If you really want to learn about the temple and the symbolism therein, study the ancient temples of God, particularly the Tabernacle of Moses. The following notes are from my study in the scriptures, actually walking through a biblical replica of the tabernacle and things I have learned over the years.
To begin: when the children of Israel left Egypt the Lord commanded Moses to build a holy structure to his name, where-in he could reside. As the Lord led Israel through the wilderness via a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, the tabernacle was to reside and be placed where the pillar of cloud or fire resided. That pillar of glory remained present for all of the camp of Israel to see above the Tabernacle while it resided in that location. When it moved, the whole camp of Israel moved.
To help with the moving of the tabernacle and assembly of it at each location, tasks and duties were assigned among the sons of Levi. Levi had 3 sons, each of who played a vital part in the logistics of the tabernacle. To Levi's oldest son, Gershon, was given the responsibility of the tabernacle, the tent and the covering thereof, the hanging of the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, the hangings of the court, the curtain for the door of the court which is by the tabernacle and by the altar round about, and the cords of it all (Num 3: 21-26). So basically all the curtains, cloth, and fabric of the tabernacle. Once the tabernacle was erected, Gershon and his family clan were to reside directly to the west of the tabernacle.
To Levi's second son, Kohath, was given the responsibilities of the ark, the table, the candlestick, the altars, and the vessels of the sanctuary (Num 3: 27-32). So basically all the actual items that were used inside the tabernacle. Once the tabernacle was erected, Kohath and his family clan were to reside directly to the south of the tabernacle.
To Levi's third son, Merari, was given the responsibility of the boards of the tabernacle, the bars, pillars, sockets thereof, and the pillars of the court round about, their sockets, pins and cords (Num 3: 33-37). So basically the framework of the court and the tabernacle. Their assigned spot for residence was directly to the north of the tabernacle.
Moses, Aaron and their family clan (who are descendants of Kohath) were assigned to reside at the door of the tabernacle on the east side and were the priests responsible to serve in the tabernacle and perform the sacred rites and rituals.
Thus at the center of the camp of Israel resided the pillar of fire, then the holy of holies, then the holy place, then the outer court of the tabernacle, then the sons of Levi and the sons of Aaron and those who served in the tabernacle, then the whole host of the children of Israel around them (Num 3, 4, 18).
With these basic things covered, now I'm going to dive in a little deeper into the responsibilities and additional duties of those who were allowed to serve in the Tabernacle. Of each of the sons of Levi, only males ages 30-50 were allowed to serve and help in the transportation and assembly of the tabernacle.
Only Aaron and his sons were the only ones allowed to touch the sacred items in the tabernacle. Anyone else who tried or even touched the sacred items accidently was killed by the Lord. Thus Aaron and his sons would cover the items prior to moving them, and each item had rings whereby wooden poles could be inserted that the sons of Levi were allowed to touch while moving the said items.
Aaron's sons Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Hamar were the priests responsible for serving the Lord in the tabernacle. Eleazar was anointed, after Aaron, as the the chief High Priest over the tabernacle and to him was given certain responsibilities that only he could perform. While the other sons of Aaron, the priests of the tabernacle, performed the duties of the outer court and the holy place, only the chief high priest could enter the Holy of Holies and perform the sacred ceremonies in there. The high priest was in charge of the chiefs of each of the tribes of Levi in making sure the tabernacle was assembled correctly and transported appropriately. His additional responsibilities included adding the oil to the lamp, burning the sweet incense, providing the daily meat offering, and the anointing oil.
While the priests serving in the tabernacle wore complete white apparel, the high priests attire was a little more colorful. He wore a blue robe, a broidered coat, a mitre (a turban or bound cap), a girdle about his waist, golden bells at the base of the robe, white linen breeches, a breastplate of judgement with 12 stones set in it upon his chest, an ephod with 2 onyx stones (the urim and thummim) upon his shoulders, and a plate of pure gold with the engraving "Holiness to the Lord" on his forehead. Upon each of the stones in the breastplate of judgement contained the name of one of the 12 tribes of Israel, while the urim and thummim had 6 tribes inscribed on each stone. Thus on his shoulders his bore the weight of the 12 tribes and represented them before the Lord.
The sons of Aaron wore these articles of clothing while serving in the priests office in the tabernacle: coats, girdles, bonnets, and breeches to cover the nakedness from the loins even unto the thighs (Ex. 28, 29). All of these articles were completely white.
Before serving in the priests office, the sons of Aaron were washed with water. The holy garments were then placed upon them and then they were anointed with olive oil kept inside a ram's horn, consecrated, and sanctified before the Lord to serve in the priests office (Ex. 39: 12-15; Num. 8).
In the priests office, the sons of Aaron made sacrifices of atonement for the Israelites. There were many types of sacrifices and offerings performed throughout the year. With 2 million people in the camp roughly 1000 animal sacrifices were performed each day.
As Aaron and his sons served in the High Priest's and priests office respectively, they were commanded to abstain from wine and strong drink when they went in to serve in the tabernacle, that there would be a difference between the clean and unclean and so they could teach the statues of the Lord (Lev 10:8-10).
To allow the priests and the tribe of Levi to serve in their spiritual responsibilities without regard to temporal demands, they received tithes one tenth from the rest of the Israelites. Additionally one tenth of their increase was given to the Lord. Thus tithes one tenth of all the children of Israel's increase was paid by all (Num 18).
Additionally, outside the tabernacle were ordained 70 elders of Israel to carry the burden of the prophet, to speak with the people and to carry their grievances to the prophet (Num 11:16).
And now onto the actual tabernacle itself and the items therein. The tabernacle had 3 courts: The outer court, the inner court (the holy place), and the holy of holies.
Only the high priest was allowed into the holy of holies, and only 1x a year. Only the priests were allowed into the holy place. And only Israelites were allowed into the outer court of the tabernacle. Thus gentiles were not permitted to even enter the tabernacle, and only those who were consecrated, set apart, and anointed were allowed to enter the tent of the tabernacle.
The outer court contained the altar for burnt offerings and the laver of water. On each of the 4 corners of the altar were horns that individuals could cling onto for sanctuary. Before the door of the inner court was a laver of water and a ram's horn with oil in it, where the priests could cleanse themselves from the blood of the animals before entering the holy place.
Once inside the holy place there were three items of sacred importance. On the left of the tent was the candlestick with 7 candles representing the 7 days of creation, light, and perfection. A vessel of pure olive oil was used to provide substance for the flame.
To the right rested the table of shewbread, whereon lay 12 loaves of unleavened bread and a vessel of wine.
At the head of the holy place resided the altar of incense where the sweet savor of smoke and spices could ascend heavenward and block out the smells of the outer court from the holy of holies.
As the priests and high priest acted in the rituals and ceremonies in the holy place they bore the vessels of the Lord, which consisted of pure olive oil in their left hand, and wine in their right, (as consistent with the relation of the vessels and sacred artifacts in the room to each other). Thus to have clean hands was important. Then as the priests stood at the altar of incense they would present the palms of their hands in a worshiping fashion as a sign and token that they were pure before the Lord and ready and willing to speak with him. It was here that their prayers would ascend to heaven on behalf of the people. This was a sign signifying to Jehovah that the individual was ready to enter his presence. However, these signs and tokens performed by the priests and high priests had to be done correctly and with the proper priesthood authority to pass by the angels who stood as sentinels to the holy of holies. For on the curtain separating the holy place from the holy of holies was sewn cherubim who guarded the way into God's presence.
On the Day of Atonement, once a year, the high priest would perform all of these sacred rites and then enter the holy of holies. It was here that the ark of the covenant resided. Made of pure gold, the ark had two cherubims who knelt with arms outstretched to make a mercy seat whereon Jehovah could appear. Within the ark were holy relics given by the Lord: the tablets of stone given to Moses on the mount (the law); the staff of Aaron with a flower blooming on it (representational of power over death); and a bowl of manna (the true bread of life). Each relic signifying covenants between the Lord and his people, and what the Lord was capable of, as well as who he was.
Symbols played a huge part in each ordinance and aspect of the tabernacle. A careful study of the tabernacle in relation to later temples will be very enlightening to the student. (For example, Solomon's temple included a basin which rested on the backs of 12 brazen oxen in the outer court. And as one ascended from the outer court to the holy of holies there was a change in elevation between each area, with the holy of holies being highest in elevation than the holy place and the outer court.)
Just by way of wrapping up the tabernacle, the colors used in the tabernacle cloth were white, purple, red, and blue. White symbolizing purity. Blue: the heavens. Red: blood. Purple: royalty. The ceiling of the tabernacle consisted of 4 layers of fabric or animal skin. The laver and the altar of sacrifice were made of bronze, while all the items within the holy place and the holy of holies were made of pure gold.
