Commentary - Biblelive.org

Book

Chapter

Read

Exodus 35

Exodus 36

Exodus 37

Exodus 36 — Commentary 4

Listen

Click Play to listen

Voice

Speed

Pitch

Benson

Benson Commentary Exodus 36:1 Then wrought Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise hearted man, in whom the LORD put wisdom and understanding to know how to work all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, according to all that the LORD had commanded. Exodus 36:2 And Moses called Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise hearted man, in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, even every one whose heart stirred him up to come unto the work to do it: Exodus 36:2 . And Moses called Bezaleel — Even those whom God has qualified for, and inclined to the service of the tabernacle, yet must wait for a call to it, either extraordinary, as that of preachers and apostles, or ordinary, as that of pastors and teachers. And observe who they were that Moses called; those in whose heart God had put wisdom for this purpose, beyond their natural capacity, and whose heart stirred him up to come to the work in good earnest. Those are to be called to the building of the gospel tabernacle, whom God has by his grace made in some measure fit for the work, and free to it: ability and willingness, with resolution, are the two things to be regarded in the call of ministers. Exodus 36:3 And they received of Moses all the offering, which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of the sanctuary, to make it withal . And they brought yet unto him free offerings every morning. Exodus 36:4 And all the wise men, that wrought all the work of the sanctuary, came every man from his work which they made; Exodus 36:5 And they spake unto Moses, saying, The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work, which the LORD commanded to make. Exodus 36:6 And Moses gave commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing. Exodus 36:7 For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much. Exodus 36:8 And every wise hearted man among them that wrought the work of the tabernacle made ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet: with cherubims of cunning work made he them. Exodus 36:9 The length of one curtain was twenty and eight cubits, and the breadth of one curtain four cubits: the curtains were all of one size. Exodus 36:10 And he coupled the five curtains one unto another: and the other five curtains he coupled one unto another. Exodus 36:11 And he made loops of blue on the edge of one curtain from the selvedge in the coupling: likewise he made in the uttermost side of another curtain, in the coupling of the second. Exodus 36:12 Fifty loops made he in one curtain, and fifty loops made he in the edge of the curtain which was in the coupling of the second: the loops held one curtain to another. Exodus 36:13 And he made fifty taches of gold, and coupled the curtains one unto another with the taches: so it became one tabernacle. Exodus 36:14 And he made curtains of goats' hair for the tent over the tabernacle: eleven curtains he made them. Exodus 36:15 The length of one curtain was thirty cubits, and four cubits was the breadth of one curtain: the eleven curtains were of one size. Exodus 36:16 And he coupled five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves. Exodus 36:17 And he made fifty loops upon the uttermost edge of the curtain in the coupling, and fifty loops made he upon the edge of the curtain which coupleth the second. Exodus 36:18 And he made fifty taches of brass to couple the tent together, that it might be one. Exodus 36:19 And he made a covering for the tent of rams' skins dyed red, and a covering of badgers' skins above that . Exodus 36:20 And he made boards for the tabernacle of shittim wood, standing up. Exodus 36:21 The length of a board was ten cubits, and the breadth of a board one cubit and a half. Exodus 36:22 One board had two tenons, equally distant one from another: thus did he make for all the boards of the tabernacle. Exodus 36:23 And he made boards for the tabernacle; twenty boards for the south side southward: Exodus 36:24 And forty sockets of silver he made under the twenty boards; two sockets under one board for his two tenons, and two sockets under another board for his two tenons. Exodus 36:25 And for the other side of the tabernacle, which is toward the north corner, he made twenty boards, Exodus 36:26 And their forty sockets of silver; two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board. Exodus 36:27 And for the sides of the tabernacle westward he made six boards. Exodus 36:28 And two boards made he for the corners of the tabernacle in the two sides. Exodus 36:29 And they were coupled beneath, and coupled together at the head thereof, to one ring: thus he did to both of them in both the corners. Exodus 36:30 And there were eight boards; and their sockets were sixteen sockets of silver, under every board two sockets. Exodus 36:31 And he made bars of shittim wood; five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle, Exodus 36:32 And five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the tabernacle for the sides westward. Exodus 36:33 And he made the middle bar to shoot through the boards from the one end to the other. Exodus 36:34 And he overlaid the boards with gold, and made their rings of gold to be places for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold. Exodus 36:35 And he made a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen: with cherubims made he it of cunning work. Exodus 36:35 . And he made a veil — The veil, made for a partition between the holy place and the most holy, signified the darkness and distance of that dispensation compared with the New Testament, which shows us the glory of God more clearly, and invites us to draw near, to it; and the darkness and distance of our present state in comparison with heaven, where we shall be ever with the Lord, and see him as he is. Exodus 36:36 And he made thereunto four pillars of shittim wood , and overlaid them with gold: their hooks were of gold; and he cast for them four sockets of silver. Exodus 36:37 And he made an hanging for the tabernacle door of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, of needlework; Exodus 36:37 . A hanging — Which divided the holy place from the court. Exodus 36:38 And the five pillars of it with their hooks: and he overlaid their chapiters and their fillets with gold: but their five sockets were of brass. Benson Commentary on the Old and New Testaments Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com . Used by Permission.

Expositors

Expositor's Bible Commentary Exodus 36:1 Then wrought Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise hearted man, in whom the LORD put wisdom and understanding to know how to work all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, according to all that the LORD had commanded. CHAPTER XXXV. THE CONCLUSION. Exodus 35:1-35 - Exodus 40:1-38 . The remainder of the narrative sets forth in terms almost identical with the directions already given, the manner in which the Divine injunctions were obeyed. The people, purified in heart by danger, chastisement and shame, brought much more than was required. A quarter of a million would poorly represent the value of the shrine in which, at the last, Moses and Aaron approached their God, while the cloud covered the tent and the glory filled the tabernacle, and Moses failed to overcome his awe and enter. Thenceforth the cloud was the guide of their halting and their march. Many a time they grieved their God in the wilderness, yet the cloud was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire therein by night, throughout all their journeyings. That cloud is seen no longer; but One has said, "Lo, I am with you all the days." If the presence is less material, it is because we ought to be more spiritual. * * * * * Looking back upon the story, we can discern more clearly what was asserted when we began--the forming and training of a nation. They are called from shameful servitude by the devotion of a patriot and a hero, who has learned in failure and exile the difference between self-confidence and faith. The new name of God, and His remembrance of their fathers, inspire them at the same time with awe and hope and nationality. They see the hollowness of earthly force, and of superstitious worships, in the abasement and ruin of Egypt. They are taught by the Paschal sacrifice to confess that the Divine favour is a gift and not a right, that their lives also are justly forfeited. The overthrow of Pharaoh's army and the passage of the Sea brings them into a new and utterly strange life, in an atmosphere and amid scenes well calculated to expand and deepen their emotions, to develop their sense of freedom and self-respect, and yet to oblige them to depend wholly on their God. Privation at Marah chastens them. The attack of Amalek introduces them to war, and forbids their dependence to sink into abject softness. The awful scene of Horeb burns and brands his littleness into man. The covenant shows them that, however little in themselves, they may enter into communion with the Eternal. It also crushes out what is selfish and individualising, by making them feel the superiority of what they all share over anything that is peculiar to one of them. The Decalogue reveals a holiness at once simple and profound, and forms a type of character such as will make any nation great. The sacrificial system tells them at once of the pardon and the heinousness of sin. Religion is both exalted above the world and infused into it, so that all is consecrated. The priesthood and the shrine tell them of sin and pardon, exclusion and hope; but that hope is a common heritage, which none may appropriate without his brother. The especial sanctity of a sacred calling is balanced by an immediate assertion of the sacredness of toil, and the Divine Spirit is recognised even in the gift of handicraft. A tragic and shameful failure teaches them, more painfully than any symbolic system of curtains and secret chambers, how little fitted they are for the immediate intercourse of heaven. And yet the ever-present cloud, and the shrine in the heart of their encampment, assure them that God is with them of a truth. The Expositor's Bible Text Courtesy of BibleSupport.com . Used by Permission.

Illustrator

Every wise-hearted man in whom the Lord put wisdom and understanding to know how to work. Exodus 36 Consecrated art Dannecker, the German sculptor, occupied eight years upon a marble statue of Christ. He believed then, and ever afterward, that he had been inspired of God to do that thing. He thought that he had seen a vision of Christ in his solitary vigils. He had but transferred to the marble the image that the Lord had shown to him. His rising fame attracted the attention of Napoleon, and he was requested to make a statue of Venus similar to Ariadne, for the gallery of the Louvre. He refused, saying, "A man who has seen Christ would commit sacrilege if he should employ his art in the carving of a pagan goddess. My art is therefore a consecrated thing." Is there not an experience of communion with God in Christ, not uncommon with mature believers, which is equivalent to a vision of the Lord, and which renders life and life work, even its humblest occupations, sacred? The lowliest not less than the loftiest life may have this element of an infinite dignity. Indolence in the Church J. Halsey. A North American Indian convert, being catechised upon "original sin," stated that he rather thought that in his case it was laziness. Original sin certainly seems to take this form in the case of many members of our Churches. What is the proportion of Christian workers in any Church? Are they not invariably a small minority? Why so? What exemption can the majority plead? It is said the working bees cast out the drones from the hive. Were we to proceed upon this principle, what terrible depletion would our Churches suffer! ( J. Halsey. ) False estimates of Church-workers J. Halsey. We sometimes form a too favourable estimate of the number of workers in our Churches, erroneously judging from the number of departments of service, and imagining that each department has its own distinct staff; whereas, as a rule, it is the individuals who are active in one sphere who display the same activity in another. I believe that in dramatic exhibitions the impression of a large army is sometimes produced upon the spectators by the device of marching the same band of persons over and over again across the stage. We get our impressions of the noble army of Christian workers very much in the same way. ( J. Halsey. ).

Matthew Henry

36:1-38 The making of the tabernacle The liberality of the people restrained. - The readiness and zeal with which these builders set about their work, the exactness with which they performed it, and the faithfulness with which they objected to receive more contributions, are worthy of our imitation. Thus should we serve God, and our superiors also, in all things lawful. Thus should all who are in public trusts abhor filthy lucre, and avoid all occasions and temptations to covetousness. Where have we the representation of God's love towards us, that we by love dwell in him and he in us, save in Emmanuel? Mt 1:23. This is the sum of the ministry of reconciliation, 2Co 5:18,19. This was the design of the tabernacle of witness, a visible testimony of the love of God to the race of men, however they were fallen from their first state. And this love was shown by Christ's taking up his abode on earth; by the Word being made flesh, Joh 1:14, wherein, as the original expresses it, he did tabernacle among us.