God's Fabric, God's House: Text: Exodus 36:35-38
Introduction: The Architecture of Heaven
When we come to these detailed descriptions of the tabernacle's construction, our modern, pragmatic minds are tempted to skim. We see lists of materials, measurements, and methods, and we think it is little more than an ancient architectural blueprint, interesting perhaps to the historian, but not immediately relevant to our lives. But this is to fundamentally misunderstand what God is doing here. Every detail in the tabernacle is a word from God. It is theology in fabric and metal. It is a sermon in acacia wood and gold. God is not just giving Israel a tent; He is giving them a miniature cosmos, a portable Mount Sinai, a re-established Eden. He is teaching them, and us, what it means for a holy God to condescend to dwell in the midst of a sinful people.
The story of the Bible is Paradise, Paradise Lost, and Paradise Regained. In Genesis, God walked with man in the garden. After the fall, cherubim with a flaming sword were placed to guard the way back to the tree of life. Man was exiled from the presence of God. The entire sacrificial system, the law, and the tabernacle are God's gracious provision to make a way for man to come back into His presence, albeit carefully and through a mediator. The tabernacle is the beginning of Paradise Regained. It is a structured, symbolic return to Eden. And at the very heart of this structure, guarding the way to the immediate presence of God, we find a veil, woven with the images of cherubim. God is teaching His people that the way back is not a casual stroll. Holiness is a serious business. Access is not a right; it is a blood-bought gift.
In these final verses of Exodus 36, we see the construction of two distinct curtains: the inner veil that separates the Holy of Holies from the Holy Place, and the screen for the doorway of the tent itself. They are not the same, and their differences are instructive. They teach us about the gradations of holiness, the nature of God's presence, and the ultimate access we have received in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is Himself the true temple, the true veil, and the true door.
The Text
Moreover, he made the veil of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen; he made it with cherubim, the work of a skillful designer. And he made four pillars of acacia for it and overlaid them with gold, with their hooks of gold; and he cast four bases of silver for them. And he made a screen for the doorway of the tent, of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver; and he made its five pillars with their hooks, and he overlaid their tops and their bands with gold; but their five bases were of bronze.
(Exodus 36:35-38 LSB)
The Cherubim Wall (v. 35)
We begin with the most sacred of the tabernacle's dividers, the veil.
"Moreover, he made the veil of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen; he made it with cherubim, the work of a skillful designer." (Exodus 36:35)
This is not just any curtain. This is the barrier between the Holy Place, where the priests ministered daily, and the Holy of Holies, which housed the Ark of the Covenant, God's very footstool on earth. This was the room the High Priest could enter only once a year, on the Day of Atonement, and not without blood. This veil was a constant, woven sermon declaring the unapproachability of the Holy God. Sinful man cannot simply barge into His throne room.
The materials themselves are a royal announcement. Blue speaks of the heavens, of God's transcendent divinity. Purple is the color of royalty; this is the house of the King of kings. Scarlet is the color of blood, of sacrifice, of life laid down. This is the only way a sinful man can approach a holy King from heaven, through the shedding of blood. And the fine twisted linen speaks of purity and righteousness, a righteousness that we do not possess on our own.
And woven into this fabric are cherubim. These are the same creatures who guarded the way back to Eden. They are the guardians of God's holiness, the celestial bodyguards of the King. Their presence here on the veil is a stark reminder: "Access Denied." This is a wall, not a welcome mat. It says that the way into the holiest of all has not yet been made manifest (Heb. 9:8). It was the work of a "skillful designer," which tells us that this barrier was not some arbitrary rule, but a divinely and artfully designed piece of theology. It was beautiful, and it was deadly serious.
Pillars of Redemption (v. 36)
This glorious and forbidding veil did not hang in the air. It was supported by a specific structure.
"And he made four pillars of acacia for it and overlaid them with gold, with their hooks of gold; and he cast four bases of silver for them." (Exodus 36:36 LSB)
The pillars were made of acacia wood, a hardy, durable wood from the wilderness. This often speaks to us of incorruptible humanity, humanity that can withstand the rigors of this fallen world. But this humanity is completely overlaid with gold, the metal of divinity and glory. This is a picture of the God-man, Jesus Christ. His perfect humanity is the foundation, but it is His divinity that gives it its glory and worth in the presence of God.
But notice the bases. These four golden pillars stood on four bases of silver. In Scripture, silver is consistently the metal of redemption. The atonement money paid by every Israelite was silver (Ex. 30:16). The price of betrayal for Joseph was silver; the price for Jesus was silver. Here, the entire structure that holds up the barrier to God's presence rests on a foundation of redemption money. This tells us that even the separation between God and man is established on a redemptive foundation. God is not just keeping man out; He is keeping man out on the basis of a ransom that has been stipulated, a price that must be paid. The entire system anticipates the payment that will one day be made.
The Outer Door (v. 37)
Now the text shifts from the inner veil to the outer screen at the entrance of the tabernacle itself.
"And he made a screen for the doorway of the tent, of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a weaver;" (Exodus 36:37 LSB)
This screen is the front door to the house of God, the Holy Place. Notice the similarities and the differences. The materials are the same: blue, purple, scarlet, and fine linen. The message is consistent: entering God's house requires approaching Him on His terms, acknowledging His heavenly origin, His royalty, and the necessity of blood sacrifice and righteousness. This is not the Elks Lodge. You don't just join. You must be invited, and you must come the prescribed way.
But there are two key differences. First, there are no cherubim on this screen. The cherubim guard the throne room, the immediate presence of God. This screen guards the house. There is a distinction in holiness. To enter the Holy Place was a great privilege for the priests, but it was not the same as entering the Holy of Holies. Second, the workmanship is different. The inner veil was the work of a "skillful designer," a master craftsman. This outer screen is the "work of a weaver." Both are skilled, but there is a distinction. The closer you get to the heart of God's glory, the more exquisite the workmanship becomes. This teaches us that God cares about degrees. Not all sins are the same, and not all holiness is the same. There are levels of access and intimacy.
A Foundation of Judgment (v. 38)
Finally, we see the structure that held up this outer screen, and it is critically different from the structure of the inner veil.
"and he made its five pillars with their hooks, and he overlaid their tops and their bands with gold; but their five bases were of bronze." (Exodus 36:38 LSB)
Here we have five pillars, not four. They are also overlaid with gold, showing the divine glory of God's house. But their foundation is entirely different. The inner veil rested on silver, the metal of redemption. This outer screen, the entrance for the priests, rested on bases of bronze. Bronze, particularly in the tabernacle, is the metal of judgment. The great altar of burnt offering, where the sacrifices were consumed by fire, was made of bronze. The laver for washing was bronze. Bronze is what meets the fire of God's wrath against sin.
What does this mean? It means that to even enter the house of God, to begin the approach to Him, you must first pass through judgment. Your sin must be dealt with. The bronze bases at the door are a declaration that the first step into fellowship with God is to have your sin judged and atoned for at the bronze altar. You cannot come into His house without acknowledging the verdict against you and the substitutionary sacrifice that bears that verdict for you. The foundation for priestly ministry is God's judgment on sin, satisfied by the sacrifice.
Christ, Our Torn Veil and Open Door
For centuries, that inner veil hung in the temple, a beautiful and solemn "No Trespassing" sign from God. But when the Lord Jesus Christ, our great High Priest, offered Himself on the cross, something cataclysmic happened. The Gospel of Matthew tells us, "And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom" (Matthew 27:51).
Notice the direction. It was torn from top to bottom. This was no man's act. This was a divine act. God Himself ripped His own cherubim-guarded curtain in two. In the death of His Son, the foundation of silver redemption was fully paid, and the way into the true Holy of Holies, heaven itself, was thrown open. The author of Hebrews tells us that we now have "confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh" (Hebrews 10:19-20).
Christ's body was the true veil. When His flesh was torn on the cross, the barrier was removed forever. The cherubim have been commanded to stand down. The way to the tree of life is open.
And Christ is also the true door, the outer screen. He said, "I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture" (John 10:9). To come to Him is to pass through the bronze foundation of judgment. On the cross, He absorbed the fire of God's wrath that we deserved. He is the bronze altar. He is the laver for our cleansing. He is the door to the Father's house.
So we see in these two curtains the whole story of the gospel. We see the holiness of God that separates us, and the grace of God that makes a way for us. We see the redemption required and the judgment satisfied. And we see it all fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus Christ. He has passed through the veil as our forerunner, and He stands as the open door, bidding us to come in. Therefore, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, for the way is open.