The Tabernacle of David

Were you aware that there was another Tabernacle of worship ?

" Samuel 6 v12-19 says,  Now King David was told, "The LORD has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God." So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. When those who were carrying the ark of the LORD had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the LORD with all his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouts and the sound of trumpets.  As the ark of the LORD was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she despised him in her heart.  They brought the ark of the LORD and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before the LORD.   After he had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD Almighty.   Then he gave a loaf of bread, a cake of dates and a cake of raisins to each person in the whole crowd of Israelites, both men and women. And all the people went to their homes.

In 1 Kings 1 v 33-40 says, he (David)  said to them: "Take your lord's servants with you and set Solomon my son on my own mule and take him down to Gihon. There have Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him king over Israel. Blow the trumpet and shout, `Long live King Solomon!' Then you are to go up with him, and he is to come and sit on my throne and reign in my place. I have appointed him ruler over Israel and Judah."  Benaiah son of Jehoiada answered the king, "Amen! May the LORD, the God of my lord the king, so declare it. As the LORD was with my lord the king, so may he be with Solomon to make his throne even greater than the throne of my lord King David!"  So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, the Kerethites and the Pelethites went down and put Solomon on King David's mule and escorted him to Gihon.  Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the sacred tent and anointed Solomon. Then they sounded the trumpet and all the people shouted, "Long live King Solomon!"   And all the people went up after him, playing flutes and rejoicing greatly, so that the ground shook with the sound.      (See also 1 Chronicles 16 for another account)

The Tabernacle of Moses was still pitched at Gibeon (2 Chr 1 v3 and 1 Chr 16 v39) and sacrifices were still being carried out there.  The Mosaic tabernacle still had  the Holy of Holies, but no Ark inside.   But David, who was obviously in the will of God, erected a tent in which people worshipped joyfully without being separated from the Ark of the Covenant by the Veil.  Remember that the Veil in the Temple was torn in two when Yeshua died on the cross.   Clearly, this tent or tabernacle has prophetic significance for believers about today and the coming days.

Hebrews 12 v18-24 explains this difference in the worship, You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm;  to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.".  The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear.   But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly,  to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect,  to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.   (see Exodus 19)

Amos 9  v11-13 says, "In that day I will restore David's fallen tent.  I will repair its broken places,  restore its ruins, and build it as it used to be,   so that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations that bear my name,"  declares the LORD, who will do these things.  "The days are coming," declares the LORD, when the reaper will be overtaken by the plowman and the planter by the one treading grapes. New wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills.

Isaiah says, in ch16 v5,   In love a throne will be established;  in faithfulness a man will sit on it-one from the tent of David-- one who in judging seeks justice and speeds the cause of righteousness.    (The NIV offers "tent"  as the Hebrew in place of  the word "house")

In Acts 15  16-18 James (a Church elder) quoted the above , concerning the "miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles", " `After this I will return and rebuild David's fallen tent.  Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it,   that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things'  that have been known for ages.

See also Hebrews 8 and 9 concerning earthly and spiritual tabernacles, and the new covenant.

Clearly there is Messianic and "End Times" significance in this Tent of David.  Christine Darg felt led to call a Prophetic Summons in Jerusalem at Passover 2001.  It was to follow on from the Jerusalem Jubilee events of 1998, 1999 and 2000, but the details were not clear.  Later, she felt led that a tent was to be involved.  Through various difficulties The Lord changed the plans until the event was to be held below the old City of David, at the Gihon spring.  It was then that the significance of the location was pointed out.  Below is a short report from Christine's website.   (www.exploits.tv)

The prophet Amos predicted that God would restore again the Tabernacle of David so that all the Gentiles might seek after the Lord (see Amos 9: 11-12). In the earliest days of the Christian Church, James, the brother of Jesus, repeated the words of the prophet Amos to explain that the Church, which was almost entirely Jewish, must accept Gentile converts (see Acts 15: 16-17).
Davidic style worship of praise, dancing, and Biblical music is being restored to the Church worldwide. Our Tabernacle was an ensign that the Times of the Gentiles are coming to an end. Believers from around the world gathered in our tent to simulate the ancient Tabernacle of King David in Jerusalem (see 2 Samuel 6:17). This took place just before the Jewish Passover and Passion Week.

With the cooperation of the Jewish community living in the heart of the ancient City of David, our ministry was able to set up this Biblical tent at the Gihon Spring next to the Arab neighborhood of Silwan. This is the very vicinity where the original Tabernacle of David was pitched and where the Ark of the Covenant was housed prior to the construction of Solomon's Temple (see 1 Kings 1:33-45). In a spirit of reconciliation, Jews, Arabs and Christians attended the colorful event.

You will note in David's tabernacle, the dramatic departure from established worship, with its sacrifices and separation of the people from the presence of God.  Apart from the sacrifices made during the dedication, the worship was of spiritual rejoicing.  Once the Temple was built, in the days of Solomon, David's Tabernacle was not heard about again.  However, since David had a unique place in God's plans and is so much a picture and forebear of the promised Messiah, we can study David's Tabernacle as a pattern of worship of the Messiah - Yeshua.

See Instruments for some thoughts on David's harp and other instruments and their place in worship.

David demonstrated a divine worship, "in spirit and in truth", which had several distinctive ministries . . .  

(I am grateful to Christine for her notes on this topic, which drew from Kevin J Connor's  book about the Tabernacle of David.)

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