Was the beauty of the tabernacle sanctuary visible from the outside or only from the inside?
The beauty of the tabernacle sanctuary was visible from the inside, not from the outside. Entering the sanctuary, one saw its tremendous beauty, with light from the seven-candled candlestick reflecting off gold, pure white linen, colors, and cherubim. The outside coverings were goat’s hair, ram skins dyed red, and badger skins.
Les explains that as one went into that sanctuary, the beauty was seen from the inside, not from the outside. He describes the light from the candlestick’s seven candles reflecting off the gold, the pure white linen, the other colors running through it, and the cherubim, making it beautiful beyond description. He likens this inward beauty to believers who, being in Christ and in the body of Christ, see a beauty and loveliness that the world knows nothing of. The passage also notes the outer coverings: goat’s hair, ram skins dyed red, and badger skins.