ART. III.-NOTES ON THE TABERNACLE.

THE typical lessons in the Bible present two aspects, which we do well to bear in mind in our study of its precious contents.

One set of types illustrates the leading features of Redemption, the deliverance from the bondage of corruption-from the power and dominion of sin, into the glorious liberty of the children of God-the breaking of the oppressors by sore judgments-opening the prison doors to them that are bound-and bringing liberty to the captives, by the strong hand and stretched-out arm of Jehovah. Another set of types serves to illustrate how this new position is to be maintained-how the new man in Christ has to be strengthened and upheld, fed and nourished day by day continually, in fellowship with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

Of the first-mentioned types let us take a specimen.

The long-suffering of God waited for the long period of one hundred and twenty years in the days of Noah, a preacher of righteousness; but none believed. God would; but man would not, and perished. Now, in Noah in the ark, lifted as it were from one world into another, from a scene of wretchedness, sin, and misery, into a scene of quietude and rest,—almost alone with God, we have a picture or type presented to us of salvation by the power and grace of God, a translation from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear Son -all old things passed away, and all things become new.

Let us take another example from this class of types-the Passover. Instituted on the deliverance of the children of Israel from the iron oppression of Egypt, it was celebrated, by God's appointment, on the fourteenth day of the seventh month. This month Abib was then changed into the first month, even as, on the occasion of the glorious resurrection of Christ, the seventh day, or Sabbath, was changed into the first day of the week. And here notice a remarkable link between the type of the Ark of Noah and this type of the Passover. The Passover-day, when the lamb was slain, was the fourteenth day of the seventh month, on which day Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Three days later, the seventeenth day of the month, was consequently the date of the resurrection of Christ. Now, if we turn to Gen. viii. 4, we read, " And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat." Thus these types are linked together,

and both, with death and resurrection, even with the death and resurrection of Christ, the alone ground of a sinner's justification in the sight of God. But to return.

On that fearful night when the destroying angel passed through Egypt, and slew the firstborn of every family-on that night much to be remembered the Passover lamb was slain, and its blood sprinkled on the lintels and the two sideposts of every house, thus surrounding every doorway with blood. Mark the use of this sprinkled blood. It was not for Israel to look at, for it was outside the door, but at midnight the destroying angel is sent forth on his deadly errand, and One goes with him who has pledged his word for the safety of the firstborn of Israel-" When I see the blood, I will pass over you." Death was reckoned to have entered there already; therefore the Lord passed over, or passed between, being himself the defence and shield of Israel. While the agonising wail of Egypt's bereaved families pierces the silence of midnight, Israel are safe and free. Clad and sandalled, with staff in hand, they wait the command to go forth. Ere morning dawned they have left the house of bondage and their iron-hearted taskmasters. Such was the type of redemption by blood, by the blood of the Lamb of God. What a mighty deliverance, by a mighty deliverer! What a beginning of months! What a night, much to be remembered! What a date in Israel's history! What a name gotten by the Lord of hosts! His right hand and his holy arm hath gotten him the victory. Redemption is completed-the oppressor is broken-Israel is saved. "It is the Lord's Passover." It is Israel's feast, yet ours too from generation to generation, typical of His triumph who wrencheth the sinner from the grasp of the devil, and lets the oppressed go free; whose blood is so precious that it purchased redemption, and brought upon sin, righteousness,-upon death, life, and upon the grave, resurrection. Oh! will it not be meet for ever that the song of the redeemed shall have for its first note, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain ;" and for its harmonious second, hast redeemed us by thy blood!"

"Thou

We said that there were other types which serve to shew how a saint is sustained after he has been born again, or how the Church in the wilderness is preserved and nourished, cleansed and sustained in fellowship with God. For a specimen of these, we refer to the tabernacle commanded of God to be set up in the wilderness for this high and holy end, that he might dwell among them, and be their God.

How

many words there are in the New Testament of which

we either had never known the meaning, or had known them very imperfectly, save from their connexion with the tabernacle; such as, acceptance, altar, anointing, atonement, bloodsprinkling, building of God, cleansing, courts of God's house, fitly-framed together, high priest, habitation of God, house of God, incense, mercy-seat, offering, priest, propitiation, sacrifice, sanctuary, service, washing; and many more besides. The tabernacle is, therefore, highly worthy of our consideration. God, who in six days created the heavens and the earth, perhaps employed forty days in exhibiting to Moses the patterns of the tabernacle, the shadow of heavenly things. One chapter is employed to describe the creation of the world, whereas more than fifty are filled with descriptions of the tabernacle and its services.

Let us turn then to Exod. xxv. 1-9. Mark here the Lord's request to bring to him an offering of a certain kind--gold, silver, brass, &c. Observe the condition attached to every portion of this offering, and without which it would not have been taken-" of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart." The Lord then, as now, loved a cheerful giver; and everything that was so eminently to typify Christ, the unspeakable gift of God, must have the sweet savour of a willing offering-yea, given "willingly with the heart." Mark again, ver. 8, the wondrous purpose of all this-“Let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them." What a high-what a holy use! All these materials were for the construction of a house for the Lord-a sanctuary wherein he would dwell!

He

Can this be the same glorious Lord who had so lately before appeared on Mount Sinai in such awful majesty? (Exod. xix. 16-19.) Yes, indeed, it is the same Lord. willeth to dwell in very deed with man upon the earth; his delights are with the sons of men-yea, he hath proved this to the very letter. He hath taken our very nature in our very world, and stood in our very room and stead. Such an idea, that God-who filleth heaven and earth with his presence-should yet dwell in a curtained tent or tabernacle with man upon the earth, could not have entered the imagination of either man or angel. Yet such is the fact; and on this marvellous and undoubted fact is based the glorious gospel of the grace of God. Mark again, ver. 9, " According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.” (See also v. 40, xxvi. 30, xxvii. 8; Acts vii. 44; Heb. viii. 5.) Why is the Lord so jealous over this pattern of the house to

be made for him? Because it must shadow forth the excellencies of Christ, therefore every minute particular must have attention, and the faithfulness of Moses in all his house depends on his strictly following the pattern.

In Hebrews, ch. ix., the tabernacle is called, ver. 9, "a figure for the time then present;" ver. 23, "the patterns of things in the heavens ; " ver. 24, "the figures of the true." Thus we learn that the tabernacle was a type of Christ and his Church, therefore every particular regarding it was and is most important. It was a shadow; and what is required to constitute a shadow?-a light and a substance. Thus, God, who is light, did cast on the earth the shadow of his beloved Son in his blessed relationship and offices; the shadow, indeed, of realities, the veiled glory of our Lord and his Church, that we might learn and know him as the Lifeeternal.

When Israel encamped in the wilderness, they did so in the form of a square; and as the camp contained 603,550 ablebodied men (Numb. i. 46), besides women and children, the number of all the tribes together would likely be upwards of two millions. This must have occupied a large area, say about three miles square. In the centre of this great square stood the tabernacle of God. In shape it was an oblong square, its height was ten cubits, its breadth ten cubits, and its length thirty cubits. It was formed into two apartments, by a vail which separated the holy from the most holy place. The holiest of all occupied a third of the tabernacle, being ten cubits each way, its length and breadth and height being equal. This reminds us of the description of New Jerusalem in Rev. xxi. 16.

This tent or tabernacle was surrounded by a large area or outer court, 100 cubits by 50, enclosed by curtains hung on 60 pillars. This area was called "the court of the Lord's house," so often referred to, and specially in the book of Psalms (lxv. 4, lxxxiv. 2, xcii. 13, xcvi. 8, c. 4, cxvi. 19, cxxxv. 2.)

Let us consider briefly the principal features of it.

I. THE DOOR.-The door was placed due east, and was guarded by the tribe of Judah, and the tents of Moses and Aaron. This door was always open, night and day. Its curtains were of the same material as the door of the tabernacle and the vail. The always open door will suggest to us readily both the large welcome in the gospel to the returning sinners, and also Him who says, "I am the door;" "by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved" (John x. 9.)

Let us mark here with joyful gratitude and praise that we

are not invited to come to God for a Saviour, but by a Saviour already provided-by God's open door, which is Christ: for "through him we have access by one Spirit unto the Father" (Eph. ii. 18.)

II. THE BRAZEN ALTAR.-We now enter the court of the tabernacle, and the first object that stands before us is the great brazen altar, on which the offerings and sacrifices were offered. This altar typified the Lord Jesus Christ (Heb. xiii. 10.) It was the place of blessing (Lev. ix. 22), and it was the place of acceptance (Isa. lvi. 7.)

Fire burned continually on it, and there the sacrifices were consumed-typical, no doubt, of the wrath of God seizing the victim, that was dealt with in the room and stead of the sinner (Lev. vi. 13), as the fire was from God (Lev. ix. 24.) It was called the altar of burnt-offering, because on it was presented, morning and evening, the lamb as the daily burntoffering so significant of the one great Atonement by the finished work of Christ, inasmuch as this daily lamb was wholly consumed to ashes, the token of acceptance (Ps. xx. 3) and the ashes were then to be removed to a clean place (Lev. iv. 12.) Even so, after the crucifixion, the body of Jesus was laid in the clean place, the new tomb, "where never man before was laid" (Luke xxiii. 53.)

Standing by this altar, what a vast field for contemplation presents itself. If our New Testament tells us, without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness, here is blood-shedding abundantly, and the way of immediate forgiveness shewn out many times every day. For here there was no uncertain sound-no perplexing doubts-no misty, vague dealing with a sin-sick soul. Observe how certain and sure the forgivenessnot because of anything either about priest or offerer, but solely because of the vast value of that blood by which a far-off sinner is brought nigh-the sweet savour of which God smelled in that offering presented and accepted in the room and stead of the guilty (Lev. iv., xx., xxvi., xxxi., xxxv., vers. 10, 16, 18, &c.) Thus we have here, as in the cross of Christ, the meeting-place with God-the place of communion, under covert of atoning blood-God and the sinful soul meeting together in blessed fellowship! Of what vast importance is it that we learn the lesson of the brazen altar-blood and forgiveness-justification-the way of pardon-the way of a sinner's acceptance through Christ-the new birth-the new life-the much forgiveness, which produces the much love. -the lesson of substitution-the Just One for the unjust—the