“Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far off from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the LORD would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp” (Exodus 33:7 ESV).
In Exodus 33:7, Moses recorded how he took a temporary tent and pitched it outside the camp of Israel after the sin of the golden calf. Writing to the covenant people, he described how this “tent of meeting” stood at a distance, symbolizing the rupture that sin had caused between the LORD and His redeemed people. The Tabernacle had not yet been constructed; this was a provisional place of meeting. Its location “far off from the camp” demonstrating that sin disrupted fellowship with the holy God who had dwelt among them.
Yet the tent also testified to God’s grace. Though God was holy and would not overlook rebellion, He still allowed mediated access. Moses stood as intercessor, entering the tent to speak with the LORD on behalf of the people. Access to God required a mediator. Later, when the Tabernacle was completed (Ex. 40), the glory of the LORD filled it, signaling restored covenant fellowship. After that, the Tabernacle became known as the tent of meeting. Both tents ultimately pointed forward to a greater reality, as the apostle John wrote in his gospel: “The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us” (John 1:14). Jesus Christ is the true meeting place between God and man.
As believers, we are reminded that our sin still disrupts fellowship with God. Though we belong to Him, unconfessed rebellion moves us “outside the camp” in our experience of His nearness. Yet we also see that God graciously provides a Mediator. We do not approach Him casually or on our own merit. We come through Christ, our greater Moses, who intercedes for us. Because Jesus has come and “tabernacled” among us, we are invited back into restored fellowship. Let us not take lightly the holiness of God nor neglect the grace that brings us near. In Christ, we are no longer left outside the camp for He is our true meeting place.
PRAYER: Dear Father, we confess that our sin disrupts our fellowship with You. Thank You for Your holiness that does not tolerate evil and for Your grace that provides a Mediator. Thank You for sending Your Son to dwell among us and bring us near. Draw us back when we wander and keep us close through Christ Jesus. For it’s in His name we pray, amen.