The Door of the Tent

(Exodus 26:36-37)

Exodus 26:36-37 — And thou shalt make an hanging for the door of the tent, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, wrought with needlework. 37 And thou shalt make for the hanging five pillars of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold, and their hooks shall be of gold: and thou shalt cast five sockets of brass for them.

Introduction

(Why study Tabernacle? Because at least 50 chapters (13-Ex, 18-Lev, 13-Num, 2-Deut, 4-Heb) in the Bible tell of the construction, the ritual, the priesthood, the carrying of the tabernacle, and the meaning of it all. Also many other places in Scripture speak in figurative language concerning the tabernacle. In many Bible studies this subject is overlooked and considered insignificant.)

It consisted of hangings of linen on which were woven blue, purple, and scarlet. These are the same materials with which the veil was made, but there were no cherubims on the door as there were on the veil. This door separated the Holy Place from the court of the Tabernacle, serving the same purpose as the veil served for the Holiest of All. The priests, the sons of Aaron, after their service in the court, passed through this door when entering into the Holy Place. For those who came to the Tabernacle with their offerings it was not possible to see beyond the door.

The door stretched across the whole of the east side of the Tabernacle. The door of the tabernacle was 10 cubits long x 10 cubits wide (The entrance gate was 20 x 5 cubits, and the veil was 10 cubits square, it is very interesting that all three entrances totaled 100 cubits each.)

The Hanging of the Door

Upon 5 pillars there were gold rings for the hanging. The hanging was made of blue, purple, scarlet, and fine linen thread, the work of a weaver (skillfully wrought with needles)

BLUE: Christ's Divine Nature (heavenly)
PURPLE: Christ's Kingdom (royalty)
SCARLET: Christ's Sufferings (the blood)
FINE TWINED LINEN: Christ's Human Nature (spotless humanity)

In Christ was every grace and virtue combined and blended.

Ps 139:15 ...

No Cherubims

The absence of cherubims on the door was striking. Within the Holy Place they were always in sight, whether on the fine linen curtain overhead or on the veil, but on the door and on the gate giving access to the court they were not to be seen. The cherubims were guardians of the presence of God. It has already been noted in these studies, and is worth repeating, that cherubims are first mentioned in Genesis 3. After the Fall the Lord God drove out the man from the garden of Eden and "placed at the east of the garden…Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life" (Gen 3.24). They are not mentioned again until the instruction is given to make two cherubims of gold to be set over the Mercy Seat (Ex 25.18). They jealously cared for the holiness of God.

The closer the worshipper approaches God, the greater awareness there is of His holiness. In the court, grace dominates; no cherubims are in view there but an Altar and a Laver. Moving closer, having washed at the Laver, there is an increasing awareness that He is holy and that the demeanour and conduct of the worshipper must reflect an appreciation of His holiness. The word "holy" (6944) is first used at the burning bush when Moses is told, "Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground" (Ex 3.5). Moses had to realise the holiness that marked the presence of God.

The Door was Suspended on Five Pillars

Made of Shittim wood overlaid with gold. Pointing to the human and divine nature of Christ.
The pillars were five in number

Perhaps here we may find a reference to Isaiah 9:6.

Isaiah 9:6 — For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

The pillars on which the door was hung signify responsibility. There were ten Commandments declaring the responsibility of God’s people towards God and towards their neighbour. Here the five pillars have been viewed as signifying the responsibility of the worshipper to observe the Word of God as the Sanctuary is entered, but the fact that they were made of shittim wood overlaid with gold indicates that they speak of the Lord Jesus Christ. Consistency of interpretation demands this. What is seen in the pillars is the One who fulfilled all His responsibilities to God and man. He kept the Law; He was obedient and prepared to go to death; He finished the work which was given Him to do. Entering in through this door there was an awareness that such a privilege was only enjoyed because of the One who fulfilled every responsibility which He was given to undertake. The fulfilment of all of God’s purpose - the redemption of mankind and indeed of the whole universe; the defeat of the forces of evil - was laid on Him and He triumphed and triumphed gloriously.

Foundation (or sockets) of the pillars were of brass.

We can only enter the dwelling presence of God on the ground or foundation that Divine righteousness has judged sin at Calvary.

The brass of which the sockets were made was also used for the Brazen Altar. It signifies that which can withstand the heat and flame of the altar. This the Lord Jesus did when He died on the Cross, and the brass, therefore, speaks of the One who purchased redemption when He went through the flame and heat of Calvary. Brass speaks of the work itself, and the silver sockets, which supported the boards of the Tabernacle and the pillars for the veil, of the price that was paid to accomplish that work.

Psalms 97:2 — ...

The pillars were crowned with gold (Exodus 36:38).

Humanity crowned Christ with thorns, but God placed many crowns upon His head.

Revelation 19:12 — His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.

Primary Lesson from the Door

This was the only door of the Tabernacle. There was only one entrance into the court, only one door into the holy place, and only one way into the holy of holies. The Door teaches us of the one and only way into God's presence — Jesus.

John 10:9 — I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.

In the tabernacle, the door admitted to:

Light - golden candlestick - a light that was never to go out
Fellowship - table of shewbread
Prayer and Worship - altar of incense
Safety - only a door between, but whatever the turmoil raged without, all was peace within (Psalm 31:20)
Nearness to God - The veil alone separated from the immediate glory of the mercy seat

--This privilege must never be underestimated. !!!

Each entrance in the Tabernacle, the gate, the door, the veil, represented stages in approaching God. In the court, seen in the Brazen Altar and the Laver, there was an appreciation that the shed blood was the only way in, and that it was necessary to be clean. Passing through the door was the act of a priest entering in to worship. The sacrifices on the Brazen Altar were indeed acts of worship, but passing through the door was moving further in. The purpose of the door was to permit priestly worshippers to enter; the purpose of the veil was to prohibit their entrance into the Most Holy. One was a prohibition; the other was an invitation. The priests, moving from the court through the door, signify greater intimacy of worship, an intimacy which today is not limited to one priestly family. "The nearer we approach to God, as His priests, the more intimate our fellowship with Him in heavenly places; the more shall we discern the glories of Christ, and realise his power, majesty and strength."1