that would ensure that the candlestick or lamp was perpetually lit,
as others did in the tombs to unknown soldiers. Only this was all a tribute to
a man who rose from obscurity to be a very well known, much loved savior.
(c) Peter Missing @ Bethelstone.com
Image source: Logos Bible Software, Karbel Multimedia, Copyright 2008
(c) Peter Missing @ Bethelstone.com
Image source: Logos Bible Software, Karbel Multimedia, Copyright 2008
