92_Christ in the Tabernacle coverings

Ex 26:1-14 “Moreover, you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns; you shall make them with cherubim skillfully worked into them. 2 The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains shall be the same size. 3 Five curtains shall be coupled to one another, and the other five curtains shall be coupled to one another. 4 And you shall make loops of blue on the edge of the outermost curtain in the first set. Likewise you shall make loops on the edge of the outermost curtain in the second set. 5 Fifty loops you shall make on the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite one another. 6 And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains one to the other with the clasps, so that the tabernacle may be a single whole.

7 “You shall also make curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle; eleven curtains shall you make. 8 The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits. The eleven curtains shall be the same size. 9 You shall couple five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves, and the sixth curtain you shall double over at the front of the tent. 10 You shall make fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in the second set.

11 “You shall make fifty clasps of bronze, and put the clasps into the loops, and couple the tent together that it may be a single whole. 12 And the part that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle. 13 And the extra that remains in the length of the curtains, the cubit on the one side, and the cubit on the other side, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle, on this side and that side, to cover it. 14 And you shall make for the tent a covering of tanned rams’ skins and a covering of goatskins on top.

The Tabernacle is a parable, a statement of certain truths in symbolic form. It foreshadows the great facts of our Lord Jesus Christ and of his body the church.

The walls and ceiling of the tabernacle were made of wooden frames holding up four sets of heavy curtains. The description always begins from the inside to the outside. The innermost layer is made of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns. Cherubim were skillfully worked into them. The beautiful embroidery work was visible only on the inside, to those in the holy place.

The fine linen speaks of righteousness in Christ, worked out in us by the Spirit. In Rev 19:8 And to her [the Bride of the Lamb of God] was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. The blue color of heaven reminds us of God. Purple is the royal color. The scarlet was the color of blood, and of the robe which men gave Christ in mockery during his suffering. It speaks of his obedience to death, suffering for sin. In ancient times, the cochineal insect was crushed to extract this colour.

Each of these aspects is represented in the four gospels. John presents Jesus as the son of God, the heavenly blue. John 20:31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. Luke presents him as the son of man, but righteous and holy to God, like the white linen. Mark describes him as the suffering servant, the scarlet thread. Mk 10:45 “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Matthew speaks of him as the king, the royal purple.

There were ten curtains, in two sets of five each, coupled with gold. Here again is the emphasis on oneness, on unity, between Jew and Greek, male and female, bond and free. All are one in the golden clasps of Spirit-oneness. All who are in Christ are one in being redeemed by his blood. All are indwelt by the same Spirit. All are made members of the same body, brought into the same household and made into the dwelling place of God. We all inherit the same glorious future as sons of God. This unity is expressed in love which forbears and edifies.

The next covering is the goat’s hair. This covering is neither seen from the inside or from the outside. These were two cubits longer than the linen curtains and so just reached to the ground on both sides. In the Bible, goats were used as sin offerings. A scapegoat is one of a pair of goat kids, chosen by lot, and taken far into the wilderness to be released there. It symbolically carried away the sins and impurities of the people. The other kid was sacrificed. Christ suffered for us on the cross as a sin offering, and carried away our sins forever.

The third layer used in the tabernacle is ram’s skin dyed red. Abraham saw a ram caught in a thicket when he looked up after hearing the divine command to spare his son Isaac. The ram was then sacrificed in worship. Our Lord gave up his life as a ransom for our sins, so that we could live.

The final layer is the badgers’ skin. It is plain and dull, but it is durable, like the perseverance and patience of faith. This is the only layer seen from the outside. Isaiah prophesied of Christ, God’s servant:

“he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected[b] by men,
a man of sorrows[c] and acquainted with[d] grief;[e] and as one from whom men hide their faces[f] he was despised, and we esteemed him not.”

As God’s dwelling place, these curtains speak to us of our calling and our nature in Christ. As he is, so are we in this world. Our attractions do not lie in beauty, wealth, nobility of birth or of profession, or might. Phil 3:8 declares: “But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord:”

Rather, our glory is hidden in him. It is the treasure hidden in our hearts, that the glory of God is present in the face of Jesus Christ, whose we are for all eternity. Ps 45:13 “The king’s daughter is all glorious within.” Col 1:27 “God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

Our hope is that of our resurrection in righteousness, in the glory of God and in his eternal kingdom. “for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, 9And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: 10That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; 11If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.”

We look forward, through grace, for a crown of righteousness, the crown of life. If we suffer with him, we shall also reign in life with him. Let us be steadfast in faith, living in righteousness, marked with his suffering, and keeping our innermost selves beautiful for him. God bless.