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Exodus 35

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And Moses gathered all the congregation of the children of Israel together, and said unto them, These are the words which the Lord hath commanded, that ye should do them.

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Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the Lord: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death.

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Ye shall kindle no fire throughout your habitations upon the sabbath day.

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And Moses spake unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, This is the thing which the Lord commanded, saying,

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Take ye from among you an offering unto the Lord: whosoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it, an offering of the Lord; gold, and silver, and brass,

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And blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair,

1
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And rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, and shittim wood,

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And oil for the light, and spices for anointing oil, and for the sweet incense,

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And onyx stones, and stones to be set for the ephod, and for the breastplate.

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And every wise hearted among you shall come, and make all that the Lord hath commanded;

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The tabernacle, his tent, and his covering, his taches, and his boards, his bars, his pillars, and his sockets,

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The ark, and the staves thereof, with the mercy seat, and the vail of the covering,

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The table, and his staves, and all his vessels, and the shewbread,

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The candlestick also for the light, and his furniture, and his lamps, with the oil for the light,

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And the incense altar, and his staves, and the anointing oil, and the sweet incense, and the hanging for the door at the entering in of the tabernacle,

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The altar of burnt offering, with his brasen grate, his staves, and all his vessels, the laver and his foot,

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The hangings of the court, his pillars, and their sockets, and the hanging for the door of the court,

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The pins of the tabernacle, and the pins of the court, and their cords,

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The cloths of service, to do service in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest’s office.

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And all the congregation of the children of Israel departed from the presence of Moses.

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And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the Lord’s offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments.

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And they came, both men and women, as many as were willing hearted, and brought bracelets, and earrings, and rings, and tablets, all jewels of gold: and every man that offered offered an offering of gold unto the Lord.

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And every man, with whom was found blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, and red skins of rams, and badgers’ skins, brought them.

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Every one that did offer an offering of silver and brass brought the Lord’s offering: and every man, with whom was found shittim wood for any work of the service, brought it.

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And all the women that were wise hearted did spin with their hands, and brought that which they had spun, both of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, and of fine linen.

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And all the women whose heart stirred them up in wisdom spun goats’ hair.

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And the rulers brought onyx stones, and stones to be set, for the ephod, and for the breastplate;

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And spice, and oil for the light, and for the anointing oil, and for the sweet incense.

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The children of Israel brought a willing offering unto the Lord, every man and woman, whose heart made them willing to bring for all manner of work, which the Lord had commanded to be made by the hand of Moses.

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And Moses said unto the children of Israel, See, the Lord hath called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah;

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And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship;

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And to devise curious works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass,

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And in the cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of wood, to make any manner of cunning work.

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And he hath put in his heart that he may teach, both he, and Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan.

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Them hath he filled with wisdom of heart, to work all manner of work, of the engraver, and of the cunning workman, and of the embroiderer, in blue, and in purple, in scarlet, and in fine linen, and of the weaver, even of them that do any work, and of those that devise cunning work.

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Exodus 35

Exodus 35 marks the turn from instruction to execution — Moses gathers Israel and announces that the time to build has come. But he opens, strikingly, not with the materials list but with the Sabbath command. Before the construction begins, the rest-day is reasserted: six days work shall be done, but on the seventh there shall be for you a holy day. The ordering matters: the tabernacle is built within the rhythm of Sabbath, not instead of it. Then Moses calls for contributions, and what follows is one of Scripture's most moving displays of voluntary generosity. Every willing-hearted person whose spirit moved them brought gold, silver, bronze, fine fabrics, skins, acacia wood, oil, spices, and precious stones. Men and women alike brought earrings, brooches, rings, and ornaments — the same kind of gold that had become the golden calf now consecrated to a different purpose. Then Moses names Bezalel and Oholiab as the Spirit-filled craftsmen who will oversee the work. The willingness of the people and the ability of the craftsmen are both presented as gifts from God — neither the skill nor the resources originate with the humans who bring them. 2 Corinthians 9:7 draws on this spirit of giving: God loves a cheerful giver.

Exodus 35:17

The curtains of the courtyard with its posts and bases, and the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard. The courtyard enclosure — the boundary of the sacred space — completes the construction commission. The entrance curtain for the courtyard is the first threshold the worshipper crosses in approaching God. The construction commission moves from the innermost (the ark and the veil) to the outermost (the courtyard entrance) — every layer of the sanctuary is covered. No zone of the covenant worship space is left uncommissioned.

Exodus 35:18

The tent pegs for the tabernacle and for the courtyard, and their ropes. The tent pegs and ropes that anchor the tabernacle to the ground are the most ordinary elements in the entire construction commission. The inclusion of tent pegs in the comprehensive list communicates the consistent principle: nothing is too ordinary to be sanctified for God's service. The tent peg that anchors the Most Holy Place to the desert floor is as much a part of the covenant dwelling as the ark of the testimony it holds in place.

Exodus 35:19

The woven garments worn for ministering in the sanctuary — both the sacred garments for Aaron the priest and the garments for his sons when they serve as priests. The priestly vestments close the commission. The garments that give dignity and honor to the priests are made by the same community that builds the sanctuary. The priest who wears the community's offering into God's presence carries the community's generosity into the holy place. The garments that cover the priest are themselves the community's gift to God's service.

Exodus 35:20

Then the whole Israelite community withdrew from Moses' presence. The response to the commission is withdrawal — not rebellion but the movement of preparation. The community leaves Moses' presence to gather what they will bring back. The dispersal is the first step of the response that will produce the overwhelming generosity of verses 21–29. The community assembled to hear the commission disperses to prepare the offering. The dispersal and return — going out to gather and coming back to give — is the rhythm of covenant generosity.

Exodus 35:32

To make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze. The Spirit's gifts expressed in precious metals are the same gifts listed in Exodus 31:4. The repetition of the Spirit-filling account before the community is pastoral: the community needs to know that the craftsman who will handle their precious offerings has been divinely equipped to use them well. Generous giving requires trustworthy stewardship. The community that brought their gold earrings and silver brooches deserves to know that Bezalel's hands are equipped by the same Spirit who prompted their hearts to give.

Exodus 35:33

To cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts. The comprehensive craftsmanship covers every material the tabernacle requires. The Spirit who equips comprehensively does not leave gaps in the gifting that leave gaps in the work. 1 Corinthians 12:7 says to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good — the comprehensive gifting of Bezalel for the common good of the tabernacle project is the type of the comprehensive gifting of the body of Christ for its common good.

Exodus 35:34

And he has given both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan, the ability to teach others. The gift of teaching alongside the gift of craftsmanship ensures that Bezalel and Oholiab's abilities are multiplied through the community. The ability to teach others transforms the two master craftsmen into trainers who expand the skilled workforce. Ephesians 4:11–12 says God gave some to be teachers to equip his people for works of service — the teaching gift that Bezalel and Oholiab receive is the gift that enables the whole community's participation in the sacred work.

Exodus 35:1

Moses assembled the whole Israelite community and said to them, these are the things the Lord has commanded you to do. The assembly before the tabernacle construction begins is the covenant community gathered to receive commission. The same community that gave its gold for the golden calf in Exodus 32 is now assembled to give its gold to God's dwelling. The convening of the whole community communicates that the tabernacle is the whole community's project. 1 Corinthians 3:9 says you are God's building — the community assembled to build the tabernacle is the type of the community that is itself God's building in the new covenant.

Exodus 35:2

For six days work is to be done, but the seventh day shall be your holy day, a day of sabbath rest to the Lord. Whoever does any work on it is to be put to death. Before construction begins, the Sabbath command is restated for the third time in the tabernacle section (after Exodus 31:12–17). The death penalty for Sabbath violation during the construction period confirms that even the sacred work of building God's dwelling does not override the sacred rest God requires. The placement of the Sabbath command before the materials list communicates the theological priority: rest governs work, not the reverse.

Exodus 35:3

Do not light a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day. The prohibition on kindling fire on the Sabbath is specific to the dwelling — the domestic application of the Sabbath principle. In the context of tabernacle construction, fire would be the means of metalworking and wood finishing; the prohibition extends the Sabbath rest into ordinary domestic life. No household is exempt on grounds of practical necessity. Numbers 15:32–36 records the judgment of a man gathering wood on the Sabbath. The Sabbath permeates the domestic economy as thoroughly as it does the public worship calendar.

Exodus 35:4

Moses said to the whole Israelite community, this is what the Lord has commanded. The introduction to the materials appeal is the same authority claim that grounds every instruction: this is what the Lord has commanded. The offering that follows is voluntary (verse 5), but its context is commanded — the community is commanded to offer what they are willing to give. The combination of command and willingness is the grace-and-faith structure of the covenant: God commands what He also enables, and the proper response is willing rather than grudging compliance. Psalm 110:3 says your people shall be willing in the day of your power.

Exodus 35:5

From what you have, take an offering for the Lord. Everyone who is willing is to bring to the Lord an offering of gold, silver and bronze. The freewill nature of the offering — everyone who is willing — is the foundational principle of the tabernacle's funding. No compulsion, no quota, no civic obligation. 2 Corinthians 9:7 says God loves a cheerful giver — the cheerful giver Paul describes is the heir of the willing offerer Moses commissions here. The gold, silver, and bronze brought voluntarily by a community whose willingness is itself evidence of restored covenant relationship after the golden calf.

Exodus 35:6

Blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen; goat hair. The fabric materials — the three covenant colors with fine linen and goat hair — are listed exactly as in Exodus 25:4. The repetition from the instructions to the appeal is covenant transparency: Moses tells the community exactly what is needed, and they bring exactly what is asked. The blue, purple, and scarlet that will surround the ark and veil and entrance screens were the same colors present in Israel's households. The community's ordinary lives provide the raw material for the extraordinary dwelling of God.

Exodus 35:7

Ram skins dyed red and another type of durable leather; acacia wood. The outermost coverings and structural wood are included in the appeal. The ram skins dyed red — blood-red, the color of sacrifice — form the tabernacle's exterior face. The acacia wood that will frame every wall and carry every portable object is the local desert wood Israel's craftsmen know how to work. The combination of exotic imports and local materials reflects the covenant community's placement in the world: drawing on the gifts of the nations while building from what is at hand.

Exodus 35:8

Olive oil for the light; spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense. The functional materials — the lamp oil, the spices for the anointing oil, and the incense spices — are included in the community offering list. The daily operation of the sanctuary requires ongoing supply of these materials. The lamp that burns perpetually and the incense that rises morning and evening are sustained by what the community brings. Revelation 8:4 says the smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of God's people, went up before God — the incense Israel brings in the wilderness anticipates the prayers that rise before God through every generation.

Exodus 35:9

Onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breastpiece. The precious stones for the priestly garments close the materials list. The stones that will bear the engraved names of the twelve tribes before God are brought by the community whose names they will carry. The contribution of the stones for the breastpiece is the contribution of the community to their own representation before God. What they bring becomes the medium through which their names are perpetually present in the holy place. The community funds its own intercession.

Exodus 35:10

All who are skilled among you are to come and make everything the Lord has commanded. The call to skilled craftsmen — all who are skilled — is the community-wide invitation to participate through talent rather than material. Both forms of contribution are necessary and both are forms of worship. Romans 12:6 says we have different gifts according to the grace given to each — the tabernacle community's division of contributors models the body of Christ's diversity of gifts serving one construction project.

Exodus 35:11

The tabernacle with its tent and its covering, its clasps, frames, crossbars, posts and bases. The comprehensive list of what the skilled workers are to make begins with the structural elements. Every component is enumerated. The comprehensiveness of the commission ensures that no element is assumed to be someone else's responsibility. The total construction is the responsibility of the total community of skilled workers. Hebrews 8:5 says the craftsmen build a copy and shadow of what is in heaven — the commission to build everything exactly as specified is the commission to accurately represent a heavenly reality.

Exodus 35:12

The ark with its poles and the atonement cover and the curtain that shields it. The ark and its atonement cover — the most sacred objects — are listed first in the furniture section. The curtain that shields the ark is included with it because the two together constitute the most sacred zone of the tabernacle. Matthew 27:51 records the tearing of this veil from top to bottom at Jesus' death — the veil that the skilled workers will spend their best effort constructing is the veil that the death of the Son of God will permanently remove.

Exodus 35:13

The table with its poles and all its articles and the bread of the Presence. The table for the bread of the Presence — the covenant meal maintained perpetually before God — is the second piece of Holy Place furniture. The articles accompanying the table are included in the commission, and the bread itself is mentioned: the community that builds the table also bakes the bread that will sit on it. The maintenance of the covenant meal requires both the craftsmen who build the furniture and the priests who tend it. Both forms of service contribute to the continuous covenant fellowship.

Exodus 35:14

The lampstand that is for light with its accessories, lamps and oil for the light. The lampstand with its complete service system — the accessories, the lamps, and the oil itself — is commissioned to the skilled workers. The lampstand that must be hammered from a single talent of pure gold is the most technically demanding single piece in the entire tabernacle. John 8:12 says Jesus is the light of the world — the lampstand whose perpetual light fills the Holy Place is the type of the one who is the permanent, unfailing light of the new covenant community.

Exodus 35:15

The altar of incense with its poles, the anointing oil and the fragrant incense; the curtain for the doorway at the entrance to the tabernacle. The incense altar, the anointing oil, and the fragrant incense are listed together with the entrance curtain — the complete furnishing of the approach to the sanctuary. Revelation 5:8 describes golden bowls full of incense representing the prayers of God's people — the incense altar of Exodus 35 is the founding image of all subsequent prayer-as-incense imagery in Scripture.

Exodus 35:16

The altar of burnt offering with its bronze grating, its poles and all its utensils; the basin with its stand. The courtyard furniture closes the list: the altar of burnt offering and the bronze basin. Every day, morning and evening, the altar receives the burnt offering and the basin receives the priests' hands and feet. The daily rhythm of sacrifice and washing is sustained by the construction the skilled workers are now commissioned to complete. Hebrews 13:10 says we have an altar from which those who minister at the tabernacle have no right to eat — the altar of Exodus 35 is the type of the altar of Christ's sacrifice.

Exodus 35:21

And everyone who was willing and whose heart moved them came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the tent of meeting, for all its service, and for the sacred garments. The response to Moses' appeal: willing hearts moved by the Spirit — everyone who was willing and whose heart moved them. The double description captures both human and divine dimensions: the willingness is the human decision; the moving is the divine prompting. 2 Corinthians 9:7 says God loves a cheerful giver — the willing, moved givers of Exodus 35:21 are the ancestors of the cheerful givers of the new covenant. The tabernacle is funded by divine enabling and human willing together.

Exodus 35:22

All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments. They all presented their gold as a wave offering to the Lord. Men and women alike — the generosity is not gendered. The same earrings given for the golden calf (Exodus 32:2–3) are now given for the tabernacle. The gold that was corrupted by idolatry is redeemed by consecration. The wave offering of the gold — presenting it before the Lord before giving it — makes the giving itself an act of worship. What Egypt provided through four centuries of forced labor is now given voluntarily for God's dwelling.

Exodus 35:23

Everyone who had blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen, or goat hair, ram skins dyed red or the other durable leather brought them. The fabrics and hides — every material the tabernacle requires — are brought by those who have them. The covenant colors that ran through the inner curtains and priestly garments were the same colors present in Israel's households. The community's ordinary household materials become the extraordinary materials of the sanctuary. What people wore and what covered their tents provides the covering for God's tent. The ordinary becomes sacred through willing consecration.

Exodus 35:24

Those presenting an offering of silver or bronze brought it as an offering to the Lord, and everyone who had acacia wood for any part of the work brought it. The silver and bronze and the acacia wood — for every structural and portable element — are brought by those who have them. The completeness of the community's provision mirrors the completeness of Bezalel's Spirit-gifting: every material needed is provided, every skill required is given. What God required, the willing community provided. 2 Corinthians 9:8 says God is able to bless you abundantly so that you will abound in every good work.

Exodus 35:25

Every skilled woman spun with her hands and brought what she had spun — blue, purple or scarlet yarn or fine linen. The skilled women who spin the covenant-colored yarn contribute their labor, not just their materials. The spinning was skilled work — producing even, strong yarn of consistent color required both training and practice. Proverbs 31:13 describes the capable wife who works with eager hands with flax and wool — the women who spin for the tabernacle embody the very character that Proverbs celebrates. Skilled labor offered in service of God's dwelling is as much a spiritual act as prayer or sacrifice.

Exodus 35:26

And all the women who were willing and had the skill spun the goat hair. The goat hair that forms the outer tent requires both willingness and skill. The repetition of willing alongside skilled is deliberate: the skill without willingness is withheld talent; the willingness without skill is misplaced enthusiasm. The women who have both — the skill to spin goat hair and the willingness to give it — are the exact provision the outer tent requires. Every gift placed in willing service is precisely sufficient for the work God has designed it to accomplish.

Exodus 35:27

The leaders brought onyx stones and other gems to be mounted on the ephod and breastpiece. The leaders — the heads of the tribes — bring the most precious materials: the onyx and precious stones for the priestly garments. The leaders' contribution of the costliest materials is appropriate to their role: those who represent the community bring what is most valuable for the community's representation before God. Numbers 7 records the leaders' additional contributions at the tabernacle's dedication — the pattern of leadership generosity established here continues at every major covenant moment.

Exodus 35:28

They also brought spices and olive oil for the light and for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense. The functional materials — oil for the lampstand, spices for the anointing oil, incense spices — are contributed alongside the structural materials. The ongoing operational requirements of the sanctuary are as necessary as its initial construction. Philippians 4:18 describes the Philippians' financial gift as a fragrant offering, acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God — the incense and oil the community brings to sustain the tabernacle's worship models the financial generosity that sustains the new covenant community's ministry.

Exodus 35:29

All the Israelite men and women who were willing brought to the Lord freewill offerings for all the work the Lord through Moses had commanded them to do. The comprehensive summary: all the Israelites, men and women, willing, freewill offerings, all the work. Every element of the giving is acknowledged: the universality, the inclusivity, the disposition, the form, and the purpose. The freewill offering that funds the tabernacle is the Old Testament precedent for the voluntary giving Paul describes in 2 Corinthians 8–9. The community that gives willingly and comprehensively is the community that has understood what the dwelling means.

Exodus 35:30

Then Moses said to the Israelites, see, the Lord has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. The public announcement of Bezalel's appointment before the community makes the divine selection communally known before the work begins. The community's willing giving and Bezalel's divine appointment belong together: the community provides the materials; God provides the craftsman. Neither is sufficient without the other. The craftsman appointed by God requires the community's generous provision to have something to work with.

Exodus 35:31

And he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills. The Spirit-filling of Bezalel is announced to the community using identical language to Exodus 31:3. The repetition ensures Israel understands the source of Bezalel's ability: not natural talent alone, but Spirit-given wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and skill. The community that gives materials is being told that God has matched their giving with His own giving. They give gold and fabric; God gives the craftsman who can transform gold and fabric into a dwelling place for His glory.

Exodus 35:35

He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers — all of them skilled workers and designers. The full range of textile and metalworking skills is distributed across the Spirit-filled craftsmen. The three covenant colors appear in the list of embroidery skills: the community whose members spun these colors will be served by craftsmen who can weave them into the most beautiful patterns. The comprehensive skill set extended to all the craftsmen confirms: the tabernacle is a community project in both giving and making, from every tribe, from every skill set.