06-Exodus 23-40
Jan. 31, 2009
This week begins with Chapter 23. This is a continuation of the last group of laws from last week, laws concerning civil and religious obligations. The Bible now turns to laws concerning the observation of the Sabbath. One point brought out in the text is that the Lord has also instituted a Sabbath year in the planting of crops by the farmers of Israel. Crops were to be planted for six years, and then the fields were to be kept fallow for the seventh year to rest the land. The Lord would cause the fields to yield enough food for the Sabbath year during the sixth year of harvest. The next area the Lord speaks to Moses about is that the men of Israel must appear before the Lord, with their offerings, during the three main feasts to the Lord. These three feasts are: 1. The Feast of Unleavened Bread (includes the Passover) 2. The Feast of Harvest (Pentecost) 3. The Feast of Ingathering (Booths or Tabernacles) The last of the laws the Lord gives to Moses at this time were the laws concerning conquest. This is the first time God reveals His plan for His people to possess the land of Canaan. God said that He would go before His people and confuse their enemies and would utterly destroy them. God knew that if any of the inhabitants of the land were left alive to co-exist with His people Israel that they would corrupt them and turn them away from Him.
Moses came down from the mountain and told the people all that the Lord had told him. The people of Israel agreed in one voice to do all that the Lord had commanded them to do. They went to the Lord to offer sacrifice and to ratify the covenant before the Lord. Moses then opened the Book of the Law and read it to the people. The Lord then revealed His Glory to the people and had Moses come back up the mountain to receive the stone tablets of the Law from God. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights. In Chapter 25 while on the mountain the Lord gave Moses the plans for a dwelling place for Him on Earth. The plans were for a movable tent called the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle would travel with Israel as they went on their journey through the wilderness. The materials and furniture that made up the Tabernacle were very specific and held a deeper meaning than just what was obvious. The Lord told Moses to take up a freewill offering from the people to purchase the materials for the Tabernacle. God only wanted what was given freely from the heart of his people to finance His home on Earth. We will now look at the furniture of the Tabernacle. The Ark of the Covenant was to be made of acacia wood, and covered in pure gold. The lid of the ark was called the mercy seat, and was where the Lord would rest when in the Tabernacle. The mercy seat was also to be covered in pure gold with the statues of two cherubim facing each other on top. The choice of the cherubim was significant in that they were the order of angels charged with guarding the holiness of God and to serve Him at His Throne. The Ark of the Covenant was to be placed into the Holy of Holies inside the Tabernacle, and it was to contain the tablets of the Law and the pot of manna that Moses saved. These things and Aaron’s rod that budded, added later, were placed there for Israel to remember. The next piece of furniture in the Tabernacle was the Table for the Bread of Presence, or Showbread. This table also made from acacia wood, and covered in gold was to hold twelve loaves of unleavened bread placed before the Lord representing the twelve tribes of Israel. The table also had rings built into the sides so that poles could be inserted and the table could then be carried by men. The Table of the Bread of Presence was to be located inside the Tabernacle but outside of the Holy of Holies. Next was the seven branched lampstand. This lampstand was to be made out of one piece of beaten gold. It is believed to have weighed about 90 lbs. This is approximately the weight of a talent in today’s measurements. On January 29, 2009 when this weeks study was written, the price of gold was $905 a troy oz. The cost of the gold alone for the lampstand today would be $1,187,812.50. Not only was the lampstand to be made of pure gold, but also all the utensils that go along with the workings of the lamp. The lamp was to burn only purified olive oil made in the proper way. Curtains were to be made to cover the Tabernacle. Each curtain was to be made from a different material depending on its location in the structure. The Tabernacle was said to not have looked like much from the outside, but was beautiful within. We know today that the Tabernacle is a “type” or representation of Jesus Christ, and like Isaiah 53:2b says “He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.” This is similar to the appearance of the Tabernacle, plain on the outside, but inside pure gold. The boards that made up the sides of the tabernacle were also special. They were made of wood and also overlaid with pure gold. The boards were made with sockets and tenons so that they could be taken apart and put back together. They also could be carried by men when the congregation traveled through the wilderness. The Tabernacle also had a veil that separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the inside of the tent. The veil protected the priests from looking upon God and being killed. Only the High Priest could enter within the veil and offer the blood of the sacrifice of atonement to the Lord on the Day of Atonement once each year. This is the veil that was referred to in Matthew 27:51 which says “And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split.” This happened the moment Jesus died on the cross, giving all who believe in Him the right to say “Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” Hebrews 4:16. It was reported by the Historian Josephus that the veil that was torn in Herod’s Temple in Jerusalem at the time of Christ’s death was four inches in thickness and could not be pulled apart by horses tied to each side of it. The veil was torn from the top to the bottom to show that man did not tear the veil, but God did to give us all access to Him through the sacrifice of His Son. There also were the plans for the bronze altar that was outside the tent in the court that was used to burn the burnt offering to the Lord. The altar was in the courtyard of the Tabernacle so that it was accessible to all the people to make sacrifices to the Lord. The sacrifices were made, the blood of the sacrifice was collected by the priests and poured out at the base of the altar, and the parts of the animal were washed and burnt on the altar for a sweet smell to the Lord. Everything used at the altar was holy and had to be made to the Lords specifications. Even the ashes from the sacrifice needed to be disposed of properly. The Lord also gave Moses instructions on how to set up the Courtyard of the Tabernacle. Moses was told how to produce the pure olive oil used in the Tabernacle by beating the olives instead of crushing or pressing them. God had plans for the production of garments that the High Priest and his helpers were to wear when performing their duties in the Tabernacle. The clothing was very ornate and of the highest quality, reflecting the majesty of God, and what was fitting to wear in His presence. The High Priest was to have made for him a Breast piece of Judgment, having on it twelve precious stones representing the twelve tribes of Israel, also in the pocket of the Breast piece were to be kept the Urim and Thummim to be used to determine God’s will. Also the hem of the High Priests robe was circled with bells that the people would hear when the High Priest went into the Holy of Holies to offer the blood of the sacrifice. If the bells were not heard the sacrifice was not accepted and the High Priest was dead. No one else was able to enter in to find out if he was dead. In Chapter 29 God gave Moses instruction on how to consecrate the priesthood. Certain rituals and offerings needed to be done before the Lord would enter and dwell with His people. He said that He would dwell with His people and would consecrate the Tabernacle with His Glory. God also described his plans for the Altar of Incense used to burn fragrant incense to the Lord while Aaron would trim the wicks of the lampstand. The Altar was also used to burn a continuous supply of incense before the Lord. The Altar of Incense was also covered in gold and located inside the Tabernacle near the Lampstand and the Table of the Bread of Presence. There were also instructions given to Moses on how to make a large bronze laver to be placed in the court of the Tabernacle to be used to cleanse the priests before service. The laver was a basin filled with clean water and also was used to wash the inner parts of the cut up sacrifices before burning them on the altar. God then told Moses how to produce the anointing oil for use in the Tabernacle from the pure olive oil and a mixture of perfumes and spices. The instructions for producing incense were also given at this time. In Chapter 31 God told Moses who the builders of the Tabernacle would be. He said that He would fill the craftsmen He selected with His Spirit to complete the work. God again stressed the importance of observing the Sabbath. God told Moses that the Sabbath is a sign between Him and His people and that anyone who does not observe the Sabbath will surely be put to death. The Lord had then finished speaking with Moses and gave him the two stone tablets, inscribed with the Law, written by the finger of God. Moses had been on the mountain a long time and in Chapter 32 the people did not think that he was going to return. They complained to Aaron and asked him to make for them a god to go before them as Moses had promised. Aaron gathered up the earrings of the people and fashioned an idol of a young bull, or calf for them to worship from the gold. The gold the people possessed was most likely from the wealth the people plundered from the Egyptians when they left. The idol of gold reminded the people of their old home in Egypt because the bull was one of the Egyptian’s major gods. Aaron finished the idol and called the people to hold a celebration the next day. The Lord saw what the people had done and told Moses to go down to the people at once because they had corrupted themselves. God asked Moses to leave Him alone, so His anger could burn against the people He delivered from Egypt. He planned to destroy them all and make of Moses alone a great nation. Moses interceded for his people and went down to them. When he saw what they were doing, and their unbelief of the God of their fathers, he threw down the tablets of stone and shattered them at the foot of the mountain. Moses confronted his brother Aaron for what he had done, and Aaron reminded him that his people had a strong habit of unbelief. He lied to his brother and said that he just placed the earrings into the fire and the golden calf fell out of the fire on its own. Moses took the idol and burned it with fire then ground it into powder and added it to water and made all the people drink it to remove all traces of the idol from their sight. Many of the people who still refused to follow the Lord died as a result of their sin. After the people were purged of this act of unbelief, Moses prayed to the Lord and asked if he could see His Glory. The Lord could not allow even Moses to see His face, but instead hid him in a cleft in a rock with His hand until He had passed by. Then He would only allow Moses to see His back. The people had repented and God had Moses cut two new stone tablets to replace the ones he shattered, and bring them up the mountain for God to replace the writing. Moses was again on the mountain with no food or drink for forty days and forty nights. By the time Moses was ready to leave the mountain His face shown with the brightness of the reflection of God for speaking with Him all that time. The people were afraid to talk with Moses when he returned from the mountain because of the brightness of his face. Moses from then on had to wear a veil and cover his face when speaking to the people. He could only remove the veil when he spoke to the Lord. Chapters 35 through Chapter 39 describe the actual building of the Tabernacle described earlier in this study using the materials and methods the Lord gave to Moses on the mountain. At the end of Chapter 39 Moses inspected the work and pronounced it was made properly to the specifications the Lord provided on Mt. Sinai. To add to an earlier note, all the metals used in the Tabernacle in today’s dollars are: Gold 2,800 lbs. = $ 36,953,865.00 Silver 9,600 lbs. = $ 1,896,960.00 Bronze 6,700 lbs. = $ 40,200.00
These figures are only for the metals used. The Tabernacle and priestly garments also used fine woven cloth, rare woods, and precious stones. The stones were at least large enough to have the names of the tribes of Israel engraved on them. The breast piece for the High Priest included rubies, emeralds, and diamonds, all set in gold. Of course if any part of the Tabernacle was still remaining today, it would be considered priceless for its historical value alone.
Chapter 40 ends the Book of Exodus with the erection of the Tabernacle, its court and furnishings set up, and the Shekinah Glory of the Lord filling the Holy of Holies from above the mercy seat. The Lord now had a place to dwell with His people. Next week we will begin the Book of Leviticus which goes into much more detail on God’s Law.