Today, I am reading and commenting on Exodus 39-40.

I have a Youtube video of me reading the Scripture passage and my comments. Please check it out and let me know your thoughts.

I found one thing interesting in the way which the ESV (the translation I am using this year) translates the description of what they used to make the garments (and some of the curtains of the tabernacle as well).  It says, “gold, blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen.”  I had noticed this all along in the description of both the instructions and of what they actually did.  I wasn’t sure what to make of this until today when it describes the making of the ephod, because there it says that they hammered out gold leaf, and “he” (probably Bezalel) cut it into threads.  In the past I had always read that as “gold, blue, purple, and scarlet yarns.”  I think we often overlook how difficult it would have been to put thin “threads” of actual gold metal into a garment, or other items made of fabric.  Which brings me to the other thing which struck me, and it did so because I recorded me reading the passage.  Reading it out loud made this repeated phrase stand out to me: “as the Lord had commanded Moses.”  Reading through this passage, the listing of all of the things which they did to build the tabernacle seems tedious.  The listing of the instructions to do so, and then them doing so, also seems tedious.  I find reading about it a bit tedious.  That phrase though tells us that it is important to pay attention to what the Lord commands us to do, even when it seems a bit tedious.

The final thing I want to comment on is chapter 40 verse 18: “Moses erected the tabernacle.”  Many times when I read this, I get a somewhat humorous image in my mind of Moses running around and putting the tabernacle up all by himself.  That picture is enhanced by thinking about the series called “The Promised Land.” (If you have not seen it, you should check it out)  If you have ever put up a 20 foot canopy by yourself, just think about how much harder the tabernacle would have been, and how amusing it would be to watch someone try to do it by themselves while insisting that no one is allowed to help them.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Exodus 39-40.

When I read through this the first time my thought was that the cloud of the glory of Lord covering the tabernacle would be my focus.  As I reread the passage to get my thoughts in order, I read the description of what the skilled craftsmen had created and thought it was mostly a repeat of the description God had given Moses of what they were to do.  And that is definitely true.  I also thought about the description of Moses putting the tabernacle up for the first time.  Once again, I thought about the fact that he would have needed a lot of help to do so.  I have written about that before, but in light of how much the gold, silver, and bronze weighed this year I realized just how big that task was.  Then, once Moses was satisfied that the tabernacle and its furnishings had been set up correctly, the passage tells us that “the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.”  Until today I always thought the “tent of meeting” in that sentence was the tabernacle.  It occurred to me today that, while in the passages following this “tent of meeting” referred to the tabernacle, in this sentence tent of meeting may refer to the tent of meeting which Moses used before the tabernacle was built.  Moses could no longer enter the old tent of meeting because the cloud settled over it, but the glory of the Lord was no longer there.  Moses no loner met with God at the temporary, cobbled-together, tent of meeting which he had designed and put up outside of camp for that purpose.  He now met with God in the tabernacle, which had been designed by God and was put up in the middle of the camp.  This foreshadows the change which happens when Christ died and rose from the dead.  Under the Old Covenant, we met God in a structure outside of ourselves.  In the New Covenant, we meet God inside our hearts.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Exodus 39-40.

When work was completed on the tabernacle, Moses inspected the work to ensure that all of the pieces had been put together according to the correct specifications.  If you have ever bought something which came in multiple pieces that you had to put together at home you know the importance of knowing what the final product is supposed to look like before you begin putting it together.   Since at this point, Moses was the only person who knew what the tabernacle was supposed to look like, he was the only person who could determine if all of the parts were correct.  Once Moses had determined that the pieces were constructed correctly, God instructed him to set up the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, and place all of its furnishings within it. The passage tells us that Moses set up the tabernacle and its furnishings and as soon as he finished the glory of the Lord filled it.  The New Testament tells us that our bodies are now God’s Temple, so if we have finished preparing ourselves according to His instructions, the Lord’s Presence will fill us.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Exodus 39-40.

The passage tells us that the Israelites completed to work of constructing the tabernacle, its furnishings, and the garments to be worn by the priests just as God had commanded Moses.  Then, it tells us that Moses set the tabernacle up, and placed all of its furnishings in place on the first day of the first month.  A straightforward reading of the passage suggests that Moses did all of that by himself.  However, that seems improbable as the described parts of the tabernacle sound like they would take two or more people to put together and most of the furnishings would take multiple people to move.  Perhaps, the passage intends for us to understand that Moses supervised a team of people setting up the tabernacle.

As I was writing the above and re-reading the passage to fully get my thoughts in order I was planning to wrap up by writing something about the presence of the Lord filling the tabernacle.  Then I noticed that the passage said that once the table was set up in the tent of meeting that Moses placed the bread upon it and that once the incense altar was set up, Moses burned incense upon it, and that when the altar of burnt offerings was set up, Moses offered burnt offerings upon it, and when the basin was set up and water put in it, Moses and Aaron and Aaron’s sons washed their hands and feet in it.  As written, it reads as if these things happened as each step was completed, with the glory of the Lord entering the tabernacle when the curtain of the courtyard was set up around the tabernacle and altar.  Which leads me to realize that we often only experience God’s presence in our lives after spending a lot of time and effort following His instructions.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Exodus 39-40.

The things I had looked up when the earlier passage talked about the Urim and Thummim being placed in the high priest’s breast piece led me to look closely at the description here of how the high priest’s breast piece and ephod was put together.  In particular I was looking to see if there was anything further about the breast piece being the “breast piece of decision”.  All I got on that was that the breast piece was a single cloth folded over.   So, as the instructions given earlier, the Urim and Thummim would be placed in the pocket thus created.  The other thing I thought seemed relevant, even if only for the symbolism, was the description that the breast piece would have twelve different gemstones mounted on it, with each stone having the name of a different one of Israel’s sons engraved on it.  The presence of those names engraved on the gemstones mounted on the shoulder pieces of the ephod indicate that the stones on the breast piece had more meaning than just a reminder to the high priest that he represented the twelve tribes before God.  I believe these 12 stones related to the usage of this breast piece, in conjunction with the Urim and Thummim which were kept within it, to divine God’s will on issues.

Today is an example of something that happens from time to time when I write my blog.  I started writing this as an exercise in pure curiosity because I saw no spiritual lessons in the passage as I read it.  However, when I finished writing the above I realized that just as the high priest needed to be reminded of the fact that the decisions he sought God’s guidance had an impact on all of the people of Israel, when we seek God’s guidance on decisions we need to make we should identify all of those who will be impacted by the decision we reach, doing so will help us understand God’s guidance.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Exodus 39-40.

The other day I wrote that I was not sure when the Tabernacle replaced the tent that Moses had been using as the “Tent of Meeting”, well in today’s passage you can see that I have never before noticed the existence of a “Tent of Meeting” before the Tabernacle because it tells us that the Tabernacle became the Tent of Meeting when it was first set up.  Now I find the initial setting up of the Tabernacle interesting.  The passage tells us that Moses set up the Tabernacle, but we know that he had to have help to do so (there is no way that one person set up the Tabernacle by themselves as described).  What makes that interesting is that a little later we have detailed descriptions of how the people who set up the various parts of the Tabernacle each time it was moved needed to be consecrated.  Yet, at this point, no one had been consecrated, except Moses (who was a special case).  Of course, at this point, the Tabernacle and its furnishings had not yet been consecrated either.  The point being that everyone needs to start their journey to righteousness from where they are now, not from where someone thinks they ought to be.

I did not expect this to go in this direction when I began writing this today.  Sometimes I find it kind of interesting to see where I end up when I write these.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Exodus 39-40.

Today’s passage describes the making of the outfits worn by the priests in detail.  Once again, earlier we saw the description of the design God had given Moses for these, now we have the description of how they were actually made.  Sometimes I wish I had enough knowledge of sewing to see if I could duplicate these (without the carved gemstones).  Additionally, I would like to see two completely different people attempt to duplicate these from these instructions to see how different (or not different) they turned out.  Once the writer is done describing how the Tabernacle and the priestly garments were made, he describes the process of setting up the Tabernacle for the first time.  A casual reading of the passage would lead one to believe that Moses put the pieces of the Tabernacle together by himself.  However, several of the items would have been extremely difficult for one person to do and a few seem impossible.  

Having written all of that, this passage conveys the value of ritual and careful attention to detail in worship.  They are not always necessary, but they sometimes help us get into the right frame of mind to worship God properly.