Tabernacle in the Wilderness

The Table of Shewbread

The Holy Place speaks of ‘worship.’ There were 3 articles of furniture in the Holy Place: 1] the golden lampstand, 2] the table of shewbread, and 3] the altar of incense. Only one other act of worship occurs in a more important area of the Tabernacle…the High Priest in the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement. Everything else that takes place is in a less important area under the duties of the regular priests.

Note: The lamp only burns at night, the incense is offered in the morning and the evening and it only burns for a few hours, but the bread of the presence is ‘continual.’

The blueprint for the table of shewbread is given in Exodus 25:23-30.

The table of shewbread suggests many things: it speaks of sustenance, provision, supply and covenant [our NT communion service].

First, it is a table that speaks of salvation. Read Luke 14:15; Luke 13:29. Christ gave a parable in which a king gave a marriage supper for his son. The invited guests refused to come. This provoked the king to deal with the rejectors, and having done so, he extended the invitation to include those in the highways and byways. These were bidden to come and EAT. An invitation has gone out TODAY to the world to come and partake of the bread/salvation that is found in Christ.

Secondly, it is a table of providence [God is invested in how things should go for us! He has covenanted Himself.]. The founders of our nation believed in the supernatural providence of Almighty God. God is aware of what is happening in any given person’s life. By His Spirit he is able to steer us, move us, clarify things for us, and motivate us to make decisions on a career or a marriage partner or any number of things. That causes me to rest and trust in him!

Thirdly, it is a table of the Lord. It speaks of the Lord’s Table established by Christ at the Last supper. It speaks of Christ as the spiritual sustainer of spiritual life for the believer. The table was 36” long, 18” wide, and 27” tall. It was made of Acacia [shit-team] wood, which speaks of Jesus’ humanity. Jesus’ body, made of the earth, conceived in the womb of Mary. The gold speaks of His deity.

On the table of shewbread were placed 12 loaves of very simple common unleavened bread made of fine flour [Leviticus 24:5--the suffering of Christ alluded to in its grinding—John 12:24-33—a grain of wheat is not valuable unless it becomes something else.]…six in a row. In Hebrew shewbread means Bread of the Presence/Bread of Faces—bread continually before the faces of the Lord. The frankincense was probably placed in one of the golden dishes that were provided, and was removed each week with the bread to be burnt in the censors or on the altar of incense. The table and the bread were considered one!

The bread was baked the day before Sabbath, and changed every Sabbath Day. The bread on the table from the week before was removed and eaten with wine by the priestly family in the Holy Place—speaks of the abundant provision of spiritual food and nourishment which God brings to those He loves.

Read John 6:32, 33, 35. Manna in the wilderness speaks of Christ as the life giver [Jesus’ own interpretation of manna in John 6]. The shewbread speaks of Christ as the life sustainer. Eternal life is a gift, just as the manna that came down from heaven. However, eternal life requires a special food to sustain it in growth and strength. The shewbread sets forth Christ as the food for those who have partaken of the manna of life!

Jesus is the shewbread now for believers to feed on to sustain eternal life in growth [He is the Tree of Life]. Read John 6:35. There is an ancient proverb that contains the thought that a thing grows by what it feeds on. Read John 10:10. His resurrection life is the table for believers. This where we go for food, and those feeding on Him GROW in grace!

The table was the center of union and communion for the priestly family. They were instructed to abide in the Holy Place and eat it at the table. Read Leviticus 24:9. The real unity of the priestly family was about the table; the real unity of believers is about Christ. We hear a lot about believers ought to come together. They are mostly futile attempts to effect a ground for fellowship which is impossible apart from Christ. We cannot apart from Christ [the Word] co-exist! That which is apart from Him is satanic...an apostate church in antagonism to Christ. We should pray, however, for the union of ALL believers that they might be one as He is one in outward manifestation as well as unified in spirit.

There were 12 loaves on the table, one for each of the 12 tribes. Little Benjamin had the same kind of loaf as did big Judah. Outcast Reuben had the same as priestly Levi. Each stood on the same ground of relationship and shared alike in the participation of heavenly food. Man is equalized when Christ is exalted. It lifts and ennobles man when he exalts Christ rather than man. Read 1 Corinthians 10:17.

One final feature of the table will occupy our attention in closing. In chapter 22 of Leviticus, instructions were given that forbade the stranger, sojourner, servant, lame, blind, or blemished from eating at the table. The meaning of this is evident. WORSHIP is the privilege of believers, it must be foreign to all others.

NO ONE can worship until they are brought near by the blood of Christ and made whole. No stranger could eat; only sons and daughters can worship God today! John 3:7 says, “You MUST be born again.” No servant could eat; works do not make an approach to God. SONSHIP is what brings one into the place of WORSHIP. To be acceptable, the worshipper MUST come by the brazen altar, which is the cross of Christ.

No blind, lame, or defiled could eat! SIN keeps you from enjoying participation in the things of the Lord! Even believers must come by the LAVER for cleansing! The believer there must confess his/her sins, that he may be restored.

Conclusion

Communion in the Greek means ‘fellowship.’ Fellowship refers to that which we hold in common—CHRIST!