Exodus 27
McGeeCHAPTER 27THEME: The brazen altar; the court of the tabernacle; oil for the lampNotice now as we move outside the tabernacle proper to the court that the articles of furniture are made of brass: the brazen altar and the brazen laver. Inside, you recall, the articles of furniture were of gold. As you get closer to God, the emphasis is on the person of Christ. As you move farther out, the emphasis is on the work of Christ.
Exodus 27:1
THE BRAZEN ALTARThe furniture in the outer court is made of brass which represents judgment of sin. The sin question must be settled in the court before entrance can be made into the Holy Place. The furniture in the Holy Place was all of gold and pictures communion with God and worship of God. There is no sin in the Holy Place. The sin question is dealt with in the outer court. Man is standing on the outside. How is he going to approach God? The first thing he must have is a substitute to die for him. Man might avoid meeting God, but if he wants to meet God and not die, he must have a substitute. Someone will have to die on that brazen altar for him. Sometimes this altar is called the table of the Lord, and it is called the altar of burnt offering.
This is where God deals with the sinner. It speaks of the Cross of Christ, and of the fact that He is actually the One who died in man’s stead. It is as Paul said in Eph_5:2, “And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour.” Christ is our burnt offering. The altar was made by man, but the pattern is in heaven. The Cross was God’s chosen altar of sacrifice. The Lord Jesus Christ was delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God to die on the Cross.
Christ, therefore, is more than just a good man. He is that and also He is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. There is no approach to God except by the brazen altar. There a victim must be sacrificed and must be claimed as the substitute. Joh_1:29 tells us, “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” The apostle John spoke of Christ as that substitute upon the brazen altar. That is what the Cross became in those last three hours when darkness descended and Christ paid for the sins of the world. We are told in Joh_1:12 that “…as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” Man could not worship, pray, or serve God until he came to the brazen altar. Every priest, every Levite, had to come to this altar. Friends, “the way of the cross leads home.” If Jesus Christ had not gone by the brazen altar, we would have no access to God. Jesus Christ is not only the Lamb that died for us, He is also the risen Lamb. The apostle John tells us in Rev_5:6 that he saw a “…Lamb as it had been slain …” The brazen altar stood at the entrance of the tabernacle. The Cross of Christ stands before heavenit was raised on this earth but there is no entrance to heaven except by this Cross. The brass which covered the altar speaks of judgment. The shittim wood covered with brass speaks of His strength for sacrifice. What a picture this is of the Cross of Christ!
Exodus 27:9
THE COURT OF THE TABERNACLEOnce again the colors of the hangings tell a story. Blue was a heavenly color and spoke of the fact that Christ came from heaven. Scarlet spoke of Christ’s humanity and the blood that He shed for mankind. The purple was a blending of the blue and scarlet, the color of royalty, speaking of Christ’s kingship. This was the hanging for the gate of the court through which the priests and Levites entered. This entrance was only five cubits high, and the fence that went around the outside of the tabernacle was one hundred cubits by fifty cubits, and was covered with white linen all the way around. It separated those on the inside from those on the outside.
Exodus 27:16
Once again the colors of the hangings tell a story. Blue was a heavenly color and spoke of the fact that Christ came from heaven. Scarlet spoke of Christ’s humanity and the blood that He shed for mankind. The purple was a blending of the blue and scarlet, the color of royalty, speaking of Christ’s kingship. This was the hanging for the gate of the court through which the priests and Levites entered. This entrance was only five cubits high, and the fence that went around the outside of the tabernacle was one hundred cubits by fifty cubits, and was covered with white linen all the way around. It separated those on the inside from those on the outside.
Exodus 27:20
OIL FOR THE LAMPThe conclusion of this chapter is quite interesting. It deals with the oil for the lamp, and it is unusual that this subject should be brought up at this particular place. Oil, as has already been pointed out, speaks of the Holy Spirit of GodZechariah’s interpretation of the lampstand: “…Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit saith the Lord of hosts” (Zec_4:6). The light is that which the Holy Spirit gives. The Holy Spirit will not speak of Himself, but He takes the things of Christ and shows them unto us.
Exodus 27:21
The burning light speaks of Christ. Now all that has changedthe Lord Jesus Christ has gone back to heaven. Mat_5:14 tells us: “Ye are the light of the world….” You and I do not make much light. It is only the Spirit of God that can use us. The first picture we have of Christ in the Book of Revelation shows Him walking in the midst of the lampstands. He is trying to keep the church’s light of witness alive and burning on earth. Christ is dealing with those who are His own. A word or two should be said about two articles of furniture not yet mentioned. One piece of furniture is the altar of incense which is mentioned over in Exodus chapter 30. If you were going to worship God, you had to come by this altar. The other article of furniture not yet mentioned is the brazen laver. The laver made one clean to worship God. At the brazen altar you received Jesus Christ as Savior, and at the brazen laver you are washed and cleansed by the Holy Spirit of God. Then you are permitted to go and worship God.