The Golden Boards of the Tabernacle

The Golden Boards of the Tabernacle is a picture of "all the believers in Christ Jesus", thus pointing to the finished work of Jesus on the cross. The designs for the Golden Boards are described in Exodus 26:15-30. The boards are made up of "wood", which in Biblical symbology represents "humanity". This wood is overlayed with "gold", which in Biblical symbology represents "Christ's righteousness". Each of these golden boards were made to rest on silver sockets. "Silver" in Biblical symbology represents "redemption". These boards show us that we being the wood, are imputed with Christ's righteousness, where we are made to stand on the silver, which is the redemption ground, due to the finished work of Christ on the cross.

Every golden board has two tenons which rests on the silver sockets. "Tenons" in Hebrew is known as "yad", which means "hand". Our Lord Jesus said:

“And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one” - John 10:28-30

The above words were spoken by our Lord Jesus which tells us about the two hands. One is the hand of our Lord Jesus, and the other is the hand of God the Father. In Exodus 26:19 God starts addressing the board as though it were a person by calling it as "he".

“And thou shalt make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards; two sockets under one board for his two tenons, and two sockets under another board for his two tenons” - Exodus 26:19

The Golden Boards are God's illustration to show us our position as believers in Christ, thus pointing to the finished work of Jesus on the cross. Our Lord Jesus said:

“For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" - Matthew 18:20

As believers in Christ, when we gather together in the name of our Lord Jesus, just like the Golden Boards of the Tabernacle, the presence of Jesus comes in our midst. This clearly shows that the Church is not the building, but rather it is the gathering of the believers in Christ. In the Old Testament Tabernacle, when Moses and his men had completed the construction of the Tabernacle, as instructed by the Lord, and when Moses, Aaron and his sons entered into the Tabernacle by offering the sacrificial lamb, the Bible says that the Glory of the Lord filled the tent of the congregation:

“Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle" - Exodus 40:34

When the Lord looks at us today, He does not see the wood, which is our humanity and our sins, but rather, He looks at the gold, which is Christ's imputed righteousness upon us. Our Lord Jesus in the Bible rebuked the people who were judging others by looking at the wood in each other. Jesus said:

“And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?" - Matthew 7:3

In Exodus 30:11-16, the Lord had instructed Moses to collect half shekel of silver as census tax, known as "atonement money". The silver shekels collected from the people of Israel were used to make the silver sockets for the golden boards. The theology of silver associated with redemption comes from this section of the Bible. In 2 Samuel 24, we see King David out of pride taking census of the people, but did not collect the atonement money. Hence God became angry on King David for doing so and sent a plague on Israel where 70,000 people died from Dan to Beersheba. The intent of God is when the atonement money is collected, the King of Israel is acknowledging the Lord as their redeemer. When King David didn't do so, he was portraying himself to be Israel's redeemer. The gold, silver, bronze, and other elements depicted in the Old Testament were all shadow pictures of what our Lord Jesus would do in the New Testament. The dictionary meaning of the word "redeem" is "to gain or regain possession of (something) in exchange for payment". The Blood of Jesus was our payment. For this reason Apostle Peter said:

“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot" - 1 Peter 1:18-19

The rings on the golden boards represents the never-ending covenant of God. A ring has no end or edge, likewise the New Covenant of God written in the Blood of Christ has no end, and it is an everlasting covenant. Our Lord Jesus said during the last supper:

“For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins" - Matthew 26:28

People of the world, and satan, would always make us to see ourselves as the wood, by constantly reminding us of our sins, and thereby keeping us conscious of our sins. Whereas God's Word helps us to walk by faith by making us to see the gold overlayed upon us, by reminding us that all our sins have been fully payed for and forgiven by the Blood of Christ. Today God the Father sees the gold (Christ's imputed righteousness upon us), and not the wood (our sins). It is for this reason our Lord Jesus said:

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" - Matthew 6:33

Notice the Lord says to seek "His righteousness" and not our own righteousness. People who try to be righteous on their own, God calls such righteousness as filthy rags. In other words, righteousness without Christ is as filthy rags. The Bible says:

“But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away" - Isaiah 64:6

It is for the above reason Apostle Paul said:

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" - Romans 3:23

This is why our Lord Jesus says:

“...I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me" - John 14:6

It is because of our Lord Jesus, today we can boldly stand before the throne of God, as sons and daughters, redeemed by the Blood of Christ.