Lesson 2 Gods Temple Characteristics of the Tabernacle (1) The tabernacle was a very functional facility. The tabernacle served as a meeting place between God and men, and was thus known as the “tent of meeting” Ex 35:21) This was no small task, for having God in close proximity was a very dangerous thing. When Moses plead with God to dwell in the midst of His people (Exod. 34:9), God warned him that this could prove fatal to such a sinful people: “For the Lord had said to Moses, ‘Say to the sons of Israel, “You are an obstinate people; should I go up in your midst for one moment, I would destroy you”’” (Exod. 33:5a). The tabernacle solved the problem of having a holy God dwell in the midst of a sinful people. The solution includes two provisions. The tabernacle solved one problem with its portability. God had revealed Himself to His people from atop Mt. Sinai. When the people left Sinai for the promised land of Canaan, they would need some portable place for God’s presence to be manifested. Since the tabernacle was a tent, the problem of portability was solved. The tabernacle also solved the problem of a holy God dwelling in the midst of a sinful people. The tent curtains, and especially the thick veil, served as a separator, a dividing barrier, between God and the people. Beyond this, the tabernacle was sanctified and set apart as a holy place. This spared the people from an outbreak from God which would have destroyed them (Exodus 33:5). Also, the tabernacle was a place of sacrifice, so that the sins of the Israelites could be atoned for. While the solution was not permanent, it did facilitate communion between God and His people. (2) The tabernacle was a facility which displayed fabulous wealth and beauty. It does not take more than a casual reading of the text to learn that the tabernacle was a very costly project: The project involved not only very expensive materials, but these materials were fashioned in such a way as to create great works of art: “… God … commanded Moses to fashion a tabernacle in a way which would involve almost every form of representational art that men have ever known.”135 The tabernacle and its furnishings were provided for the Israelites for both “glory” and “beauty,” (cf. (28:2, 40). (3) The building of the tabernacle involved all of the people. All of the people would benefit from the tabernacle, and thus all were permitted to participate in its construction, either by their donations of materials, or of skilled labor, or both. (4) The tabernacle testified to the character of God. The excellence of the tabernacle, both in its materials and its workmanship, was a reflection of the excellencies of God. The tabernacle was also a holy place, because abiding in it was a holy God (cf. 30:37, 38): The tabernacle testifies in its structure and function to the holiness of God. Aaron bears the engraving on the diadem, ‘Holy to Yahweh’ (28:36). The priests are warned in the proper administration of their office ‘lest they die’ (30:21), and the death of Nadab and Abihu (Lev. 10.1) made clear the seriousness of an offense which was deemed unholy to God.136 (5) The tabernacle was composed of various elements, but the unity of all, in design, function, and purpose, was emphasized. “And he made fifty clasps of gold, and joined the curtains to one another with the clasps, so the tabernacle was a unit” (Exod. 36:13). “And he made fifty clasps of bronze to join the tent together, that it might be a unit” (Exod. 36:18). What Schaeffer has written about the temple can also be said of the tabernacle: We should note that with regard to the temple all of the art worked together to form a unity. The whole temple was a single work of architecture, a unified unit with free-standing columns, statuary, bas-relief, poetry and music, great huge stones, beautiful timbers brought from afar. It’s all there. A completely unified work of art to the praise of God.137 Not only was there unity in architecture and structure, but there was also a unity in the function of the tabernacle. The purpose of the tabernacle was to provide a place where God may dwell in the midst of men. All of the furnishings facilitate ministries and ceremonies which contribute to this one place of providing a “tent of meeting.” (6) The tabernacle was designed as a permanent facility. Repeatedly we find expressions such as, “perpetual” and “throughout your generations” (cf. 30:8, 16, 21, 31). The tent was used daily for much more than 40 years, and it would seem as though God had designed it to be used throughout Israel’s history. The tabernacle was not only “built to last,” to mimic an automobile manufacturer’s claim, but it was designed to last. (7) The tabernacle was God’s idea, God’s initiative, God’s design. Where did the pattern come from? It came from God. … God was the architect, not man. Over and over in the account of how the tabernacle is to be made, this phrase appears: ‘And thou shalt make …’ That is, God told Moses what to do in detail. These were commands, commands from the same God who gave the Ten Commandments.138 The tabernacle was made after the divine pattern shown to Moses (25.9). The … instructions emphasized that every detail of the design was made by explicit command of God (35.1, 4, 10, etc.). Bezalel and Oholiab were equipped with the spirit of God and with knowledge in craftsmanship (31.2ff.) to execute the task. For the Old Testament writer the concrete form of the tabernacle is inseparable from its spiritual meaning. Every detail of the structure reflects the one divine will and nothing rests on the ad hoc decision of human builders. … Moreover, the tabernacle is not conceived of as a temporary measure for a limited time, but one in which the permanent priesthood of Aaron serves throughout all their generation (27.20f.)
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 06:11:15 +0000
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