6.3 An Outline of Design
© 2016 Christ Revealed Bible Institute
In this lesson, I want to create a simple categorization of order. First, we will set the order by which God gave the design to Moses. In that setting forth, we will tie the parts of the Tabernacle with the key New Testament verses or concepts of which they speak. Then, we will set the order by which Moses set up the Tabernacle the first time, just before the second Passover in the history of Israel. It is this second order we are following, walking with God out from the Holiest into all the concourses of His creation. The first layout is from Exodus 25 to 31. The second layout is from Exodus 40, verses 17-35.
Beginning with the Ark. God begins with directions for the giving of offerings followed immediately by the Ark of the Covenant. And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it (Exodus 25:8-9).
1. The Ark of the Covenant – and they shall make an ark of acacia wood… And you shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and out (Exodus 25:10). The Ark represents, in the New Testament, first the Lord Jesus, the word became flesh, and then us, clearly, you are an epistle of Christ. – Human flesh, hearts of flesh, covered on the inside and outside with God.
Mercy Seat and Bread of Life
2. The Mercy Seat. You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold (Exodus 25:17). He Himself is the propitiation (Mercy Seat) for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole cosmos (1 John 2:2). Yet again, this Mercy Seat is not confined to Jesus, but includes us – having our hearts sprinkled. The Blood makes our hearts this same Mercy Seat.
3. The Table of Showbread. You shall also make a table of acacia wood… And you shall overlay it with pure gold… And you shall set the showbread on the table before Me always (Exodus 25:23-30). I am the bread of life (John 6:48). We become what we eat, as we eat of Christ, so we also become this same bread, together.
Lampstand and Tabernacle
4. The Gold Lampstand. You shall also make a lampstand of pure gold; the lampstand shall be of hammered work – of one piece (Exodus 25:31). All gold used in the tabernacle was hammered into shape – the ekenosen, Philippians 2:6-8. The Light of the Lampstand is the anointing of the Holy Spirit by which we are led into all truth.
5. The Tabernacle. Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine woven linen and blue, purple, and scarlet thread; with artistic designs of cherubim you shall weave them (Exodus 26:1). To God, the Tabernacle is first this linen cloth, the place in which the Ark is kept, the Church of Christ. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints (Revelation 19:8).
The Veil, the Door, and the Altar of Sacrifice
6. The Veil. You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim (Exodus 26:31). The Veil is the flesh of Christ (Hebrews 10:20) now become our flesh (Ephesians 5:30-31).
7. The Door. You shall make a screen for the door of the tabernacle, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen (Exodus 26:36). We shall see this door again in the daily offerings.
8. The Altar of Burnt Offering. You shall make an altar of acacia wood… And you shall overlay it with bronze (Exodus 27:1-2). This is the sacrifice of Christ upon the cross, and we upon Him.
The Outer Court, the Gate, and Pure Oil
9. The Outer Court. You shall also make the court of the tabernacle (Exodus 27:9). The court is the first part of knowing God, a knowing that is mostly outward, under the light of the natural mind, focused on sins and their forgiveness, knowing only something done for us.
10. The Gate. For the gate of the court there shall be a screen twenty cubits long, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen (Exodus 27:16). This is the first entrance into Christ – you must be born again (John 3:3).
11. Pure Oil for the Lampstand. Command the children of Israel that they bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to cause the lamp to burn continually (Exodus 27:20).
Garments for the Priests
12. Garments for the Priesthood. And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty (Exodus 28:2). And we beheld His glory, full of grace and truth. - But we all… beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image (2 Corinthians 3:18). Put on the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 13:14).
13. The Ephod, Breastplate, and Other Priestly Garments. You shall make the breastplate of judgment (Exodus 28:15). Read through pages 68-69 in the Rose Guide for a description of the garments of the High Priest and specifically the Breastplate with the jewels representing the twelve tribes upon it. All these things speak of Jesus and of Jesus through us.
Consecration and the Face of God
14. Aaron and His Sons Consecrated. Seven days you shall consecrate them. – Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar and sanctify it. And the altar shall be most holy. Whatever touches the altar must be holy (Exodus 29:35 & 37). God is dividing between the two creations right from the start. We are made holy by the confession of the New Creation, by speaking the same words of Christ.
15. The Daily Offerings. This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before (in the face of) the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you (Exodus 29:42). This daily offering, the evening and morning lambs, allows God to look into the outer court to meet Face to face with those who live only there. Yet God remains as the Door of the Holy Place.
Altar of Incense, Ransom Money, and the Laver
16. The Altar of Incense. You shall make an altar to burn incense on; you shall make it of acacia wood (Exodus 30:1). Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of Christ (2 Corinthians 2:14-15a).
17. The Ransom Money. Every man shall give a ransom for himself to the Lord (Exodus 30:12). Our story for His Story, soul for Soul and life for Life.
18. The Bronze Laver. You shall also make a laver of bronze, with its base also of bronze, for washing (Exodus 30:18). That He might sanctify and cleanse her by the washing of water by the word (Ephesians 5:26).
The Anointing Oil and Incense
19. The Holy Anointing Oil. And you shall make from these a holy anointing oil (Exodus 30:25). But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things (1 John 2:20). We are the ones made holy by the anointing oil.
20. The Incense. You shall make of these an incense… pure, and holy (Exodus 30:35). Yes, this is prayer, but we must define prayer anew as it exists out from the Holy of Holies.
21. Artisans for Building the Tabernacle. I have called by name… And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship (Exodus 31:2-3).
According to the Pattern. See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain (Hebrews 8:5b).
Writing out the design of the Tabernacle in the order given to Moses gives us a perspective I have not had before. God placed the separation between the two creations as the requirement for His own entrance into this Tabernacle. God lives only in and as the New Creation. Those coming into Christ out from the old, must be willing to leave the old entirely behind.
Look again at the strong face of the Tabernacle on page 29. Exodus 29:42 tells us that is the Face of God towards all those in the outer court, a Face beckoning them further into the knowledge of God, but only if they will leave the old behind.
Another Arrangement. Indeed, the three entrances, each of the same material, but each leading into ever deeper levels of the knowledge of God, figure most prominently in this layout, with the Veil described first and the Gate last. And each screen is enduo – sink utterly into the Lord Jesus Christ.
Yet we can also see that this order is not the same as the one we will follow in our path with God out from the Holiest. Thus we must look at a different arrangement, the order of assembly taking place on the 1st day of the 1st month, one year after the exodus from Egypt, the time of the second Passover. This is the day God’s Pro-Thesis first appeared among humans.
The Holy of Holies First. And it came to pass in the first month of the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was raised up (Exodus 40:17).
1. The Boards of the Tabernacle. So Moses raised up the tabernacle, fastened its sockets, set up its boards, put in its bars, and raised up its pillars (Exodus 40:18). The pillars are in the front of the walls, but it is still open, the screen has not yet been installed. Everyone can now see to the back of the walls, to the Holy of Holies.
2. The Covering over the Tabernacle. And he spread out the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent on top of it (Exodus 40:19). The place for the Ark is prepared first.
The Ark, the Veil, and the Table of Showbread
3. The Ark Prepared. He took the Testimony and put it into the ark, inserted the poles through the rings of the ark, and put the mercy seat on top of the ark (Exodus 40:20). All Israel has a front row seat watching these things take place.
4. The Ark Placed. And he brought the ark into the tabernacle… (Exodus 40:21).
5. The Veil Hung. …hung up the veil of the covering, and partitioned off the Ark of the Covenant (Exodus 40:21). And now the Ark in the Holiest vanishes from view, yet all Israel saw it in its glory as it was being placed.
6. The Table and Its Bread. He put the table in the tabernacle of meeting… and he set the bread in order upon it before the Lord (Exodus 40:22-23).
The Lampstand and the Altar of Incense
7. The Lampstand Placed and Lit. He put the lampstand in the tabernacle of meeting, across from the table… and he lit the lamps before the Lord (Exodus 40:24-25). All Israel sees the lighting of the lamps.
8. The Altar of Incense Placed and Incense First Burned. He put the gold altar in the tabernacle of meeting in front of the veil; and he burned sweet incense on it (Exodus 40:26-27). All Israel sees the burning of the incense.
We see this order as counter-intuitive regarding our path out from the Holiest. Yet this is the order in which we will place these things: brethren, the Church of Christ, together as Bread, first, together as Light, second, and together as Incense, third.
The Door and the Altar of Burnt Offering
9. The Door. He hung up the screen at the door of the tabernacle (Exodus 40:28). The view into the Holy Place is cut off, yet the people of Israel have seen all that was placed in it. More than that, this Door is now cemented in their minds as the Face of God to them. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6).
10. The Altar of Burnt Offering and Its Sacrifices. And he put the altar of burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and offered upon it the burnt offering and the grain offering (Exodus 40:29).
The Laver and the Outer Court. And so we see that God does place the sacrifice of Jesus before His face in the sight of all people. Yet that face is you and me.
11. The Laver of Washing and Water. He set the laver between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar, and put water there for washing… they washed (Exodus 40:30-32). This is interesting, for in every placement of each item into its place, the function of that item was performed in the sight of all Israel. Action is a critical part of the Covenant.
12. The Outer Court. And he raised up the court all around the tabernacle and the altar (Exodus 40:33). The outer court is blocked off except from those just in front of the Gate.
The Gate and the Glory
13. The Gate and Rest. And hung up the screen of the court gate. So Moses finished the work (Exodus 40:33). Now the knowledge of God can be entered only by the first action of putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, that is, accepting Him as Savior, as the Way into the knowledge of God.
14. The Cloud and Glory. Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. – For the cloud of the Lord was above the tabernacle by day, and fire was over it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys (Exodus 40:34 & 38). God inhabits His dwelling place.
Our Journey. And so we will begin with the Holy of Holies in place to receive the Ark of the Covenant. Yet we will also assume this last action of God filling His now completed house as the beginning of our journey. Thus we will know the Holiest only by the Pillar of Cloud and Fire resting upon it. Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would go onward in all their journeys. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not journey till the day that it was taken up (Exodus 40: 36-37).
We journey together with God revealing Himself as He is to all of His creation – that all might know Me.