Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. – Exodus 40:34
There is a nearly two-mile hike along the South Kaibab Trail at the Grand Canyon in Arizona that brings trekkers to a spot called the Ooh Ahh Point. All along the trail, hikers see breathtaking views, but it culminates in a place where the panorama is not like anything seen anywhere else in the Canyon, showing just how massive the canyon is. The location is aptly named for the nearly unanimous expressions of its visitors.
At the close of the book of Exodus, Moses and the people had completed the construction of the Tabernacle. The Lord had dictated with precision how it was to be built. As it was finished, one thing remained: God’s entrance. Imagine the oohs and aahs as those who were present watched a cloud encircle the structure, a cloud unlike any other in the desert. For the cloud revealed the glory of God, even as the fullness of His glory was kept hidden within it.
Later, when the people were settled in Jerusalem and the temple was constructed, God filled it with His presence (1 Kings 8:10-11). Today, as followers of Christ, “your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:19). God’s presence is within you! Do you ooh and ahh at that? He manifests Himself to the world through you. Therefore, glorify God in your body (1 Corinthians 6:20). Pray for Christians in the United States to recognize the privilege of God’s glory dwelling in them. Intercede for believers in government to be aware of and live out the reality of having the Holy God direct, lead, and guide them. Give thanks for that in your own life, also.
Today’s Verse: Exodus 40:34
Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Recommended for further reading: Exodus 40:32-38
32 When they went into the tent of meeting, and when they approached the altar, they washed, as the Lord commanded Moses. 33 And he erected the court around the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the screen of the gate of the court. So Moses finished the work.
34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 36 Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. 37 But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. 38 For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
