God, being a patient, loving, and humble being, reveals Himself by dwelling among His people through ways that reflect the people’s stage of formation and to lead them to deeper communion with Him. The Tabernacle, the Solomonic Temple, and the Second Temple each represent a beautifully orchestrated journey through which God forms the people of Israel into a people who worships Him alone and eventually directing them toward the perfect dwelling place—Jesus Christ and the Church (people), the new temple of the Holy Spirit.
“All men were by nature foolish who were ignorance of God, and who from the good things seen did not succeed in knowing who is…” (Book of Wisdom 13:1, RSV)
The Catechism teaches us that God reveals Himself through a divine plan—“by deeds and words which are intrinsically bound up with each other” and which evolve gradually until their fulfillment through and in Christ (CCC 53). A main strategy of this plan is God’s dwelling with His people. Across the Old Testament, the places where God dwells—the tabernacle, the temple, and the sanctuary after exile—exposes both God’s desire for communion and the people’s willingness to receive Him and only Him. Each place not only shows God’s presence but also a formation process for Israel into a priestly people able to worship one God, holiness, and covenantal fidelity.
The tabernacle is the first physical building openly arranged for God’s dwelling place among the people of Israel. After Israel’s deliverance from Egypt, God commanded the construction of a sanctuary so that He may dwell in their midst (Exodus 25:8, RSV). The intricacy and instructions for its construction are so thorough and specific to emphasize obedience, precision, and intentional worship. The apex occurs in Exodus 40:30-38, when “the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.” The spiritual formation of the people of Israels started with the call of Abraham and was deepened with Moses after the Sinai covenant when people learned that belonging to God requires obedience, holiness, and worship centered to God. The people of God needed an external cuing to lead them to worship one God due to the temptations of worshiping the other gods and making images of them. Israel’s spiritual formation was communal, external, and preparatory—forming habits that eventually will lead to inner transformation. God, in His goodness and desire for communion, revealed Himself in a holy and guiding manner through the establishment of the tabernacle.
When David and Solomon came into the picture, Israel became a unified kingdom. David desired to build a stable house for God however God had a different plan in mind. God established a Davidic covenant instead ( 2 Samuel 7:11-16). The temple that Solomon built became an architectural symbol of the maturation of the covenantal relationship with God. During the dedication of the temple (1 Kings 8), the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord,” resonating the tabernacle’s atmosphere which is now a permanent construction.
The prophetic interiorization took place transforming Israel’s spiritual formation from external obedience to an internal transformation. The people of Israel repeatedly committed infidelity. Throughout the Old Testament, God has invited His people to turn to Him with all their hearts, with all their souls, and with all His might, especially in the book of Deuteronomy (Deut 6:4-5, 10:12-13,30:2,6). But the people of God remained distracted by idols. Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed. This was one of the most devastating events in Israel’s history. 2 Kings 24-25 narrates the Babylonian conquest, the banishment of King Jehoiachin, Zedekiah’s blinding, and the burning of the house of the Lord. This remarkable historical event is not a random political loss but the conclusion of the persistent covenant infidelity. Since Genesis, Israel and Judah had ignored the prophetic calls to repent, practicing idolatry, injustice, and ritualism lacking obedience. At this point, the people loss their land, their temple, and the visible sign of God’s favor. But God was not done yet. The destruction of the temple destroyed the people’s illusion that God can be contained in a building. It also taught the people of God that worship without covenantal fidelity is hypocrisy.
Ezekiel’s vision describes how the presence of God departed and eventually resided on the Mount of Olives (Ezekiel 43:1-5). God’s presence is not lost however it is relocated, and the defiled structure will eventually become a purified people. Although devastating, the people learned that God cannot be manipulated by rituals. Amid judgment, the vision gave hope. God’s glory only temporarily left and will eventually be restored. Later in the book of Ezekiel, the prophet saw a sign of restoration and renewal of the covenant.
Eventually, this event prepares for the New Covenant, in which God’s presence will no longer reside in a building but in people’s heart. The exile’s suffering teaches the people of God that His glory cannot dwell with sin, but His mercy will always seek a way back to His beloved creations—the people. The Old Testament sanctuaries eventually culminate in Jesus Christ, the true temple of God (John 2:19-21). By His death and resurrection, the Church (not the building but the people) becomes the new temple of God (1 Cor 3:16-17). Through Jesus, God’s presence made fully manifest (John 2:19-21). Jesus being the new and living temple represents the perfect infusion of divinity and humanity. God no longer dwells in a physical building made by humans but in the human person.
Throughout salvation history, God’s desire never changed—to dwell among His people. From the Garden of Eden to the Tabernacle, the temple, and finally in the Incarnate Christ. Through His death and resurrection, Christ becomes the place of atonement and divine communion — the holiest of holies where humanity encounters God face to face.
It is a gift to us becoming an indwelling of God’s presence however it is a responsibility. We become a holy walking and living sanctuary. This responsibility rightfully demands purity. As the temple in the Old Testament required purity, so too us Christians. Preservation of sanctity of the heart and body is imperative. In the Old Covenant, external rituals and sacred spaces were highlighted. In the New Covenant, we worship interiorly in our spirit, made possible by the Holy Spirit after baptism. Doctor of the church, St Teresa of Avila in her book Interior Castle describes “The soul of a just person is nothing else but a paradise where the Lord says He finds His delight.” (Interior Castle, I.1.1). She teaches us to not seek God anywhere else but inside all of us. She highlights that having an interior life is imperative and a means to perfect communion with God even in the land of the living.
God continues to reveal his nature and divine plan and teaches us the value of suffering—redemptive suffering. The events mentioned were brutal and does look like a “loss” through the eyes of the world. However, in God’s economy nothing is wasted. Romans 12 describes how we can live a life of sacrifice through the mercy of God. The Good News is that our efforts do not guarantee our salvation but cooperation and receptivity to God’s grace is essential. In the end, the human person—redeemed and glorified—becomes fully what God intended: a perfect vessel of divine presence, united eternally with Him in worship and love.
References:
Catechism of the Catholic Church. 2nd ed. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1997.
Benedict XVI (Joseph Ratzinger). Jesus of Nazareth: From the Baptism in the Jordan to the Transfiguration. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2007.
Wright, N. T. The New Testament and the People of God. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1992.
Levering, Matthew, and Michael Dauphinais. Holy Land, Holy People: A Theology of Land in the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2005.
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