The Tabernacle: Structure

Mike Harbrecht

Structure

• The plan of the temple was revealed by God to the king which must be followed carefully.1

What do temples from the Ancient Near East have in common?

Exodus 25:8 “And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.”

“The phrase ‘according to all that I shew thee,’ seems to indicate that Moses was actually shown the tabernacle and its furnishings and not just given a verbal description.”2

The plan of the temple was revealed by God

The plan of the temple was revealed by God

Exodus 26:28-30 “And thou shalt rear up the tabernacle according to the fashion thereof which was shewed thee in the mount.”

The plan of the temple was revealed by God

“One is immediately impressed with the detail that the Lord

gave Moses concerning His

dwelling place.”3

Exodus 26:19-21

Exodus 26:11-13

Exodus 30:2-4

Structure

What do temples from the Ancient Near East have in common?

• Seen as the house of Deity.4

Exodus 25:8 “And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.”

Seen as the house of Deity

The people donated most of the materials used to make the

Tabernacle. (See Exodus 36:5,7)

The Tabernacle was built with professional help. (see Exodus 31:2-3)

The Tabernacle was a thing of art. (See Exodus 31:4)

Exodus 27:16 “And for the gate of the court shall be an hanging of twenty cubits, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework: and their pillars shall be four, and their sockets four.”

The entrance into the courtyard was 20 cubits

wide or 30 feet.

The fence made up of pillars and hangings of fine white linen was

5 cubits high or 7 ½ feet.

The fence made up of pillars and hangings of fine white linen was

50 cubits wide or 75 feet.

The fence made up of pillars and hangings of fine white linen was

100 cubits long or 150 feet.

The Tabernacle building was 30 cubits in length or 45 feet.

The Tabernacle building was 10 cubits wide or 15 feet.

The Tabernacle building was 10 cubits tall or 15 feet.

The South side of the Tabernacle building is made up of 20 boards of Shittim wood overlaid with gold.

The West side of the Tabernacle building is made up of 6 boards of Shittim wood overlaid with gold.

The North side of the Tabernacle building is made up of 20 boards of Shittim wood overlaid with gold.

Each board had two tenons.

The two tenons would hook into the two

silver sockets.

Each board hooked into

two silver sockets.

“These boards were fitted with golden rings, through which were passed bars of acacia wood overlaid with gold to fasten all firmly together.”

(Bible Dictionary: Tabernacle)

There were two narrow boards in the corners made of acacia wood.

There were 4 pillars made of shittim wood

overlaid with gold andplaced into 4 sockets of

silver inside the Tabernacle building.

On the East side of the Tabernacle, there were 5 pillars made of shittim wood overlaid with gold and placed into 5 brass sockets.

Shittim Wood

“Shittim” is pronounced “shee-teem” in Hebrew.

“…is used to designate a desert acacia tree known throughout

Egypt and the Near East.”5

“Because its hard wood endured well and also took a high polish, it was ideal for the construction of

the tabernacle.”6

“Because the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness at this

time, the tabernacle had to be portable.”7

Exodus 26:36 “And thou shalt make an hanging [curtain] for the door of the tent, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework.”

Exodus 26:1 “Moreover thou shalt make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet: with cherubims of cunning work shalt thou make them.”

“The inner fabric was made of fine-twined linen. The Hebrew word translated ‘linen’ signifies not only the fabric but also

‘whiteness.’”8

“Scholars believe it was either a fine cotton fabric or one made from flax.”9

“Because of the length of the tabernacle, ten curtains, or pieces of fabric, were needed to cover it.”10

Exodus 26:7  “And thou shalt make curtains of goats’ hair to be a covering upon the tabernacle.”

Curtain: Hebrew for “as a tent” (according to the

footnote found in LDS scriptures).

Exodus 26:14  “And thou shalt make a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and a covering above of badgers’

skins.”

Exodus 26:14  “And thou shalt make a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and a covering above of badgers’ skins.”

“…scholars seem to agree…that it was not the skin of badgers. The Hebrew word implies the color of, more than the kind of, fabric.”11

“Over the tabernacle the tent was spread. Its length was 40 cubits [60 feet], or 10 cubits [15 feet] longer than the

tabernacle.” (Bible Dictionary: “Tabernacle”)

Exodus 26:31 “And thou shalt make a veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made.”

Footnote Source Information

1 Lundquist, John M. "What Is a Temple? A Preliminary Typology." In Temples of the Ancient World: Ritual and Symbolism, edited by Donald W. Parry. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book and FARMS, 1994.

2 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13.

3 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13.

4 Carrol, James L. "A Revised Temple Typology." In Hagion Temenos, 2nd ed., Provo, Utah: BYU Press, 2005.

5 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13. See also Smith, William and F. N. Peloubet. A Dictionary of the Bible. Nashville: T. Nelson, 1986, 624-625.

6 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13.

Footnote Source Information

7 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13.

8 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13. See also Wilson, William. Old Testament Word Studies. Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1978, 255. Also see Fallows, Samuel. The Popular and Critical Bible Encyclopedia, 3 vols., Chicago: Howard-Severance, 1902, 2:1068.

9 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13.

10 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13.

11 Old Testament Student Manual Genesis-2 Samuel. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 1980, 1981, 2003, chapter 13. See also Wilson, William. Old Testament Word Studies. Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1978, 27.