Exodus 33 - 36
Moses and the Tent of Meeting
33Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, “Go! Go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought up from the land of Egypt, to the land of which aI swore to Abraham, bto Isaac, and cto Jacob, saying, ‘dTo your seed I will give it.’ 2“And I will send aan angel before you, and bI will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. 3“Go up to a land aflowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in your midst because you are ba stiff-necked people, lest cI consume you on the way.”
4Then the people heard this 1sad word and awent into mourning; and none of them put on his ornaments. 5So Yahweh said to Moses, “Say to the sons of Israel, ‘You are aa stiff-necked people; should I go up in your midst for one moment, I would consume you. So now, put off your ornaments from you, that I may know what I shall do with you.’” 6So the sons of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward.
7Now Moses used to take athe tent and pitch it outside the camp, a good distance from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And beveryone who sought Yahweh would go out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp. 8And it happened whenever Moses went out to the tent, that all the people would arise and stand, each at the entrance of his tent, and gaze after Moses until he entered the tent. 9And it happened whenever Moses entered the tent, that athe pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent; band 1Yahweh would speak with Moses. 10And all the people would see the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent. And all the people would arise and worship, each at the entrance of his tent. 11Thus aYahweh used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend. Then 1Moses would return to the camp, and bhis attendant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.
Moses and the Glory of Yahweh
12Then Moses said to Yahweh, “See, You say to me, ‘aBring up this people!’ But You Yourself have not let me know bwhom You will send with me. cMoreover, You have said, ‘I have known you by name, and you have also found favor in My sight.’ 13“So now, I pray You, if I have found favor in Your sight, alet me know Your ways that I may know You, so that I may find favor in Your sight. bSee also, that this nation is Your people.” 14And He said, “aMy presence shall go with you, and bI will give you rest.” 15Then he said to Him, “aIf Your presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here. 16“Indeed, how then can it be known that I have found favor in Your sight, I and Your people? Is it not by Your going with us, so that awe, I and Your people, may be distinguished from all the other people who are upon the face of the 1earth?”
17Then Yahweh said to Moses, “I will also do this thing of which you have spoken; afor you have found favor in My sight, and I have known you by name.” 18aThen 1Moses said, “I pray You, show me Your glory!” 19And He said, “aI Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of Yahweh before you; and bI will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will show compassion on whom I will show compassion.” 20But He said, “You cannot see My face, afor no man can see Me and live!” 21Then Yahweh said, “Behold, there is a place 1by Me, and ayou shall stand there on the rock; 22and it will come about, while My glory is passing by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and acover you with My hand until I have passed by. 23“Then I will remove My hand, and you shall see My back, but aMy face shall not be seen.”
Stone Tablets like the Former Ones
34Now Yahweh said to Moses, “Carve out for yourself atwo stone tablets like the former ones, and bI will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets which you shattered. 2“So be prepared by morning, and come up in the morning to aMount Sinai, and 1present yourself there to Me on the top of the mountain. 3“aAnd no man is to come up with you, nor let any man be seen 1anywhere on the mountain; even the flocks and the herds may not graze in front of that mountain.” 4So he carved out atwo stone tablets like the former ones, and Moses rose up early in the morning and went up to Mount Sinai, as Yahweh had commanded him, and he took two stone tablets in his hand. 5aThen Yahweh descended in the cloud and stood there with him, and 1He called upon the name of Yahweh. 6Then Yahweh passed by in front of him and called out, “Yahweh, Yahweh God, acompassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and 1truth; 7who akeeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression, and sin; yet He bwill by no means leave the guilty unpunished, cvisiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.” 8And Moses made haste 1,ato bow low toward the earth and worship. 9And he said, “aIf now I have found favor in Your sight, O Lord, I pray, let the Lord go along in our midst, even though 1,bthey are a stiff-necked people, and cpardon our iniquity and our sin, and dtake us as Your own inheritance.”
Yahweh Cuts a Covenant with Israel
10Then 1God said, “Behold, aI am going to cut a covenant. Before all your people bI will do wondrous deeds which have not been created in all the earth nor among any of the nations; and all the people 2among whom you live will see the working of Yahweh, for it is a fearful thing that I am going to do with you.
11“1Be sure to keep what I am commanding you this day: behold, aI am going to drive out the Amorite before you, and the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite. 12“aBeware lest you cut a covenant with the inhabitants of the land into which you are going, lest it become a snare in your midst. 13“aBut rather, you are to tear down their altars and shatter their sacred pillars and cut down their 1,bAsherim 14—for ayou shall not worship any other god, for Yahweh, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God— 15lest you cut a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they play the harlot with their gods and asacrifice to their gods, and one of them binvite you 1to eat of his sacrifice, 16and ayou take some of his daughters for your sons, and his daughters play the harlot with their gods and cause your sons also to play the harlot with their gods. 17“aYou shall make for yourself no molten gods.
18“You shall keep athe Feast of Unleavened Bread. For bseven days you shall eat unleavened bread, which I commanded you, at the appointed time in the cmonth of Abib, for in the month of Abib you came out of Egypt.
19“aThe first offspring from every womb belongs to Me, even of all your male livestock, the first offspring from 1cattle and sheep. 20“aAnd you shall redeem with a lamb the 1first offspring from a donkey; and if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck. You shall redeem ball the firstborn of your sons. 2,cNone shall appear before Me empty-handed.
21“You shall work asix days, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during plowing time and harvest you shall rest. 22“And you shall celebrate athe Feast of Weeks, that is, the first fruits of the wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year. 23“aThree times a year all your males are to appear before the Lord Yahweh, the God of Israel. 24“For I will adispossess nations before you and enlarge your borders, and no man shall covet your land when you go up three times a year to appear before Yahweh your God.
25“aYou shall not 1offer the blood of My sacrifice with leavened bread, band the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover shall not 2be left over until morning.
26“You shall bring athe very first of the first fruits of your ground into the house of Yahweh your God. “You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.”
27Then Yahweh said to Moses, “aWrite 1down these words, for in accordance with these words I have cut ba covenant with you and with Israel.” 28So he was there with Yahweh aforty days and forty nights; he did not eat bread or drink water. And 1,bhe wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, cthe Ten 2Commandments.
The Shining Face of Moses
29Now it happened when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai (and the atwo tablets of the testimony were in Moses’ hand as he was coming down from the mountain), that Moses did not know that bthe skin of his face shone because of his speaking with Him. 30Then Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and athey were afraid to come near him. 31Then Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the rulers in the congregation returned to him; and Moses spoke to them. 32And afterward all the sons of Israel came near, and he commanded them everything that Yahweh had spoken 1to him on Mount Sinai. 33Then Moses finished speaking with them and aput a veil over his face. 34But whenever Moses went in before Yahweh to speak with Him, ahe would take off the veil until he came out; and then he would come out and speak to the sons of Israel what he had been commanded, 35aand the sons of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone. So Moses would return the veil over his face until he went in to speak with Him.
The Sabbath Command
35Then Moses assembled all the congregation of the sons of Israel and said to them, “aThese are the things that Yahweh has commanded you to 1do:
2“aSix days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a holy day, ba sabbath of complete rest to Yahweh; cwhoever does any work on it shall be put to death. 3“aYou shall not kindle a fire in any of your places of habitation on the sabbath day.”
Willing Hearts Contribute to Yahweh
4And Moses spoke to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, “This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded, saying, 5‘aTake from among you a 1contribution to Yahweh; whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as a 2contribution to Yahweh: gold, silver, and 3bronze, 6and 1blue, purple, and scarlet material, fine linen, goats’ hair, 7and rams’ skins 1dyed red, and porpoise skins, and acacia wood, 8and oil for lighting, and spices for the anointing oil, and for the fragrant incense, 9and onyx stones and setting stones for the ephod and for the 1breastpiece.
10‘aAnd let everyone 1wise at heart among you come and make all that Yahweh has commanded: 11the 1,atabernacle, its tent and its covering, its clasps and its boards, its bars, its pillars, and its bases; 12the aark and its poles, the 1mercy seat, and the curtain of the screen; 13the atable and its poles, and all its 1utensils, and the bread of the 2Presence; 14the alampstand also for the light and its utensils and its lamps and the oil for the light; 15and the aaltar of incense and its poles, and the banointing oil and the cfragrant incense, and the screen for the doorway at the 1entrance of the tabernacle; 16athe altar of burnt offering with its 1bronze grating, its poles, and all its 2utensils, the laver and its stand; 17athe hangings of the court, its pillars and its bases, and the screen for the gate of the court; 18the pegs of the tabernacle and the pegs of the court and their cords; 19the 1,awoven garments for ministering in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons, to minister as priests.’”
Contributions Brought by the People
20Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel went out from Moses’ presence. 21aAnd everyone whose heart 1stirred him and everyone whose spirit was willing came and brought the 2contribution to Yahweh for the work of the tent of meeting and for all its service and for the holy garments. 22Then all whose hearts were willing, both men and women, came and brought brooches and 1earrings and signet rings and bracelets, all articles of gold; so did every man who waved it as a wave offering of gold to Yahweh. 23And every man, 1who had in his possession 2blue and purple and scarlet material and fine linen and goats’ hair and rams’ skins 3dyed red and porpoise skins, brought them. 24Everyone who could raise up a 1contribution of silver and 2bronze brought the 3contribution to Yahweh; and every man 4who had in his possession acacia wood for any work of the service brought it. 25All the women 1wise at heart spun with their hands and brought what they had spun, in 2blue and purple and scarlet material and in fine linen. 26And all the women whose heart 1stirred with wisdom spun the goats’ hair. 27And the rulers brought the onyx stones and the stones for setting for the ephod and for the 1breastpiece; 28and athe spice and the oil for the light and for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense. 29The sons of Israel—all the men and women whose heart was willing to bring material for all the work, which Yahweh had commanded through the hand of Moses to do—brought a afreewill offering to Yahweh.
30aThen Moses said to the sons of Israel, “See, Yahweh has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 31“And He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in discernment, and in knowledge, and in all 1craftsmanship; 32to devise 1designs for working in gold and in silver and in 2bronze, 33and in the cutting of stones for settings and in the carving of wood, so as to do well in every work of thoughtful design. 34“He also has put in his heart to teach, both he and aOholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. 35“aHe has filled them with 1wisdom in their heart to do every work of an engraver and of a designer and of an embroiderer, in 2blue and in purple and in scarlet material and in fine linen, and of a weaver, as those who do every work and make designs.
36“Now Bezalel and Oholiab and every person 1wise at heart, to whom Yahweh has given 2wisdom and discernment to know how to do all the work of the service of constructing the sanctuary, shall do in accordance with all that Yahweh has commanded.”
Making the Tabernacle
2Then Moses called Bezalel and Oholiab and every person 1wise at heart to whom Yahweh had given 2wisdom, aeveryone whose heart stirred him, to come to the work to do it. 3And they received from Moses the entire 1contribution which the sons of Israel had brought 2to do the work in the service of the sanctuary. And they still continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning. 4And all the 1wise men who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came, each from 2the work which 3he was doing, 5and they said to 1Moses, “aThe people are bringing much more than enough for the service of the work which Yahweh commanded us to 2do.” 6So Moses commanded and a 1proclamation was passed throughout the camp, saying, “Let no man or woman any longer do the work for the 2contributions of the sanctuary.” Thus the people were restrained from bringing any more. 7aIndeed, the 1material they had was sufficient and more than enough for all the work, to do it.
8aAnd all those 1wise at heart among those who were doing the work made the 2tabernacle with ten curtains; of fine twisted linen and 3blue and purple and scarlet material, with cherubim, the work of a skillful designer, 4Bezalel made them. 9The length of each curtain was 1twenty-eight cubits and the width of each curtain four 2cubits; all the curtains had 3the same measurements. 10He 1joined five curtains to one another, and the other five curtains he 2joined to one another. 11He made loops of 1blue on the edge of the 2outermost curtain in the first 3set; he did likewise on the edge of the curtain that was 4outermost in the second 5set. 12He made afifty loops in the one curtain, and he made fifty loops on the 1edge of the curtain that was in the second 2set; the loops were opposite each other. 13He made afifty clasps of gold and 1joined the curtains to one another with the clasps, so the tabernacle was one unit.
14Then ahe made curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle; he made eleven curtains 1in all. 15The length of each curtain was 1thirty cubits and four cubits the width of each curtain; the eleven curtains had 2the same measurements. 16He 1joined five curtains by themselves and the other six curtains by themselves. 17Moreover, he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was outermost in the first 1set, and he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that was outermost in the second 2set. 18He made fifty clasps of 1bronze to 2join the tent together so that it would be 3a unit. 19He made a covering for the tent of rams’ skins 1dyed red and a covering of porpoise skins above.
20aThen he made the boards for the tabernacle of acacia wood, standing upright. 21Ten cubits was the length of 1each board and one and a half cubits the width of each board. 22There were two tenons for each board, 1fitted to one another; thus he did for all the boards of the tabernacle. 23And he made the boards for the tabernacle: twenty boards 1for the south side; 24and he made forty bases of silver under the twenty boards; two bases under one board for its two tenons and two bases under another board for its two tenons. 25Then for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, he made twenty boards, 26and their forty bases of silver; two bases under one board and two bases under another board. 27For the 1rear of the tabernacle, to the west, he made six boards. 28And he made two boards for the corners of the 1tabernacle at the 2rear. 29And they were 1separated beneath, but were together at their completion at the 2top, 3at the first ring; thus he did with both of them for the two corners. 30And there were eight boards with their bases of silver, sixteen bases, two bases under every board.
31Then he made abars of acacia wood, five for the boards of one side of the tabernacle, 32and five bars for the boards of the 1other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the tabernacle for the 2rear side to the west. 33And he made the middle bar to pass through in the 1center of the boards from end to end. 34He also overlaid the boards with gold and made their rings of gold as holders for the bars and overlaid the bars with gold.
35aMoreover, he made the veil of 1blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen; he made it with cherubim, the work of a skillful designer. 36And he made four pillars of acacia for it and overlaid them with gold, with their hooks of gold; and he cast four bases of silver for them. 37And he made a ascreen for the doorway of the tent, of 1blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a 2weaver; 38and he made its afive pillars with their hooks, and he overlaid their tops and their 1bands with gold; but their five bases were of 2bronze.