The Hebrew noun mishkan (מִשְׁכָּן) means dwelling place, tabernacle, or sanctuary. It derives from shakan (to dwell/settle) and is the primary term for the portable wilderness tabernacle — the sacred tent where God's presence dwelt among Israel. It appears over 130 times in the Old Testament, concentrated in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers.
The mishkan represented the theological heart of Israel's wilderness experience: God condescending to dwell among his people. It was not merely a place of worship but the visible throne room of the divine King, surrounded by the encampment of his covenant people. Every detail of its construction — the curtains, the ark, the lampstand, the altar of incense — was divinely prescribed and theologically laden. The mishkan is the Old Testament counterpart to the incarnation: God making his home among humanity. John 1:14 echoes this directly — 'the Word became flesh and dwelt (eskenosen) among us,' using the Greek cognate of shakan.