The Lord’s Tent
God established the tabernacle to be His dwelling place among His people. It was both the spiritual and spatial center of the Israelite camp and was to be built according to exact specifications revealed to Moses. “And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it.” (Ex. 25:8, 9)
The apostle Paul makes clear that the pattern Moses was shown was from heaven itself. He refers to Christ’s present role in heaven as “Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man,” thus making the earthly tabernacle merely “the copy and shadow of the heavenly things” (Heb. 8:2, 5). As Stephen explained before the Sanhedrin: “Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed, instructing Moses to make it according to the pattern that he had seen. . . . However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says: ‘Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool’ ” (Acts 7:44-48).
I grew up understanding the concept of the earthly sanctuary being a “shadow” of a more glorious heavenly reality. What I didn’t understand until much later, however, was that God intended not only His tent but all the tents of Israel to be a reflection of heaven.
All the Other Tents
In the same way that God gave specific instructions regarding the arrangement of His own tent, He also gave instructions about the placement of the rest of the tents of Israel in relation to His. “The children of Israel shall pitch their tents, everyone by his own camp, everyone by his own standard, according to their armies. . . . Everyone of the children of Israel shall camp by his own standard, beside the emblems of his father’s house; they shall camp some distance from the tabernacle of meeting” (Num. 1:52-2:2). As the passage continues, we see that each family was positioned around the sanctuary in a precise alignment—four tribes posted to each cardinal direction, with the other eight tribes stationed under their leadership.
The only exception to this arrangement was the tribe of Levi, which remained distinct from the other tribes, with their tents encircling the tabernacle. “But the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may be no wrath on the congregation of the children of Israel; and the Levites shall keep charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony” (Num. 1:53). These Levites were further organized into 24 divisions for “the schedule of their service for coming into the house of the Lord” (1 Chron. 24:19).
A Virtual Tour
If you were dropped into the middle of the Hebrew encampment and walked from the center out, the first thing you would encounter would be the very presence of God enthroned between the cherubim of the ark of the covenant, followed by the seven-branched candlestick and other furnishings of the holy place. As you exited the sanctuary, the next tents you would see would be those of the Levites encircling the tabernacle and arranged in their 24 divisions. Beyond those, you would gaze over a vast sea of other tents organized neatly in each cardinal direction: to the east would fly a large banner of a lion representing the tribe of Judah; opposite that, to the west, would be the standard of an ox for the tribe of Ephraim; to the south you would see Reuben’s emblem of a man; and to the north would wave a large banner of an eagle for the tribe of Dan.
This arrangement made the daily life and movement of the massive congregation practical and efficient. Like the giant decorated light poles in a theme park parking lot, the primary and secondary tribal banners provided a basic framework for every family to know their place in the larger community. When it was time to travel and set up camp in another location, the process was manageable and relatively simple.
Heaven on Earth
Greater than such practical considerations, however, were the spiritual lessons this arrangement was certainly meant to convey.
When the apostle John was taken in vision into heaven, he was given the very tour described above. “After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. . . . Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne” (Rev. 4:1, 2). Beyond God and His throne, John recounts seeing the council of elders and the Holy Spirit: “Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white robes; and they had crowns of gold on their heads. And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God” (verses 4, 5).
Further still, John explains that “before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, and around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second living creature like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle” (verses 6, 7). Finally, as the vision pans out, John adds, “Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands” (Rev. 5:11).
Comparing John’s vision to the organization of the Israelite camp, it seems quite clear that God patterned not only His own tent but all the tents of Israel after the arrangement of heaven. In a very real sense, God wanted His people to be a little glimpse of heaven on earth.
In a very real sense, God wanted His people to be a little glimpse of heaven on earth.
Organized for Service
In our study and discussion of ancient Israel and the courts of heaven, much consideration is given to the main characters of each scene. On earth we often focus on the leadership of Moses, the priestly ministry of Aaron and his sons, or even the role of the elders and heads of the respective family tribes. Discussing heaven, we likewise give most of our attention to the three members of the Godhead, the 24 elders, and the four living creatures—all of which is certainly merited.
At the same time, the overwhelming majority of each kingdom’s population consists not of leaders but of a sea of ordinary citizens. On earth those citizens were individual Israelites (or lay members of the church in our context today), and in heaven they are some 100-plus million angels. God did not organize His heavenly and earthly camps for the respective citizens to be mere watchers, but to make us all workers in His cause!
When it comes to the angel hosts of heaven, the Bible explains that they are all God’s ministers. “Of the angels He says: ‘Who makes His angels spirits and His ministers a flame of fire.’ . . . Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?” (Heb. 1:7-14).
Like the ministering angels above, the church on earth was established for the purpose of engaging every member in soul-winning service. “The church is God’s appointed agency for the salvation of men. It was organized for service, and its mission is to carry the gospel to the world. From the beginning it has been God’s plan that through His church shall be reflected to the world His fullness and His sufficiency. The members of the church, those whom He has called out of darkness into His marvelous light, are to show forth His glory.”[i]
Christ’s Prayer
When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, His model prayer began: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Luke 11:2).
I don’t think Jesus was just being poetic; He literally meant that we should ever ask of God that His will may done here on earth as it is in heaven. That His church on earth may be so organized that every member of the body of Christ will be, like the angels of heaven, “sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation.”
“There are hundreds of millions of men, women, and children who have never heard the truth, and multitudes are constantly going down to the grave without any sense of their accountability to God. How can you who repeat the Lord’s prayer, ‘Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,’ sit at ease in your homes without helping to carry the torch of truth to others? How can you lift up your hands before God and ask His blessing upon yourselves and your families when you are doing so little to help others? . . . The heavenly messengers are doing their work; but what are we doing? Brethren and sisters, God calls upon you to redeem the time.”[ii]
[i] Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1911), p. 9.
[ii] Ellen G. White, in Historical Sketches of the Foreign Missions of the Seventh-day Adventists (Basle: Imprimerie Polyglotte, 1886), pp. 287, 288.