Exodus 24 reads like a deliberate replay of Genesis 1. In creation, the heavens and the earth are God’s sanctuary, structured in six days and crowned by Yahweh’s divine presence. At Sinai, the glory of the Lord settles upon the mountain, covering it for six days. Then it moves to the Tabernacle.

Genesis and Tabernacle

From Sinai flows the design of the Tabernacle—a portable creation. The Ark embodies the meeting of heaven and earth, the throne where the invisible King dwells among His people. The menorah, with its seven branches, mirrors the ordering of light in Genesis. The curtains, woven in blue and adorned with cherubim, evoke the firmament that once stretched across the primordial waters.

In Genesis 1, creation itself is God’s sanctuary. He establishes and fills His own cosmic dwelling. There is no “outside,” no rival territory beyond His rule. Heaven and earth together form a single, ordered realm saturated with divine sovereignty.

With the Tabernacle sacred space is concentrated at a center because the world beyond has become fractured, degraded and defiled. From the holy nucleus, God’s sovereignty must move outward. The Tabernacle is now carried by His people so that the Divine Presence can advance and the whole of creation will be filled once more with the glory of the Lord.

The message: His covenant people are participants and have a role to play in the restoration of creation. What are you doing today to see the sovereignty of God spread to earth’s four corners?