The Symbolism of the Tabernacle

By Rabbi Alan Yuter
Posted Sunday, April 9, 2006 • Modified Monday, July 3, 2006

The Torah's second book, Exodus, concludes with the erection of the Tabernacle, God's temporary dwelling place on earth. It is an "apartment" to accommodate the Divine king, the real Ruler and ultimate Auditor of the world. In Solomonic times, this movable "trailer" home will find its resting place, the Jerusalem Temple. The symbolism is human. God appears, if not as a person, a character, a Being, a persona.

The pagans of Egypt and Mesopotamia conceived of their gods as humans on a grand scale. These grand humans, living their lives, doing their exploits, and behaving humanly, and weakly with supernatural power justified the acts of the human kings who invented these narratives, or myths, to justify themselves to themselves and to those over whom they ruled.

Israel's God appeared in real history to real people, and spoke the language and used the symbolism of antiquity to make a real, subtle but ever so significant change in the history of world culture. In order to keep God's presence in Israel, the entire community, mass and elite, priest, prophet and king, must obey God. And God's rules are not ritual gestures of honor given to the elite and the gods, but exercises of right living to be lived by the entire community.

For the pagans, the gods want a good meal. For Israel, God wants His people to act rightly. As long as we act rightly, God's presence amongst us is assured. Religion is for the perfection of the human who, by acting Godly, becomes Godly. Religion is not invented to justify whatever the elite believes is its right. The pagan of Egypt is promised the pie in the sky to those who are loyal insiders. The pagan of Mesopotamia has no hope of eternity. In Egypt, life and rain is given by a regularly flowing Nile, giving security and comfort and ethnocentric conceit. In Mesopotamia, the sweet waters of Ea bring life and food and flood and death. People lived on the edge of existence, and became pessimistic. Israel is saturated by rain, which is contingent upon God's presence. According to the Torah's Sinai Compact and Horeb restatement, rain and life are given when humanity is more godly than animal.

For the Mesopotamian, eternity is an impossible dream. For the Egyptian, eternity is earned by living the natural order with maat, their concept of right. For the Israelite, it is earned by being sanctified by the moral exercises called God's commandments. May the Divine presence remind us to be all that we can be, enabling God to live amongst us by being worthy of that Divine presence.

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