Chapter 2
The Tabernacle of Moses,
Prefiguring God's Presence through Christ
Near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the Mennonites own and maintain a strange-looking building. It is a full-scale replica of the tabernacle of God, a special tent-like building described in Exodus 25-30. God commanded the Israelites to make just such a building as his dwelling place among them. The modern Mennonite replica also has within it a mannequin wearing robes like the garments of the high priest of Israel. People come to tour the Mennonites' building, and as they do so tour guides explain the significance of the various furnishings. People who have read the Bible and go on the tour almost always come away excited. They say, "I never understood those Old Testament passages about the tabernacle and the priests. But now that I have seen how it all fits together, and now that I have had some things explained to me, I want to go back to read the passages in the Bible and see how they symbolize who Christ was and what he did."
I wish that I could take all my readers on that tour. The Israelites long ago did not have to visualize the tabernacle; they could see it. The priests were allowed to enter the rooms at certain times, and could explain to everyone else what was there. They could watch the animals being sacrificed. Messages came home to them that tend to pass us by unless we make a conscious effort to understand. But we also have an advantage over the Israelites. We can read the New Testament and see the completion of what those Old Testament images pointed forward to.
The tabernacle as a symbol of the Messiah
The Old Testament tabernacle is full of meaning because it is a symbol of the Messiah and his salvation. The Book of Hebrews gives much instruction concerning the tabernacle.
But only the high priest entered the inner room [of the tabernacle], and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still standing. This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings--external regulations applying until the time of the new order.
When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! (Heb 9:7-14)
The earthly tabernacle was a copy or a shadow of the true dwelling place of God in heaven (Heb 8:5; 9:24). It showed what God was like and what was needed to deal with sin. In this way it symbolized what the Messiah was to do for our salvation. We may say that it "foreshadowed" the Messiah and his work. It was like a shadow of the Messiah cast backward in time into the Old Testament period. The shadow was always inferior to the reality. The earthly tabernacle was made of earthly things, and could never equal the splendor or holiness of God in heaven. The earthly sacrifices of bulls and goats could never equal the blood of Christ, who cleansed us from sin forever. The shadow was not itself the reality, but a pointer to Christ who was the reality. Yet the shadow was also like the reality. And the shadow even brought the reality to bear on people in the Old Testament. As they looked ahead through the shadows, longing for something better, they took hold on the promises of God that he would send the Messiah. The promises were given not only verbally but symbolically, through the very organization of the tabernacle and its sacrifices. In pictorial form God was saying, as it were,
Look at my provisions for you. This is how I redeem you and bring you to my presence. But look again, and you will see that it is all an earthly symbol of something better. Do not rely on it as if it were the end. Trust me to save you fully when I fully accomplish my plans.
Israelites had genuine communion with God when they responded to what he was saying in the tabernacle. They trusted in the Messiah, without knowing all the details of how fulfillment would finally come. And so they were saved, and they received forgiveness, even before the Messiah came. The animal sacrifices in themselves did not bring forgiveness (Heb. 10:1-4), but Christ did as he met with them through the symbolism of the sacrifices.
The tabernacle as a symbol of God's dwelling with Israel
What did Israelites see when they looked at the tabernacle so long ago? They saw a tent with two inner rooms and a yard outside. In the yard was the Israelite equivalent of a stove, namely a place where meat could be roasted on a fire.
A tent means very little to us, but Israelites knew all about tents because they were living in tents themselves. Then God told them to make a tent for himself, a tent where God himself would dwell and meet with them (Exod 25:8, 22). His tent had rooms and a yard and a fireplace like their own. Yet it was also unlike their own. It was majestic, covered with gold and blue. It was beautiful, because of the symmetry of its dimensions and the artistry of its construction. Do you see? God was saying that he was majestic and beautiful. But he would not simply remain in heaven and let Israel go its way. He would come right down among them. They were living in tents. He too would be in a tent, side by side with their own tents. They were going to the promised land. He too would travel to the promised land, as his tent was packed up by the Levites and moved to the next encampment. The special cloud of fire symbolizing God's presence was a more intensive, miraculous form of the same reality. God would be among them, right with them, "Immanuel" (see Matt. 1:23). A bright cloud of glory symbolizing God's presence accompanied the Israelites and came over the tabernacle after it was constructed (Exod. 40:34-38; Num. 9:15-23).
The theme that God dwells with his people was fulfilled with the coming of Jesus Christ. In fact, the tabernacle foreshadowed the fact that Christ would become incarnate and dwell among us. "The Word became flesh and lived for awhile [tabernacled] among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). Christ's glory superseded the bright cloud of glory. Now Christ sends his Holy Spirit like a cloud of fire to make his church and his people into a tabernacle of God (Acts 2:2-4; 1 Cor. 3:10-17; 6:19).
The tabernacle expresses another side to the character of God, namely that he is holy and inaccessible. The altar, several coverings, and two sets of curtains bar the way into his presence. No one can enter into the inner room, the most holy place, except the high priest, and even then only once a year in a special ceremony, where he is protected from his sin and the accusation of the law by the blood that he brings in and sprinkles on the mercy seat (Lev. 16). Death is threatened to transgressors of God's holiness (Exod. 19:12-13, 21-25). Even the priests may suffer death if they do not honor God (Num. 10:1-2; Lev. 22:9; 16:2; Exod. 30:21). They are especially in danger of death as they approach the inner rooms of the tabernacle. The high priest must take special care not even to see the atonement cover when he performs his actions in the most holy place (Lev. 16:13).
By these means the Lord shows the preciousness of the love between the Father and the Son. The tabernacle symbolism points to Christ. Defilement of this symbolism constitutes an attack on Christ, and so rouses God's indignation in intense form. The same truths also embody a lesson concerning Christ's sacrificial death. God's holiness is so great that faults against him deserve death. Christ himself was perfectly holy. But when he bore our sins and "became sin for us" (2 Cor. 5:21), the Father had to put him to death. To this death he consented willingly, and went like a sheep to slaughter, because of his love for us and his hatred of sin's rule over us (1 Pet. 2:24; John 10:18).
Christ had to die. There was no other way by which we might enter into the true tabernacle in heaven and enjoy the blessing of God's presence forever. But now, because Christ has died, the animal sacrifices are ended and we have access to God with freedom (Rom. 5:1-2). The veil barring the way to God's presence is taken away, or rather fulfilled in the body of Christ. Christ does not bar us out, as the veil did, but provides the way in. "We have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body" (Heb. 10:19-20). The veil has become the gate into the security of the sheepfold (John 10:7-9).
For those outside of Christ, the death penalty for violations of God's holiness says something else. When Christ returns to judge the world, God's holiness will appear in intense form. Just as at Mount Sinai the Mount was covered with the glory of God's holiness, so at the Second Coming the world as a whole will be covered with his glory (2 Thess. 1:7-10). The wicked must experience eternal death, because they are violators of the holiness of Christ. God's love for Christ also implies his hatred for Christ's enemies and his zeal to vindicate Christ's honor. "Those who honor me I will honor" (1 Sam. 2:30) is true also at the last day. When Christ receives the full honor due to him (Phil. 2:10-11), all rebellion is utterly crushed.
The tabernacle as a symbol of heaven
What happened to the tabernacle? After the years in the wilderness, the Israelites entered the promised land and settled down. Instead of living in tents, they built houses for themselves. Fittingly, king Solomon was commissioned by God to build a permanent house for God, the temple, which replaced the mobile tent-like tabernacle. The temple had the same basic arrangements as the tabernacle, two rooms and an outside yard, but each of the horizontal dimensions was doubled.
What does Solomon foreshadow? Why the work of Christ, of course. Solomon was the son in David's line, the line leading to the Messiah. He built a dwelling place for God, foreshadowing Christ who builds his church (Matt. 16:18) and who is himself the chief cornerstone (Eph. 2:20) or foundation (1 Cor. 3:11). Christ builds not on the earthly Mount Zion but on a heavenly site: "But you [Christians] have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God" (Heb. 12:22).
Solomon himself recognized that the true dwelling of God is in heaven. As he dedicated the temple he spoke of the earthly temple as a place where God had put his name (1 Kings 8:29). Heaven is the true dwelling place of God (1 Kings 8:30, 43) and the place from which God hears. Thus Solomon recognized what we have learned from Hebrews, that the tabernacle and temple were shadows of heavenly things.
God dwells in a special sense in heaven. Of course in the broadest sense, as Solomon reminds us, "The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you" (1 Kings 8:27). Yet in a particular way the visible sky represents God's own majesty and inaccessibility. Even more inaccessible than the visible sky is God's special throne room as we find it described by prophets like Isaiah (Isa. 6:1-13) and Daniel (Dan. 7:9-10) and John (Rev. 4:1-5:14). From God's throne angels issue to perform his commands.
When God came down in a cloud at Mount Sinai, the cloud symbolized both God's heavenly character and his inaccessibility to human eye. Moses went up to meet God, foreshadowing Jesus' function as a mediator between God and man. On the mount Moses received a pattern for the tabernacle. What else would it be than a heavenly pattern, since he received it by symbolically going up to heaven? Thus the Book of Hebrews appeals to the fact that God instructed Moses to "make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain" (Heb. 8:5).
When we look at the tabernacle again, we seen unmistakable signs of symbolism of heaven. The two cherubim by the ark are replicas of angelic heavenly beings guarding the throne of God (cf. Ezek. 1; Gen. 3:24). More figures of cherubim are woven into the veil that guards the way into the most holy place (Exod. 26:31). Still more cherubim are woven into the ten curtains that constitute the main material of the tent, enclosing the two rooms (Exod. 26:1). The curtains are woven with blue, symbolizing the royal blue of heaven. The ten commandments are the very words of God, heavenly words in the fullest sense. They are written on tablets that Moses received from the Mount, that is, from a symbolic replica of heaven. They are placed in the ark of the testimony (Exod. 25:21), the most holy object in the entire tent. The ark itself is a box with the approximate shape of an ancient king's footstool.1 Thus the ark represents part of God's throne room in heaven. Fittingly, the space above the ark is empty, because God may not be seen and no images of him are permitted (Exod. 33:20; 20:4-5; Deut. 4:15-19). Thus the tabernacle as a whole is a replica of heaven. When God comes to dwell with the Israelites, he brings down to them in his wonderful condescension a little replica of heaven.
Let us look at the arrangements in greater detail. (See Figure 1.)\#1] The tabernacle has two rooms. The inner room, measuring 10 cubits by 10 cubits by 10 cubits high (about 15 feet on a side), is called the most holy place. The outer room, measuring 10 cubits by 20 cubits by 10 cubits high, is called the holy place. The two rooms are separated from one another by the special curtain or veil barring the way, the curtain to which Hebrews refers (Heb. 10:20). Another curtain made of similar material separates the holy place from the yard outside ("the courtyard"). The courtyard measures 50 cubits by 100 cubits. If one takes into account the curtains forming the fence around the courtyard, which are 5 cubits high, the total dimensions are 50 by 100 by 5 (Exod. 27:9-19). The dimensions clearly become less perfect as one moves outward. The inner room is a perfect cube. The outer room is not, but deviates from perfection simply by multiplying one dimension by two. The courtyard is still less perfect, inasmuch as all three dimensions are different. But the dimensions still have simple ratios to one another, expressing a kind of limited balance and perfection. Thus each of the three areas is a kind of lesser image of the preceding one.
As a priest proceeded inward, he came first to the courtyard. Then he crossed the courtyard to the altar of burnt offering in the middle of it. Then he came to a "laver" or washing basin, then to the first curtain, then to the holy place. In the middle of the holy place were a lampstand on one side and a table with bread on the other. At the far end of the holy place the priest came to an altar of incense, then to the second curtain, and finally to the most holy place with its ark (a gold covered box), the cherubim, and the special cover for the ark called the "mercy seat" or atonement cover. Inside the ark were the tablets of the law (Exod. 25:21).
All these aspects of the tabernacle may be expected to say something to Israel about the meaning of communion with God and dwelling with God. They picture the nature of God's dwelling and the manner in which he is approached. But before we enter into any detail, let us try to understand the over-all structure. The inner and outer rooms are both covered with blue curtains and interwoven cherubim, signifying heaven. All the furnishings are covered with gold, signifying the royal splendor of heaven. Outside in the courtyard, the altar is made of bronze, a less expensive metal, and common Israelite worshipers may enter. The courtyard is much more earthy in character. The relations between the two would doubtless suggest to Israelites their own earthiness in contrast with God's heavenly character. Israelites are on earth and God is in heaven. God's throne in heaven is, as it were, concealed by clouds and the visible sky, which correspond to the curtains barring the way into the two rooms.
Why are there two rooms rather than one? Doubtless two rooms are needed to show some of the variety of aspects belonging to communion with God. The use of two rooms also emphasizes the remoteness of God's presence, since there is more than one layer separating the Israelites from the inner room. The imagery of heaven suggests something more, namely that the outer room corresponds more directly to the visible heavens, with sun, moon, stars, and clouds, while the inner room corresponds more directly to the very throne room of God himself, which is distinct from the visible sky.
The same Hebrew and Greek words are used for "heaven" in both of these senses. No special distinct terminology is needed, because biblical writers were not making scientific astronomical distinctions but were dwelling on the fact that the majesty and inaccessibility of the visible sky reflects the majesty of God (Ps. 19:1-6).
The furniture of the tabernacle
Thus in some ways the visible heaven of the sky corresponds to the holy place, and the invisible heaven of God's throne to the most holy place. Degrees of inaccessibility are expressed in this symbolism. Degrees of perfection are also evident. The most holy place has the perfect dimensions of a 10 by 10 by 10 cube, as we saw, while the holy place and the courtyard are less perfect. In the most holy place are the symbols of God's immediate presence: the law setting forth God's standards, the ark symbolizing God's throne or footstool, and the two cherubim guarding the throne. In the holy place are symbols easily associated with mediation between God and human beings.
On one side of the holy place the lampstand provides light all night (Exod. 27:30; Lev. 24:1-4). Israel would be reminded of how God is the creator and light-giver. The sun, moon, and stars provide light during both the day and the night. The seven lamps on the lampstand may even correspond to the seven major lights of heaven, namely sun, moon, and five known planets. God is not only the creator who supplies light by natural means, but the redeemer who supplied redeeming light to lead the people out of Egypt. The cloud of fire guided them and protected them from the Egyptians (Exod. 14:19-20; Num. 9:15-23). This symbolism is fulfilled in Christ, who is both our creator and redeemer (Col. 1:15-20). Christ was the original uncreated light of the world, whose glory and purity is dimly reflected in the heavenly bodies (John 1:3-5). He is also the redeeming light of the world; he comes into its spiritual darkness to make the blind see (John 1:5, 9; 8:12; 9:3-6).
The lampstand is placed on the south side of the holy place. Perhaps this placement is intended to correspond to the fact that from Israel's point of view, north of the equator, the circuit of the heavenly lights would be primarily to the south. The sevenness of the lamps suggests not only the seven major lights of heaven, as I have mentioned, but the general symbolism for time within Israel. The heavenly bodies were made in order to "serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years" (Gen. 1:14). The whole cycle of time marked by the sun and moon and stars is divided up into sevens: the seventh day in the week is the sabbath day; the seventh month is the month of atonement (Lev. 16:29); the seventh year is the year of release from debts and slavery (Deut. 15); the seventh of seven year cycles is the year of jubilee (Lev. 25). Fittingly, the lampstand contains the same sevenfold division, symbolizing the cycle of time provided by the heavenly lights.
The lampstand is also in the shape of a tree, with branches, buds, blossom, and almond flowers (Exod. 25:31-39). What message is conveyed by this shape? Once more it is a message about time, the familiar cycle of growth of plants, springtime, summer, and harvest. Indeed elsewhere in Scripture the almond is a symbol of a time of watching or waiting (Jer. 1:11-12), because of a play on the Hebrew word for almond. "Almond," shaqed\O (שָׁקֵד)\o, is related to the Hebrew word for "watch," shaqad\O (שָׁקַד)\o. If we follow this symbolism through, we see that the lamps themselves symbolize the fruit of the tree. This strange tree has buds, blossoms, almond flowers, and fruit all at once, because it must be a static picture of the whole cycle of time that God has created and sustains. The tree symbolizes the growth of life. It issues new light in the form of fruit that in turn will give birth to new trees. The tree is truly a tree both of light and of life. The reproductive living power of the tree is in its fruit, that is, the light, which shines on the earth and sustains its growth. As John says, "Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men" (John 1:3-4).
In addition, the tree reminds us of the Garden of Eden with its original tree of life. But now the true life of creation has been lost through sin. It is restored through God coming to be "God with us." The tabernacle is a renewed version of the garden of Eden. But curtains with cherubim on them still bar the way into God's presence, just as cherubim barred the way into the original garden of Eden after the fall (Gen. 3:24).
On the other side of the holy place is the table with "the bread of the Presence" on it (Exod. 25:23-30). The "Presence" spoken of is clearly the presence of God. In the ancient Near East sharing a special meal together was a act of friendship and personal communion (see Gen. 18:1-8; Exod. 24:9-11). The host undertook solemn responsibility to serve and protect his guest while they enjoyed the meal. Thus God invites Israel to share a meal with him and enjoy his protection. But only the priests can eat the special holy food (Lev. 22:10-16), and the restriction to the priests signifies the special restrictions on fellowship, due to God's holiness. In this way God symbolizes his provision of food to the Israelites.
The Israelites had a common experience to which to relate this symbolism. Day after day they ate manna, the "bread from heaven" (Exod. 16:4), miraculously provided by God. The Israelites complained about its taste (Num. 11:6), but actually it was sweet tasting (Exod. 16:31), reminding them of the sweet goodness of God the provider (cf. Ps. 19:10). It came with the dew and looked like frost (Exod. 16:14), reminding them of the fact that God provides rain and dew to water crops, which in turn provide food. It looked like coriander seed (Exod. 16:31), again reminding them of the association with crops. Thus God by his supernatural provision indirectly pointed to the fact that he provides food to us every day by natural means (Matt. 6:11). He is the creator and sustainer of agriculture. The descent of rain from heaven is a continual reminder of his provision. Once the people entered the land of promise, the bread of the Presence itself would have been made from grain growing in the promised land.
Thus the bread of the Presence was a continual pointer to the fact that God provides food to human beings every day through the processes of reproduction, growth, and harvesting. But in addition, God provided to his people Israel the manna, a special supernatural food, redemptive food, food from heaven, when he brought the people from bondage into the promised land (Exod. 16:32). A portion of manna was permanently kept in the most holy place to signify its holy character and to encourage the Israelites to remember its lessons (Exod. 16:32-35).
When Jesus came, he fulfilled this symbolism. Not only did he supernaturally provide a meal for 5000 people (John 6:1-13), but explained its significance:
I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. . . . I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty. (John 6:32-35)
The details of the bread of the Presence may also be significant. The table has the same rectangular shape as the holy place and as the courtyard, twice as long as it is wide. This proportionality suggests that it is a little replica of the larger land. The twelve loaves correspond to the twelve months, the cycle of seedtime and harvest by which God provides foods. The twelve tribes of Israel come to share in the inheritance when they enter the promised land and receive plots of the land themselves. Fittingly, the manna stops coming when they enter the land and eat its fruit (Josh. 5:10-12). But remember that the table is in the holy place. It stands for the heavenly origin of food. It represents the patterns of the seasons and of the heavenly lights, which are then replicated in the shape of the courtyard representing the earth. The land of the Palestine is in turn a replica of the courtyard. When Jesus says that he is the bread of life, he shows that he is the heavenly original of which these things are copies, both in creation and in redemption.
One more item stands in the holy place, namely the altar of incense (Exod. 30:1-10). The altar of incense was a special small altar covered with gold that was placed at the far end of the holy place, just in front of the curtain leading to the most holy place. Unlike the bronze altar outside in the courtyard, it burned no animal sacrifices, but only incense (Exod. 30:8-9). It was "most holy," and in this respect logically belonged with the most holy place (Heb. 9:4), even though it stood physically outside the curtain.
The outstanding function of the altar was to burn sweet smelling incense. The smoke and fragrance from the incense would have filled the entire tabernacle, both inner and outer rooms. What picture does this process present to Israelites? For one thing, it would have suggested the lavish and thoughtful hospitality of a host. The life of the average Israelite was accompanied by the strong and not-always-pleasant smells associated with animals and physical labor. The fragrance of burning incense was used by hosts to add to the pleasant atmosphere of a special social occasion. God as the supreme host made sure that such items of pleasant hospitality were associated with his house.
Once we take into account the theme of replication, involving the inner and outer spaces replicating heaven, the incense also suggests another set of associations. The smoke from the animal sacrifices offered on the bronze altar outside would have gone up into heaven. The altar of incense signifies what happens to the smoke when, figuratively speaking, it rises to the very top of the visible heavens. It becomes a sweet smelling fragrance that enters even into the most holy place, God's throne room. God smells and is pleased. He receives the offering. The offerings themselves are a sort of nonverbal prayer--prayer for forgiveness of sin, prayer of adoration, prayer of thanksgiving, prayer of intercession by the priest for those whom he represents. Appropriately the New Testament clearly identifies the rising incense with the prayers of the saints (Rev. 5:8; 8:3). But first of all we must think of the prayers of Jesus Christ as he prayed on earth (Heb. 5:7) and as he now intercedes for us in heaven (Heb. 7:25).
The altar of incense has the dimensions one cubit by one cubit by two cubits cubits high (Exod. 30:1-6). The dimensions of one cubit by one cubit in horizontal space make it square, a replica of the square shape of the most holy place. Its vertical dimension, two cubits, makes it the same in overall shape as the holy place, but one-tenth the size. The ark has dimensions of one and a half cubits high, one and a half cubits wide, and two and a half cubits long (Exod. 25:10). The two equal dimensions make the ark into a square, replicating the square shape of the most holy place. They are also equal to the vertical dimension of the table. The bronze altar has a vertical dimension of three cubits, twice the size of the vertical dimension of the ark, and two dimensions of five cubits, twice the size of the length of the ark. As we have already observed, the two equal dimensions of five cubits make the bronze altar into a square, replicating the shape of the most holy place and the cross section of the ark.
What does all this symmetry and replication suggest? Perfect craftsmanship. Inside the ark is the law, symbolizing the blueprint for the whole pattern of the tabernacle. The tabernacle itself is nothing else than a replica of the law, God's word, which described the pattern to Moses in the first place. This building is truly beautiful, the work of a master hand, the creator himself!
The courtyard outside corresponds to the earth. The altar there is made of bronze, a less expensive metal, in contrast to the gold that covers everything in the two rooms. The altar measures 5 cubits by 5 cubits, a perfect square, showing its perfection. But the figure of 5 has already been associated with the courtyard as a whole, which measures 50 cubits by 100 cubits by 5 cubits. Thus the very measurements of the altar suggest its association with the whole of the court. But again its dimensions are not completely symmetric. It is 3 cubits rather than 5 cubits high, breaking the perfect symmetry in order to allow the priests to work on it without too much onerous effort. To this altar the ordinary earthly people of Israel are allowed to approach, at least to the entrance of the courtyard, and to present their earthly, animal sacrifices. In addition, the vertical dimension of three corresponds to the threefoldness in the total length of the two rooms of the tabernacle.
In between the bronze altar and the rooms is a washing basin or "laver." It is also made of bronze, suggesting the same association with earth. In fact, here we have a little replica of the earth. The laver represents the waters of the earth, while the space around the laver represents the dry land. The altar itself replicates the whole tabernacle, since it is the special place rising up from the earth where sacrifices may be offered. Thus the altar is suggestive of a little replica of Mount Zion, the later resting place of the temple, or Mount Sinai where God meets with Moses. The three cubit height of the altar might perhaps even suggest the three tiers or stories of the world, the highest invisible heavens, visible heaven, and earth.
Another little pattern is suggested by the function of the washing basin and its relation to the priests. The washing basin supplies the priests with water for their ceremonial washings. It is a basin for cleansing. Water descending from heaven through the seasonal pattern of rains represented in the holy place comes to the earth, with its life-giving power, and renews it. It is the cleansing, life-giving water of life.
Note also the sequence of actions that a priest would go through. The altar stands closest to the entrance to the courtyard. After that comes the washing basin, then comes the tabernacle itself with its two rooms. The Israelites' own experience in the immediate past portrayed the same sequence. First they are in bondage, in Egypt, then they are delivered through the sacrifice of the passover lamb, symbolized by the altar. Then they pass through the Red Sea and still live, whereas their enemies are destroyed. The waters of the Red Sea stand for a kind of ceremonial cleansing from their enemies, as Paul points out: "For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea" (1 Cor. 10:1-2). Then they enjoy the manna in the wilderness, symbolized by the table of the bread of the Presence (Exod. 16:1-36). They come to Mount Sinai, the special holy mountain, symbolized by the whole tabernacle.
Characteristically God delivers his people by stages. The same basic elements of salvation are repeated in different forms, again and again, as the Israelites see God's salvation progressively manifested. Hence, the same sequence of symbols can be used again and again to stand for the steps in God's deliverance. For example, we may see the bronze altar as corresponding to Mount Sinai, the washing basin as corresponding to the crossing of the Jordan, and the rooms of the tabernacle as corresponding to entrance into the promised land, a new Eden, flowing with milk and honey, a holy land.
Once the people are in the promised land, the same pattern can be seen again. The bronze altar stands for Mount Zion with the temple on top, the rooms of the tabernacle stand for heaven, and the washing basin symbolizes the clouds or heavenly water separating the people from the pure holiness of heaven.
In this situation things remain for a long time. Then, when Jesus dies, the soldier pierces his side, "bringing a sudden flow of blood and water" (John 19:34). John is amazingly emphatic in his testimony: "The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe" (John 19:35). Then John shows other connections with the Old Testament (John 19:36-37). Perhaps John intends us to understand, among other things, that the blood corresponds to the blood of the altar and the water to the water of the washing basin. Shortly after Zechariah has given the prophecy of the piercing quoted by John 19:37 (Zech. 12:10), he says in Zech. 13:1, "On that a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity." That is, they will receive not a static basin but a bubbling up fountain of running water. Such a source of cleansing is symbolically represented by the water flowing from Jesus' side.
Jesus also says, "Everyone who drinks this water [ordinary water] will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life" (John 4:14). The priests "thirst" again and again, that is they need to be washed again and again. But Christ's cleansing cleanses forever. Later Jesus identifies the water with the Holy Spirit:
Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If a man is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believers in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. (John 7:37-49)
The coming of the Spirit is now signified by baptism, a cleansing ceremony with water.
For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:5)
Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
(Acts 2:38)
Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have. (Acts 10:47)
Jesus discussion with Nicodemus about being born of water and the Spirit (John 3:5) builds on the picture of cleansing in Ezek. 36:25-27 and points to these same truths.