““Make the Tabernacle from ten curtains of finely woven linen. Decorate the curtains with blue, purple, and scarlet thread and with skillfully embroidered cherubim. These ten curtains must all be exactly the same size—42 feet long and 6 feet wide. Join five of these curtains together to make one long curtain, then join the other five into a second long curtain. Put loops of blue yarn along the edge of the last curtain in each set. The fifty loops along the edge of one curtain are to match the fifty loops along the edge of the other curtain. Then make fifty gold clasps and fasten the long curtains together with the clasps. In this way, the Tabernacle will be made of one continuous piece. “Make eleven curtains of goat-hair cloth to serve as a tent covering for the Tabernacle. These eleven curtains must all be exactly the same size—45 feet long and 6 feet wide. Join five of these curtains together to make one long curtain, and join the other six into a second long curtain. Allow 3 feet of material from the second set of curtains to hang over the front of the sacred tent. Make fifty loops for one edge of each large curtain. Then make fifty bronze clasps, and fasten the loops of the long curtains with the clasps. In this way, the tent covering will be made of one continuous piece. The remaining 3 feet of this tent covering will be left to hang over the back of the Tabernacle. Allow 18 inches of remaining material to hang down over each side, so the Tabernacle is completely covered. Complete the tent covering with a protective layer of tanned ram skins and a layer of fine goatskin leather. “For the framework of the Tabernacle, construct frames of acacia wood. Each frame must be 15 feet high and 27 inches wide, with two pegs under each frame. Make all the frames identical. Make twenty of these frames to support the curtains on the south side of the Tabernacle. Also make forty silver bases—two bases under each frame, with the pegs fitting securely into the bases. For the north side of the Tabernacle, make another twenty frames, with their forty silver bases, two bases under each frame. Make six frames for the rear—the west side of the Tabernacle— along with two additional frames to reinforce the rear corners of the Tabernacle. These corner frames will be matched at the bottom and firmly attached at the top with a single ring, forming a single corner unit. Make both of these corner units the same way. So there will be eight frames at the rear of the Tabernacle, set in sixteen silver bases—two bases under each frame. “Make crossbars of acacia wood to link the frames, five crossbars for the north side of the Tabernacle and five for the south side. Also make five crossbars for the rear of the Tabernacle, which will face west. The middle crossbar, attached halfway up the frames, will run all the way from one end of the Tabernacle to the other. Overlay the frames with gold, and make gold rings to hold the crossbars. Overlay the crossbars with gold as well. “Set up this Tabernacle according to the pattern you were shown on the mountain. “For the inside of the Tabernacle, make a special curtain of finely woven linen. Decorate it with blue, purple, and scarlet thread and with skillfully embroidered cherubim. Hang this curtain on gold hooks attached to four posts of acacia wood. Overlay the posts with gold, and set them in four silver bases. Hang the inner curtain from clasps, and put the Ark of the Covenant in the room behind it. This curtain will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place. “Then put the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—on top of the Ark of the Covenant inside the Most Holy Place. Place the table outside the inner curtain on the north side of the Tabernacle, and place the lampstand across the room on the south side. “Make another curtain for the entrance to the sacred tent. Make it of finely woven linen and embroider it with exquisite designs, using blue, purple, and scarlet thread. Craft five posts from acacia wood. Overlay them with gold, and hang the curtain from them with gold hooks. Cast five bronze bases for the posts.”
Exodus 26:1-37 NLT
A basic desire, that God has for man, is a kind of worship. It is participation in his craft. He is fully capable of speaking things into existence and yet he brings men alongside him and gives them instruction instead. The tabernacle was both a place of worship but also a place of ritual cleansing. Until the temple was eventually built, there was nothing so ornate as the tabernacle. Each thing was, as Hebrews notes, a reflection or shadow of something greater about heaven. God’s design wasn’t simply to create an experience where man could be an end user. He wanted man to participate in its foundations. This allowed him to learn about worship and cleansing by the natural process of experience. By man’s own craftsmanship and donorship, he would be a participant in God’s own worship and plan for salvation. In this way, God is not the only artist, the he has the singular and superior vision. Man can become the artist too, if he submits to God’s vision. When he does, he joins with God in crafting a salvation experience that is not disjointed from his own life. It is a salvation that is intimately connected to his trade, his finances and his time. This is much more effective for man’s intimacy with God than creation ex nihilo.
God’s Desire for Man: God desires man’s worship and participation in His craft, not just as an end user but as a co-creator.
Tabernacle as a Symbol: The tabernacle, a place of worship and cleansing, symbolizes God’s desire for man’s participation in His plan for salvation.
Man’s Role in Salvation: Man can become an artist alongside God by submitting to His vision and crafting a salvation experience connected to their life.
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