Extra: Symbolism of the Tabernacle

Welcome to the first episode of Bible Backdrop Extra! This is a shorter episode where I go a little deeper into an earlier episode. This week, I talk about the symbolism of the Tabernacle and how it points to Jesus. All the implements of worship, their placement, even the courtyard points to Jesus' teaching. 

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Transcript

Hey everyone! Welcome to the first episode of Bible Backdrop Extra where I spend a few short minutes taking a little deeper dive into a previous subject. In the last episode, I went into detail about the Tabernacle. This was the portable temple used by the Israelites during their years of wandering in the desert. There was a lot of details about the courtyard, the Tent of Meeting, and the implements of worship. However, there’s much more than meets the eye.

In the book of John, Jesus says to the Jewish leaders: “If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.” When we look at the Old Testament, so much of it points to the person of Jesus and his teachings.

Start with the courtyard. This was built to block people from looking on while people offered sacrifices. Compare this to when Jesus said: “When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” By blocking the outside world, people could focus on their sacrifice and reflect on the meaning. Prayer, at it’s core, is very personal.

On coming into the courtyard, the person offering the sacrifice would first see the bronze altar. This is a reminder that a guiltless sacrifice must be made before we can approach God. Jesus later becomes that offering, giving us the ability and access to God’s throne. I’ll discuss this a little more when talking about the ark and the Holy of Holies.

Next we come to the bronze laver. While it was used by the priests to wash themselves before offering sacrifices or entering the Tent of Meeting, it carries a deeper meaning. First, look at it’s placement...between the altar and the entrance to the Holy Place. This was intentional. Offering sacrifices was a bloody business. Like sin, it needs to be cleansed before approaching God. After we are justified by Christ’s sacrifice, we are continually cleansed and sanctified. In Ephesians, Paul says: “Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word.” We are washed clean of sin by Christ’s sacrifice.

As I discussed in the episode, there were cherubim on the entrance curtain to the Tent of Meeting. This was a reminder to the priest that they were approaching God’s presence. 

Once inside the Tent of Meeting, you had the Table of Showbread, the Golden Lampstand, and the Altar of Incense. The Table of Showbread had 12 loaves of bread sprinkled with frankincense called the Bread of the Presence. The 12 loaves represented each of the 12 tribes and the frankincense was representative of God’s deity. The frankincense being among the loaves was a symbol of God’s presence among His people. The bread was replaced every Sabbath and the old loaves were eaten by the priests. It was a reminder to the nation of God’s provision of their needs. It also points ahead to Christ who, in John’s gospel, was repeatedly called the Bread of Life. As I talked about in the episode on food, bread was basic food and was life sustaining.

The golden lampstand was the only light available inside the tent of meeting. It was made in a stylized almond tree. Why an almond tree? In the Middle East, it is the first tree to blossom after laying dormant over the winter. It is the first to come to life after death, a direct foreshadowing of Jesus’ resurrection.

We also see the use of light in the description of Jesus. John 1 is rife with descriptions of Jesus being the light. Verses 4 & 5 say: “In Him was life, and the life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” Then later in verse 9: “The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.” The lampstand was the only light in the Tent of Meeting as Jesus is the one true light in this fallen world.

The last article of worship in the Holy Place is the altar of incense. The incense was offered to God and filled the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies as it burned. In ancient times, incense was burned before a king and was a sign of their royalty. In the Bible, burning incense was often a symbol of prayers. So here we see a dual symbolism: the altar is a symbol of royalty and deity. As a child, the magi presented Jesus with gifts of gold and frankincense...a dual present symbolizing His royalty and His deity. 

Once a year, the high priest was allowed to enter the Holy of Holies which only had one article of worship: the Ark of the Covenant. If you want more information about the ark, you can listen to episode 25. The ark represented God’s presence among his people. Unlike other religions who’s gods were either regional or over a particular part of nature, the God of Israel dwelt among His people. Atonement had to be done to approach God’s presence and it was a lengthy process. In the ultimate act of God’s love, Jesus becomes a man to dwell among us. After His ministry, He is crucified and resurrected to become the eternal atonement and separates the wall between God and man. This becomes very real as we see in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke that the curtain between the Holy Place and Holy of Holies in the Temple is torn in two after Jesus’ death. His atonement allows us to come directly to God with our prayers.

On that note, I think we’ll stop here for new. Thank you for listening to this extra episode of Bible Backdrop and I’ll be back soon to talk about the different sacrifices God requested from the people of Israel. If you want to get in touch with the show, you can e-mail me at BibleBackdrop@gmail.com. Thank you again for listening and have a great week!