Day 34: The Tabernacle

A day of detailed instructions about how to put up a tent. Sometimes, when we arrive at a windswept campsite as a family, this is just what you need. However, if we found ourselves putting up a tabernacle, I think we might get some funny looks. The question to ask, I suppose, is why do the Israelites need such precise instructions?

The Ark
Exodus 25:10-22
The Table of Shewbread
Exodus 225:23-30, Leviticus 24:5-9
Golden candlestick
Exodus 25:31-40
Curtains of linen
Exodus 26:1-6
Curtains of goat hair
Exodus 26:7-13
Covering of ram’s skins
Exodus 26:14
The construction of the framework
Exodus 26:15-29
Inner and outer veils
Exodus 26:31-37
Brazen altar
Exodus 27:1-8
Court
Exodus 27:9-15

My first reaction as I read this is what incredible luxury it represents. These are people camping in the desert, existing on God’s daily handouts for food. Yet they are to make candlestands and a table of solid gold. Once finished, it must have looked magnificent, a total contrast to the scenery they lived in, and the ordinary tents they slept in.  It’s a dwelling place fit, not for a king, but for God, and when the Israelites approached it, they would have felt a sense of awe. All the bits must have been extremely heavy to carry as well!
I remember a friend from my previous church, Jenny, teaching us a song called “Take me past the outer courts” which spoke about the design of the tabernacle, and took you through into the very presence of God. It was a tremendously effective song which we enjoyed singing, and for Jenny, having lived and worked in Israel amongst Jews, it was deeply meaningful.
And I guess that’s the point. Each part is laden with meaning, each part reinforcing a lesson to the Israelites about what their God is like. The whole would have served to cement their relationship with him as they travelled through the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land.