From the beginning of man’s creation, God has created physical things to point mankind to spiritual realities. When God designed the garden of Eden, He gave it the same basic design as His residence in the third heaven. He later replicated this same design in the tabernacle, and then in the temple. Because these are God’s designs, there is incredible depth to their symbolism.
Eden actually consisted of three sections. The first, principal portion was the inner area of the garden where God would meet with Adam and Eve. This corresponds with the holy of holies inside the tabernacle, where the ark of the covenant was.
The second section was the rest of the garden area, which had boundaries that separated it from the rest of the land of Eden. This corresponds with the holy place—also inside the tabernacle—which housed the showbread table, golden candlestick and incense altar, and was where the priests performed their ceremonial duties. These first two parts together constituted the garden of Eden, and were analogous to the tabernacle itself and, later, the temple.
The third section was outside that: the land of Eden. When God expelled Adam and Eve from the garden, they made their home in the rest of the land of Eden. This corresponded with the court around the tabernacle, defined by the curtains. In the court were the sacrificial altar and the laver. This is where all the sacrifices were conducted.
“It was in this area of Eden, just outside the eastern gate of the garden, where Cain and Abel built an altar to petition God, whom they considered to be still in the garden,” Ernest Martin wrote. “This altar was built at the east entrance to the garden, and there they offered their sacrifices. This altar of Cain and Abel came to be analogous to the altar of burnt offering located just east of the holy place in the tabernacle and the later temples.
“The temple at Jerusalem was patterned after the tabernacle that Moses constructed in the wilderness, which in turn was designed after the geographical features of the garden in Eden and the land of Eden itself …. Recall that when Solomon built the temple in Jerusalem, he carved flowers and palm trees in the outer and inner walls of the holy place in order that the holy place resemble a garden [1 Kings 6:31-35]. So, the temples were built to represent a symbolic type of the garden of Eden, where our first parents were placed after their creation” (The Temples That Jerusalem Forgot).
The True Tabernacle
Read Hebrews 8:1-2. Jesus Christ is “a minister of the sanctuary,” the “true tabernacle”—the one in heaven. These things on Earth were just a shadow of that.
See Hebrews 9:1-5 for a fantastic description of all the furnishings in the two chambers of the sanctuary. Now read Revelation 4 to visualize the majestic heavenly throne room that was typed by the earthly tabernacle. God tells us that the lampstand, table, showbread and other physical items in the earthly tabernacle pointed to heavenly realities. Some of these objects have clear counterparts, whereas others aren’t specifically described. But the overview is clear.
Scripture gives us a number of symbolic meanings regarding the tabernacle (and temple) as a whole. Read one of them in 1 Corinthians 3:16. Every believer who possesses the Holy Spirit is a living temple. The Spirit of God dwells in us, just as God dwelled in the temple anciently. So as we examine the high quality of the tabernacle and temple construction materials, we can compare them to the quality of character God is building in us. We can also see how He wants us to care for our physical temple.
Note another temple-related image in Ephesians 2:21. The temple also represents God’s Church. This isn’t just talking about the Church as it is today—it is the Church through history. It says all of God’s saints are built together for a habitation of God through the Spirit.
The physical temple also points us to new Jerusalem. In that future city, God Himself is the temple! (Revelation 21:22). Ultimately, the quality and the perfection of this physical structure point to God Himself.
With all this in mind, let’s get our minds into some of the rich symbolic details God commanded for building His sanctuary.
The Tabernacle in the Wilderness
Exodus 24 records the Old Covenant being ratified. Afterward, Moses ascended Mount Sinai and stayed there for 40 days (verses 15-18). Read Exodus 25:1-7 to see the instruction God gave him at that time. God established a building fund to gather materials from the Israelites. Think on verse 8 to see what the materials were for. God didn’t want to just speak with Moses on the mountaintop: He wanted to plant His tent right in the camp and dwell among His people! The same is true of God’s house today: It is for God to dwell, in spirit, here with us! The point of our Creator even having a tabernacle is to dwell with human beings. That in itself is an awesome symbol.
Read verses 9 and 40 to see how particular God was about how it was to be constructed. God showed Moses the pattern when he was at the top of Mount Sinai. God told him to build it exactly as He had showed him.
God gave detailed construction plans for the temple from Exodus 25 to 31. Then these same details are recorded again just a few chapters later (chapters 35-40) when the tabernacle was actually built! That is how important this is to God!
The scriptures devoted to the tabernacle call it by several different names: the tent, tent of the Eternal, house of the tent, house of the Eternal, tabernacle of the house of God, the sacred tent, tabernacle of the testimony, tent of the testimony. The name used most often—by a large margin—is “tent of meeting.” Consider what God says in Exodus 29:42-43. Congregation here means “properly, an appointment—a fixed time or season … by implication, an assembly (as convened for a definite purpose); … by extension, the place of meeting.” This is where God would meet with Moses—and with Israel! Continue in verses 45-46 to see the purpose of this meeting.
The details of the tabernacle have wonderful spiritual significance for us today. The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary says, “The whole of that sacred building was arranged with a view to inculcate through every part of its apparatus the great fundamental principles of revelation. Every object was symbolical of important truth. Every piece of furniture was made the hieroglyphic of a doctrine or a duty. On the floor and along the sides of that movable edifice was exhibited, by emblematic signs addressed to the eye, the whole … gospel.” Just like a teacher decorates the classroom walls with pictures, graphs and illustrations to help students remember the most basic lessons, God outfitted the tabernacle with many details to keep those who saw them in constant remembrance of these spiritual truths.
Recall the three-part layout of the tabernacle: the court, the holy place and the holy of holies—each section becoming progressively more holy. Let’s take a tour by starting from the outside and working our way inward.
The Finest Materials
Imagine you are an Israelite standing outside this edifice right in the middle of the camp. You see a rectangular structure—about 150 feet east to west, and 75 feet north to south. Its walls are 7½-foot-tall curtains of exceptionally superior, finely woven linen. These are attached by silver hooks and silver rods to a support structure consisting of 60 bronze pillars—20 of them on the long sides, 10 on the short sides—sunk into bronze post holders on the ground. This is an attractive structure of superb quality. And, as an Israelite, you have access into it!
You enter this area by the great east gate. Read a description of the gate in Exodus 27:16. This beautiful hanging was made of high-quality linen, beautifully embroidered with rare and royal colors. Where do you find blue and purple and scarlet fabric in the wilderness? The Israelites had to go to great lengths to find the necessary dyes.
Bible scholars who study the quality of the tabernacle believe it would have been impossible for this nation of slaves-turned-wilderness-wanderers to produce anything so wonderful. But God’s people—humble of themselves but partnered with the miracle-making God to construct a building as fine as Armstrong Auditorium—know it can be done!
In Exodus 35, God told Moses to take up an offering from the people to collect materials for the tabernacle project. Look at the quality of their offerings in verses 22-24. Study verses 25-29 to see how everyone contributed any way they could to make the tabernacle the finest structure it could possibly be. The same thing happened with Armstrong Auditorium.
As the people gave their best and worked their hardest, God blessed the effort in miraculous ways. Notice one of them in verses 30-33. God filled this man with the Holy Spirit to assist him in this important physical work! Bezaleel is mentioned throughout this account for his superb workmanship. Read in verses 34-35 how God blessed men with these exceptional skills.
Read Exodus 36:3-7 for more about the building fund and the people’s generosity. This was a joint project between the people and God, just like our building projects today. Note the people’s generosity in Exodus 38:24-25, 29. These people, to whom God had given the spoils of the Egyptians (Exodus 12:35-36), brought over 3,000 pounds of gold, almost five tons of silver and nearly four tons of bronze! Consider the value of all that material. This structure was remarkably opulent!
As is the case with our building program today, this project unified the nation in a special way. For you as an Israelite, expressing your love for God by donating any precious things you could, contributing labor and supporting the project in other ways gave you a special connection to that tabernacle—your access to God!
The Court
Walking into that beautiful east gate, you have entered the court, the 150-by-75-foot area surrounding the sanctuary itself. Notice Exodus 27:9 for more instructions. You could view it as two 75-foot squares. In the western square is the tabernacle, or sanctuary. In the eastern square, where you stand, is the sacrifice altar. This is the worshiper’s square. Every Israelite who passed through the entrance gate has immediate access to the altar. There, if you are ceremonially clean, you can make sacrifices to God. This represents your access to God, with the priest serving as a mediator. Several psalms speak of how special it is to enter this court (e.g. Psalm 65:4; 84:2; 92:13; 96:8; 100:4; 116:19).
Later, when Solomon built the temple, he doubled the size of the court: 300 feet long by 150 feet wide. It is also called “the court of the priests” (2 Chronicles 4:9) and the “inner court” (1 Kings 6:36). He built chambers into the inner court where certain priests worked. Outside of that court, Solomon built a second court—an “outer court.” 2 Chronicles 4:9 calls this “the great court.” Scripture is not clear what the configuration was. Some believe it surrounded the whole inner court, or was a huge area that enclosed the temple and the complex of surrounding buildings. It seems likelier that it was just an area to the east of the inner court, like the area Cain was banished to east of the land of Eden.
As Gerald Flurry has written in many places, the Philadelphians today are in the inner court, and God has placed the Laodiceans in the outer court. “We dwell in the inner court, where God’s holy of holies is. God is in our presence if we are doing His Work!” he wrote in Ezekiel: The End-Time Prophet. “God’s people are either in the inner or outer court of God’s spiritual temple today (Revelation 11:1-2). The inner court is where God dwells. It appears we will work in the inner court of the physical temple during the Millennium if we are in the inner court spiritually today. Regardless, those saints in the inner court today will have a much greater responsibility in God’s Kingdom. … We will belong to that group of priests, the only ones, who come near to God. Our offices will be near God’s office in Ezekiel’s temple. … I believe that we are now qualifying to be in the inner court of the Ezekiel temple.”
The Sacrificial Altar
In the middle of the court you see the altar of burnt offering. It is also called the brazen altar, since it is covered with bronze. (It is different from the golden altar, the altar of incense.) This brazen altar was very skillfully constructed by Bezaleel.
Read the description of this altar in Exodus 27:1-2. It is a square—7½ feet long by 7½ feet broad—and 4½ feet high. (Later, in Solomon’s temple it was expanded in size to 30 by 30 feet, 15 feet tall.) It is hollow, and probably situated on top of a mound of earth or stones. Its core is made of acacia wood.
The four corners have horns sticking up (which the heavenly altar also has—see Revelation 9:13). These serve as tie-downs for the animals that people bring to sacrifice (Psalm 118:27). The blood of sin offerings is also smeared on these horns (Exodus 29:12; Leviticus 4:25). The top of the altar is a grate, which lets the fire breathe and allows ashes to fall through.
Several instruments are used to tend the altar: The priests use shovels and pots to dispose of the ashes every day (except certain holy days) and put them in a heap to the east of the altar (Leviticus 1:16). When that pile gets too big, they fill vessels and take the ashes outside the camp (Leviticus 4:12). The priests use basins to receive the blood of the animals and put it on the altar. Fleshhooks are used to adjust the pieces of meat on the altar. The priests also use firepans to keep the fire burning while they clean the altar, and also to carry burning embers from the brazen altar to the altar of incense.
The altar also serves as a place of refuge. When Adonijah was running from Solomon, he “arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar” (1 Kings 1:50). In 1 Kings 2:28, when Solomon sought to have Joab killed, Joab fled to the tabernacle and did the same thing. “The altar was a privileged place, and it was deemed sacrilege to [assault] a man who had taken refuge there” (Clarke’s Commentary). God wouldn’t allow this if the person had killed someone presumptuously (Exodus 21:14). “The altar was regarded from time immemorial and among all nations as a place of refuge for criminals deserving of death; in Israel it was only allowed to afford protection in cases of unintentional slaying, and for these, special cities of refuge were afterwards provided (Numbers 35). In the horns of the altar, as symbols of power and strength, there was concentrated the true significance of the altar as a divine place …. By grasping the horns of the altar the culprit placed himself under the protection of the saving and helping grace of God, which wipes away sin, and thereby abolishes punishment” (Keil and Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament). The Jamieson, Fausset and Brown Commentary states: “The horns … which were tipped with the blood of the victim, were symbols of grace and salvation to the sinner. Hence, the altar was regarded as a sanctuary … but not to murderers, rebels or deliberate perpetrators.”
Consider the spiritual significance of this altar in Hebrews 13:10. (Paul spoke of some in his day who still followed certain physical rituals, but were not partakers of the spiritual meat God gives to His people.) We have access to a spiritual altar, upon which we offer spiritual sacrifices, and we are able to partake of those. For more information on the bronze altar, refer back to Parts 22 and 23 of this series, on offerings.
Bronze Laver
The other item in the court area is the laver, where the priests do the washings. It is positioned “between the tent of the congregation and the altar” (Exodus 40:7). Scripture doesn’t give any detail about its size, but it is probably shaped somewhat like a goblet: with a stand and a bowl with a circular brim at the top.
Notice God’s instructions in Exodus 30:18-20. The priests wash their hands and feet before entering the sanctuary or burning an offering on the altar, cleansing themselves for their daily duties. They are also washed with water when they are consecrated (Exodus 29:4). The priests must be washed “that they die not.” God is very particular about this—He wants the priests ceremonially clean before fulfilling their official responsibilities. (Also, parts of the burnt offerings need to be washed—e.g. Leviticus 1:9, 13; 9:14.)
The water from the laver represented the living water of the Holy Spirit. All of these external washings were a type of the Holy Spirit cleaning us from within. In Hebrews 10, Paul discusses entering the spiritual sanctuary: “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water” (verse 22). Ephesians 5:25-27 explain how Christ cleanses the Church “with the washing of water by the word,” which removes our spiritual spots and blemishes. (See also Titus 3:5-6.) We need these living waters flowing in our lives as we go about doing God’s Work. We need Christ washing us and cleansing us each day.
The laver in Solomon’s temple is described in more detail (1 Kings 7:23-26). Judging by how he followed the pattern of the tabernacle but made everything bigger, we can guess the laver was probably similarly enlarged. Solomon’s was a round basin; the Living Bible calls it “a round bronze tank.” The brim was shaped like a goblet—15 feet in diameter, 7½ feet tall. It could hold 12,000 gallons—resting atop 12 oxen of bronze. The Bible calls it a “molten sea”—it actually uses the same word for the Mediterranean also! It comes from a root word meaning “to roar,” calling to mind the sound of the surf, breaking of the waves. Solomon made 10 smaller lavers that were 6 feet in diameter, and each contained 240 gallons (verses 38-39). The temple was positioned over the Gihon Spring; that is where the water for the lavers came from.
In God’s heavenly temple, there is a sea of glass before God’s throne (Revelation 4:6). That sea is clear, or transparent, like the water in the laver. It looks like a far-stretching sea—an expanse of crystal. It is possible that the laver points us toward that feature of God’s heavenly temple.
Tabernacle
The tabernacle itself—the structure in the middle of the inner court that includes the holy place and the holy of holies—is made of a framework of wood, covered in tapestries and curtains. The first thing described in Exodus 26 is the tapestry, or the inner lining of the tent.
Read Exodus 26:1. This gorgeous tapestry is the product of exceptional workmanship. It is made of 10 colored sheets of fine linen, 42 feet by 6 feet, colored blue, purple and scarlet. Figures of cherubim are embroidered on them. Five of these are joined together lengthwise to make a tapestry 42 feet long and 30 feet wide; this covers one side. Another exactly like it covers the other side. These two huge tapestries, edged with loops, can be joined together to meet exactly.
These tapestries hang on a huge wooden framework. Read the description of the boards beginning in verse 15. The framework of the sanctuary is 45 feet long, 15 feet wide and 15 feet high. The individual boards are huge—15 feet long, 27 inches broad. Josephus records that they are 3 inches thick (though the Bible does not). They are coated in gold leaf—probably quite thin so the boards weren’t impossibly heavy.
Thus, every inch inside the tabernacle is either gorgeous tapestry—or gold! It is far more beautiful and opulent than people would tend to realize when they think of a nation of people roaming around in the desert for 40 years!
Note God’s instructions in verse 19 for joining all these boards together and reinforcing the corners to make the structure solid. The silver sockets, or bases, each weigh a sturdy 95 pounds. They sit on the ground, and the boards fit into them so that they never touch the ground.
So not only is the tabernacle exquisite, but it is also extremely stable. Curtains without boards would have been blown around by the desert winds. God wanted His tabernacle to be strong as well as magnificent—just as He expects His people, in whom He dwells today, to be firm in faith (e.g. James 1:6-8).
Three different coverings canvas the tabernacle: First, a covering of goats’ hair (Exodus 26:7-13); second, a covering of ram’s skins dyed red; third, a covering of some other animal skin (verse 14)—possibly an antelope or a sealskin, the skin of the “sea cow.”
Holy Place
On the east side of the tabernacle is the door leading inside (Exodus 26:36). Only the priests can enter it. However, since God’s people are priests of God and of Christ, we will go ahead and step inside.
Remember, as we do, another spectacular dimension to the symbolic meaning of the tabernacle. “The temple and its environs were further patterned after God’s heavenly palace and its celestial surroundings that existed in the north part of the heavens. As for the tabernacle, it was simply a portable temple. It represented to the wandering Israelites on Earth, the abode of God as it was in the heavens” (Martin, op. cit.).
The three sections in the temple design correspond to the three “heavens” discussed in the Bible. The first “heaven” is the gaseous atmosphere around the Earth where the birds fly. The second “heaven” is the universe beyond the atmosphere: the space that envelops the sun, the moon, all the planets and stars. The third “heaven” is God’s residence. “These three heavens were symbolically pictured in the temple at Jerusalem. In fact, the three main sections of the temple were designed to show these three heavens” (ibid). You had 1) the court; 2) the holy place; and 3) the holy of holies. “This first section of the temple … was not covered with a roof. [It] was open to the sky and to all weather phenomena. Birds could also fly within it. This area of the temple answered in a typical manner with the ‘first heaven,’ which was like our atmosphere surrounding the Earth.
“The ‘second heaven’ in the temple in a symbolic sense began at the eastern curtain in front of the holy place. Josephus tells [us] this curtain had the principal stars of the heavens displayed on it in tapestry form. It represented the entrance into the starry heavens beyond our atmosphere.” This is what we just entered into as we stepped into the holy place. “It’s all about entering into the whole universe!” Mr. Flurry said in a November 2008 sermon on this subject. “That’s God’s plan, and we’re going to step right out into the universe! The whole universe and all those starry heavens, and shine like those stars forever and ever!”
We will talk about the third heaven in the next article.
Inside this holy place are three things: the table of showbread, the lampstand and the incense altar. This is a very privileged place to be. We need to realize that we go into the holy place every day! God invites us to step out into the universe—to be where He is. This is the kind of stature we have in God’s eyes!
In the next article we will study these furnishings, and then actually step inside the place only one Israelite could enter—and only once a year: the holy of holies itself.