Yes — the wood and gold in the tabernacle symbolize two sides of Christ: His earthly side and His deity.
Les Feldick teaches that the wood, such as acacia wood, spoke of Christ's earthly side, while the gold covering spoke of His deity. He sees this pattern throughout the tabernacle, from the Ark of the Covenant to the framework of the outer fence. The two materials together portray Christ as both man and God.
Exodus 25:10-11 — Describes the Ark of the Covenant made of shittim wood overlaid with gold, the key example Les uses for the wood/gold symbolism.
In the construction of the tabernacle, God commanded the Ark of the Covenant to be made of shittim (acacia) wood and overlaid with pure gold, inside and out (Exodus 25:10-11). The tabernacle's boards were also made of shittim wood standing up, and these boards were to be overlaid with gold (Exodus 26:15, 26:29). The Bible records the use of these exact materials, but it does not explain a symbolic meaning for the wood or the gold in the text itself.
Les Feldick teaches that every detail of the tabernacle is a picture of Christ. He specifically points to the Ark of the Covenant, a box made of wood that spoke of Christ's earthly side, covered with gold that spoke of His deity (Clip 1). He identifies the wood as acacia wood (Clip 7) and shows that the same wood-covered-with-gold pattern appears throughout the tabernacle, including the framework of the outer fence (Clip 3). For Les, all the materials and aspects of the tabernacle picture Christ's finished work of the cross (Clips 0, 2, 5).
Les explained that the Ark of the Covenant was a box made of wood which 'spoke of Christ's earthly side' (Clip 1). He later identified the wood as acacia wood (Clip 7). This wood, being a created material, pictures the human, earthly side of Jesus Christ.
Les states that the gold covering the wood 'spoke of his deity' (Clip 1). He shows that the same gold covering appears on the wooden frames of the tabernacle and its fence (Clip 3). In Les's teaching, the gold–over–wood pattern consistently points to the union of Christ's humanity and deity in one person.
Les repeatedly emphasizes that every material and every detail of the tabernacle pictures Christ and His finished work on the cross (Clips 0, 2, 5). He connects this to the biblical word 'propitiation,' teaching that all the gold, silver, stones, and other materials picture the work of salvation that Christ accomplished (Clip 5). The wood and gold are part of that overall picture.
Tabernacle as a Picture of Christ
Les sets the principle that all the materials and aspects of the tabernacle picture Christ's finished work on the cross.
Wood and Gold Meaning
Les directly states that the Ark's wood spoke of Christ's earthly side and the gold covering spoke of His deity.
All Materials Point to Christ
Les lists the tabernacle's wooden items overlaid with gold as all being pictures of Christ.
Wood Covered with Gold in the Fence
Les describes the framework of the tabernacle's outer fence as wood covered with gold, showing the same symbolism persists.
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And that gate was comprised of a curtain, again, of fine linen, but not white. This curtain, since it is the gate, and remember, who is the gate? Who is the door to the sheepfold? All through Scripture, it's Christ. And so this linen of the gate, this curtain, is comprised of the four colors that are shown throughout the tabernacle that, again, all depict Christ.
Propitiation and the Tabernacle
Les says every composition of the tabernacle—gold, silver, stones—pictures the work of salvation accomplished at the cross.
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You and I, black and white, red and yellow, rich or poor. That was the priesthood of Melchizedek. And as such verse 11, "...Christ being come, a High Priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation, that one was in heaven.
Acacia Wood Identification
Les identifies the wood used in the tabernacle as acacia wood, covered with gold.
Exodus 25:10-11: And they shall make an ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, within and without shalt thou overlay it, and shalt make upon it a crown of gold round about.
This is the Ark of the Covenant, the central item Les uses to explain that wood represents Christ's earthly side and gold represents His deity.
Exodus 26:15: And thou shalt make boards for the tabernacle of shittim wood standing up.
The boards of the tabernacle were made of the same acacia (shittim) wood that Les identifies as the tabernacle's wood.
Exodus 26:29: And thou shalt overlay the boards with gold, and make their rings of gold for places for the bars: and thou shalt overlay the bars with gold.
This verse shows the wood–overlaid–with–gold design of the tabernacle boards, matching Les's point that the pattern appears throughout.
The Bible records the use of wood overlaid with gold in Exodus, but it does not state a symbolic meaning on its own. Les Feldick teaches from the tabernacle that the wood speaks of Christ's earthly side and the gold speaks of His deity.
Les teaches that every material and every detail of the tabernacle pictures Christ and His finished work on the cross. He sees the wood-covered-with-gold pattern as showing both Christ's earthly side and His deity.
Yes. Les identifies the wood as acacia wood (Clip 7). The Bible calls it 'shittim wood' in Exodus, and it was overlaid with pure gold.
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