Exodus 38
38
The Making of the Altar for the Burnt Offering
1 He made the altar for the burnt offering of acacia wood seven feet six inches long and seven feet six inches wide – it was square – and its height was four feet six inches. 2 He made its horns on its four corners; its horns were part of it,#tn Heb “its horns were from it,” meaning from the same piece. and he overlaid it with bronze. 3 He made all the utensils of the altar – the pots, the shovels, the tossing bowls, the meat hooks, and the fire pans – he made all its utensils of bronze. 4 He made a grating for the altar, a network of bronze under its ledge, halfway up from the bottom. 5 He cast four rings for the four corners of the bronze grating, to provide places for the poles. 6 He made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with bronze. 7 He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the altar, with which to carry it. He made the altar#tn Heb “it”; the referent (the altar) has been specified in the translation for clarity. hollow, out of boards.
8 He made the large basin of bronze and its pedestal of bronze from the mirrors of the women who served#sn The word for “serve” is not the ordinary one. It means “to serve in a host,” especially in a war. It appears that women were organized into bands and served at the tent of meeting. S. R. Driver thinks that this meant “no doubt” washing, cleaning, or repairing (Exodus, 391). But there is no hint of that (see 1 Sam 2:22; and see Ps 68:11 [12 Hebrew text]). They seem to have had more to do than what Driver said. at the entrance of the tent of meeting.
The Construction of the Courtyard
9 He made the courtyard. For the south side#tn Heb “south side southward.” the hangings of the courtyard were of fine twisted linen, one hundred fifty feet long, 10 with#tn While this verse could be translated as an independent sentence, it is probably to be subordinated as a circumstantial clause in line with Exod 27:10-12, as well as v. 12 of this passage. their twenty posts and their twenty bronze bases, with the hooks of the posts and their bands of silver. 11 For the north side the hangings were#tn Here the phrase “the hangings were” has been supplied. one hundred fifty feet, with their twenty posts and their twenty bronze bases, with the hooks of the posts and their bands of silver. 12 For the west side there were#tn The phrase “there were” has been supplied. hangings seventy-five feet long, with#tn The text simply has “their posts ten and their bases ten”; this may be added here as a circumstantial clause with the main sentence in order to make sense out of the construction. their ten posts and their ten bases, with the hooks of the posts and their bands of silver. 13 For the east side, toward the sunrise, it was seventy-five feet wide,#tn The text simply says “seventy-five feet.” 14 with hangings on one side#tn The word literally means “shoulder.” The next words, “of the gate,” have been supplied here. The east end contained the courtyard’s entry with a wall of curtains on each side of the entry (see v. 15). of the gate that were twenty-two and a half feet long, with their three posts and their three bases, 15 and for the second side of the gate of the courtyard, just like the other,#tn Heb “from this and from this” (cf, 17:12; 25:19; 26:13; 32:15; Josh 8:22, 33; 1 Kgs 10:19-20; Ezek 45:7). the hangings were twenty-two and a half feet long, with their three posts and their three bases. 16 All the hangings around the courtyard were of fine twisted linen. 17 The bases for the posts were bronze. The hooks of the posts and their bands were silver, their tops were overlaid with silver, and all the posts of the courtyard had silver bands.#tn Heb “they were banded with silver.” 18 The curtain#tn This word is different from the word for hangings; it has more of the idea of a screen, shielding or securing the area. for the gate of the courtyard was of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and fine twisted linen, the work of an embroiderer. It was thirty feet long, and like the hangings in the courtyard, it was seven and a half feet high, 19 with four posts and their four bronze bases. Their hooks and their bands were silver, and their tops were overlaid with silver. 20 All the tent pegs of the tabernacle and of the courtyard all around were bronze.
The Materials of the Construction
21 This is the inventory#tn The Hebrew word is פְּקוּדֵי (pÿqude), which in a slavishly literal way would be “visitations of” the tabernacle. But the word often has the idea of “numbering” or “appointing” as well. Here it is an accounting or enumeration of the materials that people brought, so the contemporary term “inventory” is a close approximation. By using this Hebrew word there is also the indication that whatever was given, i.e., appointed for the tabernacle, was changed forever in its use. This is consistent with this Hebrew root, which does have a sense of changing the destiny of someone (“God will surely visit you”). The list in this section will also be tied to the numbering of the people. of the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the testimony, which was counted#tn The same verb is used here, but now in the Pual perfect tense, third masculine singular. A translation “was numbered” or “was counted” works. The verb is singular because it refers to the tabernacle as a unit. This section will list what made up the tabernacle. by the order#tn Heb “at/by the mouth of.” of Moses, being the work#tn The noun is “work” or “service.” S. R. Driver explains that the reckonings were not made for the Levites, but that they were the work of the Levites, done by them under the direction of Ithamar (Exodus, 393). of the Levites under the direction#tn Heb “by the hand of.” of Ithamar, son of Aaron the priest. 22 Now Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made everything that the Lord had commanded Moses; 23 and with him was Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an artisan, a designer, and an embroiderer in blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and fine linen.
24 All the gold that was used for the work, in all the work of the sanctuary#tn These words form the casus pendens, or independent nominative absolute, followed by the apodosis beginning with the vav (ו; see U. Cassuto, Exodus, 469). (namely,#tn Heb “and it was.” the gold of the wave offering) was twenty-nine talents and 730 shekels,#sn There were 3000 shekels in a talent, and so the total weight here in shekels would be 87,730 shekels of gold. If the sanctuary shekel was 224 grs., then this was about 40,940 oz. troy. This is estimated to be a little over a ton (cf. NCV “over 2,000 pounds”; TEV “a thousand kilogrammes”; CEV “two thousand two hundred nine pounds”; NLT “about 2,200 pounds”), although other widely diverging estimates are also given. according to the sanctuary shekel.
25 The silver of those who were numbered of the community was one hundred talents and 1,775 shekels,#sn This would be a total of 301,775 shekels (about 140,828 oz), being a half shekel exacted per person from 605,550 male Israelites 20 years old or more (Num 1:46). The amount is estimated to be around 3.75 tons. according to the sanctuary shekel, 26 one beka per person, that is, a half shekel,#sn The weight would be about half an ounce. according to the sanctuary shekel, for everyone who crossed over to those numbered, from twenty years old or older,#tn Heb “upward.” 603,550 in all.#tn The phrase “in all” has been supplied. 27 The one hundred talents of silver were used for casting the bases of the sanctuary and the bases of the special curtain – one hundred bases for one hundred talents, one talent per base. 28 From the remaining 1,775 shekels#tn Here the word “shekels” is understood; about 45 pounds. he made hooks for the posts, overlaid their tops, and made bands for them.
29 The bronze of the wave offering was seventy talents and 2,400 shekels.#sn The total shekels would have been 212,400 shekels, which would be about 108,749 oz. This would make about 2.5 to 3 tons. 30 With it he made the bases for the door of the tent of meeting, the bronze altar, the bronze grating for it, and all the utensils of the altar, 31 the bases for the courtyard all around, the bases for the gate of the courtyard, all the tent pegs of the tabernacle, and all the tent pegs of the courtyard all around.#sn The bronze altar is the altar for the burnt offering; the large bronze basin is not included here in the list.
Currently Selected:
Exodus 38: NET
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
1996 - 2007 by Biblical Studies Press, LLC
Exodus 38
38
1And he made the altar of burnt offering of shittim wood: five cubits was the length thereof, and five cubits the breadth thereof; it was foursquare; and three cubits the height thereof. 2And he made the horns thereof on the four corners of it; the horns thereof were of the same: and he overlaid it with brass. 3And he made all the vessels of the altar, the pots, and the shovels, and the basons, and the fleshhooks, and the firepans: all the vessels thereof made he of brass. 4And he made for the altar a brasen grate of network under the compass thereof beneath unto the midst of it. 5And he cast four rings for the four ends of the grate of brass, to be places for the staves. 6And he made the staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with brass. 7And he put the staves into the rings on the sides of the altar, to bear it withal; he made the altar hollow with boards.
8And he made the laver of brass, and the foot of it of brass, of the lookingglasses of the women assembling, which assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
9And he made the court: on the south side southward the hangings of the court were of fine twined linen, an hundred cubits: 10their pillars were twenty, and their brasen sockets twenty; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of silver. 11And for the north side the hangings were an hundred cubits, their pillars were twenty, and their sockets of brass twenty; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of silver. 12And for the west side were hangings of fifty cubits, their pillars ten, and their sockets ten; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of silver. 13And for the east side eastward fifty cubits. 14The hangings of the one side of the gate were fifteen cubits; their pillars three, and their sockets three. 15And for the other side of the court gate, on this hand and that hand, were hangings of fifteen cubits; their pillars three, and their sockets three. 16All the hangings of the court round about were of fine twined linen. 17And the sockets for the pillars were of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of silver; and the overlaying of their chapiters of silver; and all the pillars of the court were filleted with silver. 18And the hanging for the gate of the court was needlework, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen: and twenty cubits was the length, and the height in the breadth was five cubits, answerable to the hangings of the court. 19And their pillars were four, and their sockets of brass four; their hooks of silver, and the overlaying of their chapiters and their fillets of silver. 20And all the pins of the tabernacle, and of the court round about, were of brass.
21This is the sum of the tabernacle, even of the tabernacle of testimony, as it was counted, according to the commandment of Moses, for the service of the Levites, by the hand of Ithamar, son to Aaron the priest. 22And Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all that the LORD commanded Moses. 23And with him was Aholiab, son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an engraver, and a cunning workman, and an embroiderer in blue, and in purple, and in scarlet, and fine linen.
24All the gold that was occupied for the work in all the work of the holy place, even the gold of the offering, was twenty and nine talents, and seven hundred and thirty shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary. 25And the silver of them that were numbered of the congregation was an hundred talents, and a thousand seven hundred and threescore and fifteen shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary: 26a bekah for every man, that is, half a shekel, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for every one that went to be numbered, from twenty years old and upward, for six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty men. 27And of the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary, and the sockets of the vail; an hundred sockets of the hundred talents, a talent for a socket. 28And of the thousand seven hundred seventy and five shekels he made hooks for the pillars, and overlaid their chapiters, and filleted them. 29And the brass of the offering was seventy talents, and two thousand and four hundred shekels. 30And therewith he made the sockets to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the brasen altar, and the brasen grate for it, and all the vessels of the altar, 31and the sockets of the court round about, and the sockets of the court gate, and all the pins of the tabernacle, and all the pins of the court round about.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Rights in the Authorized (King James) Version in the United Kingdom are vested in the Crown. Published by permission of the Crown’s patentee, Cambridge University Press.
Learn More About King James Version