Bird's-eye view
The book of Exodus, which began with Israel in bondage making bricks without straw, ends here with the glorious, terrifying, and immediate presence of God taking up residence among them. This is the grand finale, the culmination of everything God has been doing since He called Moses from the burning bush. The construction of the tabernacle is complete, every detail finished according to the divine pattern, and now God consummates the work by descending in power. This is not a subtle hint of the divine; it is an overwhelming manifestation of glory. The cloud, which had led them, now covers and fills the tent, and the glory is so potent that not even Moses, the great mediator of the covenant, can enter. This event establishes the central reality for Israel going forward: God is with them. He will guide them, guard them, and dwell in their midst. This entire scene is a profound type, a shadow, pointing forward to the greater reality when the Word would become flesh and tabernacle among us, full of grace and truth. The visible guidance of the cloud and fire becomes the indwelling guidance of the Holy Spirit for the New Covenant people of God.
This is the great commissioning of the tabernacle. It is not merely a tent; it is the throne room of the Great King in the midst of His people's camp. The book ends not with the people entering the promised land, but with God entering their camp. The central promise of the covenant, "I will be your God and you will be my people," is here given a tangible, visible, and awe-inspiring reality. Their life from this point on, their every move, is to be dictated by the presence and direction of Yahweh. The work is done, and God moves in.
Outline
- 1. The Divine Occupation (Ex 40:34-38)
- a. The Glory Fills the House (Ex 40:34)
- b. The Unapproachable Presence (Ex 40:35)
- c. The Divine Guidance for the Journey (Ex 40:36-37)
- d. The Constant and Visible Assurance (Ex 40:38)
Context In Exodus
The final chapters of Exodus (25-40) are dedicated to the instructions for and the construction of the tabernacle. This follows the dramatic events at Sinai: the giving of the Ten Commandments (Ch. 20), the establishment of the covenant (Ch. 24), and the catastrophic apostasy with the golden calf (Ch. 32). The sin of the golden calf was a near-fatal breach of the covenant, where Israel demonstrated its profound inability to live in fellowship with a holy God. Moses' intercession (Ch. 32-33) was crucial for the restoration of that fellowship. Therefore, the successful completion of the tabernacle and God's glorious descent to inhabit it is the ultimate sign of forgiveness and covenant renewal. It demonstrates that despite Israel's sin, God is faithful to His promise to dwell among them. This final scene is the answer to the people's earlier question, "Is the Lord among us, or not?" (Ex. 17:7). The answer is an undeniable, visible, and glorious yes.
Key Issues
- The Nature of God's Glory (Shekinah)
- The Tabernacle as a Type of Christ
- The Holiness and Otherness of God
- Divine Guidance and Sovereignty
- The Continuity of God's Presence with His People
God Moves In
When a great king builds a palace, the final and most important moment is when he himself takes up residence. All the work, all the artistry, all the expense is for that purpose. Here, at the end of Exodus, the house is finished. The people have obeyed. They have built everything just as God commanded. And now, God moves in. The glory of Yahweh is not some ethereal concept; it is a weighty, substantial, visible reality. The Hebrew word kabod, for glory, has the sense of weightiness, honor, and substance. When God's glory fills the tabernacle, it is an occupation. This is the same glory that will later fill Solomon's temple (1 Kings 8:10-11) and the same glory that Ezekiel will see depart from that temple because of Israel's sin (Ezek. 10:18). This glory is the manifest presence of God, and it is both the greatest blessing and the most terrifying reality for a sinful people. The entire sacrificial system, which will be detailed in Leviticus, is necessitated by this very event. How can a holy God dwell in the midst of a sinful people without consuming them? The answer is blood, sacrifice, and mediation. This glory is the center of Israel's life, and it demands a response.
Verse by Verse Commentary
34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of Yahweh filled the tabernacle.
The work is complete, and God immediately and dramatically signifies His approval and His presence. Two things happen. First, the cloud covers the tent. This is the same pillar of cloud that had been leading them (Ex. 13:21), but now it settles upon and envelops the new dwelling place of God. It is an external marker. Second, the glory of Yahweh fills the tabernacle. This is the internal reality. The cloud outside points to the glory inside. This glory is the visible manifestation of God's own person, His holiness, power, and majesty. The creation of the world in Genesis was God preparing a place for man to dwell. The construction of the tabernacle is man, by God's grace and command, preparing a place for God to dwell. And here, God takes possession of His house. This is the central goal of the exodus: not just to get Israel out of Egypt, but to get God into Israel.
35 And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had dwelt on it, and the glory of Yahweh filled the tabernacle.
This is a staggering statement. If anyone could have entered, it would have been Moses, the man who spoke with God face to face, as a man speaks to his friend (Ex. 33:11). But the raw, unmediated glory of God is too much even for him. This is not a punitive action; it is a statement about the nature of divine holiness. God's glory is a devouring fire (Ex. 24:17). This moment establishes a crucial theological principle: no man can approach the unmediated presence of God and live. A system of mediation is required. Priests will have to be ordained, sacrifices will have to be made, and incense will have to be burned to shield sinful man from the consuming holiness of God. This inability of Moses to enter is a picture of the Law. The Law can show you the standard of God's glory, it can lead you to the door, but it cannot bring you inside. A better mediator, a greater high priest, is needed for that. This same thing happened at the dedication of Solomon's temple, when the priests could not stand to minister because of the glory (1 Kings 8:11). God's presence is a dangerous thing.
36-37 Now throughout all their journeys whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel would set out; but if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day when it was taken up.
From this point forward, the life of Israel is governed by the direct, sovereign will of God. They do not consult maps. They do not vote on the best time to leave. They do not form a committee to plan their route. They watch the cloud. When the cloud lifts, they pack up and move. When the cloud stays, they stay. It might be for a day, a week, a year. Their entire existence is one of radical dependence on the revealed will of God. This is a practical, day-to-day outworking of the Lordship of Yahweh. He is not just their God in theory; He is their commander-in-chief in practice. This is a picture for the Christian life. We are to walk by faith, guided not by our own wisdom or convenience, but by the leading of God through His Word and Spirit. We move when He says move, and we stay when He says stay.
38 For throughout all their journeys, the cloud of Yahweh was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel.
This final verse summarizes the new normal for Israel. The presence of God was not a one-time event, but a constant, abiding reality. It was public and visible "in the sight of all the house of Israel." No one had to wonder if God was with them; they could look toward the center of the camp and see the evidence. The cloud by day would have been a comfort in the blistering desert sun, a pillar of shade. The fire by night would have been a comfort in the cold and dark, a pillar of light and warmth. God's presence is both their guide and their guard. It is a comfort to the covenant people and a terror to their enemies. This visible manifestation of God's presence would continue until they reached the promised land. For us, the reality is even better. Christ has not given us an external cloud, but His own Spirit to dwell within us. He is our constant guide, our ever-present help, the fire in our hearts, until we reach the true promised land of the new heavens and the new earth.
Application
The book of Exodus ends with the glory of God filling the tabernacle, a glory so intense that Moses himself could not enter. This teaches us, first and foremost, about the absolute holiness of God. We are a casual people, and we are tempted to treat God casually. But the God of the Bible is a consuming fire. We cannot waltz into His presence on our own terms. This is why the gospel is such glorious news. In Christ, the veil has been torn. Through His blood, we have a high priest who did not just go to the door, but who entered the true holy place in heaven for us. Because of Jesus, we can now draw near with confidence to the throne of grace.
Second, we see the pattern for our lives. The Israelites were to follow the cloud. Their obedience was to be immediate and unquestioning. We are likewise called to a life of radical obedience to the Word of God. We are not to lean on our own understanding, but in all our ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct our paths. This is not a life of grim duty, but one of secure dependence on a faithful guide.
Finally, we are reminded that God's ultimate desire is to dwell with His people. The tabernacle was a temporary dwelling, a shadow. The temple was a more permanent shadow. The incarnation was the reality breaking in, when God "tabernacled" among us in the person of Jesus Christ (John 1:14). And now, through the Spirit, the church itself is the temple of God, and each believer is a temple of the Holy Spirit. The story that culminates here in Exodus 40 finds its ultimate fulfillment in the final chapters of Revelation, where the new Jerusalem descends and a voice from the throne declares, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God" (Rev. 21:3). This is the goal of all redemptive history, and we, as the church, are living in the midst of its fulfillment.