361 "Bezalel and Oholiab, along with everyone whom God has given the skill and know-how for making everything involved in the worship of the Sanctuary as commanded by God, are to start to work."
2 Moses summoned Bezalel and Oholiab along with all whom God had gifted with the ability to work skillfully with their hands. The men were eager to get started and engage in the work. 3 They took from Moses all the offerings that the Israelites had brought for the work of constructing the Sanctuary. The people kept on bringing in their freewill offerings, morning after morning. 4 All the artisans who were at work making everything involved in constructing the Sanctuary came, one after another, 5 to Moses, saying, "The people are bringing more than enough for doing this work that God has commanded us to do!" 6 So Moses sent out orders through the camp: "Men! Women! No more offerings for the building of the Sanctuary!" 7 There was plenty of material for all the work to be done. Enough and more than enough. The Tapestries
8 Then all the skilled artisans on The Dwelling made ten tapestries of fine twisted linen and blue, purple, and scarlet fabric with an angel-cherubim design worked into the material. 9 Each panel of tapestry was forty-six feet long and six feet wide. 10 Five of the panels were joined together, and then the other five. 11 Loops of blue were made along the edge of the outside panel of the first set, and the same on the outside panel of the second set. 12 They made fifty loops on each panel, with the loops opposite each other. 13 Then they made fifty gold clasps and joined the tapestries together so that The Dwelling was one whole.
14 Next they made tapestries of woven goat hair for a tent that would cover The Dwelling. They made eleven panels of these tapestries. 15 The length of each panel was forty-five feet long and six feet wide. 16 They joined five of the panels together, and then the other six, 17 by making fifty loops along the edge of the end panel and fifty loops along the edge of the joining panel, 18 then making fifty clasps of bronze, connecting the clasps to the loops, bringing the tent together. 19 They finished it off by covering the tapestries with tanned rams' skins dyed red, and covered that with dolphin skins. The Framing 20 They framed The Dwelling with vertical planks of acacia wood, 21 each section of frame fifteen feet long and two and a quarter feet wide, 22 with two pegs for securing them. They made all the frames identical:
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Exodus 36:1-22
Chapter Contents
The making of the tabernacle The liberality of the people restrained.
The readiness and zeal with which these builders set about their work, the exactness with which they performed it, and the faithfulness with which they objected to receive more contributions, are worthy of our imitation. Thus should we serve God, and our superiors also, in all things lawful. Thus should all who are in public trusts abhor filthy lucre, and avoid all occasions and temptations to covetousness. Where have we the representation of God's love towards us, that we by love dwell in him and he in us, save in Emmanuel? John 1:14, wherein, as the original expresses it, he did tabernacle among us.