Page 31 - Biblical Backgrounds

tabernacle. In the holy place, there were three pieces of furniture—the table for the bread of the
Presence, the golden lampstand, and the altar of incense. Inside the holiest place was the Ark of the
Covenant. It was the central feature of the most holy place. The ark of the covenant was filled with
important items from Israel’s wilderness wanderings. The cover of the ark of the covenant was symbolic
of Go’s presence. Two cherubim of gold stood on the lid of the ark of the covenant. As Christians, we
should become familiar with the features of the tabernacle. There are many more details to learn about
than we have been able to comment on here.

The priesthood was a central part of religion in this period. As noted, the priesthood represented the
people to God. This was their primary function. The priests offered the prescribed offerings to God.
These sacrifices provisionally meet God’s demands for the sacrifice of sins (as Christians, we know that
Christ provided the ultimate remedy for sins).

Finally, in terms of the religion of God’s people in this period, the priest specifically offered sacrifices for
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sins. The keyword of the book of Leviticus is holy, which appears 87 times in the book. A second
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keyword is an atonement, which occurs 45 times. Overall, the book shows how sinful people can
approach a holy God through the basis of a sacrifice. It is a book about worship—how people can
approach the Holy God.

There were several offerings that were outlined in the Old Testament. These include the burnt offering
(Leviticus 1, 6:8-13), the grain offering (Leviticus 2:1-16; 6:14-18; 7:9-10; 10:12-13), the peace offering
(Leviticus 7:11-21), the sin offering (Leviticus 4, 15:11-15, Numbers 15), and the guilt or trespass offering
(Leviticus 5:14–19; 7:1–7; and 14:12–18). Each offering had a unique purpose, set of rituals, and
outcomes.

Social and economic culture during the wilderness wandering.

During the wilderness wandering, as we can imagine, everything was different. The Israelites had lived in
large tents. It is likely they still used goatskin tents, but they would have had to be smaller to
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accommodate travel. We are not certain how they were economically engaged, except that it likely
involved the barter system of trading. The building of the tabernacle does show us that skilled
tradesmen existed in the community, but what level of trade they were regularly operating at is
uncertain. We are also aware that cattle and herds were taken from Egypt that would need to be cared
for along the way.

The wilderness wandering events as a conceptual foundation:

Multiple events in the wilderness wanderings are directly mentioned in the New Testament or are
alluded to. These events include, but are not limited to, the Red Sea crossing (Exodus 14), manna from
Heaven (Exodus 16), idolatry on Mount Sinai (Exodus 19), following the cloud (Number 9:15-23), The
rebellion in the wilderness (Numbers 13 and 14), Korah’s rebellion (Numbers 16), and the serpent in the
wilderness (Numbers 21:4-9).

Let’s quickly look at three.

70 Ibid., 98.
71 Ibid., 98.
72 Voss, Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Manners and Customs, 101.

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