The Tabernacle Curtains

Having given Moses directions for constructing the ark of the covenant, the table of showbread, and the lampstand—furniture pieces for the inside of the tabernacle (Ex. 25)—the Lord next delivered blueprints for the actual structure of the sanctuary. We find the record of these blueprints in Exodus 26,which makes it clear that the tabernacle was a tent. The Hebrew word translated “tabernacle” actually means “dwelling place,” so God was going to dwell in a tent among His people, who also dwelled in tents.

Yet the directions for the tabernacle structure indicate that the Lord’s tent was much larger and more ornate than the tents that housed the Israelites. Today’s passage describes the curtains made of cloth, animal hair, and animal skins that made up the tabernacle. Exodus 26:1–14 describes a four-layered structure, with the tabernacle proper consisting of one layer and sheltered from the elements by three other layers. Verses 1–6 describe the curtains of the tabernacle proper, and the text indicates that they were quite beautiful, made from “fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns” (v. 1). These were the colors of royalty, so the tabernacle was designed to resemble a kingly palace, the only place fitting for the King of creation to dwell. Blue also recalls the color of the sky, reminding the Israelites of God’s heavenly throne (see Ps. 2:4). Into the tabernacle curtains were worked images of cherubim (Ex. 26:1), again pointing to the sanctuary as the place of God’s throne on earth, for cherubim attend the Lord as He reigns over all (see Ezek. 1; 10). Because Eden was guarded by cherubim after the fall (Gen. 3:24), it is likely that the tabernacle was also intended to be a reminder of the garden of Eden, which most commentators believe was originally designed to be a temple for God on earth. The Lord made mankind to worship Him in His garden temple, and the tabernacle was the new sanctuary where the Lord would be worshiped after the fall.

Exodus 26:7–14 tells us that three layers of curtains were draped over the tabernacle itself. These would have protected the beautiful linen curtains of the tabernacle from rain and other environmental threats. But they also made it so that the Israelites could catch only the barest glimpses of the tabernacle’s beauty, since most of the tabernacle was shielded from view by these outer layers of curtains. The tabernacle provided some access to God for the Israelites, but it was a greatly limited access.