Exodus 37–39

The Ark of the Covenant

37Bezalel made the ark of the covenant out of acacia wood. It was three feet nine inches long and two feet three inches wide and high. ²He covered it inside and outside with pure gold. He put a strip of gold around it.

³He made four gold rings for it. He joined them to its four bottom corners. He put two rings on one side and two rings on the other.

⁴Then he made poles out of acacia wood. He covered them with gold. ⁵He put the poles through the rings on the sides of the ark to carry it.

⁶He made its cover out of pure gold. It was three feet nine inches long and two feet three inches wide. The cover is the place where sin is paid for.

⁷He made two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. ⁸He put one cherub on each end of it. ⁹He made the cherubim as part of the cover itself. The cherubim’s wings spread up over the cover. The cherubim faced each other and looked toward the cover.

The Table for the Holy Bread

¹⁰The workers made the table out of acacia wood. It was three feet long, one foot six inches wide and two feet three inches high. ¹¹They covered it with pure gold. They put a strip of gold around it. ¹²They also made a rim three inches wide around it. They put a strip of gold around the rim.

¹³They made four gold rings for the table. They joined them to the four corners, where the four legs were. ¹⁴The rings were close to the rim. They held the poles that were used to carry the table.

¹⁵The workers made the poles out of acacia wood. They covered them with gold.

¹⁶They made plates, dishes and bowls out of pure gold for the table. They also made pure gold pitchers to pour out drink offerings.

The Gold Lampstand

¹⁷The workers made the lampstand out of pure gold. They hammered out its base and stem. Its buds, blooms and cups branched out from it.

¹⁸Six branches came out from the sides of the lampstand. There were three on one side and three on the other. ¹⁹On one branch there were three cups that were shaped like almond flowers with buds and blooms. There were three on the next branch. There were three on all six branches that came out from the lampstand.

²⁰On the lampstand there were four cups that were shaped like almond flowers with buds and blooms. ²¹One bud was under the first pair of branches that came out from the lampstand. A second bud was under the second pair. And a third bud was under the third pair. There was a total of six branches. ²²The buds and branches came out from the lampstand.

The whole lampstand was one piece that was hammered out of pure gold.

²³The workers made its seven lamps out of pure gold. They also made its trays and wick cutters out of pure gold. ²⁴They used 75 pounds of pure gold to make the lampstand and everything that was used with it.

The Altar for Burning Incense

²⁵The workers made an altar for burning incense. They made it out of acacia wood. It was one foot six inches square and three feet high. A horn stuck out from each of its upper four corners. ²⁶The workers covered the top, sides and horns with pure gold. They put a strip of gold around it.

²⁷They made two gold rings below the strip. They put the rings across from each other. The rings held the poles that were used to carry it. ²⁸The workers made the poles out of acacia wood. They covered them with gold.

²⁹They also made the sacred anointing oil and the pure, sweet-smelling incense. A person who makes perfume made them.

The Altar for Burnt Offerings

38The workers made the altar for burnt offerings out of acacia wood. It was four feet six inches high and seven feet six inches square. ²They made a horn stick out from each of its four upper corners. They covered the altar with bronze.

³They made all of its tools out of bronze. They made its pots, shovels, sprinkling bowls, meat forks, and pans for carrying ashes.

⁴They made a bronze grate for the altar. They put the grate halfway up the altar on the inside. ⁵They made a bronze ring for each of the four corners of the grate.

⁶They made poles out of acacia wood. They covered them with bronze. ⁷They put the poles through the rings. The poles were on two sides of the altar for carrying it.

The workers made the altar out of boards. They made it hollow.

The Large Bowl for Washing

⁸The workers made the large bronze bowl and its bronze stand. They made them out of the bronze mirrors that belonged to the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

The Courtyard

⁹Next, the workers made the courtyard. The south side was 150 feet long. It had curtains that were made out of finely twisted linen. ¹⁰The curtains had 20 posts and 20 bronze bases. The posts had silver hooks and bands on them.

¹¹The north side was also 150 feet long. Its curtains had 20 posts and 20 bronze bases. The posts had silver hooks and bands on them.

¹²The west end was 75 feet wide. It had curtains with ten posts and ten bases. The posts had silver hooks and bands on them.

¹³The east end, toward the sunrise, was also 75 feet wide. ¹⁴Curtains that were 22 feet six inches long were on one side of the entrance. They were hung on three posts. Each post had a base. ¹⁵Curtains that were 22 feet six inches long were also on the other side of the entrance to the courtyard. They were hung on three posts. Each post had a base.

¹⁶All of the curtains that were around the courtyard were made out of finely twisted linen. ¹⁷The bases for the posts were made out of bronze. The hooks and bands that were on the posts were made out of silver. Their tops were covered with silver. So all of the posts of the courtyard had silver bands.

¹⁸The curtain for the entrance to the courtyard was made out of blue, purple and bright red yarn and finely twisted linen. A person who sewed skillfully made it. It was 30 feet long. Like the curtains of the courtyard, it was seven feet six inches high. ¹⁹It had four posts and four bronze bases. Their hooks and bands were made out of silver. Their tops were covered with silver.

²⁰All of the tent stakes of the holy tent were made out of bronze. So were all of the stakes of the courtyard that was around it.

The Amounts of the Metals Used

²¹Here are the amounts of the metals that were used for the holy tent, where the tablets of the covenant were kept. Moses commanded the Levites to record the amounts. The Levites did the work under the direction of Ithamar. Ithamar was the son of the priest Aaron.

²²Bezalel, the son of Uri, made everything the Lord had commanded Moses. Uri was the son of Hur. Bezalel was from the tribe of Judah. ²³Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, helped Bezalel. Oholiab was from the tribe of Dan. He could carve things and make patterns. And he could sew skillfully with blue, purple and bright red yarn and on fine linen.

²⁴The total weight of the gold from the wave offering was more than a ton. It was weighed out in keeping with the standard weights that are used in the sacred tent. The gold was used for all of the work that was done in connection with the sacred tent.

²⁵The silver that was received from the men in the community who were listed and counted weighed four tons. It was weighed out in keeping with the weights used in the sacred tent. ²⁶It amounted to a fifth of an ounce for each person. It was weighed out in keeping with the weights used in the sacred tent. The silver was received from the men who had been listed and counted. All of them were 20 years old or more. Their total number was 603,550.

²⁷The four tons of silver were used to make the bases for the holy tent and for the curtain. The 100 bases were made from the four tons. Each base used more than 75 pounds of silver. ²⁸The workers used 45 pounds to make the hooks for the posts, to cover the tops of the posts, and to make their bands.

²⁹The bronze from the wave offering weighed two and a half tons. ³⁰The workers used some of it to make the bases for the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. They used some for the bronze altar for burnt offerings and its bronze grate and all of its tools. ³¹They used some for the bases for the courtyard that was around the holy tent. They used some for the bases for the courtyard entrance. And they used the rest to make all of the tent stakes for the holy tent and the courtyard that was around it.

The Clothes for the Priests

39The workers made clothes from the blue, purple and bright red yarn. The clothes were worn by those who served in the holy tent. The workers also made sacred clothes for Aaron. They made them just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

The Linen Apron

²The workers made the linen apron out of fine gold wire, and out of blue, purple and bright red yarn, and out of finely twisted linen. ³They hammered out thin sheets of gold. They cut it into fine wire. They sewed it into the blue, purple and bright red yarn and fine linen. A skilled worker made it. ⁴The workers made shoulder straps for the apron. The straps were joined to two of its corners.

⁵Its skillfully made waistband was made like it. The waistband was part of the apron itself. It was made out of fine gold wire, and out of blue, purple and bright red yarn, and out of finely twisted linen. The workers made it just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

⁶They put the onyx stones in fancy gold settings. They carved the names of the sons of Israel on them. They did it the way a person carves a seal. ⁷Then they connected them to the shoulder straps of the linen apron. The stones stood for the sons of Israel and were a reminder for them. The workers did those things just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

The Chest Cloth

⁸Skilled workers made the chest cloth. They made it like the linen apron. They used fine gold wire, and blue, purple and bright red yarn, and finely twisted linen. ⁹The chest cloth was nine inches square. It was folded in half.

¹⁰They put four rows of valuable jewels on it. A ruby, a topaz and a beryl were in the first row. ¹¹A turquoise, a sapphire and an emerald were in the second row. ¹²A jacinth, an agate and an amethyst were in the third row. ¹³And a chrysolite, an onyx and a…