ly sanctuary. The artistic
skill displayed in its construction was a manifestation of divine wisdom.
The walls had the appearance of massive gold, reflecting in every
direction the light of the seven lamps of the golden candlestick. The
table of showbread and the altar of incense glittered like burnished gold.
The gorgeous curtain which formed the ceiling, inwrought with figures of
angels in blue and purple and scarlet, added to the beauty of the scene.
And beyond the second veil was the holy shekinah, the visible
manifestation of God's glory, before which none but the high priest could
enter and live.

The matchless splendor of the earthly tabernacle reflected to human vision
the glories of that heavenly temple where Christ our forerunner ministers
for us before the throne of God. The abiding-place of the King of kings,
where thousand thousands minister unto Him, and ten thousand times ten
thousand stand before Him;(673) that temple, filled with the glory of the
eternal throne, where seraphim, its shining guardians, veil their faces in
adoration, could find, in the most magnificent structure ever reared by
human hands, but a faint reflection of its vastness and glory. Yet
important truths concerning the heavenly sanctuary and the great work
there carried forward for man's redemption, were taught by the earthly
sanctuary and its services.

The holy places of the sanctuary in heaven are represented by the two
apartments in the sanctuary on earth. As in vision the apostle John was
granted a view of the temple of God in heaven, he beheld there "seven
lamps of fire burning before the throne."(674) He saw an angel "having a
golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should
offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was
before the throne."(675) Here the prophet was permitted to behold the
first apartment of the sanctuary in heaven; and he saw there the "seven
lamps of fire" and the "golden altar," represented by the golden
candlestick and the altar of incense in the sanctuary on earth. Again,
"the temple of God was opened,"(676) and he looked within the inner veil,
upon the holy of holies. Here he beheld "the ark of His testament,"
represented by the sacred chest constructed by Moses to contain the law of
God.

Thus those who were studying the subject found indisputable proof of the
existence of a sanctuary in heaven. Moses made the earthly sanctuary after
a pattern which was