The Tabernacle as a Picture of Christ: Part 2 – The Inner Court and Holy of Holies
Through studying the Tabernacle’s design—its design, purpose, and use—we see that Jesus perfectly fulfilled its purpose. Just as the Tabernacle was a place for God to dwell with His people, Jesus came so God could be with us. In Part 1, we explored the Outer Court, where sacrifice and cleansing took place. In Part 2, we step into the Inner Court and the Holy of Holies, the most sacred place of the Tabernacle. Here, we will uncover how the lampstand, the table of showbread, the altar of incense, and the Ark of the Covenant all foreshadow Christ’s work as our High Priest and the ultimate fulfillment of God’s presence with His people. The Holy Place – The Inner Court of the Tabernacle Only priests could enter the inner court into the Holy Place. Within the Holy Place, there were three pieces of furniture: the lampstand, the table of showbread, and the altar of incense, each significant to Old Testament worship and New Testament truths. The Golden Lampstand (Exodus 25:31-40) The Lampstand’s Design Lampstand Artisans crafted the lampstand with pure gold. It was a hammered work, designed as a tree, with the top and each branch made like an open almond flower, each flower holding an oil lamp. A hammered work meant that the lampstand was beaten into shape to achieve its design. Similarly, God allowed Jesus to be beaten and bruised (Isaiah 53:5) to accomplish the plan of salvation that God had put in place before the beginning of time. The Almond Tree and the First Fruits The almond tree was always the first to blossom and bear fruit in the spring. For that reason, it was called the “first fruit.” Jesus was also the first fruit because He was the first to rise from the dead to everlasting life (1st Cor 15:20). Because of His resurrection, we will all be raised to life (Romans 8:23). The Lampstand as the Only Light Seven lamps were on the lampstand; seven represent God, completion, and fullness. Man is only complete in Jesus (John 15:5). The lampstand was the only light source in the Tabernacle, and it was to burn continually (Exodus 27:20-21). Likewise, Jesus is the only true light for the world (John 8:12, John 9:5), and He will be our light forever. The Oil and the Holy Spirit The lampstand burned with pure, beaten olive oil. “You shall charge the sons of Israel, that they bring you clear oil of beaten olives for the light, to make a lamp burn continually” (Exodus 27:20). Olives had to be pressed to make pure olive oil. In Hebrew, “Garden of Gethsemane” means the garden of the olive press. Interestingly, the Garden of Gethsemane is the same garden where Jesus agonized over His impending death so much that he sweated drops of blood. Jesus had to be crushed to produce oil for the rest of us. This oil represents the Holy Spirit. Jesus says, “Unless I go, the Holy Spirit won’t come” (John 16:7). Because of Jesus’ willingness to be beaten and crushed, we now have the gift of the Holy Spirit, who marks us for salvation when we believe. Our Call to Shine as Lights Just as the lampstand was continually filled with oil, we must be continually filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). Our fire for God should never go out. Because the lampstand was the only light in the Inner Court, we as Christians are the only lights in a dark world. “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). We need to be the light! The Table of Showbread (Exodus 25:23-30) Table of Showbread Per God’s instructions, artisans made the Table of Showbread out of acacia wood, overlaid with pure gold. Twelve loaves of bread were placed on the table to represent the twelve tribes of Israel. The bread served as a reminder of how God sustained the Israelites during their wanderings in the wilderness. The Bread of the Presence The bread placed on the table was called the bread of the presence (Exodus 25:30). It was ever-present before God and could only be eaten by Aaron and his sons in a holy place. The Unleavened Bread and Christ The bread was to be made of fine flour, ground and baked without leaven. The Jewish people ate unleavened bread on the night of the Passover. The wheat had to be ground, and the bread passed through fire to be baked. The showbread is a type of Christ. In Scripture, leaven often represents sin. The unleavened bread depicts the body of Jesus, who was completely sinless (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus was the bread that fed the Israelites daily in the wilderness. He declares: “I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.” (John 6:51) Jesus, the Bread of Life Like the showbread, Jesus is holy before God. He provides true sustenance. He is always present. Jesus alone can satisfy us. Jesus declared, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry’” (John 6:35). Altar of Incense (Exodus 30:1-16, 34-38) Altar of Incense The altar of incense was made of acacia wood, overlaid with pure gold, and placed right in front of the veil, the curtain separating the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. Burning coals from the brazen altar were brought to light the incense every day and every night. The incense rose to the Lord, just like our prayers. The Psalmist cries out in Psalm 141:2, “May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.” Revelation 8:4 describes the sanctuary of God, saying, “The smoke of the incense, mixed with the prayers of God’s holy people, ascended
The Tabernacle in Exodus: God’s Dwelling Place
Three months after God freed the Israelites from their bondage to Egypt, they arrived at Mount Sinai. There on top of the mountain, God gave Moses the Ten Commandments and instructions for building a tabernacle, a dwelling place for His presence. God had set the Israelites apart as His holy nation, but the Israelites were far from holy. The Ten Commandments and God’s instructions for the Tabernacle were to teach the Israelites holiness and how to receive His presence. Most of us are familiar with the term “tabernacle” but have no idea what the Old Testament tabernacle was and its importance to God. The Hebrew word for “tabernacle” is “Mishkan,” which means dwelling place. The Tabernacle was a portable sanctuary, sometimes called the Tent of Meeting, that could be moved from place to place. The Israelites used the Tabernacle for 500 years until Solomon built the Temple, an immovable, permanent place of worship. Designed and Planned By God Every detail of the Tabernacle was designed and planned by God (Exodus 25:9). The Tabernacle was not an afterthought to God. More than fifty chapters in the Bible are devoted to detailing its careful construction and sacred use. God envisioned the building of the Tabernacle even before the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt. In fact, He planned for it by instructing the Israelites to take silver, gold, and clothing from the Egyptians (Exodus 25:1-9), the very things they would need to build and furnish the Tabernacle. (Exodus 12:35-36). Not only did God design and plan the Tabernacle, but it was also essential to His plan for humanity. From the beginning, God desired to dwell with His people and have a relationship with them. However, because of Adam’s one act of disobedience that brought death, guilt, and condemnation to the entire human race, sin divided humanity from a holy God: God could not dwell with His people because His holy presence would destroy humanity. Dwelling Place for God Nevertheless, God found a way around humanity’s sin problem, a Tabernacle where He would dwell with His people (Exodus 25:8). Through the Tabernacle, God could relate, meet, and commune with the Israelites (Exodus 25:22). The Tabernacle was sacred. It was the only place the Israelites could make sacrifices. However, because God’s presence was so holy and man was sinful, God could be accessed only once per year and only by the High Priest. By studying the Tabernacle, its design, and its use, we discover that Jesus fulfilled its purpose perfectly. Like the Tabernacle, Jesus came so God could be with us. “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). God designed the Tabernacle in all its glory as a dwelling place for Him and as a shadow of the Savior to come. Be sure to visit the Tabernacle series, where we will talk about the parts of the Tabernacle, its implements, and how Jesus perfectly fulfilled each.
More Types of Jesus in Exodus
Exodus provides us a glimpse into the very nature of our Messiah, Jesus Christ. In “Finding Jesus in Exodus,” we see Jesus in a burning bush, as the Great I Am, and as a promise-keeping God. But these aren’t the only images we discover in the ancient pages of the second book of the Bible; we also see Jesus in the “Exodus” of the Israelites from Egypt and in the “manna” that God provided during their wanderings.
5 Ways Jesus is Like the Passover Lamb
From Adam to Jesus, we see that innocent blood must be shed for the guilty. Sin must be paid for, and payment must be made through a sacrifice that only God can provide.
Lessons From Moses and Pharaoh: Do Not Harden Your Heart
Even today, Pharaoh’s character offers us much insight into humanity’s flawed nature. He is more than just an evil ruler; he represents us at our worst.
Finding Jesus in Exodus
The first time we meet Jesus in the Bible is not in the New Testament, but in the Old Testament. We meet Him in the very first book of the Bible—in Genesis. Genesis is full of Jesus. We see that through Jesus, God spoke creation into existence. We see hints of Him as the Seed of Promise. Then we are given insight into why He is called the Last Adam. We see Him in Adam and Eve’s First Sacrifice, Noah’s Ark of Salvation, Jacob’s Ladder, and in the very obscure but relevant priest Melchizedek. Finally, the lives of Isaac and Joseph plainly point us directly to Him. From Genesis, we move on to Exodus, which like the book before it, also provides glimpses of humanity’s savior. In the first chapters of Exodus, we see Jesus in a burning bush, as the Great I Am, and as a personal God. These images of Jesus help us to understand His nature and character better. Reading: Exodus 2 and 3 Jesus as the Burning Bush Throughout the Bible, God often appears as fire. The book of Exodus is no exception. God shows himself to Moses and the Israelites in the form of fire several times: He guided the Israelites through the wilderness for 40 years by appearing as a pillar of fire by night (Exodus 13:21). He displayed His powerful presence to them when He descended on Mount Sinai in fire (Exodus 19:18). But probably the most memorable occasion is His appearance to Moses in “flames of fire from within a bush” (Exodus 3:1-6). This story of the burning bush is rich in symbolism. Some believe that the burning bush is an acacia bush, the same type used in the construction of the Ark and the Tabernacle. Thorns The burning bush had thorns. Not part of God’s original creation, they only appeared after man sinned as a curse on the land. For this reason, thorns have come to represent sin. Jesus wore a crown of thorns to the cross. Like the crown He was wearing, He took our sins with Him to the cross. On the cross, Jesus was stricken but not crushed, just as the burning bush was consumed by fire but not burned. Humaness and Divinity The burning bush helps us understand Christ’s simultaneous humanness and divinity. The fire did not consume the bush, just as the divinity of Jesus did not consume His humanity. Humanity and divinity could coexist in the same body. The bush consumed by fire was not less of a bush because it was consumed by fire; it was both wood and fire. Just as Jesus, when taking the form of a man, is not less God, He is both fully man and fully God. Jesus as the “I Am” During the burning bush saga, God appeared to Moses and identified himself as the “God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob” (Exodus 3:6, 3:15, 3:16, Exodus 4:5). “God” is the Hebrew word Elohim, which means god or God. By referring to himself as “God of your father,” He distinguishes himself from the other gods of that time, the gods worshiped by surrounding cultures, and identifies himself as the same God who had made a covenant with the patriarchs, beginning with Abraham, 400 years earlier. In this covenant, God had promised Abraham and his descendants land (Genesis 12:1), numerous descendants (Genesis 12:2), and blessing and redemption (Genesis 12:3). God also wanted to remind Moses that, just as He was with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, He was also with Moses. He is the God who will fulfill His promises. Moses asked God, ‘What should I tell the Israelites? Your name is?’ (Exodus 3:13) God answered, “I AM WHO I AM.” Here, God is telling us three things. He is Eternal No matter when or where Jesus is there. He is eternal. Moses, author of Psalm 90, beautifully writes of God’s eternal nature: “Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God” (Psalm 90:2). He is Self-Sufficient Jesus doesn’t depend on anything or anyone else for His existence. He is self-sufficient. Again, we turn to a Psalm to majestically echo this truth: “For every beast of the forest is Mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird of the mountains, and everything that moves in the field is Mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is Mine, and all it contains” (Psalm 50:10-12). He is the Source of Everything God is the source of all that we see and all that we don’t see. In God we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). The Prophet Isaiah reminds us, “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom” (Isaiah 40:28). Jesus as a Personal God After reminding Moses of who He was to Moses’ forefathers, He then gave Moses His personal name: YAHWEH (Exodus 3:15). YAHWEH is the ancient form of “He will be” or “I AM.” YAHWEH appears over 6,500 times in the Old Testament. In our English Bible, God’s personal name YAHWEH is “LORD” in all caps. God wanted to remind Moses that He is a personal God—He is about relationships and covenant. He demonstrates that He is personal when He heard the Israelites’ cries from their bondage in Egypt (Exodus 2:24), and He saw their misery (Exodus 3:7). But He didn’t just leave them crying out in misery, He rescued them! (Exodus 3:8). Jesus Said He Was “I Am” Jesus in John 8:58 said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” The Jews recognized this reference to God and were ready to stone Jesus to death for such blasphemy (John 8:59). By making this statement, Jesus is telling us the same three things that God told us when he said, “I AM.” Jesus is saying that no matter when or where He is, He is there. He is eternal. In Revelation, He said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” …. “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty” Revelation 1:8. Jesus