The Great Controversy
by Ellen G. White
Chapter 23: What Is the Sanctuary?
The scripture which above all others had been both the
foundation and the central pillar of the advent faith was the declaration:
"Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be
cleansed." Daniel 8:14. These had been familiar words to all believers in
the Lord's soon coming. By the lips of thousands was this prophecy repeated as
the watchword of their faith. All felt that upon the events therein foretold
depended their brightest expectations and most cherished hopes. These prophetic
days had been shown to terminate in the autumn of 1844. In common with the rest
of the Christian world, Adventists then held that the earth, or some portion of
it, was the sanctuary. They understood that the cleansing of the sanctuary was
the purification of the earth by the fires of the last great day, and that this
would take place at the second advent. Hence the conclusion that Christ would
return to the earth in 1844. {GC
409.1}
But the appointed time had passed, and the Lord had not
appeared. The believers knew that God's word could not fail; their
interpretation of the prophecy must be at fault; but where was the mistake?
Many rashly cut the knot of difficulty by denying that the 2300 days ended in
1844. No reason could be given for this except that Christ had not come at the
time they expected Him. They argued that if the prophetic days had ended in
1844, Christ would then have returned to [410]
cleanse the sanctuary by the purification of the earth by fire; and that since
He had not come, the days could not have ended. {GC 409.2}
To accept this conclusion was to renounce the former
reckoning of the prophetic periods. The 2300 days had been found to begin when
the commandment of Artaxerxes for the restoration and building of Jerusalem
went into effect, in the autumn of 457 B.C. Taking this as the starting point,
there was perfect harmony in the application of all the events foretold in the explanation
of that period in Daniel 9:25-27. Sixty-nine weeks, the first 483 of the 2300
years, were to reach to the Messiah, the Anointed One; and Christ's baptism and
anointing by the Holy Spirit, A.D. 27, exactly fulfilled the specification. In
the midst of the seventieth week, Messiah was to be cut off. Three and a half
years after His baptism, Christ was crucified, in the spring of A.D. 31. The
seventy weeks, or 490 years, were to pertain especially to the Jews. At the
expiration of this period the nation sealed its rejection of Christ by the
persecution of His disciples, and the apostles turned to the Gentiles, A.D. 34.
The first 490 years of the 2300 having then ended, 1810 years would remain.
From A.D. 34, 1810 years extend to 1844. "Then," said the angel,
"shall the sanctuary be cleansed." All the preceding specifications
of the prophecy had been unquestionably fulfilled at the time appointed. {GC 410.1}
With this reckoning, all was clear and harmonious, except
that it was not seen that any event answering to the cleansing of the sanctuary
had taken place in 1844. To deny that the days ended at that time was to
involve the whole question in confusion, and to renounce positions which had
been established by unmistakable fulfillments of prophecy. {GC 410.2}
But God had led His people in the great advent movement; His
power and glory had attended the work, and He would not permit it to end in
darkness and disappointment, to be reproached as a false and fanatical
excitement. He would not leave His word involved in doubt and uncertainty. [411]
Though many abandoned their former reckoning of the prophetic periods and
denied the correctness of the movement based thereon, others were unwilling to
renounce points of faith and experience that were sustained by the Scriptures
and by the witness of the Spirit of God. They believed that they had adopted
sound principles of interpretation in their study of the prophecies, and that
it was their duty to hold fast the truths already gained, and to continue the
same course of Biblical research. With earnest prayer they reviewed their
position and studied the Scriptures to discover their mistake. As they could
see no error in their reckoning of the prophetic periods, they were led to
examine more closely the subject of the sanctuary. {GC 410.3}
In their investigation they learned that there is no
Scripture evidence sustaining the popular view that the earth is the sanctuary;
but they found in the Bible a full explanation of the subject of the sanctuary,
its nature, location, and services; the testimony of the sacred writers being
so clear and ample as to place the matter beyond all question. The apostle
Paul, in the Epistle to the Hebrews, says: "Then verily the first covenant
had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary. For there was a
tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the
shewbread; which is called the sanctuary. And after the second veil, the
tabernacle which is called the holiest of all; which had the golden censer, and
the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden
pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the
covenant; and over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercy seat."
Hebrews 9:1-5. {GC 411.1}
The sanctuary to which Paul here refers was the tabernacle
built by Moses at the command of God as the earthly dwelling place of the Most
High. "Let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them"
(Exodus 25:8), was the direction given to Moses while in the mount with God.
The Israelites were journeying through the wilderness, [412] and
the tabernacle was so constructed that it could be removed from place to place;
yet it was a structure of great magnificence. Its walls consisted of upright
boards heavily plated with gold and set in sockets of silver, while the roof
was formed of a series of curtains, or coverings, the outer of skins, the
innermost of fine linen beautifully wrought with figures of cherubim. Besides
the outer court, which contained the altar of burnt offering, the tabernacle
itself consisted of two apartments called the holy and the most holy place,
separated by a rich and beautiful curtain, or veil; a similar veil closed the
entrance to the first apartment. {GC 411.2}
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In the holy place was the candlestick, on the south, with
its seven lamps giving light to the sanctuary both by day and by night; on the
north stood the table of shewbread; and before the veil separating the holy
from the most holy was the golden altar of incense, from which the cloud of
fragrance, with the prayers of Israel, was daily ascending before God. {GC 412.1}
In the most holy place stood the ark, a chest of precious
wood overlaid with gold, the depository of the two tables of stone upon which
God had inscribed the law of Ten Commandments. Above the ark, and forming the
cover to the sacred chest, was the mercy seat, a magnificent piece of
workmanship, surmounted by two cherubim, one at each end, and all wrought of
solid gold. In this apartment the divine presence was manifested in the cloud
of glory between the cherubim. {GC 412.2}
After the settlement of the Hebrews in Canaan, the
tabernacle was replaced by the temple of Solomon, which, though a permanent
structure and upon a larger scale, observed the same proportions, and was
similarly furnished. In this form the sanctuary existed—except while
it lay in ruins in Daniel's time—until its destruction by the Romans,
in A.D. 70. {GC 412.3}
This is the only sanctuary that ever existed on the earth,
of which the Bible gives any information. This was declared [413]
by Paul to be the sanctuary of the first covenant. But has the new covenant no
sanctuary? {GC 412.4}
Turning again to the book of Hebrews, the seekers for truth
found that the existence of a second, or new-covenant sanctuary, was implied in
the words of Paul already quoted: "Then verily the first covenant had also
ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary." And the use of the
word "also" intimates that Paul has before made mention of this sanctuary.
Turning back to the beginning of the previous chapter, they read: "Now of
the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an High Priest,
who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a
Minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched,
and not man." Hebrews 8:1, 2. {GC 413.1}
Here is revealed the sanctuary of the new covenant. The
sanctuary of the first covenant was pitched by man, built by Moses; this is
pitched by the Lord, not by man. In that sanctuary the earthly priests
performed their service; in this, Christ, our great High Priest, ministers at
God's right hand. One sanctuary was on earth, the other is in heaven. {GC 413.2}
Further, the tabernacle built by Moses was made after a
pattern. The Lord directed him: "According to all that I show thee, after
the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof,
even so shall ye make it." And again the charge was given, "Look that
thou make them after their pattern, which was showed thee in the mount."
Exodus 25:9, 40. And Paul says that the first tabernacle "was a figure for
the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices;"
that its holy places were "patterns of things in the heavens;" that
the priests who offered gifts according to the law served "unto the
example and shadow of heavenly things," and that "Christ is not
entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the
true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for
us." Hebrews 9:9, 23; 8:5; 9:24. [414] {GC 413.3}
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The sanctuary in heaven, in which Jesus ministers in our
behalf, is the great original, of which the sanctuary built by Moses was a
copy. God placed His Spirit upon the builders of the earthly sanctuary. The
artistic skill displayed in its construction was a manifestation of divine
wisdom. The walls had the appearance of massive gold, reflecting in every
direction the light of the seven lamps of the golden candlestick. The table of
shewbread and the altar of incense glittered like burnished gold. The gorgeous
curtain which formed the ceiling, inwrought with figures of angels in blue and
purple and scarlet, added to the beauty of the scene. And beyond the second
veil was the holy Shekinah, the visible manifestation of God's glory, before
which none but the high priest could enter and live. {GC 414.1}
The matchless splendor of the earthly tabernacle reflected
to human vision the glories of that heavenly temple where Christ our forerunner
ministers for us before the throne of God. The abiding place of the King of
kings, where thousand thousands minister unto Him, and ten thousand times ten
thousand stand before Him (Daniel 7:10); that temple, filled with the glory of
the eternal throne, where seraphim, its shining guardians, veil their faces in
adoration, could find, in the most magnificent structure ever reared by human
hands, but a faint reflection of its vastness and glory. Yet important truths
concerning the heavenly sanctuary and the great work there carried forward for
man's redemption were taught by the earthly sanctuary and its services. {GC 414.2}
The holy places of the sanctuary in heaven are represented
by the two apartments in the sanctuary on earth. As in vision the apostle John
was granted a view of the temple of God in heaven, he beheld there "seven
lamps of fire burning before the throne." Revelation 4:5. He saw an angel
"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." Revelation 8:3. Here the prophet was permitted to
behold the first apartment [415] of the sanctuary in heaven; and
he saw there the "seven lamps of fire" and "the golden
altar," represented by the golden candlestick and the altar of incense in
the sanctuary on earth. Again, "the temple of God was opened"
(Revelation 11:19), and he looked within the inner veil, upon the holy of
holies. Here he beheld "the ark of His testament," represented by the
sacred chest constructed by Moses to contain the law of God. {GC 414.3}
Thus those who were studying the subject found indisputable
proof of the existence of a sanctuary in heaven. Moses made the earthly
sanctuary after a pattern which was shown him. Paul teaches that that pattern
was the true sanctuary which is in heaven. And John testifies that he saw it in
heaven. {GC 415.1}
In the temple in heaven, the dwelling place of God, His
throne is established in righteousness and judgment. In the most holy place is
His law, the great rule of right by which all mankind are tested. The ark that
enshrines the tables of the law is covered with the mercy seat, before which
Christ pleads His blood in the sinner's behalf. Thus is represented the union
of justice and mercy in the plan of human redemption. This union infinite
wisdom alone could devise and infinite power accomplish; it is a union that
fills all heaven with wonder and adoration. The cherubim of the earthly
sanctuary, looking reverently down upon the mercy seat, represent the interest
with which the heavenly host contemplate the work of redemption. This is the
mystery of mercy into which angels desire to look—that God can be
just while He justifies the repenting sinner and renews His intercourse with
the fallen race; that Christ could stoop to raise unnumbered multitudes from
the abyss of ruin and clothe them with the spotless garments of His own
righteousness to unite with angels who have never fallen and to dwell forever
in the presence of God. {GC
415.2}
The work of Christ as man's intercessor is presented in that
beautiful prophecy of Zechariah concerning Him "whose name is the
Branch." Says the prophet: "He shall [416] build
the temple of the Lord; and He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule
upon His [the Father's] throne; and He shall be a priest upon His throne: and
the counsel of peace shall be between Them both." Zechariah 6:12,
13. {GC 415.3}
"He shall build the temple of the Lord." By His
sacrifice and mediation Christ is both the foundation and the builder of the
church of God. The apostle Paul points to Him as "the chief Cornerstone;
in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth into an holy temple in
the Lord: in whom ye also," he says, "are builded together for an
habitation of God through the Spirit." Ephesians 2:20-22. {GC 416.1}
"He shall bear the glory." To Christ belongs the
glory of redemption for the fallen race. Through the eternal ages, the song of
the ransomed ones will be: "Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our
sins in His own blood, . . . to Him be glory and dominion for ever
and ever." Revelation 1:5, 6. {GC 416.2}
He "shall sit and rule upon His throne; and He shall be
a priest upon His throne." Not now "upon the throne of His glory;"
the kingdom of glory has not yet been ushered in. Not until His work as a
mediator shall be ended will God "give unto Him the throne of His father
David," a kingdom of which "there shall be no end." Luke 1:32,
33. As a priest, Christ is now set down with the Father in His throne.
Revelation 3:21. Upon the throne with the eternal, self-existent One is He who
"hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows," who "was in
all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin," that He might be
"able to succor them that are tempted." "If any man sin, we have
an advocate with the Father." Isaiah 53:4; Hebrews 4:15; 2:18; 1 John 2:1.
His intercession is that of a pierced and broken body, of a spotless life. The
wounded hands, the pierced side, the marred feet, plead for fallen man, whose
redemption was purchased at such infinite cost. {GC 416.3}
"And the counsel of peace shall be between Them
both." The love of the Father, no less than of the Son, is the fountain of
salvation for the lost race. Said Jesus to His disciples before [417]
He went away: "I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you:
for the Father Himself loveth you." John 16:26, 27. God was "in
Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself." 2 Corinthians 5:19. And in
the ministration in the sanctuary above, "the counsel of peace shall be
between Them both." "God so loved the world, that He gave His
only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have
everlasting life." John 3:16. {GC 416.4}
The question, What is the sanctuary? is clearly answered in
the Scriptures. The term "sanctuary," as used in the Bible, refers,
first, to the tabernacle built by Moses, as a pattern of heavenly things; and,
secondly, to the "true tabernacle" in heaven, to which the earthly
sanctuary pointed. At the death of Christ the typical service ended. The
"true tabernacle" in heaven is the sanctuary of the new covenant. And
as the prophecy of Daniel 8:14 is fulfilled in this dispensation, the sanctuary
to which it refers must be the sanctuary of the new covenant. At the
termination of the 2300 days, in 1844, there had been no sanctuary on earth for
many centuries. Thus the prophecy, "Unto two thousand and three hundred
days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed," unquestionably points to the
sanctuary in heaven. {GC
417.1}
But the most important question remains to be answered: What
is the cleansing of the sanctuary? That there was such a service in connection
with the earthly sanctuary is stated in the Old Testament Scriptures. But can
there be anything in heaven to be cleansed? In Hebrews 9 the cleansing of both
the earthly and the heavenly sanctuary is plainly taught. "Almost all
things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no
remission. It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the
heavens should be purified with these [the blood of animals]; but the heavenly
things themselves with better sacrifices than these" (Hebrews 9:22, 23),
even the precious blood of Christ. {GC 417.2}
The cleansing, both in the typical and in the real service,
must be accomplished with blood: in the former, with the [418] blood
of animals; in the latter, with the blood of Christ. Paul states, as the reason
why this cleansing must be performed with blood, that without shedding of blood
is no remission. Remission, or putting away of sin, is the work to be
accomplished. But how could there be sin connected with the sanctuary, either
in heaven or upon the earth? This may be learned by reference to the symbolic
service; for the priests who officiated on earth, served "unto the example
and shadow of heavenly things." Hebrews 8:5. {GC 417.3}
The ministration of the earthly sanctuary consisted of two
divisions; the priests ministered daily in the holy place, while once a year
the high priest performed a special work of atonement in the most holy, for the
cleansing of the sanctuary. Day by day the repentant sinner brought his
offering to the door of the tabernacle and, placing his hand upon the victim's
head, confessed his sins, thus in figure transferring them from himself to the
innocent sacrifice. The animal was then slain. "Without shedding of
blood," says the apostle, there is no remission of sin. "The life of
the flesh is in the blood." Leviticus 17:11. The broken law of God
demanded the life of the transgressor. The blood, representing the forfeited
life of the sinner, whose guilt the victim bore, was carried by the priest into
the holy place and sprinkled before the veil, behind which was the ark
containing the law that the sinner had transgressed. By this ceremony the sin
was, through the blood, transferred in figure to the sanctuary. In some cases
the blood was not taken into the holy place; but the flesh was then to be eaten
by the priest, as Moses directed the sons of Aaron, saying: "God hath
given it you to bear the iniquity of the congregation." Leviticus 10:17.
Both ceremonies alike symbolized the transfer of the sin from the penitent to
the sanctuary. {GC 418.1}
Such was the work that went on, day by day, throughout the
year. The sins of Israel were thus transferred to the sanctuary, and a special
work became necessary for their removal. God commanded that an atonement be
made for each of the [419] sacred apartments. "He
shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the
children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and
so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among
them in the midst of their uncleanness." An atonement was also to be made
for the altar, to "cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the
children of Israel." Leviticus 16:16, 19. {GC 418.2}
Once a year, on the great Day of Atonement, the priest
entered the most holy place for the cleansing of the sanctuary. The work there
performed completed the yearly round of ministration. On the Day of Atonement
two kids of the goats were brought to the door of the tabernacle, and lots were
cast upon them, "one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for the
scapegoat." Verse 8. The goat upon which fell the lot for the Lord was to
be slain as a sin offering for the people. And the priest was to bring his
blood within the veil and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat and before the mercy
seat. The blood was also to be sprinkled upon the altar of incense that was
before the veil. {GC
419.1}
"And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of
the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of
Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the
head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the
wilderness: and the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land
not inhabited." Verses 21, 22. The scapegoat came no more into the camp of
Israel, and the man who led him away was required to wash himself and his
clothing with water before returning to the camp. {GC 419.2}
The whole ceremony was designed to impress the Israelites
with the holiness of God and His abhorrence of sin; and, further, to show them
that they could not come in contact with sin without becoming polluted. Every
man was required to afflict his soul while this work of atonement was going
forward. All business was to be laid aside, and the [420] whole
congregation of Israel were to spend the day in solemn humiliation before God,
with prayer, fasting, and deep searching of heart. {GC 419.3}
Important truths concerning the atonement are taught by the
typical service. A substitute was accepted in the sinner's stead; but the sin
was not canceled by the blood of the victim. A means was thus provided by which
it was transferred to the sanctuary. By the offering of blood the sinner
acknowledged the authority of the law, confessed his guilt in transgression,
and expressed his desire for pardon through faith in a Redeemer to come; but he
was not yet entirely released from the condemnation of the law. On the Day of
Atonement the high priest, having taken an offering from the congregation, went
into the most holy place with the blood of this offering, and sprinkled it upon
the mercy seat, directly over the law, to make satisfaction for its claims.
Then, in his character of mediator, he took the sins upon himself and bore them
from the sanctuary. Placing his hands upon the head of the scapegoat, he
confessed over him all these sins, thus in figure transferring them from
himself to the goat. The goat then bore them away, and they were regarded as
forever separated from the people. {GC 420.1}
Such was the service performed "unto the example and
shadow of heavenly things." And what was done in type in the ministration
of the earthly sanctuary is done in reality in the ministration of the heavenly
sanctuary. After His ascension our Saviour began His work as our high priest.
Says Paul: "Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands,
which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the
presence of God for us." Hebrews 9:24. {GC 420.2}
The ministration of the priest throughout the year in the
first apartment of the sanctuary, "within the veil" which formed the
door and separated the holy place from the outer court, represents the work of
ministration upon which Christ entered at His ascension. It was the work of the
priest in the [421] daily ministration to present
before God the blood of the sin offering, also the incense which ascended with
the prayers of Israel. So did Christ plead His blood before the Father in
behalf of sinners, and present before Him also, with the precious fragrance of
His own righteousness, the prayers of penitent believers. Such was the work of
ministration in the first apartment of the sanctuary in heaven. {GC 420.3}
Thither the faith of Christ's disciples followed Him as He
ascended from their sight. Here their hopes centered, "which hope we
have," said Paul, "as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast,
and which entereth into that within the veil; whither the forerunner is for us
entered, even Jesus, made an high priest forever." "Neither by the
blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood He entered in once into the
holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." Hebrews 6:19, 20;
9:12. {GC 421.1}
For eighteen centuries this work of ministration continued
in the first apartment of the sanctuary. The blood of Christ, pleaded in behalf
of penitent believers, secured their pardon and acceptance with the Father, yet
their sins still remained upon the books of record. As in the typical service
there was a work of atonement at the close of the year, so before Christ's work
for the redemption of men is completed there is a work of atonement for the
removal of sin from the sanctuary. This is the service which began when the
2300 days ended. At that time, as foretold by Daniel the prophet, our High
Priest entered the most holy, to perform the last division of His solemn work—to
cleanse the sanctuary. {GC
421.2}
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As anciently the sins of the people were by faith placed
upon the sin offering and through its blood transferred, in figure, to the
earthly sanctuary, so in the new covenant the sins of the repentant are by
faith placed upon Christ and transferred, in fact, to the heavenly sanctuary.
And as the typical cleansing of the earthly was accomplished by the removal of
the sins by which it had been polluted, so the actual cleansing of the heavenly
is to be accomplished by [422] the removal, or blotting out, of
the sins which are there recorded. But before this can be accomplished, there
must be an examination of the books of record to determine who, through
repentance of sin and faith in Christ, are entitled to the benefits of His
atonement. The cleansing of the sanctuary therefore involves a work of
investigation—a work of judgment. This work must be performed prior
to the coming of Christ to redeem His people; for when He comes, His reward is
with Him to give to every man according to his works. Revelation 22:12. {GC 421.3}
Thus those who followed in the light of the prophetic word
saw that, instead of coming to the earth at the termination of the 2300 days in
1844, Christ then entered the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary to
perform the closing work of atonement preparatory to His coming. {GC 422.1}
It was seen, also, that while the sin offering pointed to
Christ as a sacrifice, and the high priest represented Christ as a mediator,
the scapegoat typified Satan, the author of sin, upon whom the sins of the
truly penitent will finally be placed. When the high priest, by virtue of the
blood of the sin offering, removed the sins from the sanctuary, he placed them
upon the scapegoat. When Christ, by virtue of His own blood, removes the sins
of His people from the heavenly sanctuary at the close of His ministration, He
will place them upon Satan, who, in the execution of the judgment, must bear
the final penalty. The scapegoat was sent away into a land not inhabited, never
to come again into the congregation of Israel. So will Satan be forever
banished from the presence of God and His people, and he will be blotted from
existence in the final destruction of sin and sinners. {GC 422.2}
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"In the Holy of Holies"
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