The Lord wants for us, as His people, to properly understand the particular spiritual realm in order to know how the Lord wants to reveal Himself to us (cf. Ephesians 2:4-6).

 

Ephesians 2:4-6:
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.
6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, …

 

 

From Exodus 33 we can see that the people of Israel, after they had Aaron set up the golden calf and worshiped it, although God instructed His people otherwise. They were supposed to worship Him after three days in the wilderness, but they decided to take off their gold before God instructed them to do so (cf. Exodus 3:18 i.c.w. Exodus 33:1-5).

 

Exodus 3:18b:
… 18b “The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.”

 

Exodus 33:1-5:
1 Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Leave this place, you and the people you brought up out of Egypt, and go up to the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, saying, “I will give it to your descendants.”
2 I will send an angel before you and drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.
3 Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way.’
4 When the people heard these distressing words, they began to mourn and no-one put on any ornaments.
5 For the Lord had said to Moses, ‘Tell the Israelites, “You are a stiff-necked people. If I were to go with you even for a moment, I might destroy you. Now take off your ornaments and I will decide what to do with you.” ’

 

Through the behavior of the people of Israel it shows that they were prophetically sensitive enough for the presence of God and his will, although they worshipped the golden calf before. On the basis of this, their deliberate disobedience or act of rebellion against God and His standard of values was revealed.

 

It is important that we, as God’s people, remain focused on worshipping the Heavenly Father in spirit and in truth and not allow the adversary to use the grace given to us by God in the form of the glory allotted to us for our own purposes or glory. This allotment of God’s glory includes, among other things, our God-allotted prosperity (cf. John 4:23-24 i.c.w. Exodus 3:21-22).

 

John 4:23-24:
23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks.
24 God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.’

Exodus 3:21-22:
21 Then the Lord said, ‘There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock.
22 When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by.

 

This means that we, as His redeemed people, use the glory entrusted to us only for His glory and not adorn ourselves with it or create other structures that satisfy our carnal desires or entice our souls (Note: even if we declare it to be ‘spiritual’).

 

Putting away the ‘gold’ is tantamount to the process of what is called holiness, because it is separated from us by being put away in the presence of God and thus sanctified.

 

While Moses was in the instructing presence of God on the mountain prior to the worship of the golden calf by the people of Israel, he received revelation about the tabernacle and its utensils, among other things. The Hebrew word used for ‘tabernacle’ is ‘miškān’, which means ‘dwelling place, dwelling’. (Note: part excerpt from the Elberfelder Study Bible on the Hebrew word ‘miškān’ with the word key number: 4997)

 

 

It is very relevant to realize here that we are told of the complete erection of the tabernacle in the form of the ‘miškān’ only in Exodus 40, where the pillar of cloud settled directly over the tabernacle.

 

Exodus 40:1-2.33-35:
1 Then the Lord said to Moses: 2 ‘Set up the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, on the first day of the first month (Note: new moon). …
33 Then Moses set up the courtyard around the tabernacle and altar and put up the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard. And so Moses finished the work.
34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
35 Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

 

However, we are told that Moses already pitched a tent outside the camp of Israel after the apostasy of the people of Israel through the worship of the golden calf (cf. Exodus 33:7).

 

Exodus 33:7:
7 Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the ‘tent of meeting’. Anyone enquiring of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp.

 

At this point, the presence of God settled in the form of the pillar of cloud in front of the entrance of the tent, not over the tent or in the tent (cf. Exodus 33:9).

 

Exodus 33:9:
9 As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses.

 

This type of tent carried a different spiritual character of meeting with God, since in this passage the Hebrew word ‘’ōhäl’ is used for the word ‘tent’, meaning ‘a tent that is clearly recognized as such from a distance’. The Hebrew root word of ‘’ōhäl – tent’ is ‘’āhal’ and means ‘to pitch a tent, to tent’ and ‘to shine brightly’. (Note: part excerpt from the Elberfelder Study Bible on the Hebrew words ‘’ōhäl’ and ‘āhal’ with word key number: 171, 170, 169*)

The utensils had not yet been made for this tent, because Bezaleel and Oholiab were only later instructed by Moses personally to make the utensils for the tabernacle (cf. Exodus 35:30-35 i.c.w. Exodus 36:1-7). This shows that the tent at that time carried a different spiritual character within the encounter with God.

 

This is also made very clear by the fact that Moses saw God face to face in this tent but was not allowed to see the LORD face to face on the mountain (cf. Exodus 33:11a i.c.w. Exodus 33:22-23).

 

Exodus 33:11a:
11a The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. …

 

Exodus 33:22-23:
‘… 22 When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by.
23 Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.’

 

The tent is a place of family or intimate familiar relationship with God, where the mountain is an area of God’s governmental presence, where the LORD appears in a greater power of authority that must be met with humility and reverence in order to stand in His presence. This is akin to the time when the king sits on the throne instead of being in the field among the people to meet them in person or fight side by side with them.

 

The ‘’ōhäl – tent’ that Moses pitched outside the camp of Israel can be equated with the prophetic presence of God, which is like a light shining in a dark place (cf. 2 Peter 1:19).

 

2 Peter 1:19:
19 We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

 

It was the presence of God’s prophetic Word that, like a shining lamp, shone its light to guide the way for the people of Israel in the future (Note: outside the camp; cf. Psalm 119:105).

 

Psalm 119:105:
105 Your word (Note: in the sense of being communicated) is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

 

 

The people of Israel began to respond to this prophetic presence because of the fact that Moses and Joshua were available as two opposite fixed points for the Lord to reveal the luminous covering prophetic presence of God.

 

Moses as well as Joshua were familiar with the dimension of the Kingdom, because they were both intimately acquainted with the element of ‘water’. One, Moses, understood being drawn out of the water, which corresponds to his name, and the other understood being in the water, because Joshua was a son of ‘Nun’ (Note: means ‘fish’).

 

The Hebrew word used for ‘kingdom’ is ‘mamlākāh’. This Hebrew word begins twice with the Hebrew letter ‘Mem’, which is connected among other things with ‘water’ as well as carries the numerical value ‘40’. The Hebrew word used in the Word of God for ‘water’ is ‘Majim’ and is used exclusively in the plural form. It begins with the Hebrew letter ‘Mem’ and concludes with it at the same time. (Note: part excerpt from the Elberfelder Study Bible concerning the word ‘mamlākāh – kingdom’ with the word key number 4542)

We know from the Word of God that the voice of God Almighty and the voice of His Son Christ Jesus is like the sound of many waters, as it reveals to us that the realm of water is related to the power of His Word.

 

Moses and Joshua understood the power of God’s Word and cooperated with it together in order to give a luminous covering presence of God’s direction (cf. Ezekiel 1:24b; Revelation 1:15b i.c.w. Ephesians 5:26b).

 

Ezekiel 1:24b:
… 24b like the roar of rushing waters, like the voice of the Almighty, …

 

Revelation 1:15b:
… 15b, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters.

 

Ephesians 5:26b:
… 26b by the washing with water through the word, …

 

Therefore, it is no coincidence why the Ark of the Covenant, i.e., the Throne of Grace, had a Cherub on each side as well as Jesus sent His disciples out two by two (cf. Exodus 25:18-20; Mark 6:7a; Luke 10:1).

 

Exodus 25:18-20:
18 And make two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover.
19 Make one cherub on one end and the second cherub on the other; make the cherubim of one piece with the cover, at the two ends.
20 The cherubim are to have their wings spread upwards, overshadowing the cover with them. The cherubim are to face each other, looking towards the cover.

 

Mark 6:7a:
7a Calling the Twelve to him, he began to send them out two by two …

 

Luke 10:1:
1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.

 

God’s purpose is to come into the realm of ‘two’ (Note: community, relationship) with His presence, to fill it with the presence of His Word, so that there is orientation in the house of God (cf. Matthew 18:20).

 

Matthew 18:20:
‘… 20 For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.’

 

 

Through the erection of the ‘’ōhäl – tent’ by Moses and Joshua, the people of Israel were led into true worship toward God, as it is said that they worshipped the LORD at the entrance of their respective tents by bowing down (cf. Exodus 33:10).

 

Exodus 33:10:
10 Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshipped, each at the entrance to their tent.

 

This process of raising up ‘the prophetic presence of God’ in the form of the ‘’ōhäl – tent’ brought about the transformation of the heart attitude of the people of Israel, in that some went out of their tents and followed Moses as well as Joshua.

 

And others, however, stopped in front of the entrance of their tents and worshipped God. They looked away from themselves and into the future of God’s prophetic presence (cf. Exodus 33:7-10).

 

Exodus 33:7-10:
7 Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the ‘tent of meeting’. Anyone enquiring of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp.
8 And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent.
9 As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses.
10 Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshipped, each at the entrance to their tent.

 

The ‘’ōhäl – tent’ was outside the camp of the people of Israel in front of their eyes, whereas the ‘miškān – tent’ i.e. the tabernacle was erected in the midst of the camp of the people of Israel (cf. Numbers 2:2).

 

Numbers 2:2:
2 ‘The Israelites are to camp round the tent of meeting some distance from it, each of them under their standard and holding the banners of their family.’

It is prophecy that already sees what is to come and is 'in the distance' before the people.

 

=> Prophecy is an inspired communication that comes from God. Moreover, prophecy is God’s supernatural way of communication. What makes this type of communication prophecy is that God speaks through His prophets before the corresponding earthly events occur. Further, prophecy is predictive revelation that the eternal God speaks from the outside to His creation and His people into their time. When a word of the LORD leaves eternity and manifests itself on earth, it is usually through a human being. Prophecy precedes the event that caused it. This is what makes prophecy what it is. <= (Note: The text placed in ‘=>’ is based on an explanation from the ‘Prophet’s Dictionary’ by Paula A. Price, Ph. D.; pages 396 and 397.)

 

The intimate presence or love of God, on the other hand, dwells nearby in the midst of His people (cf. Numbers 2:2 i.c.w. John 1:14; Revelation 21:22).

 

Numbers 2:2:
2 ‘The Israelites are to camp round the tent of meeting some distance from it, each of them under their standard and holding the banners of their family.’

 

John 1:14:
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

 

Revelation 21:22:
22 I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.

From the spiritual realm of the ‘’ōhäl – tent’ comes the principle that a prophet should have a line of holy ‘distance’ in the form of honor and respect, which doesn’t mean that he cannot be contacted directly. The certain distance of divine respect should be maintained because otherwise the recipient side forgets the aspect of responsibility and position of the prophet (Note: regardless of whether man or woman).

 

If there is too much familiarity, the prophetic revelations given by the prophet will not be taken seriously enough by the person who receives the prophecy. Therefore, there should always be a sanctified zone of respect to honorably treat the message as revealed by the Lord.

 

God demanded to cover His people with His prophetic presence in the form of a bow or the wing of an eagle. He did this by placing the brightness of His countenance on Moses’ face, so that he communicated to the people of Israel in the camp in the respective presence of God’s countenance, while Joshua dwelt in the prophetic presence of God (cf. Exodus 33:11).

 

Exodus 33:11:
11 The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young assistant Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.

 

It followed that an arc of God’s prophetic presence was stretched from the ‘’ōhäl – realm’ into the camp of Israel, establishing an outline of the cross in the atmosphere. The Kingdom of Heaven extended into the camp of the people of Israel to implement the Kingdom of God in them (cf. Luke 17:21 i.c.w. Exodus 33:7-11).

 

Luke 17:21:
… 21 nor will people say, “Here it is,” or “There it is,” because the kingdom of God is in your midst (within you).’

 

Exodus 33:7-11:
7 Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the ‘tent of meeting’. Anyone enquiring of the Lord would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp.
8 And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent.
9 As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses.
10 Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshipped, each at the entrance to their tent.
11 The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young assistant Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.

 

Based on the highest commandment, which includes the love for God and then for our neighbor, the presence of God’s love is revealed in the form of Jesus’ cross (cf. John 3:16 i.c.w. Matthew 22:36-40).

 

John 3:16:
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

 

Matthew 22:36-40:
36 ‘Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’
37 Jesus replied: ‘ “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
38 This is the first and greatest commandment.
39 And the second is like it: “Love your neighbour as yourself.”
40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.’

 

Amen and Amen.

 

In His Wisdom,

 

Daniel Glimm