Exodus 24–31

The Covenant Ceremony

24Then He said to Moses, “Go up to the Lord, you and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and 70 of Israel’s elders, ^xand bow in worship at a distance. ²Moses alone is to approach the Lord, but the others are not to approach, and the people are not to go up with him.”

³Moses came and told the people all the commands of the Lord and all the ordinances. Then all the people responded with a single voice, “We will do everything that the Lord has commanded.” ^y4And Moses wrote ^zdown all the words of the Lord. He rose early the next morning and set up an altar and 12 pillars for the 12 tribes of Israel at the base of the mountain. ⁵Then he sent out young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed bulls as fellowship offerings to the Lord. ⁶Moses took half the blood and set it in basins; the other half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. ⁷He then took the covenant scroll and read it aloud to the people. They responded, “We will do and obey everything that the Lord has commanded.”

⁸Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you concerning all these words.” ^a

⁹Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and 70 of Israel’s elders, ¹⁰and they saw ^bthe God of Israel. Beneath His feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire ^cstone, as clear as the sky itself. ^d11God did not harm ^ethe Israelite nobles; they saw ^fHim, and they ate and drank.

¹²The Lord said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and stay there so that I may give you the stone tablets ^gwith the law and commandments I have written for their instruction.”

¹³So Moses arose with his assistant Joshua and went up the mountain of God. ^h14He told the elders, “Wait here for us until we return to you. Aaron and Hur are here with you. Whoever has a dispute should go to them.” ¹⁵When Moses went up the mountain, the cloud ⁱcovered it. ¹⁶The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day He called to Moses from the cloud. ^j17The appearance of the Lord’s glory to the Israelites was like a consuming fire ^kon the mountaintop. ¹⁸Moses entered the cloud as he went up the mountain, and he remained on the mountain 40 days and 40 nights. ^l

Offerings to Build the Tabernacle

25The Lord spoke to Moses: ²“Tell the Israelites to take an offering for Me. You are to take My offering from everyone who is willing to give. ^m3This is the offering you are to receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze; ⁴blue, purple, and scarlet yarn; fine linen and goat hair; ⁵ram skins dyed red ⁿand manatee skins; ^oacacia wood; ⁶oil ^pfor the light; spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense; ⁷and onyx ^qalong with other gemstones for mounting on the ephod and breastpiece. ^rs

⁸“They are to make a sanctuary ^tfor Me so that I may dwell ^uamong them. ⁹You must make it according to all that I show you—the pattern ^vof the tabernacle as well as the pattern of all its furnishings.

The Ark

¹⁰“They are to make an ark ^wof acacia wood, 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches high. ^x11Overlay it with pure gold; overlay it both inside and out. Also make a gold molding all around it. ¹²Cast four gold rings for it and place them on its four feet, two rings on one side and two rings on the other side. ¹³Make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. ¹⁴Insert the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark in order to carry the ark with them. ¹⁵The poles are to remain in the rings of the ark; they must not be removed from it. ¹⁶Put the tablets of the testimony that I will give you into the ark. ^y17Make a mercy seat ^zof pure gold, 45 inches long and 27 inches wide. ^a18Make two cherubim of gold; make them of hammered work at the two ends of the mercy seat. ¹⁹Make one cherub at one end and one cherub at the other end. At its two ends, make the cherubim of one piece with the mercy seat. ²⁰The cherubim are to have wings spread out above, covering ^bthe mercy seat with their wings, and are to face one another. The faces of the cherubim should be toward the mercy seat. ²¹Set the mercy seat on top of the ark and put the testimony that I will give you into the ark. ^c22I will meet with you there above the mercy seat, between the two cherubim ^dthat are over the ark of the testimony; I will speak with you from there about all that I command you regarding the Israelites.

The Table

²³“You are to construct a table ^eof acacia wood, 36 inches long, 18 inches wide, and 27 inches high. ^f24Overlay it with pure gold and make a gold molding all around it. ²⁵Make a three-inch ^gframe all around it and make a gold molding for it all around its frame. ²⁶Make four gold rings for it, and attach the rings to the four corners at its four legs. ²⁷The rings should be next to the frame as holders for the poles to carry the table. ²⁸Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold, and the table can be carried by them. ²⁹You are also to make its plates ^hand cups, as well as its pitchers and bowls for pouring drink offerings. Make them out of pure gold. ³⁰Put the bread of the Presence ⁱon the table before Me at all times.

The Lampstand

³¹“You ^jare to make a lampstand ^kout of pure, hammered gold. It is to be made of one piece: its base and shaft, its ornamental cups, and its calyxes ^land petals. ³²Six branches are to extend from its sides, three branches of the lampstand from one side and three branches of the lampstand from the other side. ³³There are to be three cups shaped like almond blossoms, each with a calyx and petals, on the first branch, and three cups shaped like almond blossoms, each with a calyx and petals, on the next branch. It is to be this way for the six branches that extend from the lampstand. ³⁴There are to be four cups shaped like almond blossoms on the lampstand shaft along with its calyxes and petals. ³⁵For the six branches that extend from the lampstand, a calyx must be under the first pair of branches from it, a calyx under the second pair of branches from it, and a calyx under the third pair of branches from it. ³⁶Their calyxes and branches are to be of one piece. ^mAll of it is to be a single hammered piece of pure gold.

³⁷“Make seven lamps ⁿon it. Its lamps are to be set up so they illuminate the area in front of it. ³⁸Its snuffers and firepans must be of pure gold. ³⁹The lampstand ^owith all these utensils is to be made from 75 pounds ^pof pure gold. ⁴⁰Be careful to make them according to the pattern ^qyou have been shown on the mountain.

The Tabernacle

26“You ^rare to construct the tabernacle itself with 10 curtains. You must make them of finely spun linen, and blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, with a design of cherubim worked into them. ²The length of each curtain should be 42 feet, ^sand the width of each curtain six feet; ^tall the curtains are to have the same measurements. ³Five of the curtains should be joined together, and the other five curtains joined together. ⁴Make loops of blue yarn on the edge of the last curtain ^uin the first set, and do the same on the edge of the outermost curtain in the second set. ⁵Make 50 loops on the one curtain and make 50 loops on the edge of the curtain in the second set, so that the loops line up together. ⁶Also make 50 gold clasps and join the curtains together with the clasps, so that the tabernacle may be a single unit.

⁷“You are to make curtains of goat hair for a tent over the tabernacle; make 11 of these curtains. ⁸The length of each curtain should be 45 feet ^vand the width of each curtain six feet. ^wAll 11 curtains are to have the same measurements. ⁹Join five of the curtains by themselves, and the other six curtains by themselves. Then fold the sixth curtain double at the front of the tent. ¹⁰Make 50 loops on the edge of the one curtain, the outermost in the first set, and make 50 loops on the edge of the corresponding curtain of the second set. ¹¹Make 50 bronze clasps; put the clasps through the loops and join the tent together so that it is a single unit. ¹²As for the flap that is left over from the tent curtains, the leftover half curtain is to hang down over the back of the tabernacle. ¹³The half yard ^xon one side and the half yard ^yon the other of what is left over along the length of the tent curtains should be hanging down over the sides of the tabernacle on either side to cover it. ¹⁴Make a covering for the tent from ram skins dyed red ^zand a covering of manatee skins ^aon top of that.

¹⁵“You are to make upright planks ^bof acacia wood ^cfor the tabernacle. ¹⁶The length of each plank is to be 15 feet, ^dand the width of each plank 27 inches. ^e17Each plank must be connected together with two tenons. Do the same for all the planks of the tabernacle. ¹⁸Make the planks for the tabernacle as follows: 20 planks for the south side, ¹⁹and make 40 silver bases under the 20 planks, two bases under the first plank for its two tenons, and two bases under the next plank for its two tenons; ²⁰20 planks for the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, ²¹along with their 40 silver bases, two bases under the first plank and two bases under each plank; ²²and make six planks for the west side of the tabernacle. ²³Make two additional planks for the two back corners of the tabernacle. ²⁴They are to be paired at the bottom, and joined together ^fat the top in a single ring. So it should be for both of them; they will serve as the two corners. ²⁵There are to be eight planks with their silver bases: 16 bases; two bases under the first plank and two bases under each plank.

²⁶“You are to make five crossbars of acacia wood for the planks on one side of the tabernacle, ²⁷five crossbars for the planks on the other side of the tabernacle, and five crossbars for the planks of the back side of the tabernacle on the west. ²⁸The central crossbar is to run through the middle of the planks from one end to the other. ²⁹Then overlay…