Message 184
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Scripture Reading: Exo. 40:1-38
As the conclusion of the Life-study of Exodus, in this message and the following we shall consider 40:1-38.
In Exodus we have the record of God’s revelation concerning the tabernacle and its furniture and also the record of the making of the tabernacle and its furniture. In chapter forty of Exodus we have two records. The first is God’s commandment concerning the erecting of the tabernacle and the placement of the furniture and utensils. The second record describes how Moses did everything according to God’s commandment. These two records, of course, are almost exactly the same. In the book of Exodus there are actually four records related to the tabernacle and its furniture and utensils. In the foregoing message we pointed out the reason for the difference in sequence between the record of the revelation of the tabernacle and its furniture and the record concerning the making of the tabernacle and its furniture. Here I would like to point out that in each of the four records the most important matter is the ark of the testimony.
We have seen that the revelation of the tabernacle and its furniture begins with the ark of the testimony. God begins with the ark of the testimony and then proceeds outward to the outer court. But according to our experience, we begin with the altar of burnt offering and proceed onward until we reach the ark. Here we see the contrast between God’s viewpoint and our viewpoint, between God’s end and our end. God begins with the ark of the testimony, and we begin with the altar of burnt offering.
If we compare the books of Romans and Ephesians, we shall also see a contrast between God’s side and our side, between God’s end and our end. The book of Romans begins with our side, with the situation of fallen man. In Romans 1 there is detail concerning the sinful things, and in Romans 3 we see the altar. Ephesians, however, begins from God’s side. Even in the first chapter of Ephesians we can see God’s intention. This means that in Ephesians 1 we see Christ as the ark of testimony.
As far as the tabernacle and its furniture are concerned, the book of Exodus does not begin from our side and proceed to God’s side. Rather, it begins from God’s side and proceeds to our side.
God is in the heavens, and we are on earth. We need to ask not only how we can reach God, but also how God can reach us. It is not an easy matter for God to reach us. However, some may say that because God is sovereign and almighty, He can do whatever He desires and can easily reach us. It is, of course, true that God is sovereign and almighty. But we need to remember that God is not lawless; rather, He is a God of law, regulation, and order. Because God is an orderly God, He cannot act contrary to His nature. He cannot do anything that is contrary to His righteous way. In order for the holy and righteous God to reach man, He must act in a way that matches His holiness and corresponds to His righteousness. Therefore, in order for God to come from heaven to earth to reach us, His righteousness must be upheld, and His holiness must be honored. This means that God cannot come to us in a careless way. God’s coming requires a number of steps, or turns, from the ark in the Holy of Holies to the altar in the outer court. These turns can be compared to the turns one makes in driving a car. The driver of a car may first turn right and then left, but all these turns are necessary for him to reach his destination. Likewise, within the tabernacle there are a number of turns.
The book of Exodus reveals that God’s intention is to have the ark. This ark is the ark of testimony, and this causes the tabernacle to become the tabernacle of testimony. What God wants is the ark of testimony in the tabernacle of testimony. We, however, may want nothing more than our own salvation. Because we care for our salvation, we may not have any thought concerning God’s testimony. Our salvation is at the altar, but God’s testimony is at the ark. Most of today’s Christians do not have any idea about God’s testimony. They are mainly concerned with their salvation. If you were to talk with them about other matters in the Word of God, they may say, “Does this have something to do with my salvation? Will this determine whether I go to heaven?” This is the way many Christians view things. Today’s Christians do not have much thought regarding God’s testimony.
Do you know what is the main subject of the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible? In answer to this question, some Christians would say that Revelation is a book of prophecy that tells us about a beast that comes from the sea and another beast that comes from the land. But this is not the main subject of Revelation. In the first chapter of Revelation we see the main subject of this book — the testimony of Jesus. The last book of the Bible is concerned with the testimony of Jesus.
Once again we must appreciate the wonderful fact that the Bible truly is the divine revelation. The human mind is not capable of composing such a book.
Eventually, in the last of the sixty-six books of the Bible, we have a book concerned with the testimony of Jesus. This testimony is the ark of God. According to Revelation, the ark of God eventually consummates in a tabernacle which will be the New Jerusalem. The New Jerusalem will be the ultimate fulfillment of the tabernacle. It is God’s eternal goal to have the New Jerusalem.
In our reading of the book of Exodus, we need to pay careful attention to the significance of the ark of testimony. I hope that all the young people especially will see the importance of the ark of testimony in this book. In reading and studying the Word of God, we should not be controlled by our natural mind, religion, or culture. We should not merely be concerned with receiving some kind of blessing from God. We need to see that what God desires is the ark of testimony in the tabernacle of testimony.
In the revelation of the tabernacle and its furniture, the ark is mentioned first. In the making of the tabernacle and the furniture and in the two records concerning this matter in chapter forty, the ark of testimony also has a central place. We have seen that the ark of testimony typifies Christ. The first item of furniture to be put into the tabernacle was the ark. The ark, therefore, is the central item of the tabernacle and its furniture.
Exodus 40:2 says, “On the first day of the first month you shall raise up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting.” It is very significant that God commanded Moses to erect the tabernacle on the first day of the first month of the second year. We know that the first month of the first year was the time of the Passover. Hence, from the Passover to the erection of the tabernacle was one year.
In Exodus 12 and 40 we see that God’s people had two beginnings. The first beginning was with the Passover, which was for the salvation of the children of Israel. The second beginning was their beginning with God’s dwelling place. These two beginnings are clear types or signs. The first beginning is to be saved, to experience the Passover, to have God’s judgment pass over us. Every genuine Christian has experienced this beginning. But what about the second beginning, the beginning related to the building of God’s dwelling place? It is a fact that not many Christians realize the need to have this second beginning.
When I was young I read some books that spoke about a so-called second blessing. Pentecostal people would say that to have this second blessing is to experience the baptism of the Holy Spirit. They encourage believers to seek this second blessing. But those Christians who emphasize the inner life claim that the second blessing is something inward. They may say something like this: “You need to experience the cross of Christ. If you experience the cross, then inwardly you will be filled with life. This inward filling is the second blessing.” But have you ever heard anyone speak about a second blessing, a second Abib, in the second year? The first month of the holy calendar is called the month of Abib, which means green ears, and signifies a new, fresh beginning in life.
We all need to have the two beginnings, one typified by the Passover in Exodus 12, and the other, by the erection of the tabernacle in Exodus 40. This is a matter of great significance. The second beginning is not related to tongue-speaking nor even to the inner filling for the inner life. Neither is it the second blessing spoken of by so-called holiness people. They say that if we receive holiness, we have received the second blessing. But from Exodus we see that the second beginning is related to the building of God’s dwelling place. When in our Christian life we experience the building of God’s dwelling place in a practical way, we have the second beginning. What is the dwelling place of God today? God’s dwelling place is the church, which is called the house of the living God (1 Tim. 3:15). The building of this house is the second beginning, the genuine second blessing, the beginning that takes place on the first day of the first month of the second year. How glad I am to have the assurance that I have experienced the second beginning! Many among us also have the assurance that we have had this second beginning. This is truly a blessing! To have the second beginning with the building of the dwelling place of God is much better than tongue-speaking, inward filling, or holiness. None of these things can compare with God’s dwelling place. None of them can compare with the building of the church.
When certain ones hear this, they may say, “Witness Lee is always talking about the church. Wherever he goes he emphasizes the church because this is his cargo.” Actually, I am not promoting my “cargo” — I am promoting God’s cargo. What do we see at the end of Exodus? We see God’s dwelling place. We see a tabernacle occupied by God and possessed by Him in the way of glory to express Him. We see the same thing at the end of the Bible. In the last chapters of the book of Revelation we see a tabernacle, the New Jerusalem, occupied and possessed by God in the way of glory for His expression. In Exodus 40:34 we are told that “the glory of Jehovah filled the tabernacle,” and in Revelation 21 we see that the New Jerusalem has the glory of God (Rev. 21:10-11). Both at the end of Exodus and at the end of Revelation we see the glory of God filling the tabernacle, God’s dwelling place.
Exodus 40:16 says, “And Moses did according to all that Jehovah had commanded him; so he did.” Again and again the words “as Jehovah had commanded Moses” are repeated (vv. 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 32). When I read this portion of the Word as a young person, I thought that it was too repetitious. It seemed to me that it would have been sufficient to say at the end that everything was done according to what God had commanded Moses. However, the fact that the words “as Jehovah had commanded Moses” are repeated again and again indicates something important.
Although the record in chapter forty is not very long, it is quite detailed. First we are told that “Moses raised up the tabernacle, and placed its sockets, and put up its boards, and put in its bars, and raised up its pillars” (v. 18). Then we are told that Moses “spread the tent over the tabernacle” and “put the cover of the tent over it from above” (v. 19). The curtains were placed above the boards to form the ceiling, and the layers of coverings were put on top of the curtains to form the roof. Thus, inside, the curtains formed the ceiling, and outside, the coverings formed the roof.
Verses 20 and 21 speak about the ark: “And he took the testimony and placed it into the ark, and he put the poles on the ark, and he placed the propitiatory cover upon the ark from above. And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and he put up the veil of the curtain, and covered the ark of the testimony, as Jehovah had commanded Moses.” Verse 20 speaks of the cover of the ark as the propitiatory cover. The King James Version uses the expression “mercy seat.” According to the New Testament, the propitiatory cover is the throne of grace (Heb. 4:16), where God meets with His people. After the ark was placed in the tabernacle, the veil covering the ark of testimony was set up.
According to verse 22, Moses placed the table in the tent of meeting, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil. Then he set in order upon the table the loaves of bread. The bread is for feeding, for nourishing. Opposite the table, on the south side of the tabernacle, Moses put the lampstand, and he lighted the lamps before the Lord. Following this, Moses put the golden altar of incense before the veil. Then, as the Lord had commanded him, he burned upon it the incense of fragrant spices. At the incense altar the priests could pray and intercede for God’s people.
In chapter forty of Exodus, the bread is mentioned along with the table; the lighting of the lamps, along with the lampstand; and the burning of incense, along with the golden altar of incense. This indicates that we should not have a table without bread, a lampstand without light, or an incense altar without incense. As soon as the table was put in the Holy Place, the bread was arranged upon it. Likewise, as soon as the lampstand was put in place opposite the table, the lamps were lighted. Furthermore, once the golden altar had been set up before the veil, incense was burned upon it. Anyone entering the Holy Place could see the bread and the light and smell the incense. This indicates that in the Lord’s recovery we should not have outward things without the reality of those things. For example, we should not have baptism without the reality of the Lord’s death and resurrection, or the Lord’s table without the reality of the Body of Christ. If we do not have reality, we shall simply have empty forms.
Exodus 40:28 says, “And he put up the curtain of the door to the tabernacle.” Once this curtain had been put up, the entire tabernacle was finished. Therefore, verse 30 goes on to speak of the laver and the altar of burnt offering, and verse 33, of the raising up of the court round about the tabernacle and the altar and the hanging up of the curtain of the gate of the court. Then verse 33 concludes with the words, “And Moses finished the work.” At this point, all the work regarding the erecting of the tabernacle and the outer court was completed. In the following message, the last message in this Life-study of Exodus, we shall see that the cloud covered the tent of meeting and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
