All the pieces of furnishing had been made. In the
Holy of holies was the Ark of the Covenant with the cover known as the Mercy
Seat. In the Holy Place was the Altar of Incense, the Table of Shewbread and
the Golden Lampstand. In the courtyard the first furniture one would be
confronted with was the Brazen Altar of sacrifice. In between the Brazen Altar
and the entrance to the Tent of meeting was the Bronze Laver. We saw how each
of these furnishings represents God and the way of salvation for us.
We
now come to the courtyard, the large rectangular enclosed compound measuring
150 feet in length and 75 feet in width. The fence was made up of linen fabric
stretched across wooden poles. The materials were also provided by the
Israelites who had generously contributed to the building of this complex.
Exodus 38:9-20 describe the fencing that formed the compound of the courtyard. In
Exodus 38:21-24 we are told the amount of contribution of the material used for
making the fence of the compound. Then in verses 25-28, we are told of the
silver contributed by the people. The silver was used to make bases, hooks, and
clasps for the hanging of the linen. In verses 29-31, the bronze contributed
was used to make “…the sockets to the doorway of the tent of meeting, and the
bronze altar and its bronze grating, and all the utensils of the altar, and
the sockets of the court all around and the sockets of the gate of
the court, and all the pegs of the tabernacle and all the pegs of the
court all around.”
From
these verses we can see that the people gave a huge amount to the building of
this complex that housed the Tabernacle and all its furnishings. It was a
lavish campus, and it took a great quantity of gold, silver, and bronze to
build. One key lesson to take away is this: no amount we give to God can ever
be too great a sacrifice, in the light of all that He has done for
us.
No comments:
Post a Comment