'Ohel (H168) means tent — the portable dwelling of a nomad or shepherd. It appears approximately 340 times in the Hebrew Bible. As Israel was a nomadic people before settling Canaan, the tent was the primary human dwelling. Most significantly, God's dwelling among Israel took the form of a tent: the 'Ohel Mo'ed — the 'Tent of Meeting' (Tabernacle) — where God met his people in the wilderness.
The Tabernacle ('Ohel Mo'ed, 'Tent of Meeting') was the architectural and theological heart of Israel's wilderness experience. God chose to dwell in a tent — not a palace, not a fortress — a portable, humble structure that moved with his people. This was a profound theological statement: God is not confined to a geography or a building. He is on the move with his pilgrim people.
The tent-dwelling of God reaches its climax in the New Testament. John 1:14 says the Word 'tabernacled among us' (eskēnōsen) — pitched his tent in human flesh. Jesus was the living Tabernacle. Hebrews elaborates: he was the high priest of the true 'ohel, not made with human hands. The final vision of Revelation is that God's 'skēnē' (tent/tabernacle) is with humanity forever (Revelation 21:3).