Exodus 40:1-38  The Setting up of the Tabernacle

[Study Aired March 6, 2023]

Exo 40:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Exo 40:2  On the first day of the first month shalt thou set up the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation.
Exo 40:3  And thou shalt put therein the ark of the testimony, and cover the ark with the vail. 
Exo 40:4  And thou shalt bring in the table, and set in order the things that are to be set in order upon it; and thou shalt bring in the candlestick, and light the lamps thereof. 
Exo 40:5  And thou shalt set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the testimony, and put the hanging of the door to the tabernacle. 
Exo 40:6  And thou shalt set the altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation. 
Exo 40:7  And thou shalt set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and shalt put water therein. 
Exo 40:8  And thou shalt set up the court round about, and hang up the hanging at the court gate. 
Exo 40:9  And thou shalt take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle, and all that is therein, and shalt hallow it, and all the vessels thereof: and it shall be holy. 
Exo 40:10  And thou shalt anoint the altar of the burnt offering, and all his vessels, and sanctify the altar: and it shall be an altar most holy. 
Exo 40:11  And thou shalt anoint the laver and his foot, and sanctify it. 
Exo 40:12  And thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and wash them with water. 
Exo 40:13  And thou shalt put upon Aaron the holy garments, and anoint him, and sanctify him; that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office. 
Exo 40:14  And thou shalt bring his sons, and clothe them with coats: 
Exo 40:15  And thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office: for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.
Exo 40:16  Thus did Moses: according to all that the LORD commanded him, so did he. 
Exo 40:17  And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was reared up. 
Exo 40:18  And Moses reared up the tabernacle, and fastened his sockets, and set up the boards thereof, and put in the bars thereof, and reared up his pillars. 
Exo 40:19  And he spread abroad the tent over the tabernacle, and put the covering of the tent above upon it; as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:20  And he took and put the testimony into the ark, and set the staves on the ark, and put the mercy seat above upon the ark: 
Exo 40:21  And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the vail of the covering, and covered the ark of the testimony; as the LORD commanded Moses.
Exo 40:22  And he put the table in the tent of the congregation, upon the side of the tabernacle northward, without the vail. 
Exo 40:23  And he set the bread in order upon it before the LORD; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:24  And he put the candlestick in the tent of the congregation, over against the table, on the side of the tabernacle southward. 
Exo 40:25  And he lighted the lamps before the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:26  And he put the golden altar in the tent of the congregation before the vail: 
Exo 40:27  And he burnt sweet incense thereon; as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:28  And he set up the hanging at the door of the tabernacle. 
Exo 40:29  And he put the altar of burnt offering by the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation, and offered upon it the burnt offering and the meat offering; as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:30  And he set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and put water there, to wash withal.
Exo 40:31  And Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet thereat: 
Exo 40:32  When they went into the tent of the congregation, and when they came near unto the altar, they washed; as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:33  And he reared up the court round about the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the hanging of the court gate. So Moses finished the work. 
Exo 40:34  Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
Exo 40:35  And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
Exo 40:36  And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward in all their journeys: 
Exo 40:37  But if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not till the day that it was taken up.
Exo 40:38  For the cloud of the LORD was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.

This last chapter of Exodus concludes the preparation and setting up of the tabernacle of the Lord. The setting up of the temple of the Lord within us is a lifelong process. As we are aware, we understand spiritual things by the things that are made. 

Rom 1:20  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 

When a house is being built, it is difficult to see the beauty of it until it is finished. For example, usually, when a huge office complex is being built in a city, it is draped in polythene materials, making it difficult for pedestrians to realize the beauty of it until it is finished. However, in the eyes of the architect who designed the office complex, everything is going according to plan, and he sees the beauty of the building before it is even started. Our architect is our Lord Jesus Christ who has designed us to reflect His beauty even before the foundations of the world. This is how He sees us, His elect – the perfection of beauty!! 

Psa 50:1  A Psalm of Asaph. The mighty God, even the LORD, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the sun unto the going down thereof. 
Psa 50:2  Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.

Our Lord Jesus Christ is building our temple as He takes away all that offends within us so that He can come and dwell in our hearts and mind – our temple. The devil is also aware of this, so he comes to wage a mental battle in our heavens, by questioning whether we are really obtaining Christ’s standard. However, just as Michael and his angels waged war against the devil and his angels in our heavens and defeated them, we are also assured of victory over the devil as we grow in His beauty. Indeed, what the Lord starts, He is able to finish!! 

Rev 12:7  And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
Rev 12:8  And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.
Rev 12:9  And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

What the whole world is looking for is Christ coming to dwell in us, the elect, but unfortunately, it is hidden from them. Christ coming to dwell in our heavens is what the Bible describes as the joy of the whole world. 

Psa 48:1  A Song and Psalm for the sons of Korah. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness. 
Psa 48:2  Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King. 

Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. 
Rom 8:20  For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
Rom 8:21  Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

With this in mind, let us take a look at how the Lord, our Chief Architect, prepares us to become a habitation of the Lord, perfect in beauty and the joy of the whole earth!!

Rev 21:2  And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Rev 21:3  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 
Rev 21:4  And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
Rev 21:5  And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

Exo 40:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Exo 40:2  On the first day of the first month shalt thou set up the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation.

The first day of the first month spiritually signifies a new beginning in our walk with the Lord when we come to realize that we are sinners according to the law and that we need Christ to come into our lives to make our hearts and mind His dwelling place. That is the beginning of the setting up of the tabernacle within us when Christ comes with His judgment to deal with the beast within.

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

Exo 40:3  And thou shalt put therein the ark of the testimony, and cover the ark with the vail. 
Exo 40:4  And thou shalt bring in the table, and set in order the things that are to be set in order upon it; and thou shalt bring in the candlestick, and light the lamps thereof. 
Exo 40:5  And thou shalt set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the testimony, and put the hanging of the door to the tabernacle. 

What is significant here is that the work of setting up the tabernacle started from the Holy of Holies before it ended up in the courtyard. The Lord starts His work of making us His temple for His habitation by focusing within us first before our outward righteousness becomes evident. The Holy of Holies and the Holy place and their items were all made first before the outer court with its items were made. This is in contrast to our life in Babylon or the churches of this world where we put emphasis on the outward to the detriment of inner cleansing. 

Mat 23:25  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
Mat 23:26  Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.

In verse 3, the first item to be placed within the veil was the ark of the testimony, which signifies Christ coming within us (the veil) with the spirit of His mouth to deal with all that offends. The next item was the table and then the candlestick, resulting in the lighting of the lamps. The primary purpose of the table was to hold the showbread which was set before the Lord. Every Sabbath, the priests would replace the loaves from the previous week with a new batch of bread. Twelve loaves of bread were arranged into two rows of six, and these loaves represented the twelve tribes of Israel. 

Lev 24:5  And thou shalt take fine flour, and bake twelve cakes thereof: two tenth deals shall be in one cake. 
Lev 24:6  And thou shalt set them in two rows, six on a row, upon the pure table before the LORD. 
Lev 24:7  And thou shalt put pure frankincense upon each row, that it may be on the bread for a memorial, even an offering made by fire unto the LORD. 
Lev 24:8  Every sabbath he shall set it in order before the LORD continually, being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting covenant.
Lev 24:9  And it shall be Aaron’s and his sons’; and they shall eat it in the holy place: for it is most holy unto him of the offerings of the LORD made by fire by a perpetual statute.

The showbread represents our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the bread of heaven or the heavenly manna. 

Joh 6:32  Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. 
Joh 6:33  For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. 
Joh 6:34  Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. 
Joh 6:35  And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. 

It is when Christ comes to us that we are given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. The golden candlestick signifies the church of the firstborn or the elect. 

Rev 1:12  And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;

Rev 1:20  The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

There was no natural light in the tabernacle, and therefore the light from the candlestick was what enabled the priest to perform his duties before God. This light is the word of the Lord which comes through what every joint supplies.

Psa 119:105  NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

After the lighting of the lamps comes the altar of incense (verse 5). It is when we are given eyes to see and ears to hear through the light of the lamps that we can pray effectively in accordance to His will.

Rev 8:3  And another angel came and stood at the altar, 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.
Rev 8:4  And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.

Exo 40:6  And thou shalt set the altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation. 
Exo 40:7  And thou shalt set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and shalt put water therein. 
Exo 40:8  And thou shalt set up the court round about, and hang up the hanging at the court gate.

An essential part of building our temple for the Lord to dwell in is that we come to see where we came from – our Babylonian origin. We start our walk with Christ by recognizing the sacrifice He made for our sins as we encounter the altar of the burnt offering. That is the foundation upon which we can proceed to the laver, where we begin to be washed with the letter of the word before we enter the Holy place. That is when the Lord comes with His brightness to start the process of destroying the raging beast within us.

Isa 51:1  Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the LORD: look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged.

Exo 40:9  And thou shalt take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle, and all that is therein, and shalt hallow it, and all the vessels thereof: and it shall be holy. 
Exo 40:10  And thou shalt anoint the altar of the burnt offering, and all his vessels, and sanctify the altar: and it shall be an altar most holy. 
Exo 40:11  And thou shalt anoint the laver and his foot, and sanctify it.

The question that comes to mind is, “Why are all these items anointed?” As we are aware, the anointing with oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. It is through the Holy Spirit that we are endowed with power to become a habitation for the Lord to dwell. We, His elect, represent the tabernacle and also the vessels in the tabernacle. Anointing the tabernacle and the vessels is therefore sanctifying us as we offer our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to the Lord.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Anointing the altar of the burnt offering and its vessels is causing us to see the sacrifice the Lord made on our behalf. The anointing of the laver and its foot is to open our eyes to see and our ears to begin to hear the truth of the word of the Lord.

Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 
Joh 16:14  He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

Exo 40:12  And thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and wash them with water. 
Exo 40:13  And thou shalt put upon Aaron the holy garments, and anoint him, and sanctify him; that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office. 
Exo 40:14  And thou shalt bring his sons, and clothe them with coats: 
Exo 40:15  And thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto me in the priest’s office: for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.

These verses show us the process we go through to put on the righteousness of Christ, which is symbolized by the holy garments worn by Aaron and His sons who represent the elect.  The process involves being washed with the water of the word. As our eyes are opened and our ears hear, we are cleansed by the truth of the word of the Lord.

Eph 5:26  That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 
Eph 5:27  That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.

The process also involves being anointed with the Holy spirit to empower us as we are led into the truth of the word of the Lord. 

Act 1:8  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. 

Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
Joh 16:14  He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

Exo 40:16  Thus did Moses: according to all that the LORD commanded him, so did he.

As we have indicated several times in the study of Exodus, Moses represents the elect. A key characteristic of the elect is to do all that which the Lord commands us through His words. That is, we are called to obey the Lord in everything and that is what shows that we really love Him. 

1Jn 5:2  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
1Jn 5:3  For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

Exo 40:17  And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was reared up. 
Exo 40:18  And Moses reared up the tabernacle, and fastened his sockets, and set up the boards thereof, and put in the bars thereof, and reared up his pillars. 
Exo 40:19  And he spread abroad the tent over the tabernacle, and put the covering of the tent above upon it; as the LORD commanded Moses. 

The tabernacle became a visible presence in the midst of the Israelites when the structures were set up and was covered with the tent. This is a foretaste of the New Jerusalem where God himself shall be with His people and be their God.

Rev 21:2  And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 
Rev 21:3  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. 
Rev 21:4  And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Exo 40:20  And he took and put the testimony into the ark, and set the staves on the ark, and put the mercy seat above upon the ark: 
Exo 40:21  And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the vail of the covering, and covered the ark of the testimony; as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:22  And he put the table in the tent of the congregation, upon the side of the tabernacle northward, without the vail. 
Exo 40:23  And he set the bread in order upon it before the LORD; as the LORD had commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:24  And he put the candlestick in the tent of the congregation, over against the table, on the side of the tabernacle southward.
Exo 40:25  And he lighted the lamps before the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses.
Exo 40:26  And he put the golden altar in the tent of the congregation before the vail:
Exo 40:27  And he burnt sweet incense thereon; as the LORD commanded Moses.

As we have indicated earlier, the Lord starts His work of building our temple by focusing on what happens within the veil (our hearts and mind) first. We are shown great mercy as the Lord comes to us with His brightness into our lives. This is represented by the ark of the testimony with the mercy seat. We are then given to eat in His presence as our eyes are opened and our ears hear the truth of the word of the Lord, which is symbolized by the table and the showbread. The church which is signified by the candlestick helps us in our walk to see the light of His words by what every joint supplies. It is at this point that our prayers become sweet incense to the Lord.

Jas 5:16  Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Exo 40:28  And he set up the hanging at the door of the tabernacle. 
Exo 40:29  And he put the altar of burnt offering by the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation, and offered upon it the burnt offering and the meat offering; as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:30  And he set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and put water there, to wash withal.
Exo 40:31  And Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet thereat: 
Exo 40:32  When they went into the tent of the congregation, and when they came near unto the altar, they washed; as the LORD commanded Moses. 

As His elect, we are the hanging at the door of the tabernacle through which all humanity must pass to worship the Lord. As indicated earlier, the altar of burnt offering is to remind us of the price paid by our Lord Jesus Christ, as He was sacrificed for our sins so that we can become a royal priesthood. The laver at the court of the tabernacle is where we are washed with the letter of the word of the Lord, which causes us to realize our hopelessness in overcoming sin as we are dominated by the beast and the need to leave Babylon.

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

Exo 40:33  And he reared up the court round about the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the hanging of the court gate. So Moses finished the work.

It is in resurrection that the Lord will complete our tabernacle for His habitation.

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.

We, His elect, are the first for the Lord to complete His tabernacle, as He dwells within us.

Rev 21:3  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Exo 40:34  Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
Exo 40:35  And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.

Here we are told that the cloud and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle such that Moses was not able to enter the tent of the congregation. The cloud represents the elect who have overcome and are in the presence of the Lord.  In the Book of Isaiah, when Isaiah saw the Lord sitting on His throne in His temple, there were the Seraphims who represented the elect. The fact that there is always a cloud in the presence of the Lord is to remind us of the elect who are represented by the elect or the Seraphims.

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

Isa 6:1  In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.
Isa 6:2  Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.

We need to know what the glory of the Lord signifies in order to understand verses 34 and 35. The following verses show us what the glory of the Lord means:

Num 14:10  But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.
Num 14:11  And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them? 

Num 16:19  And Korah gathered all the congregation against them unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and the glory of the LORD appeared unto all the congregation. 
Num 16:20  And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

Deu 5:24  And ye said, Behold, the LORD our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.

We can see from these verses that anytime the glory of the Lord appears, we see the Lord speaking. In Deuteronomy 5:24, additional information is given to qualify the glory of the Lord and that is fire. Seeing His glory therefore means hearing the Lord’s voice out of the midst of the fire. This conclusion is affirmed in Exodus 24:16-17, where the sight of the glory of the Lord was likened to a devouring fire on the top of the Mount. So, in this age, those who are privileged to see the glory of the Lord are those who are hearing His words in the midst of the furnace of their affliction. When we are going through suffering, it is hard to rejoice, but afterwards it will yield the benefit of seeing the glory of the Lord!!

Exo 24:16  And the glory of the LORD abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud. 
Exo 24:17  And the sight of the glory of the LORD was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel.

What verse 35 means is that until we have gone through the complete fiery trials marked out for us, we cannot offer our bodies as living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to the Lord.  That is what it means to enter the temple to worship the Lord.

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

Exo 40:36  And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward in all their journeys: 
Exo 40:37  But if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not till the day that it was taken up.
Exo 40:38  For the cloud of the LORD was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys. 

The movement of the people of Israel was dependent on whether the cloud had moved from the tabernacle or was stationary. Since the cloud represents the elect, it is therefore a symbol of the church of the firstborn. What these verses tell us is that it is through the counsel of the church (cloud of the Lord) together with our fiery trials (fire by night) which guide us through this wilderness of life.

Pro 11:14  Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety. 

Gen 50:20  But as for you, ye thought evil against me (our fiery trials); but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

May the Lord be merciful to us as He continues to work on our tabernacle until that day!! Amen!!