King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Friday, February 07, 2025
Chapters: Exodus 25-27
Message: Exodus: The Tabernacle
Hello My Friend,
As we continue in the reading of Exodus we learn that God wants to fellowship with His people and gives specific details concerning the dwelling place in which He will abide so that we can. Since His dwelling place today is within the souls of those who receive His Son as their Saviour, we can be sure that He has specific instructions for them as well.[1 Corinthians 3:16-17 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.]
A while back we learned that God had instructed the Israelites to borrow items from the Egyptians before they left Egypt and today we are going to learn why. Now, Moses is up on the top of Mount Sinai, God gives his instructions for a sanctuary that He wanted not only be used for providing spiritual services but would be actually living there through His Spirit.
[Exodus 25:1-9 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering. 3 And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass, 4 And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, 5 And rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, and shittim wood, 6 Oil for the light, spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense, 7 Onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate. 8 And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. 9 According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.]
Now, we all know that God cannot contain Himself in a tent because He is everywhere, but that does not mean that He does not like to find Himself a cozy spot to rest in. Of course, this would be the third person of the Trinity of God, His Spirit and today His cozy spot is the souls of every saved born again Christian, [John 3:6-8 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. 8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.]
We do need to understand that the Holy Spirit was here prior to Christ sending Him in the form of the Comforter, but His permanent dwelling was not in the souls of man until after Christ’s passion. In this case, God was about to send His Spirit to dwell in the Tabernacle and even then He did not stay there the entire time, which He will explain later on. Now, within the Tabernacle would be an altar, tables, chairs, lamps, all the things you would find in a sanctuary, but this one would hold something very dear to God, what is called the Ark of the Covenant, and would actually be in the cozy little where the Spirit would dwell when He is there, known as the Holy Place. God, gives instructions on how they were to construct the Ark.
[Exodus 25:10-13,16 And they shall make an ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. 11 And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, within and without shalt thou overlay it, and shalt make upon it a crown of gold round about. 12 And thou shalt cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in the four corners thereof; and two rings shall be in the one side of it, and two rings in the other side of it. 13 And thou shalt make staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold. 16 And thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee.]
God wants Moses to understand that He was the one be giving him the Ark of the Testimony, this would be the two tablets of stone that had the Ten Commandments written on it. The Ark was designed to be transported so they could get up and leave at the will of God, it will also be where God would actually sit above it on what He called the mercy seat.
[Exodus 25:17-18,21-22 And thou shalt make a mercy seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof. 18 And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy seat. 21 And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee. 22 And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.]
The mercy seat of God, it is fitting that He would call the place He would sit a place of mercy. The cherubs were no ordinary angels, these were the guards of the mercy seat and no one, even if it were possible for them to get pass the veil, could get to the mercy seat and live to tell about it. However, God never denies anyone the opportunity to come to His mercy seat, those who come to Him through Christ can stand before Him and live, [Hebrews 4:14-16 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.]
Is it not awesome that God sits upon the mercy seat still today and meets with us there each and every time we come to Him? Believe it or not God enjoys talking with us and fellowship with us as well. The next item that God gives Moses the instructions on is the table of show bread.
[Exodus 25:23-25,29-30 Thou shalt also make a table of shittim wood: two cubits shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. 24 And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, and make thereto a crown of gold round about. 25 And thou shalt make unto it a border of an hand breadth round about, and thou shalt make a golden crown to the border thereof round about. 29 And thou shalt make the dishes thereof, and spoons thereof, and covers thereof, and bowls thereof, to cover withal: of pure gold shalt thou make them. 30 And thou shalt set upon the table shewbread before me alway.]
This was to be in the same place as the Ark and mercy seat, only with the veil separating them between the holy and most holy place. This is where the priests would place the twelve pieces of bread, and would commune with God, and actually eat with Him there. Jesus invites all to come and dine with Him, [Revelation 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.]
Notice that the furniture was overlaid in pure gold but everything else was made of pure gold. This was mainly done to protect the wood and preserve the items. The next item would become known as the menorah, but God called it golden lamp stand or candlestick.
[Exodus 25:31-32, 37-40 And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold: of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: his shaft, and his branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be of the same. 32 And six branches shall come out of the sides of it; three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three branches of the candlestick out of the other side: 37 And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it. 38 And the tongs thereof, and the snuffdishes thereof, shall be of pure gold. 39 Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels. 40 And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.]
The knops and branches coming off of what we could call the vine of the candlestick are one of the same. There were seven to be exact, which is the number of completion. Once we accept Jesus as our Saviour, He completes us we are one in the same, He is the Vine and we are the branches, [John 15:5-6 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. 6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.]
Notice that God gives every detail on what was to be made and how it was to be made, down to the very rings that would be on the corners. These by the way are what was used to carry these heavy items as boards would be placed through them so that they can transport them easier. God is that detailed about us as well, the second we are conceived in our mothers belly we are fashioned just as He created us to be, [Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.]
First, God have the instructions on what would be inside the Tabernacle, and now He goes on to give the instructions for the tabernacle itself, [Exodus 26:1,4-6 Moreover thou shalt make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet: with cherubims of cunning work shalt thou make them. 4 And thou shalt make loops of blue upon the edge of the one curtain from the selvedge in the coupling; and likewise shalt thou make in the uttermost edge of another curtain, in the coupling of the second. 5 Fifty loops shalt thou make in the one curtain, and fifty loops shalt thou make in the edge of the curtain that is in the coupling of the second; that the loops may take hold one of another. 6 And thou shalt make fifty taches of gold, and couple the curtains together with the taches: and it shall be one tabernacle.]
Both the curtains on the outside as well as the curtains on the inside were fashioned together to become one tabernacle, that is exactly what Jesus does with every soul He saves. Even down to the very last tack, each and every soul that receives Him as their Saviour are the body of Christ, [1 Corinthians 12:12-13 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.]
As God is giving the instructions on the Tabernacle itself, He makes a point to let him know that He knows there will be an overhang, and even goes into great detail about what he was to do with that, [Exodus 26:10-13 And thou shalt make fifty loops on the edge of the one curtain that is outmost in the coupling, and fifty loops in the edge of the curtain which coupleth the second. 11 And thou shalt make fifty taches of brass, and put the taches into the loops, and couple the tent together, that it may be one. 12 And the remnant that remaineth of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remaineth, shall hang over the backside of the tabernacle. 13 And a cubit on the one side, and a cubit on the other side of that which remaineth in the length of the curtains of the tent, it shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle on this side and on that side, to cover it.]
The overhang reminds me that it does not matter who we are, if we have sincerely received Christ as our Saviour we are still a part of the body of Christ and in fact the more feeble the more usable we are to Him, [1 Corinthians 12:22-25 Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: 23 And those members of the body, which we think to be less honourable, upon these we bestow more abundant honour; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. 24 For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked: 25 That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.]
As we walk with Jesus, we become more like Him and what we think are infirmities or weaknesses are what God will use as our greatest strengths as we allow Him to mold us according to His pattern. Now, keep in mind that while we are all one that does not mean that He has the same path, each one of us serves a specific purpose. Likewise, every piece of the Tabernacle was necessary in order for it to do its duty for God. He goes on to give the instructions for the veil that would be used to separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place.
[Exodus 26:31-35 And thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made: 32 And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold: their hooks shall be of gold, upon the four sockets of silver. 33 And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy. 34 And thou shalt put the mercy seat upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place. 35 And thou shalt set the table without the vail, and the candlestick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south: and thou shalt put the table on the north side.]
While they could go into the holy of hollies to commune with Him and eat with Him they were not able to go beyond the veil, if they did, they would die. Why? They did not have permanent atonement like we have today. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, they would have a special ceremony in which they would sprinkle some blood where God rested, but they could only wave their arm back there.
[Leviticus 16:2,15 And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. 15 Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat:]
There will be more on this in the next chapter, the point of this is to show that no one could get to God directly until Jesus gave His life on the cross. In fact, the day that Jesus died on the cross the veil was ripped in half, and the rip came from the top down signifying that God Himself has removed the veil and we can now come directly to Him through His Son.
[Hebrews 9:8-11 The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing: 9 Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; 10 Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation. 11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;]
[Reformation; The act of reforming; correction or amendment of life, manners, or of any thing vicious or corrupt.] I love that word because it reminds me that Jesus has made an amendment for me with His very own blood. Without a blood sacrifice there is no atonement, and it cannot be just any blood, and offered anywhere, it was imperative that Christ be the sinless offering, and on the cross. Just as there would be a specific place for the people to make an atonement outside of the Tabernacle. Next God gave instructions for what was to be on the outside of the Tabernacle, beginning with the Bronze (brazen) Altar.
[Exodus 27:1-4 And thou shalt make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits. 2 And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: his horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass. 3 And thou shalt make his pans to receive his ashes, and his shovels, and his basons, and his fleshhooks, and his firepans: all the vessels thereof thou shalt make of brass. 4 And thou shalt make for it a grate of network of brass; and upon the net shalt thou make four brasen rings in the four corners thereof.]
Do you see what the Bronze Altar resembles today? A BBQ grill, a rather large one but it still had the features of what would used to cook the meat. However this was no where close to being a BBQ grill, this was a very special pit that would be used for the people to reconcile with God. There is truly only one sacrifice capable of reconciling us permanently with God and that is Christ’s blood, [Colossians 1:19-21 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; 20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. 21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled] Amen!
Why brass? It would be able to withstand the high heat unlike gold. The Bronze Altar was placed in the court before the holy place, it was there for the people to bring their offerings to God. When we come to the altar of God, it is Jesus who hold us up, and He truly is there to not only hear us, but clean us from the guilt of every care that we bear. Now, God gives instructions for the Court of the Tabernacle.
[Exodus 27:9-12 And thou shalt make the court of the tabernacle: for the south side southward there shall be hangings for the court of fine twined linen of an hundred cubits long for one side: 10 And the twenty pillars thereof and their twenty sockets shall be of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. 11 And likewise for the north side in length there shall be hangings of an hundred cubits long, and his twenty pillars and their twenty sockets of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of silver. 12 And for the breadth of the court on the west side shall be hangings of fifty cubits: their pillars ten, and their sockets ten.]
Within this enclosure the priests and Levites offered the sacrifices for the people, these distinctions represented the difference between the visible church, and the true spiritual church, which alone has access to God, and communion with Him twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Finally, God gives instructions for the oil that would be placed in the lamps to keep the Tabernacle lit.
[Exodus 27:19-21 All the vessels of the tabernacle in all the service thereof, and all the pins thereof, and all the pins of the court, shall be of brass. 20 And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always. 21 In the tabernacle of the congregation without the vail, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the LORD: it shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.]
Pure olive oil was to be burned before God daily, it was never to go out. If it were not for the light burning, the Tabernacle would be so dark that you would not be able to see in front of your face. The lamp was to be burning all day long and is actually a picture of the Holy Spirit that indwells every saved soul, we are His tabernacle until we are brought home.
[2 Corinthians 5:1-5 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: 3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. 4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. 5 Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.]
Jesus Christ Revealed/Magnified: [Exodus 27:20-21 And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamp to burn always. 21 In the tabernacle of the congregation without the vail, which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall order it from evening to morning before the LORD: it shall be a statute for ever unto their generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for sending Your Son, Jesus Christ to become the sacrifice needed that would redeem me of my sins and bring me to know that You are always with me. Thank You also for taking the veil off my heart so that I could see You, it is comforting to know that You indwell in me. Lord, I want to offer myself to You willingly, and be used in anyway that You need me. Lead me and guide me, help me know Your will and follow it so I can shine Your Light upon so many desperately searching for You. And give me Your power to understand and know Your Word so that I can be ready and prepared to handle any situation You place before me. I ask this in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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