Exodus 27:9-19

Exodus 27:9-19

[9] And thou shalt make  the court  of the tabernacle:  for the south  side  southward  there shall be hangings  for the court  of fine twined  linen  of an hundred  cubits  long  for one  side:  [10] And the twenty  pillars  thereof and their twenty  sockets  shall be of brass;  the hooks  of the pillars  and their fillets  shall be of silver.  [11] And likewise for the north  side  in length  there shall be hangings  of an hundred  cubits long,  and his twenty  pillars  and their twenty  sockets  of brass;  the hooks  of the pillars  and their fillets  of silver.  [12] And for the breadth  of the court  on the west  side  shall be hangings  of fifty  cubits:  their pillars  ten,  and their sockets  ten.  [13] And the breadth  of the court  on the east  side  eastward  shall be fifty  cubits.  [14] The hangings  of one side  of the gate shall be fifteen  cubits:  their pillars  three,  and their sockets  three.  [15] And on the other  side  shall be hangings  fifteen  cubits: their pillars  three,  and their sockets  three.  [16] And for the gate  of the court  shall be an hanging  of twenty  cubits,  of blue,  and purple,  and scarlet,  and fine twined  linen,  wrought with needlework:  and their pillars  shall be four,  and their sockets  four.  [17] All the pillars  round about  the court  shall be filleted  with silver;  their hooks  shall be of silver,  and their sockets  of brass.  [18] The length  of the court  shall be an hundred  cubits,  and the breadth  fifty  and the height  five  cubits  of fine twined  linen,  and their sockets  of brass.  [19] All the vessels  of the tabernacle  in all the service  thereof, and all the pins  of the court,  shall be of brass. 

What does Exodus 27:9-19 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

The courtyard was50 cubits wide by100 cubits long (75 feet by150 feet, half the length of an American football field). This area is about the size of a modest home site in the United States. The curtains that formed its perimeter were only half as high as those surrounding the tabernacle building (7 feet instead of15 feet). So the Israelites outside the courtyard could see the top part of the tabernacle building.
"All its vessels were of copper-brass, which, being allied to the earth in both colour and material, was a symbolic representation of the earthy side of the kingdom of God; whereas the silver of the capitals of the pillars, and of the hooks and rods which sustained the hangings, as well as the white colour of the byssus-hangings, might point to the holiness of this site for the kingdom of God." [1]
"The whole arrangement of the outer court, and in particular the placement of the altar of sacrifice and the laver, speak pointedly of man"s approach to God." [2]
". . . this structure provided the same kind of physical separation between the holy God and his people as did the mountain at Sinai (temporal separation is also provided in the annual feasts and celebrations, e.g, the yearly Day of Atonement, Leviticus 16)." [3]
"The court preserved the Tabernacle from accidental or intentional profanation, and it gave the priests a certain measure of privacy for the prosecution of their duties. Its presence was a perpetual reminder that man should pause and consider, before he rushes into the presence of the Most High [4]." [5]
"The courtyard is the place of worship where the people could gather-they entered his courts. If the courtyard does not interest us very much, it did the Israelites. Here the sacrifices were made, the choirs sang, the believers offered their praises, they had their sins forgiven, they came to pray, they appeared on the holy days, and they heard from God. It was sacred because God met them there; they left the "world" so to speak and came into his presence." [6]