Making the Garments for the Priests

(Ex 28:1–14)

39 With the blue, purple, and red wool they made the magnificent garments which the priests were to wear when they served in the Holy Place. They made the priestly garments for Aaron, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

2 They made the ephod of fine linen; blue, purple, and red wool; and gold thread. 3They hammered out sheets of gold and cut them into thin strips to be worked into the fine linen and into the blue, purple, and red wool. 4They made two shoulder straps for the ephod and attached them to its sides, so that it could be fastened. 5The finely woven belt, made of the same materials, was attached to the ephod so as to form one piece with it, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 6They prepared the carnelians and mounted them in gold settings; they were skilfully engraved with the names of the twelve sons of Jacob. 7They put them on the shoulder straps of the ephod to represent the twelve tribes of Israel, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Making the Breast-plate

(Ex 28:15–30)

8 They made the breast-piece of the same materials as the ephod and with similar embroidery. 9It was square and folded double, 22 centimetres long and 22 centimetres wide. 10They mounted four rows of precious stones on it: in the first row they mounted a ruby, a topaz, and a garnet; 11in the second row, an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond; 12in the third row, a turquoise, an agate, and an amethyst; 13and in the fourth row, a beryl, a carnelian, and a jasper. These were mounted in gold settings. 14Each of the twelve stones had engraved on it the name of one of the sons of Jacob, in order to represent the twelve tribes of Israel. 15For the breast-piece they made chains of pure gold, twisted like cords. 16They made two gold settings and two gold rings and attached the two rings to the upper corners of the breast-piece. 17They fastened the two gold cords to the two rings 18and fastened the other two ends of the cords to the two settings and in this way attached them in front to the shoulder straps of the ephod. 19They made two rings of gold and attached them to the lower corners of the breast-piece, on the inside edge next to the ephod. 20They made two more gold rings and attached them to the lower part of the front of the two shoulder straps of the ephod, near the seam and above the finely woven belt. 21Just as the Lord had commanded Moses, they tied the rings of the breast-piece to the rings of the ephod with a blue cord, so that the breast-piece rested above the belt and did not come loose.

Making the Other Priestly Garments

(Ex 28:31–43)

22 The robe that goes under the ephod was made entirely of blue wool. 23The hole for the head was reinforced with a woven binding to keep it from tearing. 24–26All round its lower hem they put pomegranates of fine linen and of blue, purple, and red wool, alternating with bells of pure gold, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

27 They made the shirts for Aaron and his sons, 28and the turban, the caps, the linen shorts, 29and the sash of fine linen and of blue, purple, and red wool, decorated with embroidery, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 30They made the ornament, the sacred sign of dedication, out of pure gold, and they engraved on it “Dedicated to the Lord”. 31They tied it to the front of the turban with a blue cord, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

The Completion of the Work

(Ex 35:10–19)

32 All the work on the Tent of the Lord’s presence was finally completed. The Israelites made everything just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 33They brought to Moses the Tent and all its equipment, its hooks, its frames, its crossbars, its posts, and its bases; 34the covering of rams’ skin dyed red; the covering of fine leather; the curtain; 35the Covenant Box containing the stone tablets, its poles, and its lid; 36the table and all its equipment, and the bread offered to God; 37the lamp-stand of pure gold, its lamps, all its equipment, and the oil for the lamps; 38the gold altar; the anointing oil; the sweet-smelling incense; the curtain for the entrance of the Tent; 39the bronze altar with its bronze grating, its poles, and all its equipment; the washbasin and its base; 40the curtains for the enclosure and its posts and bases; the curtain for the entrance of the enclosure and its ropes; the pegs for the Tent; all the equipment to be used in the Tent; 41and the magnificent garments the priests were to wear in the Holy Place—the sacred clothes for Aaron the priest and for his sons. 42The Israelites had done all the work just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 43Moses examined everything and saw that they had made it all just as the Lord had commanded. So Moses blessed them.