Daily Devotionals

On the surface, there’s nothing fantastic about Aaron’s garments in Exodus 28. Sure, they’re elaborate—as they should be for someone who ministers to hundreds of thousands of people on behalf of an all-powerful God—but they’re still just clothes. All the colors of royalty are there. Blue, purple, scarlet material (Exodus 28:5), “skillfully woven bands” (Exodus

Let’s make something clear: When I say “built the priesthood” in the title, I’m talking about physically made the garments and the Tabernacle the priests would use. God “built” the priesthood. It was His design and His creation. But someone had to physically make the elements that the priests, right? I personally don’t think the

For a job that relies heavily on genealogy, the sons of Aaron are largely background players in the book of Exodus. A lot of that has to do with Aaron himself; as the high priest, Aaron is the one in charge. His sons will eventually take on that mantle (literally), but right now, the focus

Way back in Exodus 25, the Text begins the instructions for the Tabernacle by talking about the Ark of the Covenant. It then moves outwards to the holy of holies, then the holy place, then the courtyard. Now, in Exodus 27:20-21, the Test returns back to the holy place—specifically, the light that is burning on

The more you look at the design of the Tabernacle (and eventually, the Temple), the more you notice a progressive development from start to finish. A person walks through the gate to drop off the sacrifice, then the priest walks into the holy place, and then eventually, the holy of holies. The farther into the

Despite the emphasis in Exodus on the Tabernacle itself, the first thing anyone would notice when they walked through the gate and into the courtyard area was the presence of the brazen altar. At 7.5 feet long, 7.5 feet wide, and 4.5 feet tall with poles protruding out of each side (Exodus 27:1-2), its presence

If you’ve followed along super close in the Exodus narrative concerning the building of the Tabernacle, you might have noticed one ingredient that pops up more than any other: acacia wood. To be fair, I didn’t notice it myself until the end of Exodus 26. My eyes were focused on the descriptions of the Ark

Despite the plea for intimacy and communion, the Old Testament still created several barriers between God and His people.  The most obvious is the tabernacle itself. Although Israelites (not gentiles) were able to enter the courtyard area, only those who were ritually pure were able to do so. Moreover, there was only one gate that

If you look at any visual representation of the Tabernacle, you’ll probably notice that it looks like a gigantic tent. This makes sense; if the Levites are to carry this for forty years in the desert (eventually), it needs to be somewhat lightweight and mobile. A quick glance through Exodus 26 reveals quite the opposite.