God Dwells Among His People

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AStudying God’s Word

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Studying God’s Word

Introduction

The Tabernacle (Part 1)

The following activity, along with the second part, will take the majority of the class time. Depending on how much time you have, you may have to select a few items to focus on.

The book of Exodus is mostly a record of God’s description of the tabernacle the Israelites were to build. Along with the directions for the tabernacle, he gave instructions for offering sacrifices and for other ceremonial regulations.

After the Israelites had been at Sinai for a while, as we discussed last week, Moses made his first of two 40-day trips up the mountain to meet with God. During that time, he received the tablets that he later broke upon finding the Israelites worshipping the golden calf. While he was with God, he also received instructions for the civil government of the new nation and instructions for the building of the tabernacle and the methods of worship.

Pass out The Tabernacle worksheets. Today, we are going to spend time in groups looking through these passages; we’ll be looking at the text that describes the construction of the tabernacle and some of its furnishings. On the worksheet, you can see the blank column titled “Description.” That is all you are going to fill in for now; we will look at the last column later. Read each of the passages listed to learn what God told Moses about each of these items, noting that in the box. In 10 minutes or so, we will come back together and look at what you learned.

If some finish early, encourage them to read any study notes or commentary they might have in their Bible.

Connect to the Truth

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  As you read through the descriptions, what stood out to you? Many who have not studied this topic will likely be surprised at the level of detail, including the size, colors, and materials that were to be used in the construction.

  There are many other details about the incense, the oil to be used for the anointing, the garments for the priests, and other things that we didn’t look at. God set out the plans in a very specific way.

• Where did the supplies to make the tabernacle and its articles come from? Much of it came from the jewelry and other items the Egyptians had given the Israelites as they were leaving. In essence, God had provided the materials for himself by causing the Egyptians to give their wealth to the departing slaves.
• What type of wood was to be used for the construction of several of the articles? Acacia wood.

  Acacia wood is an interesting choice. The various types of acacia in the Middle East are covered with thorns. God chose to use a plant that would have reminded the people, especially those preparing the wood, of the curse he had placed on the creation. The crown of thorns that would later be placed on Christ’s head was likely from this same tree, with thorns that could be several inches long.

• As you read about the artisans, what was notable about their description? Both of the men who were to lead had been called by name—chosen by God. They had been filled with the Spirit by God to accomplish his tasks. The gifts they had were from God and would be used to glorify him.
• Which attributes of God that we have talked about are on display? God’s independence is demonstrated in giving the resources and talents to build the tabernacle. His holiness is demonstrated in the exactness he commanded in worshipping him.

The Day of Atonement

One of the primary purposes of the tabernacle and its articles was to offer sacrifices to God. Many sacrifices and duties happened on a daily basis, and we don’t have time to detail them all today. We are going to look at one of the most important of those offerings. Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, was set in the seventh month and was a day of national significance.

Let’s read Leviticus 16:1–22. Have someone read the passage aloud.

• Who offered the sacrifices? Aaron, the High Priest.
• Was Aaron able to go into the inner sanctuary, the Holy Place, any time he wanted? No, if he went in at any other time he would die.
• What was the purpose of the incense carried behind the veil? To provide a cloud of smoke to conceal God’s presence from the priest, lest he die. Since God’s presence was on the mercy seat, the cloud of incense concealed God’s presence—no man can see God and live.
• What was the purpose of the bull being offered? It was a sin offering to cover the sin of Aaron and his household.
• What was to be done with the bull’s blood? Aaron was to sprinkle it on the east side of the mercy seat of the ark seven times using his finger.
• How was the purpose of the goat that was offered different from the bull’s purpose? The bull was for the sins of Aaron and his household, while the goat represented the sins of the entire nation.
• What was to happen to the second goat? The sins of the people were placed on it in a symbolic way, and it was released into the wilderness to take the sins of the people outside of the camp.
• What is the goat who is released called? The ESV just presents the Hebrew Azazel, but most translations follow William Tyndale’s translation of scapegoat. The “goat of escape” is the one who carries the people’s sins outside the camp into the wilderness.
• How often was this to be repeated (see 16:34)? Every year.
• Around which ankle was the rope tied to pull the priest out if he died while in the Holy Place? While this is a common idea, it is not something that is found in Scripture. It appears that this idea developed as a myth in the Middle Ages and has no real support before then. Remind the students to look to Scripture as the authority, testing all things by God’s infallible Word.

Discover the Truth

Now you know where the idea of a scapegoat comes from and the basic idea of Yom Kippur. The blood of the bulls and goats was a temporary covering—or atonement—for the Israelites’ sins. God demanded a very exact method of sacrifice for offering him worship and for covering the sins of the people. The rest of the chapter goes on to describe the specific washings and changing of clothes that should happen during these rituals.

Again, this exactness of method and the constant covering of sins should remind us that because God is perfectly holy, he must judge the sin of every person he has created. Even in these temporary sacrifices, he was showing his grace and mercy, and was pointing forward to what the Messiah would come to accomplish.

The Tabernacle (Part 2)

As we read from the Old Testament about the tabernacle and the sacrifices that were offered there, we can see that the activities left a sense of incompleteness; there were always more sacrifices to make. Constant sacrifices had to be offered on behalf of both the priests and the people.

Let’s go back to the worksheet we started earlier. We are now going to fill in that last column to help us understand some of these connections. Read the New Testament passages referenced there and see if you can make a connection between the articles and practices of the tabernacle and their fulfillment in the New Covenant with Christ.

Have the students complete the column titled “Connection to Christ/New Covenant” on their worksheets.

Let’s look at each of these and give a summary of the connections you found. Show the items on The Tabernacle Complex diagram.

Hebrews 9:6–15 talks of the entrance into the inner part of the tabernacle, where the ark was found, as a symbol of what Jesus would fulfill through his sacrifice.

In John 6:35, Jesus referred to himself as the bread of life—just like the manna given to sustain the 12 tribes, represented by the 12 loaves on the table of showbread that were to be made each week (Leviticus 24:5–9).

The lamp that was to be kept lit continually in the tabernacle typified Jesus as the light of the world (John 8:12).

As Hebrews 8:4–5 explains, the tabernacle and its services were a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. Jesus, now in the heavenly tabernacle, fulfills all of the roles that the High Priest fulfilled in the earthly one.

As Hebrews 10 describes, the offerings on the altar were a reminder of sins. They could not remove sin, only cover it temporarily. All of these pointed to Christ, who offered himself once for all—a single, perfect sacrifice to remove the guilt of sin for all believers.

The outer court was to provide an area of separation, but Christ has removed that separation (Ephesians 2:14) so that everyone who is in Christ can have direct access to God.

The altar of incense constantly burned incense, which rose before the Lord. This was a type of the prayers described in Revelation 8:3–4 as being mixed with incense in the heavenly sanctuary.

Connect to the Truth

We can see how the instruments and practices of the tabernacle were all pointing forward to Jesus. He is now our High Priest who intercedes for us. His blood was given as an offering once for all so that we don’t need to continually offer those sacrifices—he has fulfilled that requirement for us. Just as the goat carried the sins of the people outside of the camp, Jesus has taken the sins of the spiritual Israel outside of the camp where there is no more judgment. God’s wrath and holiness are satisfied in the just substitution of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Application

I hope you have a bit of a sense of awe at the incredible detail that God gave for constructing the tabernacle and worshipping him in it—and we have skipped a lot of those details. As we reflect on the daily sacrifices and duties, as well as the yearly sacrifice on the Day of Atonement, it should give us great joy to know that all of those requirements have been fulfilled on our behalf by Jesus. He is our High Priest who offered the perfect sacrifice once for all. It was not a sacrifice of an animal, but a sacrifice of the very Son of God—fully human, fully divine—whose blood is absolutely sufficient to completely remove the penalty for sin for all those who trust in him.

If that does not cause you to rejoice, I don’t know what would. We serve an awesome God, and we have the privilege of knowing and worshipping Christ, who has completely fulfilled the demands of God’s holiness and justice.

Let us make sure that we think of how we can apply these ideas as we leave and go out into the world we live in. We want to make sure that we are not merely hearing the Word, but seeking to be doers of what we read in it.

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  What part of our study today can you meditate on this week to help you appreciate the holiness of God even more? Discuss various answers.
• How has your understanding of the role of the tabernacle and the sacrifices changed from looking at the text today? Discuss various answers. Many people may not have known that the articles and practices of the tabernacle and the temple pointed forward to what Christ would do in his life, death, and resurrection. These truths can help bring life into the Old Testament passages that many believe are so distant and unrelated to us in the New Covenant.
• As we study Scripture, why is it important to compare Old Testament passages to New Testament passages? We often gain a much fuller understanding of what happened in the Old Testament by looking at the New Testament, and vice versa. As New Testament believers, we can be thankful and joyful as we look at what we are no longer required to do since Christ has fulfilled the functions of the tabernacle and the sacrifices. We can serve him in holiness without all of the rituals and sacrifices.
• The Roman Catholic Church teaches that Jesus must constantly be re-sacrificed in the ritual of the Mass. How is their thinking similar to the tabernacle sacrifices? What passages could you use to show a Catholic the false thinking in that system? Hebrews 8–10 makes it clear that Jesus offered himself once for all as a perfect sacrifice that does not need to be repeated as those in the tabernacle needed to be. Christ’s work is finished, and his sacrifice was completed 2,000 years ago. The Mass is an affront to the finished work of Christ and denies the perfection of his sacrifice.
• What information have you learned today that would allow you to share the gospel more fully with someone from a Jewish background? Making a connection between the constant sacrifices to cover sin and the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ can help them understand what the temporary sacrifices were pointing toward—the true Messiah. Using the Day of Atonement or Passover imagery, you can connect the penalty for sin to the death and resurrection of Jesus.
• We know that God gave very specific guidelines for worship in the tabernacle. But he provided all that the Israelites would need as they plundered the Egyptians, and also he directed them to use materials he had created. How does this give you encouragement as you seek to worship God in spirit and truth? While we are not in the same position, we can trust that God has provided all that we need to worship him rightly. He provides us with his Word to guide us, the Spirit to work in us, himself as the object of our worship, a church family to gather with, etc.

Group Prayer

Be sure to pray with your class before you dismiss them.

• Praise God for his holiness.
• Ask God for pure hearts to worship him as he has directed us.
• Thank God for sending his Son to be both our high priest and the sacrifice for our sins.