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Exodus 26:1-14 open_in_new
The Dwelling-place Itself (Exodus 26:1 to Exodus 27:19).
Having described the main contents of the Sanctuary which represented the permanent blessing which came from Him in His presence, we now move on to the Dwellingplace proper.
The Dwellingplace was to be splendid in beauty. Its glory represented the glory of its King and His supreme righteousness. But it had to be patterned according to how God revealed it (Exodus 26:30). Nothing mundane must enter into its construction, and no ideas of man. It had to be kept pure in what it represented. The fine detail of its construction was a reminder of God's detailed activity on behalf of His own (compare Ephesians 2:21).
The Dwelling-place was to be about thirty cubits by ten cubits made of large curtains flung over a framework, the Most Holy Place being a perfect cube, ten cubits by ten cubits by ten cubits, symbolising the perfection of God, and the Holy Place twenty cubits by ten cubits. These were then covered by goats' hair, and then by rams' skins dyed red and finally by dolphin or dugong skins.
The Tabernacle/Temple would finally be dispensed with when God found a more splendid and more fitting Dwellingplace, the living temple of His people (2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:20-22) who would submit at His throne, and receive the bread and light of life. And it would finally find its fulfilment in Heaven (Hebrews 8:2; Hebrews 9:24).
The Curtains of the Dwellingplace and the Outer Tent (Exodus 26:1-14)
The making of these may be analysed as follows:
a The Dwellingplace to be made of ten curtains of fine-twined linen, and bluey-purple and purpley-red, and scarlet worked with pictures of cherubim, and made by skilful workmen (Exodus 26:1).
b Length and breadth of the curtain in cubits (Exodus 26:2).
c Two sets of five curtains to be coupled together (Exodus 26:3).
d Loops to be made on the edges of the curtains (Exodus 26:4).
e Fifty loops on one set of curtains and fifty loops on the other, the loops to be opposite one another (Exodus 26:5).
f Fifty clasps of gold are to be made to couple the curtains and make the Dwellingplace one (Exodus 26:6).
g Curtains of goats' hair to be made to form a tent over the Dwellingplace, there are to be eleven curtains (Exodus 26:7).
g The length and breadth of the eleven curtains of the outer tent is described (Exodus 26:8).
f The method of coupling the curtains for the outer tent is described (Exodus 26:9).
e Fifty loops on one set of curtains and fifty loops on the other, the loops to be opposite one another, on the curtains for the outer tent (Exodus 26:10).
d Fifty clasps of brass are to be put in the loops to bring the curtains together (Exodus 26:11).
c The overhanging of the curtains is described (Exodus 26:12).
b Description of the overhanging in cubits (Exodus 26:13).
a The tent covering is to be made of rams' skins dyed red and a covering of porpoise skins (Exodus 26:14).
It will be noted that in ‘a' the making of the Dwellingplace is described and in the parallel the making of the outer tent. In ‘b' the curtains are measured in cubits, and in the parallel the overhanging is measured in cubits (apart from in verse 8 the only mention of cubits in the narrative). In ‘c' the curtains are described, in the parallel the overhanging of the curtains is described. In ‘d' the loops are described and in the parallel the clasps that utilise the loops. In ‘e' we have fifty loops on each set of curtains opposite each other, and in the parallel the same. In ‘f' fifty clasps of gold join the loops and make the Dwellingplace one, and in the parallel the method of coupling for the outer tent is described. In ‘g' the overtent of goats' hair is composed of eleven curtains, while in the parallel the length and breadth of the eleven curtains are described.
We would suggest that the way in which the making of the two sets of curtains is described in such a way that we have a chiasmus by using keywords is very clever and quite remarkable, while if we compare each section verse by verse they would not wholly fit.
“Moreover you shall make the Dwelling-place with ten curtains. You shall make them as the work of a skilful craftsman of fine twined linen, and of blue, and purple, and scarlet, with cherubim woven in. The length of each curtain shall be twenty eight cubits and the breadth of each curtain four cubits. All the curtains shall have one measure. Five curtains shall be coupled together, the one to the other, and the other five curtains shall be coupled together the one to the other.”
The first procedure in making the Dwelling-place is to make ten curtains of the same size, of different colours, of which two are then to be made each consisting of five of the ten curtains joined together. They are to be made of fine twined linen and multicoloured cloth (sections consisting of the different colours having been attached together) with cherubim patterned in. Thus the final large curtains would appear to be twenty eight cubits by twenty cubits (about thirteen metres by ten metres or forty foot by thirty foot). It appears that the edge was then woven making a selvedge.
It has been suggested that bluey-purple represents its heavenly connections, purpley-red its royal connections, red symbolises the shedding of blood and the fine linen represents purity (but see above on Exodus 25:4). The cherubim, symbolising a heavenly reality, were a reminder of the spiritual beings who attended on the throne of Yahweh. The size of the curtains was limited both for practical purposes and by their methods of manufacture.
“And you shall make loops of bluey-violet on the edge of the one curtain along the woven edge in the set, and in the same way you shall make loops on the outmost edge of the curtain in the second set. You will make fifty loops on the one curtain, and you will make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain in the second set. The loops shall be opposite one another. And you will make fifty clasps of gold and couple the curtains one to another with the clasps, and the Dwelling-place shall be one.”
The use of loops and clasps was a popular method of joining curtains together in the Ancient Near East and is still used today. The two curtains were joined by fifty loops. They could thus be split apart for travelling. When fitting together the whole would be flung over the framework described below forming the Dwelling-place. This would then be protected by a goat-hair covering so that the curtains were only seen from the inside.
Paul uses these fittings and framework of the Tabernacle as a picture of God's careful concern for His people (Ephesians 2:21).
“And you shall make curtains of goats' hair for a tent over the Dwelling-place. You shall make eleven curtains. The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits and the breadth of each curtain four cubits. The eleven curtains shall have one measure. And you shall join five curtains by themselves and six curtains by themselves. And you will double over the sixth curtain at the front of the tent. And you will make fifty loops on the edge of the one curtain that is on the outside of the first set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain which is on the outside of the second set. And you shall make fifty clasps of copper, and put the clasps into the loops and couple the tent together that it may be one. And the overhanging part that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the rear of the Dwelling-place, and the cubit on the one side and the cubit on the other side of what remains in the length of the curtains in the tent, shall overhang the sides of the Dwelling-place on this side and on that to cover it.”
The goats' hair covering was to be made in the same way but was to be larger than the inner curtains so that it overhung and could be tucked in at the front and would protect the inner curtains at front, rear and at both sides from the weather.
Note that the goat's hair is ‘a tent over the Dwelling-place'. Thus the Dwelling-place strictly consists of the framework plus the inner curtains. These latter are overhung by the goats' hair by two cubits (twenty eight cubits compared with thirty cubits).
“And you shall make a covering for the tent of rams' skins dyed red and a covering of dolphin (or dugong) skins above.”
These were the final weatherproofing and protected the whole. The red rams' skins over portable religious tents are witnessed later among the Bedouin.
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Exodus 26:15-25 open_in_new
The Framework of the Dwelling-place (Exodus 26:15-25).
This can be analysed as follows:
a The frames are to be made standing up and the measurements are given in cubits (Exodus 26:15-16).
b Two tenons to be made for each frame to join them up (Exodus 26:17).
c Twenty frames to be made for the south side (Exodus 26:18).
d Forty sockets of silver to be made to support the frames, two per frame (Exodus 26:19).
e Twenty frames to be made for the north side (Exodus 26:20).
d Forty sockets of silver to be made to support the frames, two per frame (Exodus 26:21).
c Six frames to be made for the west side, the rear of the Dwellingplace (Exodus 26:22).
b Two frames to form the corners at the rear doubled up (Exodus 26:23-24).
a There are to be eight frames and sixteen sockets, two sockets to a frame (Exodus 26:25).
Again we see the clever way in which the writer uses his descriptions so as to form parallels by key words. In ‘a' the frames are to be made standing up, and in the parallel they way in which they stand up is described. In ‘b' there are two tenons for each frame and in the parallel there are two frames for each corner. In ‘c' the frames for the south side are described and in the parallel the frames for the rear, the west side. In ‘d' and its parallel the forty sockets of silver to be made to support the frames, two per frame, are described. And in the centre the twenty frames for the north side are described. While the twenty frames of the north side would have made a better parallel with the south side, the west side had to be described after the north side because of what subsequently followed.
“And you shall make upright frames for the Dwelling-place of acacia wood. The length of a frame shall be ten cubits and the breadth of each frame a cubit and a half. In each frame there will be two uprights (or tenons) joined to one another. You will make all the frames for the Dwelling-place in this way.”
“ Frames”. (Kerashim). Probably not planks or boards but upright frames which would be lighter to carry and provide firmness and strength. The ‘uprights joined together' probably referred to a ladder-like structure. The kerashim framework was paralleled at Ugarit, and similar frames were known from Egypt.
“And you will make the frames for the Dwelling-place, twenty frames for the south side southward, and you shall make forty sockets of silver under the twenty frames, two sockets under one frame for its two uprights and two sockets under another frame for its two uprights, and for the second side of the Dwelling-place, on the north side, twenty frames and their forty sockets of silver, two sockets under one frame and two sockets under another frame. And for the rear part of the Dwelling-place westward you will make six frames. And you shall make two frames for the corners of the rear part, and they shall be double beneath, and they shall be the same right to their top in the one ring. It shall be the same for both. They shall be for the two corners. And there will be eight frames, and their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets, two sockets under one frame and two sockets under the other frame.”
The general pattern was clear although we do not have sufficient knowledge of their technical language to be certain of the full meaning. Each side would be based on twenty frames at one and a half cubits a frame, and would therefore be thirty cubits. The rear would be based on six similar frames plus two specially designed corner frames which doubled up for strength. The frames were held up by sockets with connection across by bars. It is possible that the extra two frames doubled up under the final ones of the six frames. That would make the actual width nine cubits upwards. But this would depend on exactly how they were combined together.
The sockets were to be of silver. These prevented the pillars having contact with the ground. The gold which represented the holiness of God could not be allowed to touch ground other than that which was most holy. The gold of the Ark, the table and the lampstand appear to have been allowed to touch the ground. This suggests that the ground there was seen as most holy. But the sockets tended of course to be at the division between the most holy ground and the slightly less holy ground.
The veil was also on pillars with silver sockets. But the outer pillars of that would again be seen as coming at the border where the most holy met the less holy, and the variety of curtains (which themselves did not touch the ground), may have been seen as making the ground within them most holy, with the ground on which the pillars actually stood, less holy.
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Exodus 26:26-29 open_in_new
The Making of the Bars To Hold The Frames Together (Exodus 26:26-29).
This may be analysed as follows:
a Five bars were to be made of acacia wood for the frames for each of the south, north and west sides (Exodus 26:26-27).
b The middle bar was to pass from end to end right along the frames (Exodus 26:28).
c The frames were to be overlaid with gold, they were to attach rings of gold to hold the bars, and the bars were to be overlaid with gold (Exodus 26:29).
In ‘a' we have the description of the making of the five bars for the frames and in the parallel what the bars are to be overlaid with, and how connected to the frames. The middle bar is central.
“And you shall make bars of acacia wood, five for the frames of the one side of the Dwelling-place, and five bars for the frames on the other side of the Dwelling-place, and five bars for the frames of the side of the Dwelling-place for the rear part westward. And the middle bar in the middle of the frames will pass through from end to end.”
The bars would hold the frames together and be connected to them by rings of gold as then described. The middle bar went all the way along. Possibly each of the two above and below went half way along, one from the rear and one from the front, the shorter bars giving added strength.
“And you shall overlay the frames with gold, and make their rings of gold for places for the bars, and you shall overlay the bars with gold.”
Moses did not have to guess or work it out from the instructions, for he had already been shown, while in the Mount, how it was all to be fitted together. The instructions were merely there to remind him of the main plan. No instruction is given as to how the roof is to be supported. It may have been unsupported, in which case it would have sagged in the middle, especially when it rained, but this is very unlikely. It would hardly have remained stable. Or it may have been supported by a kind of lattice work or by bars going across, a method probably already connected in their minds with the kerashim framework and therefore not needing to be explained. Its measurements would be determined by the other measurements.
To sum up. The framework was thirty cubits long by nine to ten wide by ten high. The curtains of forty cubits by twenty eight and forty four cubits by thirty would cover the top and both sides plus the rear, with the overhangs mentioned for the goats' hair. The inner curtains would not quite reach the floor, for this would have been seen as defiling the Dwellingplace. The front was seemingly open. Thus a screen will be made to cover this opening (Exodus 26:36) although the outer coverings of rams' skins dyed red and dolphin skin may also have been long enough to provide covering.
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Exodus 26:30-37 open_in_new
The Making of the Veil and the Ordering of the Dwellingplace (Exodus 26:30-37).
Exodus 26:30 is regularly connected with what precedes, but it is very different from Exodus 25:40, and the chiastic pattern connects it with what follows. Furthermore it fits in well with this following passage which deals not only with the veil but also with the ordering of the furniture in the Dwellingplace
The Most Holy Place was to be separated from the Holy Place by a large veil. This would keep the Most Holy Place in darkness except for when the light of Yahweh shone there, apart from a glimmer of light from the Holy Place. It was to prevent access to all men, even including the priests, apart from on the Day of Atonement when ‘the Priest' (the High Priest) alone could enter to make final atonement for the people. It symbolised that while men could approach God they could not enter directly into His presence. He must always be veiled from them because no man could see God or enter His immediate presence and live. We can imagine the awe with which the priest approached the veil aware that beyond it was the Presence before Whom no man could enter and Whom no man could see and live.
When the holy veil was made no one could have even dreamed that over a thousand years later that veil would be torn in half by God Himself, but in the death of Jesus the veil was torn apart for Him (Mark 15:38), symbolic of the fact that through it went our Great High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, to act as Mediator on our behalf, and to represent us in God's presence for ever (Hebrews 9:12; Hebrews 9:15; Hebrews 9:24; Hebrews 10:12) with the result that we too can spiritually enter through the veil by the blood of Jesus (Hebrews 10:19-22).
But this is only partial, for the final glory still awaits when our great High Priest returns from within the veil (Hebrews 9:28) and we then have access not only spiritually but literally to behold His full glory (Revelation 21:23; Revelation 22:4-5).
This passage may be analysed as follows:
a The Dwellingplace was to be set up in accordance with the pattern shown on the mount (Exodus 26:30).
b A veil was to be made of bluey-purple, purpley-red, scarlet and fine twined linen embroidered with cherubim, all to be done by skilled workmen and was to be hung on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, with hooks of gold, supported by four sockets of silver (one per pillar) (Exodus 26:31-32).
c The veil being held up with clasps the Ark of the Testimony was to be brought within the veil (Exodus 26:33 a).
d The veil will divide between the Holy of Holies (the Most Holy Place) and the Holy Place (Exodus 26:33 b).
c The mercy-seat (place of propitiation) shall be put on the Ark of the Testimony in the Holy of Holies (Exodus 26:34).
b Outside the veil in the Holy Place are to be placed the table on the north side and the lampstand on the south (Exodus 26:35).
a The Dwelling place was to be set off from the people by a screen for the door of the Tent, of bluey-purple, purpley-red, scarlet and fine twined linen, the work of the embroiderer, and was to be hung on five pillars of acacia overlaid with gold by means of golden hooks and supported by five sockets of brazen copper (Exodus 26:36-37).
It will be noted that in ‘a' the Dwellingplace is set up and in the parallel the screen which separates the people from the Dwellingplace. In ‘b' the veil is made and hung, and in the parallel the table and lampstand are set outside the veil. In ‘c' the Ark of the Testimony is brought within the veil into the Holy of Holies, and in the parallel the mercy-seat is put on the Ark of the Testimony in the Holy of Holies. In a sense central to all (in the passage) is the veil which separates the Holy of Holies from the Holy Place and thus guards the Ark but gives access to the lampstand and the table of showbread.
“And you shall rear up the Dwelling-place in accordance with its pattern which has been shown you in the Mount, and you shall make a veil of bluey violet, and purpley red, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, it shall be made with cherubim, the work of a skilful workman. And you shall hang it on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, their hooks of gold, on four sockets of silver. And you shall hang up the veil under the clasps, and shall bring within there, within the veil, the Ark of the Testimony, and the veil shall divide for you between the holy place and the most holy.”
When the Dwelling place was raised up in accordance with the pattern shown to Moses in the mount, the Holy Place was to be separated from the Most Holy by this veil. This was to be made of multicoloured cloth and fine linen and was to hang down from the top of the hooks on the four pillars. The four pillars would be in sockets of silver. It separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place (Holy of Holies). Within the Most Holy Place were set the Ark of the Covenant of Yahweh called here the Ark of the Testimony because it contained the Covenant tablets, and it testified to that covenant. It may also have contained the ancient covenant tablets from which the narrative of Genesis was obtained. It was the most sacred of all the furniture in the Tabernacle, and was seen as the place from where God dispensed justice and mercy.
The veil acted as a barrier between it and man, through which no man might pass, apart from ‘the Priest' (the High Priest) once a year under special restrictions. The cherubim designed on it were a reminder of the cherubim who guarded the way to the tree of life and would not allow man to approach it. They signified the extreme holiness of the Most Holy Place, that a man could go so far and no further in his approach to God.
In the Temple, doors separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place, but the veil was hung over the doors so as to continue to fulfil its purpose. It was this veil that was torn in two at the time of the crucifixion of Christ. For Him there could be no veil to hide Him from the Father and He entered directly into His presence. And it symbolically opened the way of access spiritually into God's presence for all who came through Him (Hebrews 10:20; Matthew 27:50-51; Mark 15:37-38; Luke 23:45-46). But in the end that rending of the veil is also the declaration that one day we shall enjoy the glory of His presence in its fullness (Revelation 21:23-24; Revelation 22:5).
“And you shall put the mercy seat on the Ark of the Testimony in the Most Holy Place.”
Thus while the Ark contained within it the Testimony (the ten words), the covenant and all the moral requirements demanded by a holy God that revealed the sinfulness and failure of man, above them was the place of propitiation, the mercy seat, where propitiation and atonement could be found. In the midst of judgment there was always mercy through the shedding of blood. It was the place where men's sins were finally done away.
We might suggest that the Mercy-seat represented the opening words of the covenant, ‘I am Yahweh your God Who delivered you out of the land of Egypt, the house of bondage', and the chest the commands which followed required by their Overlord.
“And you shall set the table outside the veil, and the lampstand opposite the table on the south, and you will put the table on the north side.”
The table and lampstand were set in the Holy Place, the table to the north side and the lampstand opposite it on the south side. Thus as a priest entered the Holy Place through the entrance from outside he saw ahead of him the table on the left and the lampstand on the right. The fact that they were outside the veil confirms further that there was no thought of Yahweh eating the bread. It was their provision, not His requirement, and they partook of it themselves through their priests. It was a sign of God's provision for them, not for Himself.
“And you shall make a screen for the door of the Tent, of bluey-violet and purpley-red and scarlet and fine twined linen, the work of the embroiderer. And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia and overlay them with gold. Their hooks shall be of gold, and you shall cast five sockets of brass for them.”
The way in and out of the Holy Place from the courtyard outside was to be covered by a screen of multicoloured cloth and fine linen, hung on five pillars. This suggests that it was wider than the inner veil, (with its four pillars), and extended at each side of the entrance. It prevented access by the unauthorised and those not duly sanctified. The gradation of entry emphasised that the nearer men came to God the more holy the ground, and the more thorough the preparation needed for the approach, and that between man and God there was a great gulf that could only be dealt with by atonement and cleansing.
Note that there were no cherubim on this curtain. Their representation was only allowed within the Sanctuary, for they spoke of the heavenly. Such representations must not be seen by ordinary people for they could result in wrong ideas.
The outer screen had sockets of brazen copper to hold the golden pillars. It was where the more holy ground came in contact with the even less holy ground. It should be noted that gold never touches the ground, (apart from the furniture in the holy Sanctuary) and that even within the Sanctuary, when contact with the ground is made by the pillars it is by silver sockets. The ground is more holy where they are but not most holy, for there the more holy connects with the less holy.
Notes for Christians.
Here in this picture of the construction of the Dwellingplace we have a symbol of how sinful men can through Christ become the temple of the living God by the indwelling of the Spirit, and what it means. There were differing qualities of cloth within and without the Dwellingplace. Outwardly we portray the Porpoise skins and the goatskins, for we are rough hewn and have to be tough to face the world. But that roughness and toughness, if right, comes from the inner harmony and beauty, the blue cloth which symbolises heaven in our hearts, the purple which reminds us that we are a royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9), the red which reminds us that we are constantly cleansed by the blood of Jesus (1 John 1:7), the pure linen cloth which is indicative of the righteousnesses of His people (Revelation 19:8). And the intricate details are a reminder of God's perfect work within us as He ‘fitly frames us together' (Ephesians 2:21) in order to make us a suitable dwellingplace. The very detail of the description is a reminder of the care with which He goes about His work. Bezalel is a novice in comparison. God's frames support us, His pegs hold us secure, His loops and clasps hold us together. And not one is unimportant. We may see His pegs as faith, hope and love, His loops and clasps as the intricacies of His word which speak to every need, and His frames as the great promises in which we trust. For all is His provision. But in the end it speaks of all that He provides for our spiritual growth.
Alternatively these different parts of the Dwellingplace may be seen as representing the part played by different Christians in the whole united ‘temple of God' consisting of His people, each having a part to play, some larger, some smaller, but all essential to the whole.
And the veil reminds us of the sin that prevents men's access, but for us it has been torn asunder by our great High priest and sacrifice, so that through Him we can enter humbly but joyously within the veil (Hebrews 10:19 ff), ever aware of the glory of the One Who awaits us there.
End of note.