Exodus 27:21 Evening, Morning

Exodus 27:21 In the tent of meeting, outside the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law, Aaron and his sons are to keep the lamps burning before the Lord from evening till morning. This is to be a lasting ordinance among the Israelites for the generations to come. 

Have you ever seen a miniature Japanese tranquility garden, you know the small bowl with sand, a miniature tree and a small rake? It sits on a desk or end table and the sand gets reshuffled and raked into smooth and even lines, curving around the tree and other objects in the bowl. It is a small version of a full-sized Japanese garden, complete with the rake.

These miniatures are there to remind you of a much larger, much grander garden. They mirror the function by getting people to focus on a place of tranquility and meditation. They are not the real thing, but a reminder of the real thing.

And so we come to our text. Our text lists in the middle of a detailed description of the Tabernacle, a portable version of something that Moses saw for which is was commissioned to make a copy “according to the pattern shown.” There was a real Tabernacle that Moses had seen, and he was to make a approximate copy, one that could be seen and experienced by the whole Israelite community as they traveled to and later settled in the Promised Land.

One of the key elements of this traveling place where the LORD would show up was that it represents the Garden of Eden. It was decorated with images of trees like the Garden. It had the angels guarding the place where the LORD would show up, just like the angels that were placed at the entrance to the original Garden following the rebellion.

Part of the clue that hyperlinks back to the Garden is the inclusion of the evening and morning timeframes. The light symbolizing the LORD’s presence was to be there all night, so the place would be constantly in the light. The lamps were to be tended in such a way that the continued to shine. The LORD was always present to meet with them.

Evening, morning, the first day. Evening, morning, day two. Evening, mornin, day three. Here the lamps are to be lit evening till morning. This is a lasting ordinance. It is to continue presumably forever.

What a powerful symbol of the LORD’s presence right in the middle of the camp. The pillar of cloud and fire rested on this miniature version of the LORD”s dwelling place. And Adam and Eve were privileged to live there for a season. Why would they ever forfeit such a living arrangement? Why would they give up the LORD’s presence and blessing for some fruit?

Giving up on God’s good world of the Garden had to be a shock for Adam and Eve. They went from perfection to toil, struggle, pain and disappointment. They went from a place of plenty to a place of want, a place of provision to a place of poverty.

And this extensive description of this mobile house of the LORD’s presence stands right in the middle of confirmation of the Covenant with the people and the people betraying their covenant with the golden calf incident. They couldn’t even hold it together for forty days. What were they thinking?

They had just seen the LORD punish Egypt for their stubborn refusal to yield to the hand of the LORD. How could they not see that rebelling was not a good idea?