Monday of Lent 1 - Tabernacle and Temple
Read: Exodus 40:18-38 (If you have time, I Kings 8:1-16)
Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the LORDfilled the tabernacle. (Ex. 40:34)
There He is, drawing nearer.
The Lord led His people through the wilderness in that glorious pillar of
cloud. They could point to the Lord, hidden there, but the Lord drew nearer.
He commanded that the Israelites build a tabernacle—a tent of meeting, and He
gave them exact specifications that take up the last six chapters of Exodus. God
was so exacting for a reason: the tabernacle of meeting was not a place for
people to meet one another, but a place for man to meet God. This tabernacle
would be the Lord's house on earth. Thus, when the tabernacle was completed,
the glory of the Lord filled the tent because the Lord was moving in. His
chamber was called the Holy of Holies (or Most Holy Place), and His throne
was the mercy seat on top of the Ark of the Covenant. If you have time, take a
moment and see how the book of Exodus ends: the people are still in the
wilderness, but with the comfort that the Lord is very present with them
throughout the journey (Ex. 40:36-38). How do they know? Because they can
see His home, overshadowed by His glory: there He is, tenting with them in the
middle of the camp.
Later on, when the Promised Land is conquered, there's no need for a
movable tabernacle anymore, and King Solomon has the privilege of building a
stationary temple. The detail is incredible, once again because this is to be
God's dwelling place on earth. What happens when the temple is dedicated and
the Ark of the Covenant—the Lord's throne—is set in place? The cloud appears
and fills the temple (I Kgs. 8:10) as the Lord takes up His residence in
Jerusalem. There He is.
Consistently throughout the Old Testament, the Lord remains present with
His people so that they can point to where He is. They cannot see His glory, but
they know that He is there. The Lord is not an absent God, far away and hoping
for the people to seek Him out; rather, He remains near to His people so that
they might hear His Word and be sure of His mercy.
We'll get to the birth of Christ in a few days; but to whet your appetite and
show the connection, here's John 1:14: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt
among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the
Father, full of grace and truth.” Among other great news in this verse, the
word “dwelt” in Greek literally means “tented” or “tabernacled.” The Lord,
who was near to His people in the tabernacle of the Old Testament, drew even
nearer by “tenting” with them in human flesh. Why? To be their Savior, full of
grace and truth.
That Savior is your Savior, and He does not remain far from you today. The
Word who became flesh still visits you by His Word today, still washes you in
Baptism and feeds you His body and blood in His Supper. Until heaven, you
are in the wilderness; but you can point to these means of grace and say, “I am
not forsaken. The Lord is with me, and there He is.”
www.scholia.netPastor Tim Pauls
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Boise, Idaho