Exodus 35-40

New Catholic Bible

The Construction and Furnishing of the Sanctuary^[a]

Chapter 35

Sabbath Regulations. ¹ Moses assembled the whole community of the children of Israel and said to them, “These are the things that the Lord has commanded you to do: ² For six days you shall work, but the seventh shall be a holy day for you, a day of absolute rest, sacred to the Lord. Whoever works on that day shall be put to death. ³ You shall light no fires on the Sabbath in all of your dwellings.”

Materials for the Tabernacle. ⁴ Moses told the whole community of the children of Israel, “This is what the Lord has commanded you to do: ⁵ Take up an offering from among yourselves for the Lord. Whoever is generous, let him bring the offering to the Lord: gold, silver, and bronze, ⁶ blue, purple, and scarlet material, fine twisted linen, goat hair, ⁷ rams’ skins dyed red, sheep skins, acacia wood, ⁸ oil for lamps, balsam for anointing, and oil for fragrant incense, ⁹ onyx stones and stones for setting in the ephod and the breastplate.

¹⁰ “All the artisans among you shall come and make what the Lord has commanded: ¹¹ the tabernacle, its tent, its covering, its hooks, its boards, its bars, its pillars, its bases; ¹² the Ark and its poles, the seat of atonement, and the veil of the screen; ¹³ the table with its poles and all its accessories, the bread of the Presence; ¹⁴ the lampstand that provides light and its accessories, the lamps, and the oil for light; ¹⁵ the altar of incense with its poles, the anointing oil, and the fragrant incense; the screen for the door at the entrance to the tabernacle; ¹⁶ the altar of burnt offerings with its bronze grate, its poles, and all its accessories; the basin and its base; ¹⁷ the drapes for the courtyard, their columns, and their bases, and the screen for the gate of the courtyard; ¹⁸ the pegs for the tabernacle and the pegs for the courtyard and their cords; ¹⁹ the carefully prepared cloths for ministering in the sanctuary, the sacred vestments for Aaron the priest and the vestments for his sons to exercise their priesthood.”

²⁰ All the community of the children of Israel left the presence of Moses. ²¹ Then those whose hearts were stirred and whose spirits moved them came and brought the Lord’s offerings to be used for the construction of the meeting tent and for all its service and for the sacred vestments. ²² Men and women came forward, those whose hearts were willing, and they brought brooches and earrings and rings and armlets, all kinds of golden objects, and each man dedicated his gold unto the Lord.

²³ All those who had blue or purple or scarlet cloth, or fine linen, or goat hair, or rams’ skins dyed red, or sheep skins brought them. ²⁴ Those who could make an offering of silver or bronze offered it to the Lord. Likewise, those who had acacia wood for some purpose brought it.

²⁵ Furthermore, all the skilled women spun with their hands and brought the blue, purple, and scarlet cloth and the fine linen they had spun. ²⁶ All the women whose hearts were moved by wisdom spun goat hair. ²⁷ The leaders brought onyx stones and stones for setting in the ephod and the breastplate, ²⁸ balsam and oil for light, oil of anointing, and fragrant incense. ²⁹ Thus, all the men and women whose hearts moved them to bring something for the construction that the Lord had commanded them to build through Moses brought it. The children of Israel brought their freewill offerings to the Lord.

³⁰ The Artisans. Moses said to the children of Israel, “Behold, the Lord has summoned Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, by name. ³¹ He has filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with intelligence, with knowledge, and with ability in every type of craft, ³² to design artistic works in gold, silver, and bronze, ³³ to know how to cut stones for settings and how to carve wood. He is expert in every craft. ³⁴ He has inspired him to teach, both him and Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan. ³⁵ He has filled them with the skill needed to do the work of the engraver, the designer, and the embroiderer, to work with blue and purple and scarlet cloth and fine linen, and to weave. They can do the work of any craftsman or designer.

Chapter 36

¹ “Bezalel, Oholiab, and all the skilled craftsmen whom the Lord has gifted with wisdom and intelligence to know how to do any work in the construction of the sanctuary are to do everything just as the Lord has commanded.”

Magnificence of the Gifts. ² Moses summoned Bezalel, Oholiab, and all the skilled craftsmen in whose hearts the Lord had placed wisdom, everyone whose heart moved him to come to do the work. ³ They received from Moses all the offerings that the children of Israel had brought for the construction of the sanctuary. But every morning they continued to bring more offerings. ⁴ All the craftsmen who were building the sanctuary left the work they were doing ⁵ and came to Moses and said, “The people are bringing more than is needed for the work that the Lord has commanded.”

⁶ Moses, therefore, commanded and had proclaimed in the camp, “Let neither man nor woman bring anything more for the construction of the sanctuary.” He thus stopped the people from bringing more offerings, ⁷ for what the people had already given was sufficient, and indeed even more than enough for the work.

The Curtains. ⁸ All the craftsmen among them made the tabernacle with its ten curtains of twisted linen, blue, purple, and scarlet cloth, and cherubim skillfully crafted. ⁹ Each curtain was twenty-eight cubits long and four cubits wide. All the curtains were the same size. ¹⁰ Five of the curtains were joined to one another, and the other five curtains were joined to one another. ¹¹ Loops of blue cloth were made on the outside edge of the first set, and likewise on the outside edge of the second set. ¹² Fifty loops were made in the first set and fifty loops in the edge of the second set. The loops were symmetrical. ¹³ Then fifty gold clasps were made and attached the sets of curtains to each other to form the tabernacle.

¹⁴ Curtains of goat hair were made to build a tent over the tabernacle—eleven altogether. ¹⁵ The curtains were thirty cubits long and four cubits wide; all eleven curtains were the same size. ¹⁶ Five of the curtains were joined on one side and six curtains on the other side. ¹⁷ Fifty loops were made in the outside edge of the first set, and fifty loops in the edge of the second set. ¹⁸ Fifty bronze clasps were made to join the tent together and make it a single structure. ¹⁹ Then a covering was made for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and over it a covering of sheep skin.

²⁰ The Boards. Upright frames were made of acacia wood for the tent. ²¹ Each board was ten cubits long and one and a half cubits wide. ²² Each board had two joints to fit them together. This is how all the boards of the tabernacle were made. ²³ Thus twenty boards were made for the south side of the tabernacle ²⁴ and forty silver bases under the twenty boards, two bases for each of the two joints on each board. ²⁵ Twenty boards were made for the other side of the tabernacle, the north side, ²⁶ along with their forty bases of silver, two bases under one board and two bases under the next board. ²⁷ For the rear of the tabernacle facing toward the west six boards were made. ²⁸ Two boards formed the corner of the tabernacle in the rear. ²⁹ They were doubled together below and joined together above into one ring. The two of them formed the two corners. ³⁰ There were thus eight boards with their silver bases, sixteen bases, two bases under one board and two bases under the next board.

³¹ Also made were bars out of acacia wood: five bars for the boards of one side of the tabernacle ³² and five boards for the other side of the tabernacle and five bars for the boards of the rear, toward the west. ³³ The middle bar was made to pass half way up the boards, running from end to end. ³⁴ The boards were covered with gold, and rings were made in which the bars were inserted out of gold; the bars were also covered in gold.

³⁵ The Inner Veil and the Entry Curtain. The veil was made of blue and purple and scarlet cloth and fine twisted linen. Cherubim were made in the cloth, the work of skillful craftsmen. ³⁶ Four columns were made for it out of acacia wood and covered in gold. The hooks were also made of gold and their four bases were made of silver.

³⁷ A screen was made for the door to the tent out of blue and purple and scarlet cloth and fine twisted linen, covered with embroidery. ³⁸ Five columns were made for the screen with their hooks. The columns and their hooks were covered in gold and their five bases were made out of bronze.

Chapter 37

The Ark of the Covenant. ¹ Bezalel made the Ark out of acacia wood. It was two cubits and a half long, one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits high. ² He covered it with pure gold, inside and out, and put a gold molding on it. ³ He cast four golden rings for it and attached them to its four legs, two rings on one side and two rings on the other side. ⁴ He made poles out of acacia wood and covered them with gold. ⁵ He put the poles into the rings on the two sides of the Ark so that they might carry the Ark with them.

⁶ He made the seat of atonement of pure gold. It was two and a half cubits long and one and a half cubits wide. ⁷ He made two cherubim out of gold. They were hammered works for the two sides of the seat of atonement, ⁸ one cherub on one side and one cherub on the other side. He made the cherubim all of one piece at the two ends of the seat of atonement. ⁹ The cherubim had two wings spreading out, covering the seat of atonement. They were facing one another and the faces of the cherubim were turned toward the seat of atonement.

¹⁰ The Table of the Bread for the Offering. He made a table out of acacia wood. It was two cubits long, one cubit wide, and one and a half cubits high. ¹¹ It was covered in pure gold and had a molding of gold. ¹² He made a frame a handswidth wide and placed a molding of gold around it. ¹³ He made four golden rings and placed them at the four corners that are its four legs. ¹⁴ The rings were alongside the borders and held the poles used to carry the table. ¹⁵ He made poles out of acacia wood and covered them in gold. ¹⁶ He also made the accessories for the table: dishes and plates and flagons and jars to pour out libations. He made them out of pure gold.

¹⁷ The Golden Lampstand. He made a lampstand out of pure gold. It was a hammered work. Its base and its shaft and its bowls and knobs and flowers were all one piece. ¹⁸ Six of the branches of the lampstand came out of its sides: three from one side of the lampstand and three from the other side of the lampstand. ¹⁹ There were three cups shaped like almond blossoms, with bud and flower, on one branch. And there were three cups shaped like almond blossoms, with bud and flower, on the next branch. Thus, there were six branches that rose out of the lampstand. ²⁰ The shaft of the lampstand had four cups shaped like almond blossoms with bud and flower. ²¹ One bud was under the first set of two branches coming out of it, and one bud under the second set of two branches coming out of it, and one bud under the third set of two branches coming out of it. Thus, there were six branches coming out of the lampstand. ²² The buds and their respective branches were all of one piece. All of it was one piece of pure gold that had been beaten into shape. ²³ He made seven lamps, their snuffers and their trays out of pure gold. ²⁴ The lampstand and all of its accessories required a talent of pure gold.

²⁵ The Altar of Incense. He made an altar for burning incense out of acacia wood. It was one cubit long and one cubit wide; it was a square. It was two cubits high and its horns were all one piece with it. ²⁶ Its top, its sides, and its horns were covered with pure gold and it had a gold molding around it. ²⁷ He made two golden rings below its molding on its two sides. They were on opposite sides and were used to insert poles with which it could be carried. ²⁸ He made the poles out of acacia wood and covered them with gold. ²⁹ He prepared the sacred oil of anointing and the pure fragrant incense to burn, making use of the skills of the perfumer.

Chapter 38

The Altar of Burnt Offering. ¹ He made an altar out of acacia wood. It was five cubits long and five cubits wide and three cubits high. ² It had horns on its four corners and they were all one piece with it. It was covered with bronze. ³ He also made the accessories for the altar: vessels to take away its ashes, shovels, basins, forks, and firepans. All of its utensils were made out of bronze. ⁴ He made a grating for the altar, a network of bronze. He placed it under the edge of the altar so that the net hung halfway down the altar. ⁵ He made four rings of bronze and placed them at the four corners of the bronze grating so that poles could be inserted. ⁶ He made poles out of acacia wood and covered them with bronze. ⁷ He placed the poles through the rings on the sides of the altar so it could be carried. He made the altar out of boards, hollow in the middle.

The Basin for Washing. ⁸ He made the basin of bronze and its base of bronze from the mirrors^[b] of the women who ministered at the door to the meeting tent.

The Courtyard. ⁹ He made the courtyard. On the south side of the courtyard there was a drape of fine twisted linen, one hundred cubits long. ¹⁰ There were twenty columns with twenty bronze bases. The hooks of the pillars and their rings were made out of silver. ¹¹ Likewise on the north side there was a drape one hundred cubits long. There were twenty columns with twenty bronze bases. The hooks of the pillars and their rings were made out of silver. ¹² On the west side there were fifty cubits of drapes with ten columns and ten bases. The hooks of the pillars and their rings were made out of silver. ¹³ On the east side there were fifty cubits. ¹⁴ There was fifteen cubits of draping with three columns and three bases on one side. ¹⁵ On the other side of the entrance to the courtyard, there was fifteen cubits of draping with three columns and three bases. ¹⁶ All of the drapes that formed the courtyard were made of fine twisted linen. ¹⁷ The bases of the columns were made out of bronze. The hooks of the columns and the rings were made out of silver. The overlaying of their capitals and the columns of the courtyard were filleted with silver.

¹⁸ The screen for the entrance to the courtyard was made of needlework of blue, purple, and scarlet cloth and fine twisted linen. It was twenty cubits long and five cubits high, that is, wide, like the drapes of the courtyard. ¹⁹ It had four columns with their four bases out of bronze. Their hooks and the overlaying of their capitals and their bars were made out of silver. ²⁰ All the pegs of the tabernacle and of the surrounding courtyard were made out of bronze.

²¹ The Materials Used.^[c] These are the expenses for the tabernacle, the dwelling place of the Testimony, that Moses ordered the Levites to calculate under the direction of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest. ²² Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, completed what the Lord had commanded Moses to do. ²³ He did this together with Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, who was an engraver and a skillful craftsman, and a weaver of blue, purple, and scarlet cloth and fine twisted linen.

²⁴ All the gold that was used in the work—that is, for all the work of the sanctuary, which was the gold from the offering—was twenty-nine talents and seven hundred and thirty shekels, measured by the shekel of the sanctuary. ²⁵ The silver of the assembly was measured to be one hundred talents and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, measured by the shekel of the sanctuary. ²⁶ Every person who was counted in the census twenty years old and up gave a bekah, which is worth a half-shekel according to the measure of the sanctuary. There were six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men. ²⁷ The one hundred talents were used to make the bases of the sanctuary and the bases for the veil. One hundred talents were used for the one hundred bases, or one talent for each base. ²⁸ The one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels were used for the hooks for the pillars, and for overlaying and filleting their tops. ²⁹ The bronze presented in the offering amounted to seventy talents and two thousand four hundred shekels. ³⁰ With it were made the bases for the entrance to the meeting tent, the altar of bronze with the netting of bronze, and all the accessories for the altar, ³¹ the bases for the courtyard, the bases for the gate to the courtyard, and all the pegs of the tabernacle and all the pegs of the surrounding courtyard.

Chapter 39

The Priestly Vestments. ¹ With the blue, purple, and scarlet cloth were made the finely woven vestments for ministering in the sanctuary, as well as the sacred vestments for Aaron as the Lord had commanded Moses.

The Ephod. ² He made the ephod of gold and blue, purple, and scarlet cloth and fine twisted linen. ³ The gold was beaten into fine plates and cut into wires and was interwoven into the blue, purple, and scarlet cloth and the linen with skilled craftsmanship. ⁴ Two shoulder pieces were made for the ephod that were attached to its two ends so that it might be joined together. ⁵ The skillfully woven band to bind it together that was placed over it was of the same workmanship and the same materials, of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet cloth and twisted linen, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

⁶ The onyx stones were prepared and set into settings of gold filigree. They were engraved with the names of the children of Israel, like an engraver engraves a signet ring. ⁷ The two stones were set on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as stones of remembrance for the children of Israel, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

The Breastplate. ⁸ He made the breastplate like the ephod, with fine workmanship. It was made of gold, blue, purple and scarlet cloth and fine twisted linen. ⁹ It was square and doubled over, a span in length and a span in width. ¹⁰ They covered it with settings of precious stones arranged in four rows. The first row had a ruby, a topaz, and an emerald. ¹¹ The second row had a turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond. ¹² The third row had a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst. ¹³ The fourth row had a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper. They were set in gold filigree settings. ¹⁴ The stones corresponded to the names of the children of Israel. There were twelve, standing for their names. They were engraved like the engraving of a signet ring, each name corresponding to a name of one of the twelve tribes.

¹⁵ They made chains of pure gold on the breastplate in the shape of twisted cords. ¹⁶ They also made two filigree settings of gold and two golden rings and placed the two rings at the two edges of the breastplate. ¹⁷ They attached the two golden chains to the two rings at the edges of the breastplate. ¹⁸ They attached the other ends of the chains to the two filigree settings and they thus attached it to the front part of the shoulder pieces of the ephod. ¹⁹ They made two other golden rings and placed them on the two edges of the breastplate, on its inside edge, next to the ephod. ²⁰ They made two other golden rings and placed them on the two shoulder pieces of the ephod, at their bottom on the front side, next to the place where it is attached to the skillfully woven band of the ephod.

²¹ Other Priestly Vestments. They then tied the breastplate with its rings to the rings of the ephod with a cord of blue material so that it might lie upon the skillfully woven band of the ephod and that the breastplate might not pull away from the ephod, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

²² The Robe. He made a robe of the ephod all in blue ²³ with an opening in the middle and a woven border around the opening so that it might not be torn. ²⁴ They made a design of pomegranates on the hem of the garment with blue, purple, and scarlet cloth and fine twisted linen. ²⁵ They also made bells out of pure gold and placed the bells in between the pomegranates all around the hem of the robe. ²⁶ There was a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, around the hem of the robe used for ministering, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

²⁷ Other Vestments. They also wove tunics from fine linen for Aaron and his sons, ²⁸ a turban of fine linen, caps of fine linen, and undergarments of fine twisted linen, ²⁹ and a sash of fine twisted linen, of blue, purple, and scarlet cloth, embroidered with fine needlework, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

³⁰ The Turban. They made the plate of the holy crown out of pure gold and they wrote on it as an engraver would engrave a signet ring, “Holy to the Lord.” ³¹ They attached it with a blue cord to the front part of the turban, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

³² Moses Inspects the Tabernacle. Thus, all of the work of the tabernacle, of the tent of meeting, was finished. The children of Israel had done everything just as the Lord had commanded Moses. ³³ They then brought the tabernacle to Moses, the tent and all its accessories, its clasps, boards, bars, columns, and bases, ³⁴ the covering of rams’ skins dyed red, the covering of sheep skins, the veil of the screen; ³⁵ the Ark of Testimony with its poles, and the seat of atonement, ³⁶ the table with all its accessories and the bread of the Presence, ³⁷ the lampstand made of pure gold with its lamps, that is, the lamps that were to be placed on top of it, with all its accessories, the oil for light, ³⁸ the altar of gold, the oil of anointing, the fragrant incense; the screen for the entrance to the tent, ³⁹ the altar of bronze with its bronze grating, its poles and all its accessories, the basin and its base, ⁴⁰ the drapes for the courtyard, their columns, their bases, and the screen for the gate to the courtyard, their cords, their pegs, and all the utensils for ministering in the tabernacle, for the meeting tent; ⁴¹ the finely woven vestments for ministering in the sanctuary, the holy vestments for Aaron the priest, and the vestments for his sons in their priestly ministry. ⁴² Whatever the Lord had commanded Moses, this is how the children of Israel did all their work. ⁴³ Moses examined all the work, and behold, it was done as the Lord had commanded. So Moses blessed them.

Chapter 40

God Commands Moses To Consecrate the Tabernacle and the Priests. ¹ Then the Lord spoke to Moses and said to him, ² “On the first day of the first month you shall set up the tabernacle, the meeting tent. ³ Put the Ark of Testimony inside, and in front of the Ark hang the veil. ⁴ Bring in the table and arrange its accessories. Then bring in the lampstand and put on its lamps. ⁵ Place the altar of gold for incense before the Ark of Testimony and set up the screen at the entrance to the tent.

⁶ “Set the altar of burnt offerings in front of the entrance to the tabernacle, the meeting tent. ⁷ Place the basin between the meeting tent and the altar, and pour water into it. ⁸ Set up the courtyard all around, and put up the screen for the entrance to the courtyard.

⁹ “Take the oil of anointing and anoint the tabernacle and everything in it. Consecrate it and all its furnishings, and it will become holy. ¹⁰ Also anoint the altar of burnt offerings and all its accessories. Consecrate the altar, and it will become most holy. ¹¹ Also anoint the basin and its base and consecrate them.

¹² “Then have Aaron and his sons approach the entrance to the meeting tent and wash them with water. ¹³ Put the holy vestments on Aaron and anoint him and consecrate him so that he might serve me as a priest. ¹⁴ Also have his sons approach and put their tunics on them. ¹⁵ Anoint them, like their father, so that they might exercise my priesthood. In this way their anointing will confer upon them an eternal priesthood, for all their generations.”

¹⁶ Moses Carries Out the Orders Received from God. Moses did everything as the Lord had commanded him. ¹⁷ Thus, in the second year, the first day of the first month, the tabernacle was set up. ¹⁸ Moses erected the tabernacle. He laid its bases and set up its boards. He fixed the bars and raised the columns. ¹⁹ He then extended the tent over the tabernacle and over that he placed the covering for the tent, just as the Lord had commanded him.

²⁰ He took the Testimony and placed it inside the Ark. He attached the poles to the Ark and put the seat of atonement on the Ark. ²¹ He then placed the Ark in the tabernacle, setting up the veil as a screen and hanging it in front of the Testimony, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

²² Moses placed the table in the meeting tent, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil. ²³ He set up rows of bread upon it before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded him.

²⁴ He set up the lampstand in the meeting tent, opposite the table, on the south side of the tabernacle. ²⁵ He placed the lamps on it before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded him.

²⁶ Moses then placed the golden altar in the meeting tent, in front of the veil, ²⁷ and he burned fragrant incense upon it, just as the Lord had commanded him. ²⁸ He placed the screen at the entrance to the tabernacle.

²⁹ He then placed the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the tabernacle, the meeting tent, and he offered burnt offerings and grain offerings upon it, just as the Lord had commanded him.

³⁰ He placed the basin between the meeting tent and the altar and he put water in it for ablutions. ³¹ Moses, Aaron, and his sons then washed their hands and their feet with it. ³² Whenever they entered the meeting tent and approached the altar, they washed themselves, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

³³ Finally, Moses erected the courtyard around the tabernacle and the altar and put up the screen to the entrance of the courtyard. Thus Moses finished the work.

³⁴ The Glory of God Fills the Tabernacle. Then a cloud covered the tent and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.^{[d] 35} Moses could not enter the meeting tent, for the cloud had settled upon it and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

³⁶ The Guiding Cloud. Throughout their journeys, whenever the cloud would be taken up and leave the tabernacle, the children of Israel would break camp. ³⁷ If the cloud did not go up, they did not leave until it had gone up. ³⁸ Throughout their journeys the cloud of the Lord remained in the tabernacle during the day, and during the night there was a fire in it, visible to all the households of Israel.