THE TABERNACLE
ITS PRIESTS AND ITS SERVICES
No. 4
The Curtains and Coverings
The curtains, skins, and boards of the Tabernacle are considered as a whole, but are regarded separately. The cherubim curtains are named specifically and have the place of honor. Secondly, the goat-hair curtains covered the cherubim curtains, and then there were two sets of skin coverings.
The beautiful ornamental cherubim curtains were visible on the roof and walls of the interior, and were suspended within the house from the top of the boards. The foundation fabric was of the very finest pure white linen yarn. The weft, or the filling thread, was made from the same material and dyed blue, purple, and scarlet. The figures of the cherubim were interwoven by wise-hearted women, or those women who were skillful in this area.
The linen that they had learned how to weave in Egypt was exceedingly fine. Each slender thread was composed of three hundred and sixty distinct threads. There were ten of these very fine and rich curtains woven, each measuring 42 feet in length and 6 feet in width. Five of the curtains were joined together, and the other five were joined together. They were probably joined together by needlework, and formed two gigantic curtains which had fifty loops of blue and taches, or hooks, of gold for the loops to hang on. At the place where the junction was formed in the middle, the loops took hold one of the other by being locked together with golden clasps all the way across the 42 feet.
The curtains were placed lengthways across the roof and down the side walls, with one curtain, after being sewn together, covering one whole half - top and sides - of the tabernacle. It purposely lacked 18 inches reaching the ground so that it would not get dirty. One set of five curtains covered the holy place, and the other set covered the holy of holies. Below are two diagrams, one showing how the curtains fit together to become one complete covering, and another showing a picture of how it may have looked when fitted over the top of the tabernacle itself.
The above picture is used by permission from the following site: www.domini.org/tabern/embrcovr.htm
Hopefully, the above diagrams will help you to start seeing the picture as we have been building it from the ground up.
For more information from this book, go to the archives page at my site www.cathydeaton.com There are other articles of interest there also.
This text taken from the book The Tabernacle Its Priests and Its Services by William Brown and is used by permission.