The first division of the Great Tabernacle

The Vestibule (Elam or Ulam)

After climbing the staircase, the first of the three linked divisions of the Great Tabernacle, the Ulam, was reached. The Scripture gives some of its dimensions: its width, like that of the other sections, was about 30 feet; and its length about 15 feet.13 As to its height, serious difficulties occur. In Divre Hayamim, for example, (2 Divre Hayamim 3:4) it is stated that it was over 150 feet, a wildly improbable figure, and one which most scholars reject. We should remember that the chronicler lived long after Solomon's Great Tabernacle had been destroyed and so had never actually seen it. Because of this some writers think that he drew his description from the vestibules of Egyptian temples, thronged with structures like truncated pyramids. But it seems improbable that the Ulam had a covering of such a size, and no Phoenician building with similar dimensions has so far been discovered. Other scholars are inclined to think that the Ulam was open to the skies and had no roof.

In the case of the two other divisions, the ritual objects and mural decoration are described in detail. But nothing is said about the contents of the Ulam, and it seems to have been empty and unornamented. A door -kept shut -connected between the vestibule and the qadash place. This door, with a width of sixteen feet, was set in the centre of the wall, nearly thirty-three feet wide.

The lintel and door-posts were of olive wood, and the leaves of the door, of cypress. There was no need for them to be fully opened; each fold had two leaves, and thus by a simple movement a kohen could make his way to worship in the Qadash place.

On this paneling, cherubim, palms and garlands of flowers were carved in low relief. Gold-leaf, finely hammered and closely attached to the wood covered these decorative figures (1 Melechim 6:31-35).

After the two sacred pillars with their mysterious capitals and the great staircase leading up to the Great Tabernacle, its first division ends with the vestibule (the Ulam) with its bare walls and its inner doorway shining with gold that confronted anyone entering it.

13 Apart from some omissions, reliable information exists with regard to the inner dimensions of the Great Tabernacle, but not about those outside, because neither Melechim nor Divre Hayamim records the thickness of the walls. Some archaeologists believe that they can reach a numerical approximation by making use of the basic statistics provided by Yehezqel. This sixth century prophet knew every detail of Solomon's Great Tabernacle; he had lived through the tragic happenings during which the Great Tabernacle was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar. Later, in exile in Babylon (587 538) he had a vision of the plan of the Great Tabernacle that was to be rebuilt. In this ideal project (never to be realized) he supplied precise measurements for the future Great Tabernacle, basing himself on some of the proportions of the old. These brief Indications suggest that Yehezqel's measurements can be used only with great reserve.

The second division of the Great Tabernacle: the Qadash (place)

Following the path of an officiating kohen 15 we enter the second division of the Great Tabernacle, the Hekal, later called the Qadash (place), to distinguish it from the third and final division that contained the Ark and was called the Qadash of Qadash. Hekal is a Hebrew word derived from the Sumerian E-gal, 'big house'. And, in fact, it was the largest room in the Great Tabernacle: like every part of the interior of the building it was a rectangle with a width of about thirty feet. Its length was about sixty feet, and its height about forty-five feet. Its walls were completely concealed by cedar-wood paneling on which cherubim, garlands of flowers, and palms were carved in very low relief (1 Melechim 6:29) and covered with leaves of fine gold.16 In this chamber, gold was used generously; it praised YAHWEH's honour. All these decorative patterns mentioned in Scripture, have also been found by archaeologists during their excavations in Phoenicia.

The floor was made of planks of juniper (1 Melechim 6:15) over which the kohens walked unshod and silently.17

The ceiling was supported by beams of cedar-wood. No details of its pattern or paneling are given, but very probably it consisted of rafters with filled-in and empty spaces alternated harmoniously between them. Taking other examples into account, it seems likely that the whole surface, like that of the cedar-wood paneling was completely covered by gold either in the form of leaves or applied as a film.

The Book of Melechim also speaks of windows with frames and latticework (1 Melechim 6:4). The reference is obscure and has proved troublesome to translators. So far as our present knowledge is concerned, these little windows may well have resembled the small bay windows reproduced in the Phoenician-Syriac ivories-as, for example, 'the woman at the Window', an ivory dug up at Aislam- Tash and now in the Louvre. If we accept Francis Isherwood's reconstruction, we can see that the lighting of the Hekal, though filtered through narrow apertures, was sufficient. Were these windows glazed? At this period glass was certainly known, but blown glass only became common in the East at a much later date. At most, we can be reasonably sure that the lights of the Hekal might have been covered by some translucent material. It has been suggested that this was alabaster, large amounts of which were then imported from Egypt. But the whole question remains hypothetical. Without being too venturesome, we may well believe that some of these apertures could be manipulated to produce ventilation needed in this room where lamps where continuously burning.

In order to Pass from the Hekal (the Qadash Place) to the Debir (the Qadash of Qadash) -the third division of the Great Tabernacle -the high-kohen had to climb five steps of the stairway. At the top of the steps there was a door, about ten feet wide, and therefore much smaller than the one which led from the vestibule to the Hekal. Its lintel was triangular in shape and thus all the woodwork acquired a strange pentagonal appearance.

The Hekal and the Debir were not separated by a stone wall, but simply by a partition of sweet-smelling cypress wood.

At the bottom of the steps leading up to the Debir, and exactly in the main axis of the Great Tabernacle -at least according to the plan given by Yehezqel (42:22) -there stood an altar of very modest dimensions: about one yard long, one yard wide and one and a half yards high.

It had the four 'horns', denoting its sacrificial purpose.

This was the altar of incense (1 Melechim 6:20; 7:48; 2 Divre Hayamim 4:19). Its frame was of cedar plated with gold - hence its name the golden altar. A number of accessories - extinguishers, knives, basins, sprinkling-bowls, etc, - were kept within reach for daily use of this altar. In its general form it closely resembled the little house-altars found In Megiddo, and dating from about the same period though, of course, it served a very different purpose.

On the right of this altar stood the table for the loaves of offering (1 Melechim 7:48) -called elsewhere 'the loaves of proposition', 'loaves of the Face' - that were used at 'YAHWEH's table'.18

The 'loaves of the Face': for all Semites bread is the symbol of life. The twelve loaves, set before YAHWEH, represented the twelve tribes of Yisrael; they were a constant reminder 'to YAHWEH's face', of the mission he had bestowed on his Chosen People.

These twelve loaves were prepared by the hebdomadal kohens in a special annex of the Great Tabernacle, soon to be described. They used fine wheaten flour: leaven, of course, was strictly excluded.

The volume of each loaf corresponded roughly to one and a half gallons; a fifth of an epha. The loaves were arranged on the table in two equal piles. It was important that air was kept in circulation among them and that they did not crush each other. For this purpose an elaborate system of golden rods was employed.

Alongside the loaves (or above them?), says the Siphra (folio 263), were two vessels of gold in which incense was burnt. Since bread is also the symbol of YAHWEH's gift to man, the ascending spirals of incense represented human praise mounting up to YAHWEH.

The twelve loaves remained for a full week before the Face' of YAHWEH; (hence their name: 'Loaves of the Face'). On the Sabbath, the four new kohens brought in the twelve newly baked loaves. The loaves baked the week before had to be eaten in the Hekal, and so they were shared by the outgoing and incoming kohens in a common meal.

On either side of the altar of incense there were lamp stands, five on the left and five on the right. But how many lamps they held, we do not know. By day and night they shed a diffused light in the Hekal that (at least during the day time) harmonized with the gentle illumination coming through the narrow windows high up in the wall. The tradition of worship changed very little from one century to another and it is probable that these lampstands had much the same shape as the seven branched candlestick.

15 It has been argued from 1 Melechim 9 25 that Solomon, and no doubt the Melechim of Yahudah who followed him, entered three times a year into the Qadash place to offer sacrifice. Some scholars now take the view that this passage is defective and is extremely hard to translate. There is. however, more reliable information about the kohens who took part in the worship within the Qadash Place; their function was simply to light the lamps, put in fresh loaves of offering on the Sabbath and remove the old ones, to see that the incense burners were filled, and to bring in the offerings.

16 In Egypt, goldsmiths were skilled in the application of gold-leaf to wooden surfaces and carving. The very fine leaves were kept in place by tiny nails, also of gold. The Phoenician craftsmen, employed in the ornamentation of the Great Tabernacle were equally skilful.

17 The reference to the floor being plated with gold (1 Melechim 6:30), is in contradiction with verse 15, and does not fit the facts. Scholars regard it as 'gloss’ that is, a reader's marginal note, later incorporated in the text by a copyist.

18 In 2 Divre Hayamim 48 we read that according to the liturgical regulations, there were ten tables [for the offerings]…..five on the right and five on the left. But in Shemoth 25:23 only one table for the loaves of offering is mentioned In 1 Melechim (7:48) the scribe records the presence of the table, in gold, on which the loaves were to be placed. Lastly, in the bas-relief of the triumphal arch in Titus, there is (unless the object has been wrongly identified) a single table of offering among the ruins of the third Great Tabernacle (that of Herod, destroyed in A.D. 70). Accordingly, It must be admitted that the number of ten tables given in Divre Hayamim cannot be maintained.

The Great Tabernacle veil

As we noted above, the officiating kohens alone were allowed to go through the door of the vestibule opening into the Qadash (place).

Only the high-kohen had the authority to cross the threshold between the Qadash (place) and the Qadash of Qadash. This he did once a year, on the Day of Expiation.19 To enable him to enter the Qadash of Qadash, the great door of the Debir was opened wide - its leaves turned inwards to the Qadash (place). When this had been done, the Ark could still not be seen. For immediately behind the door a great cloth hung:t his was the veil of the screen (Bemidbar 4:5), which proclaimed the unapproachable nature of YAHWEH. It was made of fine linen, violet, scarlet and crimson in colour, and cherubs were worked upon it (2 Divre Hayamim 3:14). It was hung on four gold-plated pillars, resting on silver feet. All this was in conformity with the rules laid down by Mosheh (cf. Shemoth 26:31-33).

The Debir (the Qadash of Qadash: the container of the Ark)

The tabernacle of Mosheh which he had set up, according to YAHWEH's instructions, on the foot of Sinai, was meant essentially as a shelter for the Ark that was constructed in the same place.

Two centuries later, Solomon's Great Tabernacle took over this protective function: it was a transposition, but not an exact copy of the original tabernacle. The Ark itself, placed in the Qadash of Qadash, the final and most remote section of the Great Tabernacle, was, of course, the same chest as before.

This was the position: the Great Tabernacle was the shrine that enclosed the Debir, and the Debir was the shrine that enclosed the Ark. The set apart building in its entirety was conceived, organized and brought into existence, for the sake of this wooden chest.

This being the case, to understand the material plan of the Great Tabernacle, and also and more importantly the spiritual outlook of the People of YAHWEH, before continuing the description of the Qadash of Qadash, it will be necessary for us to take a closer look at this Ark which was the heart of the Great Tabernacle and the reason for its construction.

19 This solemnity occurred in the seventh month of the Jewish year (the month of Tishri, from mid-September to mid-October). Vayiqra calls it yom hak-kippurim (the day of expiations). For details of the ceremonies of Vayiqra16:1-34; 23 26-32:and Bemidbar 29; 7-11). Other details are given in Shemoth 30 10; and in the Yoma of the Talmud, the doctors of the Law have enumerated a series of rites that were observed on that occasion.

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Solomon The Magnificent Index   Solomon Sitemap  Scripture History Through the Ages  Solomon The Historian  RADIANT DAWN  Solomon's Wisdom  SOLOMON IN ALL HIS HONOR  David's role in building the Temple  Dates of the building of the Temple  Division of the Temple  The Ark of the Covenant  The most Kodesh Place  Dedication of the Temple  SOLOMON Prince of Peace  SOLOMON THE TRADER   Solomon's Ophir expedition  The queen of Sheba  LITERARY ACHIEVEMENTS OF SOLOMON  First historical works of the Hebrews  What did Solomon write  THE SHADES OF NIGHT  Political and social failure  Solomon's spiritual failure  The moral failure of Solomon  CONCLUSION of Solomon