The Tabernacle

Do you ever come to worship and consider how dangerous it is? Driving to church with the family, do you find yourself double and triple-checking to make sure that everyone had done the proper preparations? When you enter the sanctuary, do you make sure your kids are by your side lest they run off and enter the wrong building and a plague break out against the church?

As we spend a few weeks considering the construction of Israel’s tabernacle and forms of worship, we should ask ourselves what we, as New Covenant Christians, can learn from such passages. We no longer gather in tents (or temples for that matter). Worship is not restricted to one location as it was in the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, the people went to the place because the place was set apart as holy. In the New Testament, the place can in some sense be considered holy because the people who are holy and set apart are there. We don’t come to this building because this building is inherently special; the building is special because this is where God’s people come.

But we’ve met in many different locations—school auditoriums, movie theaters, college campuses. And that’s as it should be under the New Covenant. But the Old Covenant was different.

Worship in the Old Testament

In the history of God’s people, we see the forms of worship change. Taking Exodus as our starting point, we can look back and see that originally, God’s people worshipped at altars scattered wherever they roamed. Throughout the book of Genesis, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob set up temporary altars and offered sacrifices and worship to Yawheh. The land of Canaan was littered with these sites, places where God had revealed himself to the patriarchs in particular ways.

Moving forward from the Pentateuch, God intends that the people would establish a permanent site of worship, a house for his name. Eventually David would select the spot and his son Solomon would build the great temple, which would stand for hundreds of years before being destroyed, rebuilt, destroyed, and rebuilt again in the time of Christ.

But this section of Exodus gives us a kind of in-between phase of worship. The tabernacle is more formal and centralized than the worship of the patriarchs, but not so formal and centralized as Solomon’s temple. It’s the form of worship that will mark Israel in her wilderness wanderings and in her early efforts to conquer the land of Canaan.

So why should we pay attention to this era of worship history?

The book of Hebrews tells us that Israel’s worship was a shadow of new covenant worship. “They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.” Later, Hebrews mentions the various divisions and furnishings in the tabernacle and identifies some of the symbolism. So my main goal this morning is to summarize and give you a picture of the structure itself and a few ways that Israel’s worship points to and anticipates our own.

Pictures and Words

For a brief moment, I considered showing a picture or a video of the tabernacle, its layout, and its furnishings. But then I realized, the vast majority of Israelites in the wilderness never saw the inside of the tabernacle. They’d see a large courtyard with a tent inside. And that’s it. Other than the Levites, they never made it past the bronze altar. Of the Levites, other than a handful of priests, no one went inside to the Holy Place. And other than the high priest once a year, no one ever saw the ark of the covenant.

The truth is that what you have in your Bible is more or less the same as what most Israelites had over 3,000 years ago. Sure, they had a greater appreciation of sacrifice—the blood and the fire and the smell of death that hung over the tabernacle and its courtyard were certainly vivid to them in a way that they aren’t to us. But if we listen to the description of the tabernacle in faith, we will find ourselves, in a real way, united across time and space with those early worshipers of Yahweh, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

The Contributions

Our passage begins with contributions for the building. And this is somewhat strange. These people have been slaves in Egypt. Where are they going to get gold, silver, fine linens, and so forth? And the Bible has a ready answer. When Israel left Egypt, they did not go out empty-handed. The Egyptians sent them out with gold and silver and fine linens and oxen and sheep and livestock as gifts. And so they plundered the Egyptians, just as God had promised Moses (Exodus 3:19-22; 11:2-3; 12:33-36).

And now we see why. God called his people to plunder the Egyptians of their gold so that they could build the house of God. And let me insert a little parenthesis about Christian education. As most of you know, I’m the president of Bethlehem College & Seminary. And at Bethlehem, we don’t only study the Bible. We study the Great Books in light of the Greatest Book for the sake of the Great Commission. This means we not only study Moses, Isaiah, Matthew, and Paul; we also study Plato, Aristotle, Locke, and Shakespeare (not to mention Augustine, Aquinas, Calvin, Luther, Edwards, Milton, Austen, and Dostoevsky). And when we study these flawed thinkers, and especially those who are not Christian, this is what we’re doing. We’re seeking to plunder the Egyptians in order to build the house of God. We’re seeking to take Egyptian gold and repurpose it for service to God’s people.

This is no easy task. It requires wisdom and skill and craftsmanship and a heart devoted to God. As we’ll see in a few chapters, Egyptian gold can be used to build more than a mercy seat and a golden lamp stand; it can be used to build a golden calf. And so there are dangers on every side. But the metaphor is still a potent and useful one. All truth is God’s truth, because he is the true God. All truth is God’s truth because Jesus is the truth. And so we can receive the truth, no matter the source, provided it really is the truth. And we know it’s the truth, if we compare it to the heavenly pattern. We find the truth in the Great Books, when we read them in light of the Greatest Book.

Second, the contributions for building the tabernacle were voluntary. This too is significant. These people had been forced to build Pharaoh’s cities as slaves. When Pharaoh was their master, they were forced to give and give and give some more. But now they have been liberated from the house of slavery and they serve a new master. And their new master is after their heart. He doesn’t want compelled service; he wants willing service. “That wealth you plundered from the Egyptians? It’s yours. But I am building a mobile house for my name to dwell with you. Give as you’re led.”

And let me just say that as the pastors think about the giving of this congregation to the needs of this church, that’s exactly how we think. Give as you’re able. Give as you’re led. God loves a cheerful, willing giver. No compulsion or arm-twisting. As we think about receiving gifts for the sake of our Rooted Initiative over the next two years, we want your hearts to move you to give.

The Structure

Now let’s turn to the structure itself. The courtyard was 150 ft X 75 ft. At one end of the courtyard was the great bronze altar. This altar was square with horns at each corner. This was where the sacrifices took place; animals were killed, their blood placed on the horns of the altar, and the animal was burned up as an ascension offering or dismembered as a part of the sin offering or guilt offering. The altar and the laver were both located outside and both made of sturdy bronze to withstand the elements.

As we move to the tabernacle itself, we come to a large tent, 45 ft long and 15 ft wide, overlaid with four different types of material: the outermost was some kind of animal skin (goat? Badger? Dolphin?), then rams’ skin dyed red, then goats’ hair, and finally fine linen of blue, scarlet, and purple, woven together with images of cherubim facing inward.

The structure of the tabernacle was made with straight boards, overlaid with gold, with parallel bars to hold it together. The front door to the tabernacle had five pillars with a curtain of fine linen across it.

Entering the tabernacle, we encounter cherubim at various levels on the fine linens. We also find three items of furniture: On the right, we have the table of the bread of the presence, on the left, we find the golden lamp stand, and in the middle, we have the altar of incense. Then we have another dark purple curtain, and then we arrive at the Most Holy Place, containing one object: the ark of the covenant.

Three Major Symbols

What do we make of this structure as a whole?

1) The Tabernacle is a mobile Mount Sinai. At Mount Sinai, we have an altar at the base of the mountain where the people offered the sacrifices. Then God invited Moses, Joshua, the priests, and the elders up the mountain. Halfway up, the elders, and priests had to stop and worship God from afar. They saw his under his feet and they ate and drank. Moses alone was invited to the summit on top of the mountain, where God’s glory cloud waited in fire and smoke. Moses drew near to God to hear from him and receive the law and instructions for worship.

The tabernacle layout mimics that structure. As you proceed in from the altar to the laver to the Holy Place to the Most Holy Place, it’s like you’re ascending the mountain of God. The white linens are like clouds; the cherubim are the angelic hosts that dwell in heaven around God’s throne. Thus, when the people of Israel leave the holy mountain to continue their journey, they will take the holy mountain with them, so that they can continue to meet with God.

2) Not only is the Tabernacle a mobile Mount Sinai, it is also a microcosm of creation. Or rather, it’s a return to Eden. The lamp stand is shaped like a tree, reminding us of the tree of life. The Garden in Eden is like the Most Holy Place, where God met with Adam and Eve. The cherubim on the walls and over the mercy seat remind us of the cherubim who guard the Garden after man’s sin. And there are other echoes of Genesis 1-3 in the tabernacle construction which we will mention when we come to them in the coming weeks.

3) Finally, as I said at the beginning, the earthly tabernacle is patterned after the heavenly tabernacle. “Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and all of its furniture, you shall make it” (25:9). This earthly tent reflects the true tabernacle, the true house of God in the heavenly places. It is meant to teach Israel (and us) about who God is and how we are to worship him.

So then, what do we learn about God and worship from the structures and furnishings?

1) God is unapproachably holy. In the tabernacle structure, we see different zones of holiness, reflecting different degrees of glory. God’s presence is at the center in the Most Holy Place. Only the high priest enters, and only once a year. Then the Holy Place, where the priests tend the golden lamp stand, the altar of incense, and the bread of the presence. Then the courtyard, where the people offer their worship and the Levites tend the bronze altar of sacrifice that enables God to dwell among his people despite their remaining sin. The entire structure of the tabernacle reminds us of God’s holiness and glory, and the necessity of blood to make a way into his presence.

The zones of holiness remind us that worship is serious; it was dangerous. If you entered a zone without proper authorization, without appropriate preparation and cleansing, God’s presence would break out in judgment. And not merely on you, but potentially on the whole people. In the book of Numbers, we find out that the Levites carried swords and guarding the tabernacle, lest unclean people enter the wrong zone and bring judgment.

2) God demands that we cleanse ourselves. The bronze laver in the courtyard is where the various vessels were cleansed and set apart for holy use. The items used in worship were not common; they were consecrated, set apart, dedicated, and required regular cleansing lest their impurity call forth judgement from a holy God.

3) God provides bread. God gave the people manna from heaven, and God kept twelve loaves of bread in the Holy Place, representing the twelve tribes and reminding them that God provides bread for his people.

4) God is our light and life. The lamp stand is in the shape of a tree with seven branches, each branched capped with a bud that was lit. Thus, we have a reminder of the tree of life that was originally set in the garden of Eden, the tree that promised life to God’s people if they would trust and obey him. And we have light in the Holy Place so that the priests could see the beauty and carry out their service in God’s presence.

5) God desires our prayers. Throughout the scriptures, prayers are compared to incense which rises as a pleasing aroma to God’s throne. Thus, the oils and spices burned at the altar of incense represented the prayers and petitions of God’s people. From blood, to water, to bread to light and life, and we arrive at the threshold of the holiest place on earth, and we have fragrant incense offered as a pleasing aroma to God.

6) God is Most Holy and desires to dwell with his people in sovereign mercy. Inside the Most Holy Place, there is only one object: the ark of the covenant. It’s a wooden box, overlaid with gold, with golden poles to carry it.  Inside the ark is the ten commandments, written on two tablets of stone with the finger of God himself.

The fact that there are two tablets is significant. Normally, when a covenant was made between two parties, two copies of the covenant would be made, one for each of the parties to keep at their respective temple. But in this case, two copies are made, one for God and one for the people, but both are deposited in God’s presence as a reminder of his sovereign commitment to his people.

On top is a special lid, with bands of gold threaded around it and two cherubim sitting atop with wings covering their downcast faces. This is the mercy seat, the seat of propitiation. It is the footstool of God, the place where his glory dwells.

And here we see the uniqueness of Israel’s religion in its context. In most temples, when you arrived at the center, you would find an image of the deity, an idol of wood or stone or gold. In God’s house, you find an ark, essentially a throne, and on the throne—nothing. Nothing made. Here is the seat, not of an idol representing a god, but the bright cloud of glory signifying the presence of Yahweh himself. And here we are, in the holiest place on earth, and Yahweh, the holy God, sits on a seat of mercy, on a throne of grace.

Yes, he is holy. Yes, he requires blood to enter his mobile palace. Yes, if sacrifices are not made, or if the people rebel with a high hand, he breaks out in wrath and judgment. But all of these instructions, this entire tent complex is constructed so that a holy God can dwell with an imperfect people, because this God is the Creator and Sustainer of life and the God of all mercy.

Seeing Christ

And in all of these acts, Christ is figured forth. The Word became flesh, and tabernacled among us (John 1:14). He is the lamb offered at the altar. He is the water that cleanses and consecrates. He is the life and light from the golden tree. He is the bread from heaven. He is the beloved Son who pleases his Father. And he is the great high priest, who passes through the heavenlies, and enters into the true most Holy Place on our behalf. He is the sure and steadfast anchor of our souls, who has gone where we could not, who has approached the mercy seat on our behalf, so that we can approach the throne of grace with confidence. Reverence, yes. Holy fear, yes. But also with confidence. We are welcome here.

Christ has made the old covenant worship obsolete; we need not build an earthly tabernacle and sacrifice animals and cleanse the vessels and keep the lamp stand and incense burning in order to rightly worship God. Instead, Christ has made all earthly worship heavenly. We can see how this obsolete worship still informs and influences what we do each week together in this room.

Each week, God invites the weak, the poor, and the sinners into his holy presence because he is a God of mercy. Each week we confess our sins to him and seek forgiveness by his blood, just as Israel sought to maintain God’s presence with them through the blood of bulls and goats. Each week, God assures us of his pardon and cleansing, just as the bronze laver cleansed the vessels of the tabernacle and set them apart for holy use.

Each week, we seek life and light from God from his word, just as the lamp stand reminded Israel of God’s light and life. Each week, we offer prayers to God, in faith hoping that our prayers will be pleasing and acceptable to him, just as the incense from the altar was a sweet aroma to him. And each week we eat with him, just as the priests would eat the bread of the presence each week, before replacing it for another six days.

This brings us to the Table, where a holy God still invites an unclean people to eat with him at a table of grace. But we don’t stand far off. We don’t make our offerings in the courtyard and wonder about what goes on inside. We don’t fear the danger of God’s presence and the zones of holiness. We have been brought near, into the very presence of God, into the heavenly Holy of Holies, because we come in the name of Jesus. So come and welcome to Jesus Christ.