Exodus
Exodus 39
1Of the blue, purple, and scarlet, they made finely worked garments for ministering in the holy place, and made the holy garments for Aaron, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
2He made the ephod of gold, blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twined linen. 3They beat the gold into thin plates, and cut it into wires, to work it in with the blue, the purple, the scarlet, and the fine linen, the work of the skillful workman. 4They made shoulder straps for it, joined together. It was joined together at the two ends. 5The skillfully woven band that was on it, with which to fasten it on, was of the same piece, like its work: of gold, of blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twined linen, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
6They worked the onyx stones, enclosed in settings of gold, engraved with the engravings of a signet, according to the names of the children of Israel. 7He put them on the shoulder straps of the ephod, to be stones of memorial for the children of Israel, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
8He made the breastplate, the work of a skillful workman, like the work of the ephod: of gold, of blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twined linen. 9It was square. They made the breastplate double. Its length was a span, and its width a span, being double. 10They set in it four rows of stones. A row of ruby, topaz, and beryl was the first row; 11and the second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and an emerald; 12and the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; 13and the fourth row, a chrysolite, an onyx, and a jasper. They were enclosed in gold settings. 14The stones were according to the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names; like the engravings of a signet, everyone according to his name, for the twelve tribes. 15They made on the breastplate chains like cords, of braided work of pure gold. 16They made two settings of gold, and two gold rings, and put the two rings on the two ends of the breastplate. 17They put the two braided chains of gold in the two rings at the ends of the breastplate. 18The other two ends of the two braided chains they put on the two settings, and put them on the shoulder straps of the ephod, in its front. 19They made two rings of gold, and put them on the two ends of the breastplate, on its edge, which was toward the side of the ephod inward. 20They made two more rings of gold, and put them on the two shoulder straps of the ephod underneath, in its front, close by its coupling, above the skillfully woven band of the ephod. 21They bound the breastplate by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, that it might be on the skillfully woven band of the ephod, and that the breastplate might not come loose from the ephod, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
22He made the robe of the ephod of woven work, all of blue. 23The opening of the robe in the middle of it was like the opening of a coat of mail, with a binding around its opening, that it should not be torn. 24They made on the skirts of the robe pomegranates of blue, purple, scarlet, and twined linen. 25They made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates around the skirts of the robe, between the pomegranates; 26a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, around the skirts of the robe, to minister in, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
27They made the tunics of fine linen of woven work for Aaron and for his sons, 28the turban of fine linen, the linen headbands of fine linen, the linen trousers of fine twined linen, 29the sash of fine twined linen, blue, purple, and scarlet, the work of the embroiderer, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
30They made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote on it an inscription, like the engravings of a signet: “HOLY TO YAHWEH”. 31They tied to it a lace of blue, to fasten it on the turban above, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
32Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the Tent of Meeting was finished. The children of Israel did according to all that Yahweh commanded Moses; so they did. 33They brought the tabernacle to Moses: the tent, with all its furniture, its clasps, its boards, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, 34the covering of rams’ skins dyed red, the covering of sea cow hides, the veil of the screen, 35the ark of the covenant with its poles, the mercy seat, 36the table, all its vessels, the show bread, 37the pure lamp stand, its lamps, even the lamps to be set in order, all its vessels, the oil for the light, 38the golden altar, the anointing oil, the sweet incense, the screen for the door of the Tent, 39the bronze altar, its grating of bronze, its poles, all of its vessels, the basin and its base, 40the hangings of the court, its pillars, its sockets, the screen for the gate of the court, its cords, its pins, and all the instruments of the service of the tabernacle, for the Tent of Meeting, 41the finely worked garments for ministering in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest’s office. 42According to all that Yahweh commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did all the work. 43Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it as Yahweh had commanded. They had done so; and Moses blessed them.
Commentary
No commentary on this chapter yet.
What others are saying
4 commentators · 22 notes on this chapter
Matthew Henry2
Writes as a pastor rather than a critic. Expect devotional and practical application over historical or linguistic analysis, read through a Reformed covenantal frame — and expect the Old Testament to be read forward toward Christ throughout.
Why this voice is here: The most widely read English commentary for three centuries. Included as a baseline: where Henry and a modern voice diverge, the divergence itself is usually the interesting part.
In this account of the making of the priests' garments, according to the instructions given (ch. 28), we may observe, 1. That the priests' garments are called here clothes of service, Exo 39:1. Note, Those that wear robes of honour must look upon them as…
Observe here, I. The builders of the tabernacle made very good despatch. It was not much more than five months from the beginning to the finishing of it. Though there was a great deal of fine work about it, such as is usually the work of time, embroidering…
John Gill5
The most exhaustive and the most doctrinally committed here. Expect high — even supralapsarian — Calvinism applied consistently, and unusually heavy use of rabbinic and Talmudic sources for Jewish context. Where a passage bears on election or the will, Gill will read it in one direction, and knowing that in advance is the point.
Why this voice is here: The strongest Calvinist reading available in the public domain, and the best on Jewish background. Read alongside Clarke, not instead of him — between them you get both sides of the argument.
And of the blue, and purple, and scarlet, they made cloths of service,.... Jarchi observes that there is no mention made of linen, because these were not the priestly garments in which there was linen; but these were they with which they covered the vessels…
And he made the ephod of gold,.... From hence to the end of verse thirty one we have a very particular account of the making of the priest's garments exactly according to the directions given to Moses; see Gill on Exodus 28:1 &c. to end of chapter twenty…
Thus was all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation finished,.... Both the tabernacle, consisting of the court, the holy place, and the most holy place, and the tent or covering that was over it, with all things appertaining to the service…
Adam Clarke11
The linguist of this set. Expect Hebrew and Greek word study, oriental custom, and geography — and an Arminian reading of grace and free will where Gill or Henry would read election. Note one real divergence: Clarke denied the eternal sonship of Christ, a position most of the tradition rejects, so read him closely on the person of Christ.
Why this voice is here: Where you want to know what a word actually says, Clarke is the one who will tell you — with the caveat above on Christ’s sonship.
Blue and purple, and scarlet - See this subject largely explained in the notes on Exo 25:4 (note).
Ephod - See this described, Exo 25:7 (note).
They did beat the gold into thin plates - For the purpose, as it is supposed, of cutting it into wires (פתילם) or threads; for to twist or twine is the common acceptation of the root פתל pathal. I cannot suppose that the Israelites had not then the art of…
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown4
The concise option. Three authors split the canon, so the voice shifts between sections. Expect brief, sober, conservative notes that resolve difficulties rather than dwelling on them — useful for orientation, thinner than Gill or Clarke where a passage is genuinely contested.
Why this voice is here: The quickest way to see what the mainstream Reformed reading of a passage is. Start here, then go to Gill or Clarke when it matters.
cut the gold into wires to work it--that is, the metal was beaten with a hammer into thin plates, cut with scissors or some other instrument into long slips, then rounded into filaments or threads. "Cloth of golden tissue is not uncommon on the monuments, and…
a writing, like to the engravings of a signet--The seal-ring worn both by ancient and modern Egyptians on the little finger of the right hand, contained, inscribed on a cornelian or other precious stone, along with the owner's name, a religious sentiment or…
the covering of rams' skin dyed red--(See on Exo 25:5). It was probably red morocco leather and "badgers' skins," rather "the skins of the tahash, supposed to be the dugong, or dolphin of the Red Sea, the skin of which is still used by the Arabs under the…
World English Bible — Public domain