A Different Perspective on Cosmology

I'm continuing to read Benjamin Gladd's book, From Adam and Israel to the Church. Gladd starts where, as most people do, with the creation of the cosmos and the creation of Adam. Here is something I found interesting that I never really thought about before when considering the creation of the cosmos: Like the tabernacle described in Exodus, God created the universe to house his glory, as a space for him to dwell with mankind. Or as Gladd states, "The cosmos as God's temple."

The author draws parallels between the language used in building the tabernacle and the temple, and the creation account. He finds language parallels in Genesis 1-2 and Exodus 39-40. Parallels to the building of the temple are also identified:

The outer courtyard of the temple contained the washbasin and the altar, symbolizing the sea and the land (1 Kings 7:23-25; Ezekiel 43:14-16). Moving a step closer to God's presence, the second section of the temple, or the holy place, symbolized the visible heavens and was lined with gold, containing the altar of incense (1 Kings 6:20), the bread of the Presence resting on the table (1 Kings 7:48), and ten lampstand fashioned out of gold (1 Kings 7:49). The final and most sacred section of the temple was the holy of the holies, which symbolized the invisible heavens, where God dwells.

Gladd continues with more comparisons and concludes with a quote from theologian Michael Morales: "The cosmos was understood as a large temple and the temple as a small cosmos."

Gladd goes on to draw more specific parallels between the temple and the garden of Eden, showing how the latter becomes the center of God's activity on the earth: "Much like Sinai, Eden ought to be understood as a mountain that houses God's glory."

I never made this connection between cosmology and the dwelling place of God. I don't know if Gladd is heading in this direction, but it seems that the trajectory of God's dwelling place is getting increasingly intimate: From the universe, to Eden, to the tabernacle and temple, to Christ dwelling among us, and, finally, to the human heart. I believe a word for this dwelling is the Hebrew word "shekinah," which means "he caused to dwell."

From the beginning - from the opening pages of Genesis - God has been working to bring his glory closer and closer to his people. His desire to be close to us - to dwell with us - has been there from the start and all his actions have been to that end. What a great story. What a great God.