Paul writes to the Christians in Ephesus “in union with Christ Jesus,” those who are “sealed with the promised holy spirit,” saying: “You have been built up upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, while Christ Jesus himself is the foundation cornerstone. In union with him the whole building, being harmoniously joined together, is growing into a holy temple for Jehovah. In union with him You, too, are being built up together into a place for God to inhabit by spirit.” (Eph. 1:1, 13; 2:20-22) These “sealed” ones, laid upon Christ as Foundation, are shown in John’s vision recorded in Revelation to number 144,000.—Rev. 7:4; 14:1.

The apostle Peter speaks of these as “living stones” being “built up a spiritual house for the purpose of a holy priesthood.” (1 Pet. 2:5) From this we see that the temple of old, and the services of the priesthood in it, provided a shadow of the reality, the service to God carried on by his “royal priesthood.”—1 Pet. 2:9.

Holiness maintained

God will not let this spiritual temple suffer defilement and consequent disapproval and abandonment, as happened with the earthly temples. Paul emphasizes the holiness of this spiritual temple, and the danger to one who attempts to defile it when he writes: “Do you not know that you people are God’s temple, and that the spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him; for the temple of God is holy, which temple you people are.” (1 Cor. 3:16, 17) He gives the example that one of the members of the Christ who commits fornication is taking a member of Christ away and making himself the member of (one flesh with) a harlot. He then points out that, as a body, these Christians constitute a temple of the holy spirit belonging to God, and do not belong to themselves, being bought with a price for the purpose of glorifying God, as was the purpose of the literal temples. (1 Cor. 6:15-20) Thus Jehovah makes certain that the spiritual temple will always be holy by excluding would-be defilers and allowing only those maintaining righteousness to be a part thereof.

Permanent heavenly places

Jesus Christ promises these spirit-begotten Christians that the conqueror, who endures faithfully to the end, will be made “a pillar in the temple of my God, and he will by no means go out from it any more.” This would mean their permanent place in that spiritual structure in the heavens, for the Chief Cornerstone is in heaven, and he adds, “I will write upon him the name of . . . the new Jerusalem which descends out of heaven from my God.”—Rev. 3:12.

God places his throne there

In the Revelation vision, John also saw Jehovah God enthroned in a setting like the interior of the temple of Solomon. In Solomon’s temple Jehovah was not enthroned, but a miraculous light hovered above the ark of the covenant. That temple had ten lamp-stands. In his vision John beheld seven. And just as Solomon’s temple had in the courtyard the great copper “molten sea,” John saw before the throne, as it were, a “glassy sea like crystal.”—Rev. 4:2-6; 2 Chron. 4:2, 7.

The temple sanctuary in heaven is mentioned several times in Revelation. God is shown as being present for judgment, along with holy angels. (Rev. 14:17; 15:5-8; 16:1, 17) In one instance the ark of the covenant is seen, revealing that Jehovah God was dealing with that heavenly temple, and had not abandoned it, as he abandoned Herod’s temple. God gave indication of this when the curtain to the Most Holy was torn in two at the time of Jesus’ death, exposing the absence of the Ark in that earthly temple.—Rev. 11:19; Matt. 27:51.

Jehovah God and the Lamb ‘are its temple’

When John sees New Jerusalem come down from heaven, he remarks: “And I did not see a temple in it, for Jehovah God the Almighty is its temple, also the Lamb is.” (Rev. 21:2, 22) Since the New Jerusalem itself is a temple, built upon Christ and the secondary foundations of the twelve apostles of the Lamb (Eph. 2:20; Rev. 3:12; 21:14), those in it do not have to go to some building to worship Jehovah God, but do so directly; Jesus Christ, Jehovah’s High Priest, also dwells right there as the symbolic city’s husband. Therefore, Jehovah God and the Lamb, Jesus Christ, are said to be the temple of this heavenly city.

AN IMPOSTOR

The apostle Paul, in warning of the apostasy to come, spoke of the “man of lawlessness” as setting himself up “so that he sits down in the temple of The God, publicly showing himself to be a god.” (2 Thess. 2:3, 4) As this “man of lawlessness” is an apostate, a false teacher, he only makes it appear that he is part of the spiritual temple. (See MAN OF LAWLESSNESS.) Thus “he sits down in the temple of The God.” This shows that, although ‘lawless,’ he makes the claim of being Christian.

AN ILLUSTRATIVE USE

On one occasion, when the Jews demanded a sign from Jesus, he replied: “Break down this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews thought he was speaking of the temple building, but the apostle John explains: “He was talking about the temple of his body.” When he was resurrected by his Father Jehovah on the third day of his death, the disciples recalled and understood this saying and believed it. (John 2:18-22; Matt. 27:40) He was resurrected, but not in his fleshly body, which was given as a ransom sacrifice; yet that fleshly body did not go into corruption, but was disposed of by God, just as a sacrifice was consumed on the altar. Jesus, when resurrected, was the same person, the same personality, in a new body made for his new dwelling place, the spiritual heavens.—Luke 24:1-7; 1 Pet. 3:18; Matt. 20:28; Acts 2:31; Heb. 13:8.

TEN

See NUMBER, NUMERAL.

TEN COMMANDMENTS

See TEN WORDS.

TENT

[Heb. ʼoʹhel; Gr. ske·neʹ].

A collapsible shelter made of cloth or skin and supported by poles. Tents were one of the earliest types of man-made dwellings (Gen. 4:20; 9:21) and were commonly used by nomadic peoples in the Middle East.—Gen. 9:27; Ps. 83:6.

Some details of the design and use of tents are available from the Bible. This is supplemented by knowledge of tents used by Arabs in more recent years, since it seems that these do not differ substantially from those of the Biblical period. Many scholars believe that the earliest tents were of animal skins. (Gen. 3:21; Ex. 26:14) Among modern bedouins tents made of blackish goat-hair cloth are customary. (Compare Exodus 36:14; Song of Solomon 1:5.) Strips of this material are sewn together, the overall size of the rectangular tent depending on the wealth of the owner and the number of occupants. The tent is supported by a number of poles about five to seven feet (1.5 to 2.1 meters) long, the highest being near the middle; it is held fast against wind by cords fastened to tent pins. (Judg. 4:21) For privacy and protection from the wind, cloths are hung along the sides of the tent, but these can be raised or removed for ventilation.

It appears that in Bible times larger tents were usually divided into at least two compartments by means of hanging tent cloths. The “tent of Sarah” mentioned at Genesis 24:67 may refer to her compartment or to a tent that she alone occupied, for some wealthy men had a number of tents, and women sometimes were assigned their own tents. (Gen. 13:5; 31:33) Probably mats were used on the ground inside the tent.

Tents were a distinctive feature of nomadic life, contrasting with the houses of those having a more settled life. Thus, Abraham is described as ‘dwelling in tents’ while he was “awaiting the city having real foundations.” (Heb. 11:9, 10) It seems that during their stay in Egypt the Israelites mainly lived in houses, not tents. (Ex. 12:7) But upon leaving Egypt they reverted to tents (Ex. 16:16) and used them throughout the forty years in the wilderness. (Lev. 14:8; Num. 16:26) During this period two particular tents were especially important, the “tabernacle” and Moses’ tent. (Ex. 25:8, 9; 26:1; 33:7; see TABERNACLE; TENT OF MEETING.) Even after the Israelites conquered the Promised Land tents were still used at times by shepherds or agricultural workers in the field. (Song of Sol. 1:8) Zechariah 12:7 likely refers to such ones, they being the first to be affected and in need of protection if an enemy nation came against the land to attack the city of Jerusalem. Also, tents were used by military commanders and armies when on distant expeditions.—1 Sam. 17:54; 2 Ki. 7:7; compare Daniel 11:45.

The long contact of the Israelites with tents undoubtedly gave rise to the poetic use of “tent” to refer to any habitation, even if it was a normal house.—Ex. 12:23, 30; 1 Sam. 13:2; 1 Ki. 12:16; Ps. 78:51.

FIGURATIVE USES

This familiarity with tents is also reflected in the Bible’s many figurative references to tents. Regarding the time he was approaching death, Hezekiah wrote: “My own habitation has been pulled out and removed from me like the tent of shepherds.” (Isa. 38:12) As a tent occupying a spot could quickly be taken down and removed, the poles taken out and the pegs pulled up, so Hezekiah’s place in the land of the living seemed transitory and easily removed. Eliphaz likened death to pulling out the tent cord, which would make a tent collapse. (Job 4:21) Somewhat similarly, Paul used the metaphor of a tent when speaking of the human bodies of spirit-begotten Christians. A collapsible tent is a more fragile and temporary dwelling than a normal house. Though existing on earth in a mortal body of flesh, the Christians having the spirit as a token of the heavenly life to come look forward to “a building from God,” a heavenly body that is everlasting, incorruptible.—1 Cor. 15:50-53; 2 Cor. 5:1-5; compare 2 Peter 1:13, 14.

In portraying the destruction to come upon the Jews, Jeremiah used the figure of a tent. (Jer. 4:20) He likened the desolated nation to a woman whose tent was down, with its cords cut. Further emphasizing the pathetic condition, her sons were in exile, so there was no one remaining who could help her with the work of raising and stretching the tent. (Jer. 10:20) When the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem, the city as a former collection of dwellings could be described as “the tent of the daughter of Zion” into which God had poured his rage.—Lam. 2:4.

A “tent” also served in another figurative way in a number of instances. The tent of an individual was a place of rest and protection from the elements. (Gen. 18:1) In view of the customs regarding hospitality, visitors had reason to believe that they would be cared for and respected when welcomed into someone’s tent. Consequently, when Revelation 7:15 says about the “great crowd” that God “will spread his tent over them” it suggests protective care and security. (Ps. 61:3, 4) Isaiah speaks of the preparations that God’s wife, Zion, is to make for the sons she will produce. She is told to “make the place of your tent more spacious.” (Isa. 54:2) Thus, she enlarges the protective place for her children.

At Revelation 21:1-3, God projected John’s vision into the thousand-year reign of Christ, and said: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them [or, tent with them].” In a way foreshadowed by the tent or tabernacle in the wilderness, God will dwell, not personally, but representatively with mankind as he deals with them through the “Lamb of God,” who is also the great High Priest.—Ex. 25:8; 33:20; John 1:29; Heb. 4:14.

TENTH PART

See TITHE.

TENTMAKER

One who makes or repairs tents. Acts 18:3 designates the trade of Paul, Aquila and Priscilla by the Greek term ske·no·poi·osʹ. Various opinions have been offered as to the exact type of craftsman indicated by this word (whether a tentmaker, weaver of tapestry or ropemaker); however, numerous scholars acknowledge that “there seems no reason to depart from the translation ‘tent-makers.’”—The Expositor’s Greek Testament, Vol. II, p. 385.

When Paul first visited Corinth he stayed with Aquila and Priscilla “on account of being of the same trade.” (Acts 18:1-3) The apostle Paul was from Tarsus in Cilicia, an area famous for its goat-hair cloth named cilicium from which tents were made. (Acts 21:39) Among the Jews of the first century C.E. it was considered honorable to teach a lad a trade even if he was to receive a higher education. So Paul likely gained experience in the manufacture of tents while still a youth. Tentmaking may also have been the type of work the apostle did in Thessalonica (1 Thess. 2:9; 2 Thess. 3:8) and other places. (Acts 20:34, 35; 1 Cor. 4:11, 12) The work was not easy, for it is reported that the cilicium tended to be stiff and rough, consequently being difficult to cut and sew.

TENT OF MEETING

An expression applied both to the tent of Moses (Ex. 33:7) and to the sacred tabernacle erected in the wilderness. (Ex. 39:32, 40; 40:2, 6, 7, 22, 24, 26, 29, 30, 32, 34, 35) For a time until the erection of the tabernacle, the tent of Moses served as a temporary sanctuary. This was by reason of the fact that the cloud, representing Jehovah’s presence, stationed itself “at” (likely, in front of) the entrance of this tent whenever Moses entered, and Jehovah communicated with Moses there. It was called the “tent of meeting,” evidently because the people had to go there to inquire of Jehovah and thus, in effect, they met Jehovah there. (Ex. 33:7-11) Apparently for the same reason the sacred tabernacle was termed the “tent of meeting.”—See TABERNACLE.

TENT OF THE TESTIMONY

See TABERNACLE.

TEN WORDS

This English equivalent for the Hebrew expression ʽaseʹreth had-d^eva·rimʹ, found only in the Pentateuch, designates the ten basic laws of the Law covenant; commonly called the Ten Commandments. (Ex. 34:28; Deut. 4:13; 10:4) This special code of laws is also spoken of as the “Words” (Deut. 5:22) and as “the words of the covenant.” (Ex. 34:28) The Septuagint Version (Ex. 34:28; Deut. 10:4) reads “deʹka [ten] loʹgous [words],” from which combination the word Decalogue is derived.

SOURCE OF TABLETS

The Ten Words or Commandments were first orally given at Mount Sinai by the angel of Jehovah. (Ex. 20:1; 31:18; Deut. 5:22; 9:10; Acts 7:38, 53; see also Galatians 3:19; Hebrews 2:2.) Moses then ascended the Mount to receive the Ten Words in written form on two stone tablets, along with other commandments and instructions. During his extended forty-day stay the people grew restless and made a molten calf to worship. Seeing this spectacle of idolatry upon descending the mountain, Moses threw down and shattered “the tablets [that] were the workmanship of God,” the very tablets upon which the Ten Words had been written.—Ex. 24:12; 31:18–32:19; Deut. 9:8-17; compare Luke 11:20.

Jehovah later told Moses: “Carve out for yourself two tablets of stone like the first ones, and I must