The Tabernacle Essay

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The Tabernacle From the beginning of time, men have been worshipping God. But it was not until God gave Moses the instructions for building the Tabernacle that a pattern of worship was given to man. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve communed with God in the “cool of the day” (Genesis 3:8). After the Fall, Abel made a sacrifice of the first of his flock and “the Lord had respect unto Abel and his offering” (Genesis 4:4). “Enoch walked with God” (Genesis 5:22). After the flood, Noah “builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the LORD smelled a sweet savour ... (Genesis 8:21-22a). On the plains of Moreh, Abraham “builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD” (Genesis 12:8). In the Tabernacle, we see God’s pattern for worship. The word Tabernacle is Mishkan in Hebrew and means dwelling place, resting place or tent. It was the place that God instructed Moses to build so that he could “dwell” and “rest” among His people, the Israelites, during the 40 years they wandered in the wilderness. It was a mobile tent with movable furniture. Everywhere the Israelites traveled, The Tabernacle was erected in the center of the camp, with the twelve tribes around it. All twelve tribes had a clear view of it. They could see the presence of God in the midst of them in the form of a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. This must have been a comforting reminder that God was always with them. The Tabernacle was more than just a dwelling place, however. It was also the place where the priests and the people worshipped God according to His specific instructions. Not only did God instruct them on how to worship Him, but specific instructions were given on the place of worship. Everything about the Tabernacle was given to Moses in
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