Basic HTML Version
Education of Israel
25
trust in His love and power, it was His purpose to set before them, in
the precepts of His law, the standard of character to which, through
His grace, He desired them to attain.
Precious lessons were taught to Israel during their sojourn at
Sinai. This was a period of special training, and their surroundings
were favorable for accomplishing God’s purpose. On the summit of
Sinai, overshadowing the plain where the people spread their tents,
rested the pillar of cloud that had been the guide of their journey.
A pillar of fire by night, it assured them of the divine protection,
and while they were locked in slumber, the bread of heaven fell
gently upon the encampment. On every hand, vast, rugged heights,
in their solemn grandeur, spoke of eternal endurance and majesty.
The people were made to feel their ignorance and weakness in the
presence of Him who has “weighed the mountains in scales, and the
hills in a balance.”
Isaiah 40:12
, KJV. Here, by the manifestation of
His glory, God endeavored to impress Israel with the holiness of His
character and requirements, and the exceeding guilt of transgression.
But the people were slow to learn. Accustomed as they had
been in Egypt to material representations of the Deity, and these of
the most degrading nature, it was difficult for them to conceive of
the existence or the character of the Unseen One. In pity for their
weakness, God gave them a symbol of His presence. “Let them
make Me a sanctuary,” He said, “that I may dwell among them.”
Exodus 25:8
.
In building the sanctuary, Moses was directed to make all things
according to the pattern of things in the heavens. God called him
into the mount and revealed to him the heavenly things. In their
similitude the tabernacle was fashioned.
[25]
So to Israel, whom He desired to make His dwelling place, He
revealed His glorious ideal of character. The pattern was shown them
in the mount when the law was given from Sinai and when God
passed by before Moses and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God,
merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness
and truth.”
Exodus 34:6
.
But in themselves they were powerless to attain this ideal. The
revelation at Sinai could only impress them with their need and
helplessness. The tabernacle, through its service of sacrifice, was to