Holy of Holies (Sacred Sites Part 9)

On leaving the Holy Place, one pierces the veil to enter the Holy of Holies, which represents the presence of God in the the Celestial Kingdom. The only article in the Holy of Holies is the Ark of the Covenant. The covering for the Ark is the Mercy Seat upon which two angles are perched with their wings touching. This is where God met with Moses. Everything pertaining to the Ark points to Christ. The Mercy Seat points us to the fact that it is because of Christ's atonement that God can have mercy on us and our sins. His atonement allows us to meet with God in his glorious presence. In a sense, Christ is the place where man and God are allowed to meet (see Old Testament Student Manual p. 148).

Inside the Ark is the pot of manna (pointing to Christ as the bread of life). There are the two stone tablets upon which is written the law. Christ is the stone of Israel who stood in front of the Nephites and declared, "... I am the law..." (3 Nephi 15:9). Also in the Ark was Aaron's rod that budded also making it a branch. Christ is the Branch (Zechariah 3:8; 6:12) and the Rod (Psalms 110:2). Moses himself, who was a type of the Only Begotten, and a representation of the law, was taken from an Ark as a type and shadow of Christ.

Conclusion:
We can see in the Tabernacle/Temple the means of becoming conformed to the image of the Son (The Anointed One). We may view the way through the tabernacle as the strait and narrow path of covenants and learning of Christ. Christ is the "Way" and the "Door" back to the presence of God. He is the means of reconciling man and God so that they may once again meet face to face and embrace each other in reconciliation. The breach created between man and God by the Fall of Adam has now been closed.

There are many other interpretations for each item in the Tabernacle/Temple. These postings are simply skimming the surface of symbolism using as a guide Nephi's revelation that all things given by God to man from the beginning of the world typify Christ (2 Nephi 11:4).

The following depicts every aspect of the tabernacle/temple as pointing to Christ:

(click to enlarge)