Last time we considered the Door to the Holy Place. Today we are going to go into the Holy Place and consider the veil or vail depending on which version of the Bible you are reading. New Testament writers called it the vail. Like the door, the veil was woven with the same multicolored threads but with some added design—the two cherubim.

Here are our reference verses:

Exodus 26:31-33 NKJV

You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen. It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim. 32 You shall hang it upon the four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold. Their hooks shall be gold, upon four sockets of silver. 33 And you shall hang the veil from the clasps. Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the Most Holy.

To get a complete description of the colored threads and their meaning, you can go back to our previous post.

Again, as in all the elements of the Tabernacle, the colors represent Yeshua.

Blue: the Lord from heaven

Purple: Royalty—King of kings

Red/Scarlet: The sacrificial Lamb whose blood paid for our salvation

White: The LORD our Righteousness

To enter the Presence of our Holy God, we must go through this veil. There is only one way into His Presence—through Yeshua.

There were several differences between the Door to the Holy Place or Sanctuary and this Veil entrance to the Holy of Holies. The Door hung from five pillars. And the Veil hung from four. The sockets for the Door were brass or bronze compared to the silver sockets used for the Veil. And most striking of all were the cherubim woven into the veil.

The four pillars of indestructible shittim or acacia wood covered with gold represented the body of Yeshua. Here are Paul’s words in Hebrews 10:19-22.

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.

Many biblical scholars say the four pillars represent the four gospels. They speak of Messiah’s ministry in the flesh, or His earthly ministry.

The number four also represents the earth or all creation. At the cross, Yahweh opened this entrance for all mankind who are believers.

And the four silver sockets speak of redemption.

The woven figures of the cherubim were images of angelic beings of the highest order. They were symbolic of God’s protective presence over the Holy of Holies. They were guarding the entrance like the cherubim that stood at the entrance of the Garden of Eden in Genesis 3:24. After Adam and Eve sinned,

He (God) drove out the man (Adam); and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.

We don’t know how the cherubim were displayed on the veil. Some scholars say there were two cherubim and others say three. But their presence signaled a divine separation between the priests in the Holy Place and Yahweh’s glory in the Holy of Holies. The High Priest was the only one allowed to enter. And he could only do so on the Day of Atonement to offer the sacrificial blood to atone for the sins of Israel.

Until the cross, no one else had entrance into Yahweh’s Presence. But when they crucified Yeshua, Yahweh tore the veil from top to bottom. And again, we read from Hebrews 10:19-22.

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, His body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.

Because of Yeshua, we can come boldly before the Throne of Grace—the Mercy Seat.

Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

The other fact, you may not know about the veil is that it was also used to cover the Ark of the Covenant when Israel traveled from one location to another. Only Aaron and his sons were permitted to see the ark, so they had to cover it in travel.

Numbers 4:5 When the camp prepares to journey, Aaron and his sons shall come, and they shall take down the covering veil and cover the ark of the Testimony with it.

The veil is still open for all believers to come and have an audience with Yahweh. In His presence, we have all that we need and more. Israel never entered in Mose’s day but many are entering now. May we pray that our Jewish brothers and sisters will encounter their Messiah and join us in worship before His throne.

Next time we will take a look at the coverings for the Tabernacle. Each one has a specific purpose.

Have a blessed week.

Shalom ♥