Thoughts to Keep in Mind

The Tabernacle and Sacrifice

As we read the Old Testament, we sometimes find long passages about things that were clearly important to the Lord but may not feel immediately relevant to us today. Exodus 25–30; 35–40; Leviticus 1–9; 16–17 are examples. These chapters describe in detail Israel’s tabernacle in the wilderness and the animal sacrifices to be performed there.¹ The tabernacle was a portable temple, the Lord’s dwelling place among His people.

Our modern temples share similarities with Israel’s tabernacle, but they certainly don’t match its description in Exodus. And we don’t kill animals in our temples—the Savior’s Atonement ended animal sacrifice over 2,000 years ago. Yet despite these differences, there is great value today in reading about ancient Israel’s forms of worship, especially if we see them the way God’s people in the Book of Mormon did—as a way “to strengthen their faith in Christ” (Alma 25:16; see also Jacob 4:5; Jarom 1:11). When we understand the symbolism of the tabernacle and animal sacrifice, we can gain spiritual insights that will also strengthen our faith in Christ.

Illustration of Israelites bringing a lamb to the tabernacle, by Robert T. Barrett

The Tabernacle Strengthens Faith in Jesus Christ

When God commanded Moses to build a tabernacle in the camp of the Israelites, He stated its purpose: “that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8). Within the tabernacle, the presence of God was represented by the ark of the covenant—a wooden box, covered with gold, containing the written record of God’s covenant with His people (see Exodus 25:10–22). The ark was kept in the holiest, innermost room, separated from the rest of the tabernacle by a veil. This veil symbolizes our separation from the presence of God because of the Fall.

Other than Moses, we know of only one person who could enter that “most holy place” (Exodus 26:34)—the high priest. Like the other priests, he first had to be washed and anointed (see Exodus 40:12–13) and dressed in sacred clothing symbolic of his office (see Exodus 28). Once a year, on a day called the Day of Atonement, the high priest would offer sacrifices on behalf of the people before entering alone into the tabernacle. At the veil, he would burn incense (see Leviticus 16:12). The scented smoke ascending to heaven represented the prayers of the people ascending to God (see Psalm 141:2). Then the high priest, carrying blood from an animal sacrifice, would pass through the veil and approach the throne of God, symbolized by the ark of the covenant (see Leviticus 16:14–15).

Knowing what you know about Jesus Christ and His role in Heavenly Father’s plan, can you see how the tabernacle points us to the Savior? Just as the tabernacle, and the ark within it, represented God’s presence among His people, Jesus Christ was God’s presence among His people (see John 1:14). Like the high priest, Jesus Christ is the Mediator between us and God the Father. He passed through the veil to make intercession for us by virtue of the blood of His own sacrifice (see Hebrews 8–10).

Some aspects of Israel’s tabernacle may sound familiar to you, especially if you have been to the temple to receive your own ordinances. Like the tabernacle’s most holy place, the temple’s celestial room represents the presence of God. To enter, we must first be washed and anointed. We wear sacred clothing. We pray at an altar from which prayers ascend to God. And we finally pass through a veil into God’s presence.

Perhaps the most important similarity between modern temples and the ancient tabernacle is that both, if understood correctly, strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ and fill us with gratitude for His atoning sacrifice. God wants all of His children to enter into His presence; He wants “a kingdom of priests” and priestesses (Exodus 19:6). But our sins prevent us from obtaining that blessing, for “no unclean thing can dwell with God” (1 Nephi 10:21). So God the Father sent Jesus Christ, our “high priest of good things to come” (Hebrews 9:11). He parts the veil for us and empowers all of God’s people to “come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy” (Hebrews 4:16).

Today, the purpose of temples is more than obtaining exaltation for ourselves. After receiving our own ordinances, we can stand in the place of our ancestors, vicariously receiving ordinances in their behalf. In a sense, we can become something like the ancient high priest—and the Great High Priest—opening the way to God’s presence for others.

Sacrifice Strengthens Faith in Jesus Christ

The principles of atonement and reconciliation are taught powerfully in the ancient practice of animal sacrifice, which existed long before the law of Moses. Because of the restored gospel, we know that Adam and Eve offered sacrifice, understood its symbolic reference to the Savior’s sacrifice, and taught this to their children (see Moses 5:4–12; see also Genesis 4:4).

The symbolism of animal sacrifice may have seemed especially poignant on ancient Israel’s Day of Atonement (“Yom Kippur” in Hebrew). The need for this annual ceremony was expressed in Leviticus 16:30: “On that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the Lord.” Thus God’s presence could remain among the people. This atonement was accomplished through a variety of ceremonies. In one of these, a goat was killed as an offering for the sins of the people, and the high priest took the goat’s blood into the most holy place. Later, the high priest laid his hands on a live goat and confessed the sins of the children of Israel—symbolically transferring those sins to the goat. The goat was then driven out of the camp of Israel.

In this ritual, the goats symbolized Jesus Christ, taking the place of the sinful people. Sin must not be allowed in God’s presence. But rather than destroy or drive out the sinners, God provided another way—a goat would be killed or driven out instead. “And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities” (Leviticus 16:22).

The symbolism of these rituals pointed to the way God has provided to bring us back into His presence—Jesus Christ and His Atonement. The Savior has “borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows,” even “the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:4, 6). He stood in our place, gave His life to pay the penalty of sin, and then conquered death through His Resurrection (see Mosiah 15:8–9). The sacrifice of Jesus Christ was the “great and last sacrifice; yea, not a sacrifice of man, neither of beast” but rather “an infinite and eternal sacrifice” (Alma 34:10). He was the fulfillment of everything the ancient sacrifices pointed toward.

For this reason, after His sacrifice was complete, He said, “Ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices … shall be done away. … And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit” (3 Nephi 9:19–20).

So when you find passages in the Old Testament about sacrifices and the tabernacle (or later, the temple)—and you’ll find a lot of them—remember that the primary purpose of it all is to strengthen your faith in the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Let your heart and your mind turn to Him. Ponder what He has done to bring you back into God’s presence—and what you will do to follow Him.

Note

1. Exodus 33:7–11 mentions a “tabernacle of the congregation,” where Moses communicated with the Lord, but this was not the setting for the sacrifices described in Exodus and Leviticus. Those sacrifices were performed in the tabernacle described in Exodus 25–30, which God commanded Moses to build and which the children of Israel built (see Exodus 35–40). This tabernacle, where Aaron and his sons performed animal sacrifices, was also often referred to as the “tabernacle of the congregation” (see, for example, Exodus 28:43; 38:30; Leviticus 1:3).