Heb.9:1-5 – Then indeed, even the first covenant had ordinances of divine service and the earthly sanctuary. For a tabernacle was prepared: the first part, in which was the lampstand, the table, and the showbread, which is called the sanctuary; and behind the second veil, the part of the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All, which had the golden censer and the ark of the covenant overlaid on all sides with gold, in which were the golden pot that had the manna, Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tablets of the covenant; and above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail.
The book of Hebrews is an appeal, a cry to the Hebrew church to come into the presence of God pictured by the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle of Moses in the wilderness. He reminds them of the different articles in the tabernacle that all pointed to Jesus. There was the lamp – stand that declared Christ as the light of the world, the shewbread that proclaimed Jesus as the bread of life, and the sanctuary itself that looked to the day that the Word would tabernacle among us as He became a man. The golden censer spoke of the intercession of our heavenly high priest seated at the Father’s right hand, the ark was the place where the blood was poured and the glory of God was manifested. In the ark was the golden pot with manna that showed Christ as our daily provision, the rod that budded was a picture of the blessing of God upon our lives. And of course in the ark were the Tables of stone, the Ten Commandments that proclaim that God’s word is now written on our hearts. The cherubim reminds us of God’s creatures that are worshipping night and day in His presence.
The whole book of Hebrews is written to call us into the reality of God made available to us through the work of Christ. The glory of God’s presence is beautiful, this glory would shine from the ark displaying the beauty of God. No wonder David was mesmerized by that old tent of Moses that was tattered in his day. Why was it so beautiful to David? The glory of the Lord was there, the same glory that was in the tabernacle of Moses was present in the tabernacle of David. Today we have a better tabernacle. Jesus became the tabernacle of God when He became a man making a way for us to enter into God’s beauty. Today we come into this beautiful presence not with types and shadows but through the real given to us in Christ.
