Beth Elohenu Messianic Congregation
P.O. Box 335761
N. Las Vegas, NV. 89033
Shalom. Our teaching this morning will continue in Torah from Exodus 37.1-9, and further. The Title of our Message is, MORE ON THE TABERNACLE WHERE GOD DWELLS AMONG HIS PEOPLE. So with that said, let’s get started by reading Exodus 37.1-9.
Exodus Chapters 37 through Chapter 40 give an account of The Tabernacle construction, and its furnishings that were contained in The Tabernacle.
Judaism has an interesting thought on The Tabernacle, the Dwelling Place of The Mighty GOD of Jacob, where He Dwells among His people. Exodus 25.8.
The account of The Tabernacle’s construction, they say, ends with the vessels that represent the essence of the Sanctuary’s Teaching. The vessels contained in the Sanctuary symbolize the innermost of human ideals. The Ark of The Covenant contains GOD’s Teachings, Laws, and Instructions. The table for the showbread reflects man’s struggle to sustain his physical being by fighting for his daily bread. And the menorah, the seven branch candelabra reflects man’s obligation to spread the light of Torah, that is The Law of Moses, beyond himself. Meaning the menorah reflects man’s obligation to spread GOD’s Teachings that are written in The Law of Moses to all mankind. Also, the Ark of The Covenant that is in the Holy of Holies that contains GOD’s Laws, radiates its Holiness to the table for the showbread, That man does not live by bread only but by every word that proceeds out of The Mouth of The LORD. Deuteronomy 8.3. And the menorah spreads the light of GOD’s Word to the entire world.
Okay. Back to the Biblical descriptions of the furnishings that were in the Tabernacle.
The Ark of The Covenant contained the two tables of stone with The Ten Commandments written on them by The Finger of GOD. And The Ark also contained GOD’s Book of His Laws that are written in The Law of Moses. The Ark was the only item in the Holy of Holies.
The Ark was 4 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet high. It was made out of acacia wood, also called shittah or shittim wood. And the wood was overlaid with pure gold inside and out. And The Ark had a crown of gold around it. And four rings of gold were set at its four corners to insert two poles of acacia wood, overlaid with gold to carry The Ark during their journeys in the wilderness. The poles were never removed.
The Ark was later placed in the Holy of Holies in the Solomon Temple. But The Ark later disappeared and was not in the second Temple. EXODUS 25.21, EXODUS 32.15-16, EXODUS 40.20, DEUTERONOMY 31.24-26, 1 KINGS 8.1-11, JOHN 5.45.
(JOHN 5.45) Yeshua The Messiah Who is GOD ALMIGHTY said, A person is charged with sin for breaking The Law of Moses, and held accountable to GOD for disobeying Him.
Acacia wood comes from acacia trees. They are found throughout the wilderness of Sinai, and around the Dead Sea. They are thorny trees about 20 feet high, and they grow in dry places with remarkable luxuriance. They are picturesque, and have gnarled trunks. That is, they have a rugged weather-beaten appearance. Sometimes the trunk is two feet in diameter. And the tree has twisted branches. The wood was not only suitable for use in The Tabernacle, but also easy to obtain. The wood is hard and heavy, almost indestructible from insects. And the wood has a fine close grain, orange in color, and finishes beautifully.
Back to The Ark of The Covenant. The mercy seat, the cover of The Ark, and the two cherubim on top of the mercy seat were made out of one piece of pure gold. And the cherubim spread their wings shielding the mercy seat.
The table for the showbread was also made of acacia wood, overlaid with pure gold. It was 3 1/2 feet long, 1 3/4 feet wide, and 2 1/2 feet high. And a crown of gold was around the top. And like The Ark, the table had four gold rings at its corners for two poles of acacia wood, overlaid with gold to carry it.
The menorah, the seven branch candelabra, was made of pure gold of hammered work. And its tongs and trays were also made of pure gold. The Bible does not give its measurements.
The altar of incense was made of acacia wood overlaid with pure gold. It measured 1 1/2 feet long, 1 1/2 feet wide, and 3 feet high. And it had four horns at its four corners made of acacia wood, overlaid with pure gold. And a crown of gold was around the altar. And like The Ark and the table for the showbread, it had four rings of gold at its corners for the two poles of acacia wood overlaid with gold to carry it.
The altar for burnt offerings was made of acacia wood, overlaid with brass. It had four horns on its four corners made of acacia wood, overlaid with brass. The altar measured 7 1/2 feet long, 7 1/2 feet wide, and 4 1/2 feet high. And its vessels were made of brass. And it had four rings of brass at its four ends. And two poles made of acacia wood, overlaid with brass to carry it.
The courtyard of The Tabernacle measured approximately 166 feet long, and 83 feet wide. And the hangings around the courtyard were made of fine twined linen.
The holy garments worn by the High Priest and his sons the Priests were of blue, purple, and scarlet for service in The Tabernacle. The apron-like ephod was made of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen. And the breastplate worn by the High Priest was made in the style of the ephod, of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen.
The stones on the breastplate that was worn by the High Priest were set in gold in four rows of three. In the first row was a sardius stone of deep orange, or red. And a topaz which is brownish yellow of clear crystal. And a carbuncle, a red gemstone.
In the second row was an emerald of transparent brilliant green. And a sapphire of transparent dark blue. And a diamond.
The third row had a ligure of gold, orange, or turquoise and opal. And an agate of red jasper, translucent of varied colors. And an amethyst of clear purple.
And the fourth row had a beryl stone, green, or light blue, golden and yellow in color. And an onyx stone, an agate of various colors of red and white, brown and white, or black and white. And a jasper stone of brightly colored shades of brown, yellow, red or green.
And the stones had the names of the twelve tribes of Israel engraved in them according to their birth.
The robes and coats that the Priests wore were made of fine linen. Their mitre was of fine linen of woven work. They wore linen breeches, and a belt made of fine linen of blue, purple, and scarlet needlework. The High Priest wore a holy crown on his head, and engraved on it was, HOLINESS TO THE LORD.
So The Tabernacle was finished. And the Children of Israel did according to all that The LORD commanded Moses. Everything was made exactly as GOD had commanded. The Tabernacle was completed according to the vision of The Tabernacle that GOD showed Moses while he was with The LORD forty days, and forty nights on Mt. Sinai. EXODUS 25.8-9
EXODUS 40.1-4 VERSE 3 Screen off The Ark with the veil.
VERSE 4 Twelve loaves of bread, in Hebrew Khah’lote or challahs, were set before The LORD on the table for the showbread always. They were set in two rows of six. Every Sabbath day they were set before The LORD continually by an everlasting Covenant. And the High Priest, and his sons ate the bread in the Sanctuary, for it was most Holy to the High Priest because it was an offering to The LORD made by fire by a perpetual Statute. And spread on the table was a cloth of blue, and the dishes, spoons, and bowls, and jars along with the twelve loaves of bread were set on it. EXODUS 25.30, LEVITICUS 24.5-9, NUMBERS 4.7, 1 SAMUEL 21.1-6
EXODUS 40.5-7 Let’s look at EXODUS 38.8 that speaks of the laver.
EXODUS 38.8 The laver was a large basin filled with water that was placed in the courtyard of The Tabernacle where the Kohanim, the Jewish Priests, were required by GOD to wash their hands and their feet before ministering in the Sanctuary, or approaching the altar of burnt offerings to perform the sacrifices. The laver was made entirely of copper mirrors that had been used by the women. Those copper mirrors were brightly polished sheets of copper. When the call went out for contributions for The Tabernacle, the women came with their copper mirrors and much of their precious jewelry and gems.
The laver in The Tabernacle courtyard is the origin of mikvah immersion, and baptism.
EXODUS 40.8-32 Moses, Aaron, and his sons washed their hands and their feet whenever they went into the Sanctuary. Which leads me to believe that every time Moses went into the Sanctuary, and into the Holy of Holies to meet with GOD to receive GOD’s Laws, Moses washed at the laver. EXODUS 25.21-22
GOD dictated His entire Law to Moses in The Tabernacle over a space of forty years. GOD is The GOD of all flesh. And His Laws that are written in The Law of Moses are for all mankind.
Do not let anyone teach you rebellion against The LORD by telling you that you are not required to obey The Law of Moses, or it’s no longer in effect, or it’s dead, or it’s optional, or pray about obeying The Law, or The Law is only for the Jews. Disobeying GOD’s Laws that are written in The Law of Moses is rebellion against GOD. And rebellion against GOD leads to great troubles. As Yeshua The Messiah Who is GOD Almighty said, A person is charged with sin for breaking The Law of Moses, and held accountable to GOD for disobeying Him. John 5.45, Matthew 7.23
EXODUS 40.33-38 There’s a great lesson to be learned here because GOD Himself is The Glory of The LORD. GOD is that Cloud that covered the Tent of the Congregation. And GOD is the Fire that was on The Tabernacle by night in the sight of all the House of Israel throughout all their journeys in the wilderness.
GOD is The GOD of Israel. He is Elohim. The ONE GOD Who said, “Let us make man in our image after our likeness”. Genesis 1.26. GOD is not speaking to angels. He is speaking of Himself. GOD fills Heaven and earth with His Spirit. Jeremiah 23.24. GOD appears visually in many different appearances such as The LORD, The Son, Who is The Messiah Yeshua, The Angel of GOD, the Fire in the bush that did not burn. The Cloud, The Glory of GOD and so much more. That is GOD, Elohim.
And GOD is with us in invisible appearances, such as The Spirit of GOD, and The Holy Spirit. GOD is an “US” as when He said, Let US make man in OUR Image. He is an “OUR” as when GOD said, Let US make man in OUR Image after OUR Likeness. Yet GOD is ONE, and there is no other GOD but Him. The ONE GOD of Creation Whom we serve is The LORD GOD ALMIGHTY. He is The Messiah Yeshua Who gives us His Holy Spirit when we obey every Word He speaks, and that includes The Law of Moses. John 14.23, Acts 5.32
Shalom, Ira Weinstein
www.bethelohenu.org
bethelohenu@gmail.com