The first item of the furniture to be put into the tabernacle was the Ark (vv. 20-21), indicating that the Ark was the central item of the tabernacle and its furniture. Most Christians focus on the experience of salvation at the altar, but the book of Exodus reveals that God’s intention is to have the Ark of the Testimony in the Tabernacle of the Testimony. Eventually, the Ark in the tabernacle will consummate in an eternal tabernacle, the New Jerusalem, with the Ark, the redeeming Christ, as the center (Rev. 21:2-3; 22:1). God’s eternal goal is to have the New Jerusalem as the ultimate fulfillment of the tabernacle with the Ark.

The tabernacle was erected on the first day of the first month of the second year (v. 17). The first month of the first year was the time of the passover (Exo. 13:4). Hence, the time from the passover to the erecting of the tabernacle was one year.

God’s people had two beginnings, the first at the passover, which was for their salvation, and the second at the erecting of the tabernacle, which was related to the building of God’s dwelling place. Every genuine Christian should have these two beginnings: the experience of salvation and the practical experience of the building of the church as God’s dwelling place (1 Tim. 3:15).

With respect to man, the tabernacle was the Tent of Meeting, but with respect to God, it was the tabernacle. The tabernacle is related to God’s testimony (Exo. 38:21), whereas the Tent of Meeting is more outward, external, related to God’s interest on earth and to His move.

Glory is God’s expression, God Himself expressed. The cloud covering the Tent of Meeting was the outer part, the outer covering, of God’s glory. Those who were gathered around the Tent of Meeting could see the cloud, whereas the high priest who eventually entered into the Holy of Holies (Lev. 16:15; Heb. 9:7) in the tabernacle could see the inward glory of the tabernacle. This indicates that in our experience of the church life we need to advance by entering into the tabernacle — Christ as the embodiment of God — to enjoy the bread at the table and to intercede at the incense altar, that we may experience the glory in God’s dwelling place (cf. note John 1:14^2a, par. 3).

The cloud of Jehovah’s glory became the leading, the guidance, of the children of Israel. According to the type here, apart from God’s dwelling place there is no leading or guidance for God’s people. The children of Israel followed the tabernacle with the cloud. Likewise, in our Christian journey we must follow God’s move with His dwelling place, the church.

I.e., the cloud.

In the Old Testament times the house of God was the house of Israel, represented here by the tabernacle and later by the temple (see note Heb. 3:6^1a). At the end of Genesis an individual Israel was produced as a miniature of God’s house to express God and exercise His authority. At the end of Exodus a corporate Israel was produced as God’s house to express God and represent Him by exercising His authority on earth. The goal of God’s eternal purpose is to have a corporate people to be His dwelling place for His expression and representation in eternity. The books of Genesis and Exodus together consummate with God’s tabernacle, His dwelling place, filled with His glory (v. 34). Likewise, the entire Bible consummates in the New Jerusalem as the eternal tabernacle of God filled with the glory of God (Rev. 21:2-3, 10-11) and exercising God’s authority for His divine administration in eternity (Rev. 22:1, 5).