From Top to Bottom
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The Holy of Holies was the compartment of the Temple in which the Ark of the Covenant was housed. It was with a veil that this compartment and the Ark within were separated from the balance of the Temple’s interior. Prior to the Temple’s construction and when the Tabernacle was still in use, the veil was used to cover the Ark while in transit. Therefore, whether in location or on the move, the veil concealed the Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat atop the same, and only the High Priest entered behind the veil to make atonement for the sins of the people. While the Tenth of Hebrews acknowledges that those sacrifices were repeated every year, Jesus Christ provided sanctification by the offering of His body once for all. As our High Priest, Hebrews Six describes the Savior as having entered for us “within the veil.” In so doing, the obsolescence of the Levitical priesthood was indicated when, at the time of the Lamb’s death, the veil in the temple was rent from top to bottom.
Written and voiced by David Hayes Prophater