The hanging for the Door of the tabernacle was placed upon gold hooks which were on the five pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold. These five pillars at the Door of the tabernacle had Capitols (crowns) and Fillets (connecting rods). In contrast to all the boards of the tabernacle and the pillars that upheld the Veil, these five Pillars for the Door stood in Sockets of Bronze (brass). These Pillars served to support the “hanging” and also to display its beautiful colors. No mention is made to how far apart these Pillars were set apart from one another, for scripture is silent on this.

The Door into God’s dwelling-place was no narrow one, but stretched right across the whole of its length, and was 10 cubits (15ft.) in height. The “hanging of the door” shut off the court of the tabernacle from the Holy place, yet formed the entrance to it. It was that which gave the priests access to accomplish their service within. This Veil, or hanging, led to the Holy place, the place of worship where the golden lampstand, table of showbread, and the altar of incense were located. The door of the tabernacle was made of the same material and colors of that of the Veil and the cherubim curtain.

But this hanging unlike the other two, didn’t have any cherubim figures on it. There is one added word here in connection with the fine twined linen which claims our notice: it was “wrought with needle work.” This was not said in connection with the curtains or the veil, and is only mentioned elsewhere in the description of the gate in the outer court (Exodus 27:16) and the girdle of the high priest (Exodus 28:39). The Hebrew word here for “needlework” is, in Exodus 35:35, rendered “the work of the embroidered,” in 1 Chronicles 29:2  and Ezekiel 17:3 ‘various colors,” and in Psalm 139:15 “skillfully wrought.” Combining these slightly varied meanings, term would denote minutely variegrated. Thus, it appears, that the Holy Spirit here intimates that attention should be fixed upon the manner in which the different colors were wrought into and interwoven with the fine linen.

The Door, therefore, speaks of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The materials themselves bear out this truth. In Christ there was a perfect balance of these four colors. He was the Righteous Man (fine linen, 1 Corinthians 1:30), the Heavenly Man (1 Corinthians 15:47), the Royal Man (Luke 1:30-33), and the Sacrificed Man (Matthew 26:28). The four gospels present Him typically in these four colors.

The five Pillars were of acacia wood overlaid with gold. Again, we have the two elements of wood (perfect Humanity) and gold (absolute Deity). These two are brought together in Christ, the Word (Deity) made Flesh (humanity). Upholding this Door there were five Pillars. Five is the number of Grace and is the most prominent number in the tabernacle.

For “the Law was given by Moses, but Grace and Truth came by Jesus Christ.”(Jn.1:17).

These five Pillars can be viewed in several ways.

• The five books of the Law given to Moses or the Penteteuch.
• The five fold Name of Christ in Isaiah: “His Name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, The Everlasting father, The Prince” (Isa.9:6).
• The N.T. Church is given the five fold ministries of Apostle, Prophet, Pastor, Evangelist, and Teacher (Ephesians 4:9-16).
• Five is also the number of the N.T. writers of the Epistles-Peter, James, John, Jude and Paul. These were indeed Pillars in the early Church (Galatians 2:9).

The five Pillars for the Door stood in sockets of bronze (brass). Brass is a symbol of judgment against sin and disobedience. God threatened Israel in their disobedience that He would make the Heavens as Brass over them (Deuteronomy 28:23).So we see the coming together of the sockets of Brass and the Pillars overlaid with gold. All of this speaks to us of Jesus who was judged for our sins. We are told that His feet were as Pillars of brass (Revelation 1:15,  Revelation 10:1, Daniel 10:6).

The first entrance to be described is the ‘second veil’ (Hebrews 9:3).

As with the furniture, God begins with that entrance that is closest to Him. It was through this Veil that the priest entered once a year into the very presence or Shekinah Glory of God. This was the way into the Holiest of All or the Most Holy Place.

This Veil was much like the Curtains of Fine Linen that were placed over the tabernacle framework. It too, was made of Fine Linen with needle work of like colors (blue, purple, scarlet).

All these colors were to be inwrought in the Veil. The Veil was to be of cunning work and inwrought wisdom and Spirit of God. It was to be according to the Divine Pattern.

Just as the Fine Linen Curtains had inwrought cherubim, even so this veil separating the Most Holy Place from the sanctuary was to have cherubim. This was the only difference between the Veil and the Door of the Sanctuary.

This Veil was to be hung by hooks upon four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold.

The Door to the sanctuary was upheld by five pillars. The five pillars of the Door were founded in sockets of bronze. But here the four pillars are upheld or founded in sockets of silver. These four sockets came from the “Redemption Money” of the numbered Israelites.

The Veil was to be a divider or a partition between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. The word “veil” actually means “a separation, a curtain” or “that which hides.” This veil was to hide the Shekinah Glory from the eyes of men. It acted as a partition to separate sinful man from the Most Holy God.

The Apostle Paul, expressly interprets the significance of the dividing Veil:

“But into the second (veil) went the High Priest alone once every year, not without blood which he offered himself, and for the errors of the people: the Holy Spirit this signifying, that the way into the Holiest of All was not yet made manifest, while the first tabernacle was yet standing: which was a figure for the time then present…”(Hebrews9:7-9).

  This Veil speaks to every man of the “middle wall of partition” (Ephesians 2:14), that separates God and man. Before anyone can experience Atonement, he must see his condition as it naturally is before a Holy God. As long as the Veil stands, it speaks an emphatic “Keep Out!” Only once a year, on the Great Day of Atonement, did Aaron the high priest enter with in the Veil making Atonement for the sins of the people. The Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross, shedding His Blood, as both Sacrifice, Priest, Offering and Offer, God, by a miracle, tore the dividing Veil of the Temple in two:

“And, behold ,the Veil of the Temple was torn in two from top to the bottom” (Matt.27:51, Mk.15:38 and Lk.23:45).

 This was an act of God, for the Veil was torn from top to bottom! This was nothing man did, but a divine act of God. This was in fact the Grace of God. Grace is God approaching man, and not approaching God. If God had not made the way open by tearing the  Veil when Christ’s flesh was torn on the Cross, then that separation and division brought about by man’s sin would have remained forever. When God tore the Veil in the Temple it was symbolic act declaring to the entire nation what God had done with His Son.

The rent Veil signified the fulfillment and abolishment of the Old Covenant, the Mosaic Economy and the Ceremonials pertaining to animal sacrifices and ritualism. In making the Mosaic Covenant old it marked the ushering in of the New Covenant to which all of the external form in the Mosaic Covenant pointed. It ushered in the spiritual realities which had been hidden in the external form (Romans 2:20).

The death of Christ did not open the way to an ark and mercy seat, but to God Himself. Symbols are now fading away as realities pour forth their wonderful light. Christ dies to turn shadows into substance.

The torn Veil speaks to us of the fact that the Way into the Holiest of All is now open to all men. When man fell into sin he lost his Way. In Christ the Way is restored. The Veil no longer stands as a separation between God and man. The middle wall of partition has been removed once and for all, from top to bottom, beyond man’s reach. God will never go back to that old form which was fulfilled and abolished in His Son. God has opened the Way. In Christ we have access into the very Presence of God, and we may enter “within the Veil” to behold the glory of the Lord that we might be changed from Glory to Glory.

“Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the Holiest by the Blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He has consecrated for us, through the Veil, that is to say, His flesh; and having an High priest over the House of God; let us draw near…” (Heb.10:19-22).

Jesus is our High Priest who has passed with in the Veil and stands as our hope of entry. In Christ we have an abundant entrance into the Everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:10-12).

One more thing before we close, there were four pillars upholding the Veil, which interprets as His Flesh (Hebrews 10:20). The four pillars are seen upholding Christ’ flesh, or could we say, Christ’s ministry after the flesh. These four pillars our gospels. These are the only four books of the N.T. which present Jesus Christ earthly ministry; His death, burial and resurrection. The Book of Acts and the Epistles present Him in His heavenly ministry. Therefore, as the four pillars upheld the Veil, so the four gospels uphold the revelation of the “Christ after the flesh”(2 Corinthians 5:16-17). They show forth “God manifest in the Flesh” (1 Timothy 3:16).

The sides of the tabernacle were comprised of boards of acacia wood, fitly framed together, standing upon a base of silver sockets, overlaid with gold. Its solid framework was made up of 48 boards, 20 being on the north side, 20 0n the south, 6 on the west, with a corner-board at each end. Thus the length of the tabernacle would be 30 cubits (45ft.) long, the boards being a cubit and a half in width. Its height was 10 cubits (15ft.), its width was exactly the same, namely 10 cubits (15ft.) Each board was maintained in its place by two tenons, or hands, which were grasped by two sockets of silver. Then in to order to bind the whole in one compact body and strength and security, 5 bars of acacia wood with gold—same as the boards—ran along the 2 sides, and also along the end at the west; 15 bars in all being inserted in rings of gold attached to the boards. The third, or middle bar, stretched across the whole length of the building—45 feet; of the length of the other cross-bars we are not informed.

The corner-boards at the extreme end—north and south—were coupled together at top and bottom by rings of gold, in addition to the tenons and silver sockets at the base. These corner-boards then would knit the ends so firmly by their fastening of rings, tenons, and sockets, or blocks of silver, that a breakdown was impossible, while the sides were equally upheld and maintained by the bars. Without these boards there would have been no tabernacle to house its furniture and no place for the priests to serve in. Moreover, without them the beautiful curtains could not have been displayed.Upon the golden boards, held together by the golden bars, resting in their silver sockets, were sustained all the weight of the curtains and coverings.

The 40 sockets of silver (v.19) were for the 20 boards on the south side. For there was 2 sockets of silver for every one board. We find that the same provision was made for the 20 boards on the north side; while v.25 we learn that the 8 boards at the western end had also 2 sockets each. Thus there were 96 in all. Each board was maintained in its place by the 2 tenons or “hands” which fitted into and were grasped by the silver sockets. The 96 silver “sockets” formed the foundation, and upon them rested the whole fabric of the tabernacle. It is estimated that there was over 5 tons of pure silver just in the sockets. That would be about $1,650,000 in 2009.

The boards, bars, and sockets—a type of Christ and the believer. 

The wooden boards of the tabernacle are a type of the believer. How is that, you may ask! You remember that wood speaks of humanity. Where does the acacia tree (from which the tabernacle boards are made of) get its resources, strength, and growth? From the world, right? It has its roots firmly dug into the earth below it. In order for these trees to be of any value and use they had to be severed and uprooted from the earth. For you see the acacia tree’s natural condition is that of knots and twists and really isn’t of much use for building purposes unless trimmed. After it was cut down, it was cut-up and smoothed out. We as believers grew in this world and drew from the world’s resources to meet the needs of our life. Then we were cut down. This means a severance from the old life, our link with the earth broken. Saul of Taursus was one of these trees. While on his way to Damascus, he was met by God and cut down to the earth. How we need to be straightened, and how we object sometimes! The work of the Spirit is a continuous one.
There is development, a shaping into Christ like character a daily growing in grace and in knowledge of Christ.
The sap of selfishness must be dried out; the knots of hardness must be smoothed down; the twist of half-heartedness must be straightened, and the root of bitterness uprooted. The acacia boards, having been, prepared so far as their natural condition was concerned, were then overlaid, and thus beautified with pure gold. You never saw the wooden boards because of the gold.Remember gold is a type of Deity and is imperishable.

God not only works in the natural man and transforms the human nature, but also clothes us with His own Divine nature. Peter tells us we become,

“partakers of the Divine nature” (2Pet.1:4).

And,

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2Cor.5:17).

When God looks upon us now, all He sees is gold.
The wood of our humanity has been totally covered by the person of Jesus Christ and His righteousness.
To have looked at that tabernacle board, you would not have known it was made of wood unless someone told you, for the wood was completely encased in gold. To look at it, that board would have appeared to be a solid gold plank.

That is how God sees us –as solid gold. As mentioned earlier the sockets were made of silver. Silver in the Bible represents redemption, atonement and ransom money and the price of a soul. Peter interprets this symbol for us when he says,

“For asmuch as you know that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your fathers; But with the precious Blood of Christ, as a Lamb without spot; who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you” (1Pet.1:18-21).

Jesus was sold for silver (Matthew 26:15). On the face of each board had its lower extremity 2 tenons (“hands”)—projections that allowed it to stand solidly in the sockets of its foundation. The mention of 2 tenons carries our thoughts back to 26:15,

“And for the tabernacle you shall make the boards of acacia wood, standing upright.”

All ordinary tents were erected by driving in stakes and pins; their existence was dependent on the grip of the desert. But to these boards of God’s tent were given 2 (“feet”), and for them were provided 2 sockets, so they stood independent of the sand of the desert. They stood upright in the desert and not of it. Once, as trees, they were rooted in it. What separated the boards from the sand? Silver—a ransom price. No believer is to stand on the sinking sands of earth’s interpretation of life, but they are to stand firm and upright in the truth of Blood Atonement and the Word of God.

“For no other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Christ Jesus (1 Cor.3:9-14)

If ransomed by Christ, you are not your own.

You should be in the world but not of it (John 17:16-18), separated because of the blood of Christ.

“come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean” (2Cor.6:17).

There are so many Christians who have one foot established in “the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” but have their foot in something else—pleasure, politics, or social standing. They in themselves aren’t bad, and they have their rightful place, but when they are put on a par with Christian living, so as to cause one’s testimony and faith to be weakened, then stability is lost.

While these boards have no relation to the desert, they certainly have one with each other and with God. First note their union with each other. 48 boards stood so “fitly framed together” as to become one building. They all stood, as it were, shoulder to shoulder with such a unity that daylight could not be seen between them. There was no rubbing or chafing because they were so well-balanced. All of this was the result of being on a solid foundation. It is when believers are out fundamently that they are out with each other. One person leaning toward this theory and another toward that dogma means a loss of unity and fellowship into which the Enemy of souls enters and splits the work, or else causes a chafing that creates an irritability which brings discord and discontent. Not only were the boards “joined together by what every joint supplies” (Ephesians 4:16) but they were equal in their height, all of them 10 cubits high. Just as God sees us, all equal in his sight.

What keeps the boards from falling? The 5 bars God gave to the Church to stabilize her: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (Ephesians 4). Each of these ministries is needed to keep the boards straight, to keep the Church standing strong.

• Apostles govern the Church.
• Prophets guide the Church.
• Evangelists gather the lost.
• Pastors guard against wolves.
• Teachers ground believers in the Word.

“Know ye not that you are the temple of God?” (1Cor.3:16).

Also read Ephesians 2:19-22.