Key Verses: Exodus 40:2, 40:34, 40:38
The LORD commands Moses to erect the tabernacle on the first day of the first month of the second year, and to set each element in its place: the ark with the veil, the table with its bread, the lampstand with its lamps, the golden altar of incense, the screen for the door, the altar of burnt offering, and the basin between tent and altar, with the court all around. He is to anoint the tabernacle and all its furnishings to consecrate them as holy, and to wash Aaron and his sons, clothe them, and anoint them for a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations. Moses does everything the LORD commands; the refrain “as the LORD commanded Moses” sounds again and again as he raises the structure, spreads the tent, places the testimony in the ark, sets the bread and the lamps, burns the incense, and offers the burnt offering. When Moses finishes the work, the cloud covers the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD fills the tabernacle, so that Moses is unable to enter because the cloud settles upon it and the glory fills it. Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud lifts from over the tabernacle, Israel sets out; but if it does not lift, they remain until the day it does, for the cloud of the LORD is on the tabernacle by day and fire is in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel.
The climactic descent of God’s glory to fill the tabernacle is the goal of the entire book of Exodus, for the God who redeemed Israel from Egypt now comes to dwell in their midst, the great promise of the covenant made visible. That Moses cannot enter because of the glory reveals both the nearness and the unapproachable holiness of God, a tension resolved when the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). This same glory would later fill Solomon’s temple (1 Kings 8:10-11) and would ultimately be embodied in Christ, in whom the fullness of deity dwells bodily (Colossians 2:9), and by the Spirit now dwells in the church as God’s temple (1 Corinthians 3:16). The guiding cloud and fire assure us that the God who dwells with His people also leads them, a pledge that culminates in the new creation where God will dwell with man and be their God (Revelation 21:3). Exodus thus ends not in the promised land but in the presence of God, teaching that the presence of the LORD is the true destination of redemption. What began with a cry of bondage in Egypt ends with the glory of God resting upon a redeemed and worshiping people.
Key Terms & Words:
- מִשְׁכָּן (mishkan) - Exodus 40:2 - “Tabernacle/dwelling”; the completed dwelling place of God among His people, the goal of the exodus
- כָּבוֹד (kavod) - Exodus 40:34 - “Glory”; the weighty, radiant presence of the LORD that fills and consecrates the tabernacle
- עָנָן (anan) - Exodus 40:38 - “Cloud”; the pillar of cloud and fire, the sign of God’s guiding presence throughout Israel’s journeys
Cross-References:
- John 1:14 - The Word tabernacled among us, and we beheld His glory
- 1 Kings 8:10-11 - The glory of the LORD fills Solomon’s temple
- Colossians 2:9 - The fullness of deity dwells bodily in Christ
- 1 Corinthians 3:16 - Believers are the temple in whom God’s Spirit dwells
- Revelation 21:3 - God’s dwelling with man consummated in the new creation
Discussion Questions:
- Why is the glory of God filling the tabernacle the fitting climax to the whole book of Exodus?
- How does knowing that God desires to dwell with His people shape your view of salvation?
- How does the tabernacle filled with glory point forward to Christ and to God dwelling with us forever?