Exodus

Work on the Sanctuary

Bezalel and Oholiab and all the skilled craftsmen to whom the Lord had given skill and understanding to carry out all that was required to build the sanctuary did their work exactly as the Lord had directed.

Moses then called Bezalel and Oholiab and all the skilled craftsmen to whom the Lord had given ability and who could do the work.

They received from Moses all that the people of Israel had brought as contributions for building the sanctuary. In the meantime, the people continued to bring their offerings each morning.

So the skilled craftsmen who did all the sacred work, besides their own work,

went to tell Moses:

“The people are bringing more than what is needed for the work which the Lord has told us to do.”

Moses then sent this command throughout the camp: “Let no one, man or woman, do anything more toward the collection for the sanctuary.” So the people were stopped from bringing their offerings;

the material they had was enough, and more than enough, to complete all the work.

The Sanctuary

All the most skilled craftsmen among the workers made the Holy Tent. They made it with ten sheets of fine twined linen, purple wool, violet shade, and red and crimson wool, finely embroidered with angels.

The length of a single sheet was twenty-eight cubits, its width four cubits, all the sheets being the same size.

They sewed five of the sheets together, and the other five also.

They attached loops of violet wool to the border of the last sheet in one set and did the same for the border of the last sheet in the other set.

They put fifty loops on the first sheet and, matching them one by one, fifty loops on the border of the last sheet in the second set.

They made fifty gold clasps and, with them, joined the two sets into one piece.

Next, they made sheets of goats’ hair to form a tent over the Holy Tent; they made eleven of these.

The length of a single sheet was thirty cubits, its width four cubits; the eleven sheets were all the same size.

They joined five of these sheets into one set, the remaining six into another.

They attached fifty loops to the border of the last sheet in the first set and fifty loops to the border of the last sheet in the second set.

And they made fifty bronze clasps to join the two sets to form one cover.

They made another covering of rams’ skins dyed red to be put over the Holy Tent and a covering of fine leather to spread over that.

The Holy Tent was made with boards of acacia wood, which stood upright.

Each board was ten cubits long and one and a half cubits wide.

Each board was fitted with two matching arms; this they did for all the boards of the Holy Tent.

They made twenty boards for the southern side,

with forty silver bases to put under the twenty boards: two bases under the first board to receive its two matching arms, and so on for the other boards.

For the other side on the north, they made twenty boards

and forty silver bases, two under each board.

For the back of the west, they made six boards.

They made two boards for the corners at the back of the Holy Tent.

These boards were joined at the bottom and top, up to the level of the first ring; this they did with the two boards that were to form the two corners.

In this way, there were eight boards with their sixteen silver bases, two bases under each board.

They made crossbars of acacia wood: five to hold the boards together that were to form one side of the Holy Tent,

five on the other side to hold the boards that were to form the west side.

They made the middle bar, fixed halfway up, to run from one end to the other.

They covered the boards with gold and put gold rings on them to take the crossbars, which they covered with gold.

Curtain and front Door

They made the veil of purple wool, violet shade, and red, crimson wool, and of fine twined linen, skillfully embroidered with Cherubim.

For hanging this veil, they made four posts of acacia wood, covered them with gold hooks, and cast four silver bases for them.

For the entrance to the tent, they made a curtain of purple wool, violet shade, and red, and crimson wool and fine twined linen, the work of a skilled embroiderer.

For the hanging of this, they made five posts with hooks; their tops and rods were plated with gold; their five bases were of bronze.