The Torn Veil

Exodus 26:31–33 -- "And you shall make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen. It shall be made with cherubim skillfully worked into it. And you shall hang it on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, with hooks of gold, on four bases of silver. And you shall hang the veil from the clasps, and bring the ark of the testimony in there within the veil. And the veil shall separate for you the Holy Place from the Most Holy."

THE INTERCESSOR AND THE VEIL

In the days of the High Priest, we know that the Priests were separated from the presence of God by a curtain. This had to strike awe into the priests; imagine if you will, you stand before a curtain, and you know that behind this curtain is manifested the Shekinah glory of God. the Shekinah was so intense, the Israelites could actually see it rising high above the Tabernacle. Only a single curtain between the Priest and Yahweh's Glory!

Then, when the Messiah died, we read about something happening; it is so important that the three synoptic gospels all record it. I will quote out of Matthew 27:46–51 -- And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" that is, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" And some of the bystanders, hearing it, said, "This man is calling Elijah." And one of them at once ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink. But the others said, "Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him." And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.

To understand the magnitude of this event, one should understand that the veil was not a curtain you would pick up from J. C. Penney’s. Because the Priests in Herod’s Temple didn’t know if the veil was to be hung inside the doorframe of the Holy of Holies or outside the doorframe, they hung two veils. Each veil was about 60 feet long, and 30 feet wide, and four inches thick. It took three hundred priests to hang these curtains. So, these are the veils that were tore from top to bottom. These curtains were made of 72 squares of material. I am providing detail on all of this so that one may understand that these curtains did not simply rip because a breeze wafted through the Temple!

With the death of the Messiah, there was no longer the necessity of having a separation (veil) between God and man, the Messiah had crossed that chasm on Calvary! The Lamb without blemish had died, and provided righteouesness for those who were called by the Master Shepherd's voice. The Father tore the veil to illustrate that the entrance to the Holy of Holies was now found through the Messiah!

Hebrews 10:19–22 -- Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

Because of our Messiah we can now enter into God's Throneroom!