The Tabernacle – Part 4
The Tabernacle Construction
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
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SERMON TIMELINE
· The Book of Genesis
· The Exodus
· The Tabernacle
· Introduction
· The Ark of the Covenant
· The Table and the Lampstand
· The Tabernacle Construction
INTRODUCTION
Last week we discussed the Table of Show Bread, or Bread of Presence, and the Lampstand, which would be placed in the Tabernacle. We looked at the symbolism of the bread being Jesus, and the Lampstands symbolic of the Lampstand in Revelation where the Lord stands among the churches, and it is by His Spirit that these churches have the light. If a church does not behave, we see Jesus making the promise to remove the light from that church.
A church without the Holy Spirit is nothing more than a country club filled with lost people.
I believe that there is meaning behind every single instruction and aspect of God’s Word, even when we do not understand its meaning.
In fact, I believe there are things in scripture that are written for spiritual purposes, and we can never understand the meaning. I believe there is more to the scriptures than mere finite mortals can comprehend.
Micah 4:12 “But they do not know the thoughts of the Lord, And they do not understand His purpose;”
John 1:5 “The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.”
John 13:7 “Jesus answered and said to him, “What I do you do not realize now, but you will understand hereafter.”
1 Corinthians 2:14 “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.”
Acts 7:25 concerning Moses, “And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him, but they did not understand.”
Today we examine the Instructions for the Tabernacle Covering
SCRIPTURE READING
Exodus 26:1-14
“Moreover, you shall make the Tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen, and blue, purple, and crimson yarns; you shall make them with cherubim skilfully worked into them. 2 The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains shall be of the same size. 3 Five curtains shall be joined to one another; and the other five curtains shall be joined to one another. 4 You shall make loops of blue on the edge of the outermost curtain in the first set; and likewise you shall make loops on the edge of the outermost curtain in the second set. 5 You shall make fifty loops on the one curtain, and you shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite one another. 6 You shall make fifty clasps of gold, and join the curtains to one another with the clasps, so that the Tabernacle may be one whole.
7 You shall also make curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the Tabernacle; you shall make eleven curtains. 8 The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; the eleven curtains shall be of the same size. 9 You shall join five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves, and the sixth curtain you shall double over at the front of the tent. 10 You shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the second set.
11 You shall make fifty clasps of bronze, and put the clasps into the loops, and join the tent together, so that it may be one whole. 12 The part that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half-curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the Tabernacle. 13 The cubit on one side, and the cubit on the other side, of what remains in the length of the curtains of the tent, shall hang over the sides of the Tabernacle, on this side and that side, to cover it. 14 You shall make for the tent a covering of tanned rams’ skins and an outer covering of fine leather.”
TODAY'S MESSAGE
I. BASIC CONSTRUCTION INSTRUCTIONS
a. The Fist Covering was Fine Twined Linens
i. The Tabernacle structure was overlaid with four coverings, as explained in detail in Exodus 26; 36. There were two primary coverings of measured dimensions and two additional coverings over those.
ii. The curtains would be of fine twisted blue, purple, and crimson linen.
iii. Embroidered with Cherubim
iv. 10 Panels @ 28 cubits x 4 cubits
1. 42’ x 6’
v. Five curtains joined together (42’ x 30’) x twice
vi. Loops of blue across one side of each
vii. Clasps of gold bound the two large panels together
viii. Making the finished size 84’ x 30’
b. The Covering over that was Goat Hair
i. This would lay over the fine linen curtain
ii. 11 panels @ 30 cubits x 4 cubits
1. 45’ x 6’ each panel
iii. Five joined together at 45’ x 30’
iv. And six joined together 45’ x 36’
v. The sixth curtain would double over the front of the tent for a door
vi. These sets were joined together with 50 loops and 50 bronze clasps
vii. Making the finished tent 90’ x 30
c. The Covering over that was Rams Skin and Fine Leather
i. The ram skin dyed red will hang over the back of the Tabernacle
ii. And a cubit on each side
iii. The fourth covering is of fine leather
iv. The literal Hebrew word used is “תַּחַשׁ”
1. (takh’ ash)
a. Obscure slang for an unknown species of animal.
i. It has been translated to antelope, badger, Sea Cow, Manatee, Dugong
ii. In reality, it could have been the word for a type of dinosaur or now-extinct animal
b. Remember, God created a giant fish for the explicit purpose of swallowing Jonah. There could have been a one-off species explicitly created for making the Tabernacle.
c. Now there is no longer a need for the Tabernacle. This creature may no longer exist.
II. WHY THE NEED FOR A TABERNACLE?
a. Two purposes
i. A place to worship God
ii. A picture of Christ and Salvation
b. Where God dwells
i. God said in Exodus that He would appear to them between the Cherubim of the Ark of the Covenant
1. They look in anticipation to the mercy seat
2. This is where Christ Jesus would be laid to rest, and rise again
3. Mary finds the two Cherubim in the empty tomb, no longer looking at the mercy seat in anticipation, but rather, sitting ( a sign of work completed) at each side of the mercy seat
4. Isiah 37:16 “LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.”
ii. First was the Tabernacle, which Solomon's Temple later replaced.
iii. What replaced Solomon's Temple? Us.
1. Ephesians 2:22 “in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.”
2. Ephesians 3:17 “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love,”
3. 1 Corinthians 3:16 “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?”
c. How can this be?
i. Romans 8:10 “But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is life because of righteousness.”
ii. Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me.”
III. WHAT THE COMPONENTS MEAN
a. The four coverings
i. Fine twisted linens with Cherubim embroidery
ii. Covered by a Goat hair tent
iii. Covered by Ram skin dyed red
iv. Covered by fine leather of some unknown animal
v. The number FOUR in the bible derives its meaning from “Creation.”
1. On the fourth day of creation week, God completed the “material universe.”
a. All “matter,” scientifically speaking, was created.
b. John 1:1-3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being…”
c. Everything, including all matter, was created in the beginning by the Lord.
d. Time was also created on the fourth day. When the Lord created the sun, moon, and stars, it divided day from night and created a way for us to measure time and seasons, all four of them.
b. The First Covering
i. It was tied with ropes and tent stakes so as not to touch the ground
1. Exodus 35:18
ii. The pure linen with its embroidery represents the NEW CREATION (the number 4 in the bible)
iii. Holy (white linen) Sanctified (set apart for God’s service)
iv. The two main parts representing the two parts of New Creations, Lord Jesus and the Church
v. That there were five strips in each part is consistent with using the number five elsewhere in the Scriptures to represent the New Creation. (Thus, the five wise virgins of the parable and their companions of the same number, the five foolish virgins.) Matthew 25
vi. The gold clasps represent the pure and divine nature of God which the church is to have
vii. The blue loops represent the bonds of faith that hold the gold clasps
viii. This overwhelming inner beauty of the Tabernacle may reflect God’s interest in having a dwelling place of the holy Spirit where the inward detail of our lives is beautiful because of our efforts of striving for righteousness in all.
c. The Second Covering
i. The second covering is of goat hair
ii. Also pegged and roped so as not to touch the ground
iii. Bronze represents human nature
1. Numbers 21:9 “So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.”
2. This is an allegory of our sinful nature looking upon the cross and “living,” healed of the viper's poison.
3. That serpent is satan, and sin is his poison. Anyone looking to the cross will receive Salvation from it.
iv. This covering represented Jesus’ human cover over His divinity when He came to us in the flesh.
v. It represents our old nature as well—the flesh that Christ overcame.
1. Also, there is NO BRONZE inside the Temple
2. All gold!
d. The Third Covering
i. Rams skins dyed red or crimson
ii. Representing the sacrifice of Jesus and His blood
1. Genesis 22:12-13 God provided a ram as a substitutional sacrifice for Isaac the day Abraham’s faith was revealed.
2. Just as Jesus’ substitutional sacrifice is offered for us when we reveal our faith in Him.
iii. John 1:29 — “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
iv. Hebrews 2:9 — “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.”
1. Made, created, meaning Jesus as a man in the flesh
2. Angels are spiritual beings who cannot “die”
3. Being made a “little lower than the angels” and taking on a body eternally did not in any way diminish the deity of Christ. Jesus never ceased to be God
v. Hebrews 2:17 — “Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”
vi. So the first cover typifies New Creation
vii. The second covering the flesh of man
viii. The third covering Jesus bore our sins in His shed blood
e. The Fourth Covering
i. This is to be made with “fine leather.”
ii. The outward covering protects the others from weather and sun
iii. Durable and utilitarian, not for beauty
iv. Just as an outward covering his all of Jesus beneath it, it did not reveal Him as God, though that remained true
1. Isaiah 53:1-2 describes the Messiah, “no form nor comeliness … no beauty.”
2. Matthew 13:13 “though seeing they do not see, though hearing, they do not hear or understand”
3. The flesh of Jesus was utilitarian and covered His true identity.
4. Jesus was not an attractive man. On the contrary, so that none could accuse His followers of following vanity or beauty rather than the Truth of God’s Word.
v. Anyone who desired to look beyond the outer flesh covering would see Christ’s glory.
vi. God does not attract anyone by apparent riches. We do not come to God because of the majesty and beauty of buildings.
vii. The ones who endure to the end are those who may not have an outward beautiful appearance but who have an inward heavenly beauty and divine comeliness.
CONCLUSION
As Moses receives the instructions for building the Tabernacle, it becomes clear all of the teachings it will give to God’s people. For generations, it will bring understanding and prophecy of the coming Messiah, Salvation, and how the story ends.
The Coverings represent Christ, His stations, and the Redemption of Man
NEXT WEEK
The instruction for the framework of the Tabernacle
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