Exodus 27

9–19 Moses was instructed to make a courtyard fifty meters long, twenty-five meters wide and seven meters high.⁹⁷ The purpose of the courtyard was to surround the tabernacle and altar of burnt offering with a barrier to separate the holy things of God from the outside world. The curtains around the courtyard would keep out wild animals, and they would also keep unauthorized persons from entering the compound accidentally: it was very dangerous for an unauthorized person to come too close to God.

The courtyard was to have but one entryway (verse 16); this symbolized the truth that there is but one way to God (John 14:6). Though the entrance was blocked only by a curtain, it was as secure as if it had been fitted with gates of iron—because God Himself was its guard.

Oil for the Lampstand (27:20–21)

(Leviticus 24:1–4)

20–21 The people were to provide the olive oil needed to keep the lamps burning. It appears from verse 21 that the lamps in the Holy Place—outside the curtain—were only to be lit during the nighttime.⁹⁸

The Tent of Meeting mentioned in verse 21 is an alternate name for the tabernacle. However, before the tabernacle was ready, Moses met with the Lord in a special tent he had set up temporarily, which he also called the “tent of meeting” (Exodus 33:7). Both “tents of meeting” were places where God met with men, not where men met with each other.⁹⁹

The oil used in the lamps had its own symbolic meaning: in the Bible, oil often signifies the Holy Spirit (Zechariah 4:1–6). It was the priest’s duty to light the lamps, just as it is a Christian’s duty today to teach God’s word, which is a lamp to people’s feet and a light for their path (Psalm 119:105).