Exodus 36: 1 – 38
You’re giving too much
36 “And Bezalel and Aholiab, and every gifted artisan in whom the LORD has put wisdom and understanding, to know how to do all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, shall do according to all that the LORD has commanded.” 2 Then Moses called Bezalel and Aholiab, and every gifted artisan in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, everyone whose heart was stirred, to come and do the work. 3 And they received from Moses all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. So they continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning. 4 Then all the craftsmen who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came, each from the work he was doing, 5 and they spoke to Moses, saying, “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the LORD commanded us to do. 6 So Moses gave a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, “Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.” And the people were restrained from bringing, 7 for the material they had was sufficient for all the work to be done—indeed too much. 8 Then all the gifted artisans among them who worked on the tabernacle made ten curtains woven of fine linen, and of blue, purple, and scarlet thread; with artistic designs of cherubim they made them. 9 The length of each curtain was twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; the curtains were all the same size. 10 And he coupled five curtains to one another, and the other five curtains he coupled to one another. 11 He made loops of blue yarn on the edge of the curtain on the selvedge of one set; likewise he did on the outer edge of the other curtain of the second set. 12 Fifty loops he made on one curtain, and fifty loops he made on the edge of the curtain on the end of the second set; the loops held one curtain to another. 13 And he made fifty clasps of gold, and coupled the curtains to one another with the clasps, that it might be one tabernacle. 14 He made curtains of goats’ hair for the tent over the tabernacle; he made eleven curtains. 15 The length of each curtain was thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; the eleven curtains were the same size. 16 He coupled five curtains by themselves and six curtains by themselves. 17 And he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set, and fifty loops he made on the edge of the curtain of the second set. 18 He also made fifty bronze clasps to couple the tent together, that it might be one. 19 Then he made a covering for the tent of ram skins dyed red, and a covering of badger skins above that. 20 For the tabernacle he made boards of acacia wood, standing upright. 21 The length of each board was ten cubits, and the width of each board a cubit and a half. 22 Each board had two tenons for binding one to another. Thus he made for all the boards of the tabernacle. 23 And he made boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side. 24 Forty sockets of silver he made to go under the twenty boards: two sockets under each of the boards for its two tenons. 25 And for the other side of the tabernacle, the north side, he made twenty boards 26 and their forty sockets of silver: two sockets under each of the boards. 27 For the west side of the tabernacle he made six boards. 28 He also made two boards for the two back corners of the tabernacle. 29 And they were coupled at the bottom and coupled together at the top by one ring. Thus he made both of them for the two corners. 30 So there were eight boards and their sockets—sixteen sockets of silver—two sockets under each of the boards. 31 And he made bars of acacia wood: five for the boards on one side of the tabernacle, 32 five bars for the boards on the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the tabernacle on the far side westward. 33 And he made the middle bar to pass through the boards from one end to the other. 34 He overlaid the boards with gold, made their rings of gold to be holders for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold. 35 And he made a veil of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen; it was worked with an artistic design of cherubim. 36 He made for it four pillars of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold, with their hooks of gold; and he cast four sockets of silver for them. 37 He also made a screen for the tabernacle door, of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver, 38 and its five pillars with their hooks. And he overlaid their capitals and their rings with gold, but their five sockets were bronze.
I have found an amazing factor that comes into play when I am putting together a sermon. Almost in every situation I something that is currently going on correlates with the chapter I am working on. Like today for example – it is April 15th. Does this date ring any bell in your mind? If you said tax day, you will a cookie.
An amusing TV program that I have enjoyed is the ‘King of Queens’. It just showed re-run called ‘Patrons Ain’t. The main characters Doug and Carrie have a tax accountant over their house to prepare their 1040 Itemized deductions form. The man asks them what their contributions were for the year. Doug responds how he bought some Girl Scout cookies and Carrie gave another small personal benefit gift for a co-worker which is not really deductable. The accountant lets the couple know how shocked he is over how stingy they are. Doug is quite upset over the comment of the tax accountant so he thinks that they him and Carrie are destined for hell because of being so stingy. This situation causes the couple to go and speak with their priest. The priest suggests that they might find some peace if they gave to some known charity which they both agreed to do.
They give a hefty donation to an elementary-school library, but are then disappointed when they aren't given proper credit for the gift on a donors' plaque. Instead of being recognized as a superior ‘Patron’ donor they wind up having a small plate listed as a ‘Friend’ of the library. Carrie finagles Doug’s friend Deek’s son Kirby to tell the librarian of the mistake. The librarian then trying to fix the mistake makes continued errors of listing their donation. The end result was she is let go by the school. The program concludes with the couple back in the frustrated Priest’s office.
From the television to the real world we find that with our changing economic times, everyone is asking for help in some form. There are as many reasons to give as there are ways to give. Like what Doug and Carrie displayed is that some people give for recognition. They want their names in programs, on park benches and in hospital lobbies. Others give expecting to be paid back or thanked, they give to get. Some people want a hands-on-experience and are generous with their time. Some like to give anonymously and don’t want any recognition at all.
People who truly master the art of giving give out of the goodness of their hearts with no self-serving motives. Giving becomes a blessing for the giver and receiver.
It’s human nature to believe, “When I have more I’ll give more.” If you come from this mentality you never have enough of anything to give.
Generosity is a choice that feels right and joyful. Generosity comes from believing you have enough to share.
True giving comes from the same place inside you as your deepest happiness. They are inexplicably intertwined.
A gift is something that is enjoyed twice. First by the giver who revels in the pleasure of giving something special and then also enjoyed by the person who receives the gift.
The act of true giving is something wonderful and amazing. With most things in this world, there is only a limited amount of what you can give away. Fortunately, generosity and kindness are not bound to these same material limitations.
One of life’s most basic laws is "every single act of love, kindness and generosity will multiply and return to you many times over ". The more you give the happier you will feel.
From today’s scripture this is what we find happening to the Israelites. They are so happy to give to the making of the Tabernacle that those in charge of its construction come to Moses and tell him to tell the people to stop giving. Wow, those are words never heard again since that time.
36 “And Bezalel and Aholiab, and every gifted artisan in whom the LORD has put wisdom and understanding, to know how to do all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, shall do according to all that the LORD has commanded.” 2 Then Moses called Bezalel and Aholiab, and every gifted artisan in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, everyone whose heart was stirred, to come and do the work. 3 And they received from Moses all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. So they continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning.
Moses then set Bezalel and Oholiab to work, and all their skilled assistants who had been willing to provide their services, and gave them what the people had brought for the making of the Sanctuary, and the freewill offerings that the people continued to bring each day.
4 Then all the craftsmen who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came, each from the work he was doing, 5 and they spoke to Moses, saying, “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the LORD commanded us to do.
So generous were the people that the skilful workmen had to call a halt to their giving through Moses. They were giving way too much than was needed, and there was too much material around which was probably hindering the work (Please notice that all the skilful workmen complained). At least in this the people were showing their repentance for the past and hearts now overflowing with gratitude to Yahweh.
6 So Moses gave a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, “Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.” And the people were restrained from bringing, 7 for the material they had was sufficient for all the work to be done—indeed too much.
So Moses gave the order that no more gifts be brought for the work on the Tabernacle and its furnishings because they had sufficient. Clearly the people were delighted that Yahweh still consented to make a home among them, and their generosity was overflowing.
From this point on the working outwards of the Tabernacle which began with the making of the inner curtains (36.8-13), then of the outer curtains of goat’s hair (36.14-18), then of the protective covering of skins (36.19). Included is the working of the curtains, their dimensions, the coupling, the loops and the clasps (36.8-13, 14-19) in that order. This is then followed by the making of the frames, their dimensions and their sockets (36.20-30); and then by the making of the bars, the Veil with its pillars and the outer screen with its pillars (36.31-38).
8 Then all the gifted artisans among them who worked on the tabernacle made ten curtains woven of fine linen, and of blue, purple, and scarlet thread; with artistic designs of cherubim they made them. 9 The length of each curtain was twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; the curtains were all the same size. 10 And he coupled five curtains to one another, and the other five curtains he coupled to one another. 11 He made loops of blue yarn on the edge of the curtain on the selvedge of one set; likewise he did on the outer edge of the other curtain of the second set. 12 Fifty loops he made on one curtain, and fifty loops he made on the edge of the curtain on the end of the second set; the loops held one curtain to another. 13 And he made fifty clasps of gold, and coupled the curtains to one another with the clasps, that it might be one tabernacle.
The Tabernacle itself had four coverings, the first was linen, the second was goats’ hair, the third was ram's skin dyed red, and the fourth was badger skins. The badger skin covering was the only covering which was seen on the outside which was that dull and unattractive skin. The first covering consisted of fine twined linen (finely twisted) woven together with blue, purple and scarlet material. The colors were dyed linen.
Also this extravagant curtain was decorated with figures of cherubim which were skillfully embroidered on it. Cherubim were only found on this curtain and the veil. Therefore whether it be the holy place or the holy of holies the Cherubim were seen through the framework on the innermost curtain and on the veil.
We can observe from this section of the Tabernacle a reminder that the Tabernacle not only needed the beautiful curtains but it also needed the couplings without which the curtains would have been useless. We cannot all be curtains, but we can all be couplings, both by prayer and witness and general and reliable support.
14 He made curtains of goats’ hair for the tent over the tabernacle; he made eleven curtains. 15 The length of each curtain was thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits; the eleven curtains were the same size. 16 He coupled five curtains by themselves and six curtains by themselves. 17 And he made fifty loops on the edge of the curtain that is outermost in one set, and fifty loops he made on the edge of the curtain of the second set. 18 He also made fifty bronze clasps to couple the tent together, that it might be one.
Over this first tent covering there was a second tent placed which was slightly larger in size. It was made from black goat's hair woven together. Instead of starting with ten narrow curtains, this time eleven were used, each of them was 30 cubits by 4 cubits. This meant, that because it was 2 cubits longer than the linen curtain, it reached right down to ground level and entirely covered the first one.
Six of these curtains were joined to make a large curtain and the remaining five to form another. The two large curtains were then united in a similar way to the first but since this curtain was less precious than that which enfolded the Holy area, the clasps holding the 50 loops were made of bronze and not of gold.
We learn more about this curtain from Exodus 26:9 "And you shall couple five curtains by themselves and six curtains by themselves, and you shall double over the sixth curtain at the forefront of the tent."
The entire length of the completed curtain, 44 cubits (66 feet) by 30 cubits (45 feet) was used for making a fold in front above the entrance and also for overlapping the under-curtain around the sides and at the back of the tent. The entire length of the completed curtain, 44 cubits (66 feet) by 30 cubits (45 feet) was used for making a fold in front above the entrance and also for overlapping the under-curtain around the sides and at the back of the tent. It also meant that the two curtains (this one and the one beneath) could be draped in such a way that their attachments did not coincide.
The principle was the same throughout the entire tabernacle. The further you moved from the holy of holies the less valuable were the materials used. And the lesson for us is that in the presence of God there is beauty and purity (gold) and as you move away back out into the world there is only judgment (bronze) and a need of continual cleansing.
19 Then he made a covering for the tent of ram skins dyed red, and a covering of badger skins above that.
The third covering was of ram skins dyed red. It was the first of the two weatherproof coverings
Rams were used for sacrifice, as in the account with Abraham and Isaac, and the red always represents blood for the atonement.
It is interesting that there were no measurements given for this covering.
The fourth covering was made of badgers' skins and again no measurements were given. The Hebrew word for badger skins 'tachash' may refer to a badger or a Sea Cow.
Once again in the tabernacle covering there was a progression from the more beautiful to the less attractive. We see the development from the first covering of the finest white linen woven with blue, purple and scarlet and decorated with cherubim to the unattractive badger skin covering on the outside.
The final cover of badger skins was far from beautiful. You can't help but imagine what a foreigner passing by must have thought to see this unattractive tent as the focal point for the worship of Yahweh. But as with everything in the kingdom of God, the harder we search and the deeper we look for the things of our God Yahweh, the more beauty and splendor we find.
I had stated before that all the items of the Tabernacle point to our Great Master and King Jesus Christ. Each of the items described here with the Tabernacle coverings pointed to our Lord Jesus Christ. The innermost curtain with its four colors and the cherubim woven into the fine white linen, the second covering of goats hair spoke of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice, remember the scapegoat that carried away the sins of the nation in the wilderness, and the third covering of rams skins dyed red also pointed to Jesus as our substitute just as the ram was the substitute for Isaac when his father Abraham was lifting the knife. But the last covering was of the badger skins. It also pointed to Jesus Christ. As the badger skins had that unattractive outward appearance so Jesus was a normal Israelite man with nothing especially attractive about Him that would make us think he was the King of kings. He was humble in character. No one has any idea what Jesus looked like whatsoever except that He had a beard because Isaiah spoke of His beard being plucked. He was a Jew and He had a beard and that is all that can be derived from the Bible and history. But His appearance was just as any common Israelite.
In the tabernacle there was a clear resemblance to Jesus Christ. The person who looks at Him on just the outside at his physical appearance would never grasp the beauty and the wonder that resides in Jesus.
As Isaiah prophesied in chapter 53 of his book says this amazing fact about of Holy Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, "For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him."
20 For the tabernacle he made boards of acacia wood, standing upright. 21 The length of each board was ten cubits, and the width of each board a cubit and a half. 22 Each board had two tenons for binding one to another. Thus he made for all the boards of the tabernacle. 23 And he made boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side. 24 Forty sockets of silver he made to go under the twenty boards: two sockets under each of the boards for its two tenons. 25 And for the other side of the tabernacle, the north side, he made twenty boards 26 and their forty sockets of silver: two sockets under each of the boards. 27 For the west side of the tabernacle he made six boards. 28 He also made two boards for the two back corners of the tabernacle. 29 And they were coupled at the bottom and coupled together at the top by one ring. Thus he made both of them for the two corners. 30 So there were eight boards and their sockets—sixteen sockets of silver—two sockets under each of the boards. 31 And he made bars of acacia wood: five for the boards on one side of the tabernacle, 32 five bars for the boards on the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the tabernacle on the far side westward. 33 And he made the middle bar to pass through the boards from one end to the other. 34 He overlaid the boards with gold, made their rings of gold to be holders for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold.
The framework of the central tabernacle came first, on which a series of hangings would be placed over the framework to form the completed tent. To build up this portable structure it was first necessary to make 48 upright supports each of which was ten cubits (15 feet) long by 11/2 cubits (27 inches) broad.
The tabernacle boards were not solid wooden planks but actually frames made up of two long boards, which were connected, to the top, middle and base by cross-rails. Apart from the fact that the acacia trees in Sinai do not grow large enough to provide a plank 27 inches wide, frames would have advantages over solid planks. They would be much lighter when erected. Also, the open construction would allow the inner curtain with its fine material and figures of cherubim to be seen from inside. These frames were cut down, stripped, dried, and then overlaid with pure gold. (Adorned not with their natural beauty, but with that precious gold, they were partakers of something outside of themselves, the divine gold). When these frames were placed in the upright position there were 20 along the north side and 20 along the south, whereas the rear wall had only 8 frames, two of which were used on the western corners as a kind of buttress.
Again we can derive from Exodus 26:36-37 "You shall make a screen for the door of the tabernacle, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver. And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold; their hooks shall be of gold, and you shall cast five sockets of bronze for them."
We now learn therefore that the front of the tabernacle had no frames since this was the entrance, and was supported by five pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold and set in bronze bases.
When an upright frame was placed on end was placed in two sockets of silver, each of which weighed about 35 kg. Each socket was so designed that an extension of one side arm of the frame could fit into it in the form of a tenon. These silver sockets then formed a continuous foundation around the three sides of the framework.
It is interesting to note that the sockets of silver were mentioned first in setting up.
They were extremely valuable (a talent of silver each, very costly) and supported the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place, it was God's requirement that this precious metal should be the foundation for the structure. Since the silver foundation was buried in the earth it could not be seen by human eyes (Man is not able to see the full value of redemption).
The row of frames was held together by golden rings at the top, bottom and middle of the frame, through which supporting bars of acacia wood were inserted. Five bars were used on each side, with the middle bar running from end to end along the entire length of one side. The other two bars used with the top rings and those for the bottom rings ran halfway along each side, and in this way the wall was made very solid.
They were fitly bound together (the boards were not divided but fitly bound together and kept together by their bars, rings, and sockets, they were truly one). Each of the 48 boards had two tenons at the foot. What they were exactly like nothing is mentioned. The Hebrew word for "tenons" means "hands". Possibly they were two fixtures spreading themselves out like two hands, one on each side at the bottom of each board. They were fastened within the silver sockets.
While standing in the holy place everything not visible below ground level was of silver and everything that could be seen above the ground was golden even though the framework was acacia wood overlaid with gold.
We have already noticed that frames did not enclose the front because it was the entrance. It had five pillars overlaid with gold and a curtain hung. Two thirds of the way into the building there was a similar construction on which the veil hung but here only four pillars were used and these were sunk into silver bases. This formed the internal division between the larger room which was called the Holy Place and the smaller one known as the Most Holy Place or the Holy of Holies.
1 Peter 1:18-19 says, “knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
The frames were an important part of the Tabernacle giving the support required. They formed the skeleton without which it would not stand. We as the Lord’s body must understand that there are always some who must bear the burden unseen to enable others to do their work.
35 And he made a veil of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen; it was worked with an artistic design of cherubim. 36 He made for it four pillars of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold, with their hooks of gold; and he cast four sockets of silver for them. 37 He also made a screen for the tabernacle door, of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver, 38 and its five pillars with their hooks. And he overlaid their capitals and their rings with gold, but their five sockets were bronze.
The making of the veil to separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place and of the screen guarding the entrance to the Sanctuary is now described. There are two entrances that are described here. The first one listed is the ‘veil’ made with four pillars and the outer entrance is called the ‘door’ made with five pillars.
The veil, also known as the "veil of covering", separated the Holy Place from the innermost room, the Holy of Holies. It was a handbreadth wide, hanging from the top of the posts to the ground, and totally across the width of the room as one veil, supported by 4 posts. It was white linen, embroidered in red, blue, and purple, with gold cherubs cunningly woven throughout. Only the High Priest was allowed to go through the veil, and only at a specific time, the Day of Atonement.
The colors of the drapes were shadows of the Messiah, Who was Divinity, (blue), incarnated into an earthly vessel, (red), our Righteousness, (white), robed in flesh, Lord of Lords, King of Kings, (purple). The cherubs embroidered represented the host of heaven, who, in their ministry, are guards of the things of God. The veil was positioned directly in front of the ark, where the Presence of God met with the High Priest.
The instructions for the making of the door of the Tabernacle consisted of hangings of linen on which were woven blue, purple, and scarlet. These are the same materials with which the veil was made, but there were no cherubim on the door as there were on the veil. This door separated the Holy Place from the court of the Tabernacle, serving the same purpose as the veil served for the Holiest of All. The priests, the sons of Aaron, after their service in the court, passed through this door when entering into the Holy Place. For those who came to the Tabernacle with their offerings it was not possible to see beyond the door.
Each entrance in the Tabernacle, the gate, the door, the veil, represented stages in approaching God. In the court, seen in the Brazen Altar and the Laver, there was an appreciation that the shed blood was the only way in, and that it was necessary to be clean. Passing through the door was the act of a priest entering in to worship. The sacrifices on the Brazen Altar were indeed acts of worship, but passing through the door was moving further in. The purpose of the door was to permit priestly worshippers to enter; the purpose of the veil was to prohibit their entrance into the Most Holy. One was a prohibition; the other was an invitation. The priests, moving from the court through the door, signify greater intimacy of worship, an intimacy which today is not limited to one priestly family. "The nearer we approach to God, as His priests, the more intimate our fellowship with Him in heavenly places; the more shall we discern the glories of Christ, and realize his power, majesty and strength."
Today, therefore, all believers, as priests, can enter through this door; indeed all will enter through this door as all believers will worship. It is only in the Holy Place that the believer can appreciate the Lord Jesus Christ as the food of His people, seen in the shewbread. Only in this place of privilege can prayers and worship ascend from the Golden Altar. It is there that the fragrance arising from that altar leaves its sweet aroma on the garments of the priest. In that place alone can the light of the Lamp stand be enjoyed. What a privilege it was for the Aaron descendent priest to enter through this door. How much greater is the privilege today of entering in, not only to the Holy Place but into the Holiest of All.
This privilege must never be underestimated. The writer of the Hebrew Epistle states that we come "boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (4.16). He also states, "Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus…" (10.19). This boldness, however, is not an attitude of arrogance, neither is it a casual attitude of heart and mind. It is, rather, confidence in the Scriptures that the way has been opened up by the shedding of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
