Passage: Exodus 26:31-37

The Big Idea

Everything about Israel’s worship emphasized the distance between God and sinful people, and the veil in the tabernacle was the last and clearest barrier. Yet it was made of cloth, not stone, so the separation was meant to be temporary. Hebrews tells us the veil pictures Jesus’ own flesh. He first showed us how far we were from God, then gave His body and blood to bring us near. When He died, the temple veil was torn from top to bottom. The way back to God’s presence is open.

A Long-Distance Relationship

Long-distance relationships are hard.

How far away is God from you? When do you feel close to Him?

Everything about the religious system God gave Israel emphasized the distance between God and people, all caused by sin:

Adam and Eve were driven out of the garden.
God always had to “come down” to visit.
Boundaries were set around Mount Sinai so the people wouldn’t touch it.
The tabernacle had three entrances, each keeping people further out. The last is our subject today: the veil inside the tabernacle.
Only one tribe could camp right beside the tabernacle.
Only one family in that tribe could serve as priests.
Only one man in that family could enter the Most Holy Place, and only once a year.

All these restrictions produced a healthy fear of God’s holiness. He wasn’t a buddy. He was to be respected and seen as holy.

But fear of the Lord, by itself, doesn’t save anyone. It wasn’t the kind of relationship God was moving toward.

Even inside this system of separation, there were hints of another way, a way where fear over our shame and sin would be done away with. The priest dipped his finger in the blood and sprinkled it seven times before the LORD, in front of the veil (Leviticus 4:6). The blood would eventually be the way through the veil. It pointed there!

The Design (Exodus 26:31-37)

God told Moses to make a veil woven of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine twisted linen, with cherubim skillfully worked into it. It was to hang from gold hooks on four acacia-wood pillars overlaid with gold, standing on four silver bases. The ark of the testimony went behind the veil, and the veil would divide the Holy Place from the Most Holy. The mercy seat went on the ark in the Most Holy Place. Outside the veil stood the table on the north side and the lampstand on the south. A similar screen was made for the entrance of the tent, hung on five pillars.

What the Veil Teaches

The way into God’s presence was not yet revealed. The people were still separated from God. It was still a long-distance relationship.
But it was made of cloth, not wood or stone. So the separation was meant to be temporary, until the way was revealed!
It protected people. It hid God’s glory, because unveiled glory would destroy sinful people.

The Veil Is Jesus

Hebrews tells us what the veil means. Because of the blood of Jesus, we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place, by a new and living way He opened for us through the veil, that is, through His flesh (Hebrews 10:19-20).

The veil is Jesus!
It was a picture of Him.
It hung on four pillars. Some see in that the four Gospels, which carry Jesus to the whole world.

That might seem strange. Didn’t Jesus come to bring us near to God?

True, but first He showed us just how far we were from God.
Then He became the sacrifice that brings us near.
The separation had to be understood first, so we could understand the closeness that follows.

Picture walking into the Holy Place. The veil hangs right in front of you, between God’s presence and the place where people stand.

Jesus is the perfect view of God for us, and the perfect image of a man before God.

He’s what Adam was supposed to be: the second Adam.
One side of the veil faced God. The other side faced people.

The colors

Blue: heavenly.
Scarlet: the blood sacrifice.
Purple: royalty.
White linen: purity.

These are everything a true man was meant to be, everything Adam failed to be, everything we need and lack in ourselves.

The Cherubim on the Veil

Why were angels woven into the veil? It has to do with separation.

We go back to another time angels were sent to keep people out of God’s presence. After driving out the man, God placed cherubim and a flaming, turning sword at the east of Eden to guard the way to the tree of life (Genesis 3:24).

Sin separated.
The separation was real.
As much as Adam and Eve may have wanted back into the garden, it wasn’t possible.
And this was for their protection. As sinful people, they would have been consumed in God’s presence.
His holiness can’t allow sin near Him.
Regret didn’t help.
Desire didn’t wash away the stain.
There was no sneaking past the angels.
No works could fix what was broken.
No soap could clean the impurity.
No rocket ship could carry you over them.
No disguise could fool them.
The separation is real.

Isaiah told Israel that their iniquities had separated them from their God, and their sins had hidden His face so that He would not hear (Isaiah 59:2).

The consequences of that separation are real.
He won’t look. He won’t hear.
Do we get this? Our sin is horrific. Its consequences are far worse than we can begin to imagine.
A holy God cannot draw near to sin.
But a loving God made a way to solve this problem.
What He couldn’t do was simply overlook sin, ignore it or forget it. His holiness demands that sin be fully dealt with.
So the gospel brings God’s solution: a way to make us holy like Him again.
The price was blood: His own life, sacrificed for us on the cross, and then His pure and Holy Spirit given to make us new.

God promised He would no longer hide His face from His people, because He would pour out His Spirit on them (Ezekiel 39:29).

Jesus washes away all my sin.
That removes the need for separation! This is the solution!
It’s the only thing that ultimately matters for any human being. The way back to the garden has been opened! The veil has been torn in two on the cross. Our precious “veil” poured out His blood for us!

Sacrifice was the only way behind the veil into God’s presence.

And sacrifice is the only way the veil was removed completely.

Torn in Two

All three of the first Gospels record that the moment Jesus died, the veil of the temple was torn.

Luke remembers the darkness over the land from the sixth hour to the ninth, the sun failing, the veil torn in two, and Jesus committing His spirit into His Father’s hands (Luke 23:44-46).
Matthew remembers that the veil was torn from top to bottom, that the earth shook, rocks split and tombs opened, and that many saints were raised and later appeared in the holy city (Matthew 27:50-53).
Mark remembers the Roman centurion standing opposite the cross, who saw how Jesus died and said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:37-39).

From top to bottom: torn by God, not by human hands.

We must remember: the veil has been torn in two!

Why?

Paul says that we who were once far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ (Ephesians 2:13).

“But…”

“But I don’t feel close to God.”
“But you don’t know what I’ve done.”
“But doesn’t God want me to work my way up to better access to His presence?”
“But I don’t feel like I need to be near God. I’m fine.”
“But shouldn’t we study other religions and philosophies too? You can’t just choose one and reject the rest.”

Jesus answered all of these: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

Grace Takeaway

The veil said, “Keep out. The separation is real.” And it was. But the veil was cloth, not stone, because God always intended to open the way. Jesus is that way. His flesh was torn so the veil could be torn, from top to bottom, by God’s own hand. You don’t have to feel close, earn access or clean yourself up first. You’ve been brought near by His blood. Come in with humility and faith.

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The Veil: The Separation Is Real