Exodus 39:32–40:38

Moses Inspects the Work

³²And so at last the Tabernacle was finished. The Israelites had done everything just as the Lord had commanded Moses. ³³And they brought the entire Tabernacle to Moses:

the sacred tent with all its furnishings, clasps, frames, crossbars, posts, and bases;

³⁴the tent coverings of tanned ram skins and fine goatskin leather;

the inner curtain to shield the Ark;

³⁵the Ark of the Covenant and its carrying poles;

the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement;

³⁶the table and all its utensils;

the Bread of the Presence;

³⁷the pure gold lampstand with its symmetrical lamp cups, all its accessories, and the olive oil for lighting;

³⁸the gold altar;

the anointing oil and fragrant incense;

the curtain for the entrance of the sacred tent;

³⁹the bronze altar;

the bronze grating and its carrying poles and utensils;

the washbasin with its stand;

⁴⁰the curtains for the walls of the courtyard;

the posts and their bases;

the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard;

the ropes and tent pegs;

all the furnishings to be used in worship at the Tabernacle;

⁴¹the beautifully stitched garments for the priests to wear while ministering in the Holy Place—the sacred garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments for his sons to wear as they minister as priests.

⁴²So the people of Israel followed all of the Lord’s instructions to Moses. ⁴³Then Moses inspected all their work. When he found it had been done just as the Lord had commanded him, he blessed them.

Chapter 40

The Tabernacle Completed

Then the Lord said to Moses, ²“Set up the Tabernacle on the first day of the new year. ³Place the Ark of the Covenant inside, and install the inner curtain to enclose the Ark within the Most Holy Place. ⁴Then bring in the table, and arrange the utensils on it. And bring in the lampstand, and set up the lamps.

⁵“Place the gold incense altar in front of the Ark of the Covenant. Then hang the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle. ⁶Place the altar of burnt offering in front of the Tabernacle entrance. ⁷Set the washbasin between the Tabernacle and the altar, and fill it with water. ⁸Then set up the courtyard around the outside of the tent, and hang the curtain for the courtyard entrance.

⁹“Take the anointing oil and anoint the Tabernacle and all its furnishings to consecrate them and make them holy. ¹⁰Anoint the altar of burnt offering and its utensils to consecrate them. Then the altar will become absolutely holy. ¹¹Next anoint the washbasin and its stand to consecrate them.

¹²“Present Aaron and his sons at the entrance of the Tabernacle, and wash them with water. ¹³Dress Aaron with the sacred garments and anoint him, consecrating him to serve me as a priest. ¹⁴Then present his sons and dress them in their tunics. ¹⁵Anoint them as you did their father, so they may also serve me as priests. With their anointing, Aaron’s descendants are set apart for the priesthood forever, from generation to generation.”

¹⁶Moses proceeded to do everything just as the Lord had commanded him. ¹⁷So the Tabernacle was set up on the first day of the first month of the second year. ¹⁸Moses erected the Tabernacle by setting down its bases, inserting the frames, attaching the crossbars, and setting up the posts. ¹⁹Then he spread the coverings over the Tabernacle framework and put on the protective layers, just as the Lord had commanded him.

²⁰He took the stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant and placed them inside the Ark. Then he attached the carrying poles to the Ark, and he set the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—on top of it. ²¹Then he brought the Ark of the Covenant into the Tabernacle and hung the inner curtain to shield it from view, just as the Lord had commanded him.

²²Next Moses placed the table in the Tabernacle, along the north side of the Holy Place, just outside the inner curtain. ²³And he arranged the Bread of the Presence on the table before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded him.

²⁴He set the lampstand in the Tabernacle across from the table on the south side of the Holy Place. ²⁵Then he lit the lamps in the Lord’s presence, just as the Lord had commanded him. ²⁶He also placed the gold incense altar in the Tabernacle, in the Holy Place in front of the inner curtain. ²⁷On it he burned the fragrant incense, just as the Lord had commanded him.

²⁸He hung the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle, ²⁹and he placed the altar of burnt offering near the Tabernacle entrance. On it he offered a burnt offering and a grain offering, just as the Lord had commanded him.

³⁰Next Moses placed the washbasin between the Tabernacle and the altar. He filled it with water so the priests could wash themselves. ³¹Moses and Aaron and Aaron’s sons used water from it to wash their hands and feet. ³²Whenever they approached the altar and entered the Tabernacle, they washed themselves, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

³³Then he hung the curtains forming the courtyard around the Tabernacle and the altar. And he set up the curtain at the entrance of the courtyard. So at last Moses finished the work.

The Lord’s Glory Fills the Tabernacle

³⁴Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. ³⁵Moses could no longer enter the Tabernacle because the cloud had settled down over it, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.

³⁶Now whenever the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out on their journey, following it. ³⁷But if the cloud did not rise, they remained where they were until it lifted. ³⁸The cloud of the Lord hovered over the Tabernacle during the day, and at night fire glowed inside the cloud so the whole family of Israel could see it. This continued throughout all their journeys.