Exodus
39
(This chapter seems to be a fitting closing chapter to the
last fourteen chapters [chps.
25-39] – It is said over and over here, “as the Lord commanded Moses” coupled
with “so they {people} made” – we
are tempted to think that this is rather boring
reading –
remember that God had told Moses “See, saith He, that thou make all
things according to the pattern shewed to thee in
the mount” (Hebrews 8:5) –
the earlier chapters 25-39
tell of God’s directions and the later ones tell of Moses
and the people carrying out
the directions as directed! WOULD TO
GOD THAT
WE WOULD
CARRY OUT ALL OF GOD’S WORD AND
HAS
DIRECTED –
For the symbolism of each piece of work, furniture of the
tabernacle, or
attire of the priests – see each of the chapters individually and
look for the commentary on
its symbolism – chps. 25-38 -CY – 2010)
THE FURTHER PROGRESS OF
THE WORK
THE MAKING OF THE PRIEST’S DRESSES (vs. 1-31)
The
entire work for the structure of the tabernacle being completed, it only
remained
for Bezaleel and Aholiab to take in hand the priestly vestments, which had
been
prescribed with the greatest elaboration in ch. 28:4-40. The present chapter is mainly
occupied in relating how the vestments were made,
and follows, very nearly, the order
of the directions. Vs. 1-7 correspond to ch. 28:5-14; vs. 8-21 to ch.
28:15-38;
vs. 22-26 to ch.
28:31-34; vs. 27-29 to ch. 28:39-40; and vs. 30-31 to
ch. 28:36-37.
1 “And of the blue, and purple, and scarlet, they made cloths of service,
to do service in the holy place, and made the
holy garments for Aaron; as the
LORD commanded Moses.” Of the blue, and purple, and
scarlet — i.e., of the
blue, purple, and scarlet thread
which
had been spun by the women, and brought
to Moses. See ch. 35:25. The
omission of “fine linen” seems to be
accidental. Cloths of
service. See the comment on ch.
31:10.
2 “And he made the ephod of gold, blue, and purple, and
scarlet, and fine
twined linen.
3 And they did beat the gold into thin plates, and cut it into
wires, to work it in the blue, and in the
purple, and in the scarlet, and in the
fine linen, with cunning work.” They did beat the gold into thin plates and
out it into wires. This mode of producing gold thread is
remarkable, and had
not been previously mentioned
4 “They
made shoulder-pieces for it,
to couple it together: by the two edges
was it coupled together. 5 And
the curious girdle of his ephod, that was upon it,
was of the same, according to the work
thereof; of gold, blue, and purple, and
scarlet, and fine twined linen; as the LORD commanded Moses. 6 And they
wrought onyx stones enclosed in ouches of gold,
graven, as signets are graven,
with the names of the children of
of the ephod, that they should be stones for
a memorial to the children of
Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses. 8 And he made the breastplate
of cunning work, like the work of the ephod; of gold, blue, and purple, and
scarlet, and fine twined linen.”
9 “It was
foursquare; they made the breastplate double: a span was the length
thereof, and a span the breadth thereof, being
doubled.” For a memorial.
Compare ch. 28:12.
10 “And they set in it four rows of stones: the first row
was a sardius, a topaz,
and a carbuncle: this was the first row. 11 And
the second row, an emerald,
a sapphire, and a diamond. 12 And
the third row, a ligure (probably
a jacinth),
an agate, and an amethyst. 13 And the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a
jasper: they
were enclosed in ouches of gold in their enclosings.” On the
probable stones intended, see the comment upon ch. 28:17-20.
14 “And
the stones were according to the names of the children of Israel,
twelve, according to their names, like the
engravings of a signet, every one
with his name, according to the twelve
tribes. 15 And they made upon the
breastplate chains at the ends, of wreathen work of
pure gold. 16 And
they made two ouches of gold, and two gold rings; and put the two rings
in the two ends of the breastplate.” Two ouches of gold. Compare ch. 28:13, 25.
17 “And they put the two wreathen chains of gold in the two
rings on the
ends of the breastplate. 18 And
the two ends of the two wreathen chains
they fastened in the two ouches, and put them on the shoulder-pieces of
the ephod, before it. 19 And they made two rings of gold, and put them
on the two ends of the breastplate, upon the
border of it, which was on
the side of the ephod inward. 20 And they made two other golden rings, and
put them on the two sides of the ephod underneath, toward the forepart of it,
over against the other coupling thereof, above
the curious girdle of the ephod.
21 And they did
bind the breastplate by his
rings unto the rings of the ephod with
a lace of blue, that it might be above the
curious girdle of the ephod, and that the
breastplate might not be loosed from the ephod; as the LORD commanded Moses.
22 And he made the robe of the ephod of woven work, all
of blue. 23 And there
was an hole in the midst of the robe, as the
hole of an habergeon, with a band
round about the hole, that it should not
rend. 24 And they made upon the hems
of the robe pomegranates of blue, and purple,
and scarlet, and twined linen.”
And
twined linen. Rather
“twined,” i.e., twisted together. There was no direction to
use “fine twined linen” in making the pomegranates. See ch. 28:33
25 “And they made bells of pure gold, and put the bells
between the
pomegranates upon the hem of the robe, round about
between the pomegranates;
26 A bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, round about the hem
of the robe to minister in; as the LORD commanded Moses. 27 And they made
coats of fine linen of woven work for Aaron, and for his sons,” Coats of fine
linen of woven work for Aaron and
for his sons. Compare ch. 28:39-40.
28 “And a mitre of fine linen, and goodly bonnets of fine linen, and linen
breeches of fine twined linen,” A mitre…
and goodly bonnets. The “mitre”
for Aaron (ch. 28:37-39), the “goodly bonnets,” or rather
“caps” for his sons
(ibid. v. 40). The “linen breeches”, or
drawers, were for both (ibid. vs. 42-43).
29 “And a girdle of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet,
of needlework; as the LORD commanded Moses.” A girdle of fine twined
linen, etc. In
the directions of ch. 28:39, this is called simply, “A girdle of needlework.”
30 “And they made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold,
and wrote
upon it a writing, like to the engravings of a
signet, HOLINESS
TO THE LORD.
31 And they tied unto it a lace of blue, to fasten it on
high upon the mitre; as the
LORD commanded Moses.” The
plate of the holy crown. See ch.29:6, and
compare ch. 28:36. To
fasten it on high. This was not mentioned in the directions,
which only ordered that it should be placed in front
(ch.28:37).
The Priests and their Garments (vs. 1-31)
(See homily on ch. 28:1-43 – this website)
THE GENERAL APPROVAL OF THE WORK BY MOSES (vs. 32-43)
The
remainder of the chapter (vs. 32-43) contains a recapitulation of the work
done,
and a statement that it was all submitted to
Moses and approved by him. Everything
was brought to Moses for his approval — not perhaps all things
at once, but each as it
was finished — and was judged by him “according to the pattern which he had seen
upon the mount” - (chps. 25:40; 26:30)..
The order observed in the enumeration is
nearly, but not quite, the order in which it has been
stated that the various things were
made. We must
suppose that if Moses disapproved of anything, it was rejected; but no
disapproval is mentioned.
32 “Thus
was all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation
finished: and the
children of
commanded Moses, so did they. 33 And they brought the tabernacle unto
Moses, the tent, and all his furniture,
his taches, his boards, his bars, and his
pillars, and his
sockets, 34
And the covering of rams’
skins dyed red, and the
covering of
badgers’ skins, and the vail of the covering,
35
The ark of the
testimony, and the staves thereof, and the mercy seat, 36 The table, and all the
vessels thereof, and the shewbread, 37
The pure candlestick,
with the lamps
thereof, even with the lamps to be
set in order, and all the vessels thereof, and
the oil for light, 38
And the golden altar, and
the anointing oil, and the sweet
incense,
and the hanging for the
tabernacle door, 39 The brasen altar,
and his
grate of brass, his staves, and all his vessels,
the laver and his foot, 40
The
hangings of the court, his pillars, and his
sockets, and the hanging for the
court gate, his cords, and his pins, and all the
vessels of the service of the
tabernacle, for the tent of the congregation, 41 The cloths of service to do
service in the holy place, and the holy garments
for Aaron the priest, and his
sons’ garments, to minister in the priest’s
office. 42
According to all that the
LORD commanded Moses, so the children of
43 And Moses
did look upon all the work, and, behold, they
had done it as
the LORD had commanded, even so had they done it: and
Moses blessed them.”
Accordingly
Moses concluded all by “blessing” them;
thereby signifying, not his
own approval only, but the Divine approval, of their
diligence and obedience.
The Clothes of Service (vs. 1-41)
Ø Their splendor. They were fashioned of gold and jewels, and
blue, and
purple, and scarlet. God gives glory
to His servants. He makes us kings
and priests unto Himself. (Revelation 1:6) The spiritual nobleness and
beauty given now are but the earnest of the glory which will be hereafter.
Ø Their purpose: they were clothes of service. The honor and comeliness
which God bestows are for service to Him in the midst of our brethren,
not to minister to our own:
o spiritual pride and
o unbrotherly judgment.
LORD’S
COMMANDMENT, “As the Lord commanded Moses”
(5, 7, 21, 26, 29, 31). “The children of
Lord commanded Moses, so did
they” (v. 32). “And Moses did look upon
all the work; and
behold, they had done it as the Lord had commanded,
even so had they done it” (v. 43).
Ø There was no deficiency: no part of the work was slighted. We may not
abate anything of all the Lord has
commanded. The ordinances must be
observed as they have been delivered
to us. The cross which Jesus has
called us to take up in His service
must not be laid aside.
Ø There was no excess. No room was given for the exercise of fancy, or
taste, or judgment, as to what
might better impress, or improve, the
vulgar. There was only
one solicitude — to do what
the Lord had
commanded. He alone is
master here. We are merely servants. The
things which God had not commanded were as carefully kept out of
the worship as the things He had commanded were kept in it.
Ø “And Moses blessed them.” Serving God thus, the
blessing of
A GREATER THAN MOSES will rest upon us. And there awaits
us in the eternal light the “Well done! good and faithful servant!
......enter into the joy of
thy Lord!” (Matthew
25:23)
The Commanded Work Completed and Commended (vs.
42-43)
long this work took to do. That it could not be done
in a few days or even
a few weeks is plain; but it is equally plain
that however long the time was,
the work was done with steadiness and devotion. There is
no mention of
any hitch or unseemly dispute; all seems to have
gone on with holy industry
and patience to the end. Looking, then, on this
work, for which a special
endowment of the Spirit’s help was given, and which
was completed, we
are bound also to feel that the work for which God in Christ has given His
Spirit to His Church in
these latter days will also be accomplished. Hindered
and fragmentary is the appearance that it now
presents; but it is going on.
The wonderful manifestations of Pentecost are the pledge of
a work that
some day will have finis (end, conclusion) written
upon it. Amid all the
uncertainties of prophecy;
amid all the hapless guesses with respect to the
time of events, one thing is clear, that the prophecies point to a
CONSUMATION! There is a συντέλεια – sunteleia – consumation; end –
to the work
of the Church even as to this typical work of Bezaleel and
Aholiab.
may be sure, had also inspected the work of Bezaleel and Aholiab; some to
praise, some also to carp. But it is
not those whom men commend who are
really praiseworthy, nor those whom
men censure who are censurable.
Moses looks, and ever as he looks there is the remembrance
of his solemn
sojourn in the mount. He has in his
instructed mind the standard of success
and excellence. Let us also, as being invited to become temples of the
living God — temple and sacrifice comprised in the varied
faculties of one
living organism — consider the rigorous demand which is made on us.
These sacred articles, fashioned from perishable materials,
and by human
hands, were yet such that they
could be stamped with Divine approval; and
thus they are meant to direct us,
that we may fashion all our life, in
affections, in aims, and in service, according to the pattern given in the
mount — that
mount in
willing to admit his authority.
There had been so much disobedience and pursuit of selfish
aims before,
that when an obedience comes like the one mentioned
here, it is important
to note the way in which God smiles upon it. For
the blessing of Moses is
as the smile of God. God is as quick to show
approval of all compliance
with His wishes as He is to frown upon all disregard
of them; only, as men
will have it, there is more occasion for the
frowning than for the favor.
This commendation is more fully expressed in ch. 40:34 – “Then a cloud
covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled
the tabernacle” - where the
wrapping of the tabernacle with the glory-cloud
signifies that what God did through
Moses in the well-understood formula
of blessing, He could also do Himself by His own
miraculous manifestations.
The successful work here and the immediate recognition of it
serve to show,
in a more condemnatory aspect, the subsequent
transgression of the people.
In the making of the tabernacle-furniture, they had recognized
the claims
of God, and God had recognized their ability to
meet His claims. He knew
that they could not yet be obedient in all things; He
only asked that they
should be obedient as far as they
were able to be obedient. They had shown
their ability once; and it was their great blame that they did
not show it
again and again.
A
Blessing Upon Obedience (v. 43)
It is not every
kind of obedience that brings down a blessing upon it. To deserve the
Divine
approval, and obtain the Divine benediction, obedience must be, as was that
here recorded:
had they done it”
(v. 43).
seventh month, since Sinai was not reached till the
third month (ch.19:1),
and Moses passed in conference with God nearly three months.
Yet
the whole
was finished before the year was out (see Exodus 40:1). Thus it
appears
that six months sufficed for the completion of everything.
mistakes. All
comprehended the orders given to them, and each carried out
his
assigned portion. Unless this had been the case very generally, it is
impossible
that all would have been ready by the end of the year. The rapid
completion
of the work proves the intelligence of the workmen, Note what
is said of
their being “wise-hearted” (ch. 36:1, 2, 8). Men, for the most
part, think
to obtain the supreme blessing of eternal life, though their
obedience
has been:
Ø Partial and
inexact;
Ø Tardy;
Ø Marred by misapprehension
of the commands given them.
They do not seem to imagine that
there will be any real inspection of their
work, such as
that which is here ascribed to Moses. “Moses
did look upon
all the work” (v. 43). Yet surely at the
last day, man’s work will be
tested
in some real, searching way. Whatever may be meant by the
expression
— “The fire shall try every man’s work”
( Corinthians 3:13),
at any
rate, some trial there will be. Faithful
service to Christ will be
rewarded by a blessing exceeding all that we can “ask or
think” -
(Ephesians
3:20-21) but there will be minute inquiry, whether the service
has been
indeed faithful.
(This chapter
has been short in comment but exceedingly great in instruction.
Remember “the Lord commanded” and the
people “so did they”! – CY –
2010)
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