First, as already noted, the tabernacle has features that associate it closely with the Garden of Eden. As divine sanctuaries, both are entered from the east and cherubim guard their entrances. The golden menorah that stood in the Holy Place may have been designed specifically to resemble the tree of life. Like Adam, the Levites are instructed to ‘serve (or minister) and guard’ the sanctuary (Num. 3:7–8; 8:26; 18:5–6).
