ETB Exodus 25:1-9; 31:1-6

Session 9: 1/26/2025 Instructions p.82

Ask: Did you ever have a class in which you thought, “I will never use this after I get out of this class”? If so, what class was it? How have you been able to use that information?

Some people, especially children, think this way about “all that church stuff.” Without the Spirit of God to open our minds and hearts to the truths of His Word, church services and bible studies create more questions than answers.

Children want to know where God is. Honestly, adults have trouble answering that question too. He is bigger than everything, yet the Bible usually speaks of God dwelling, acting, and speaking with humanity in a single location because of our limitations to time and space. I can be here now and somewhere else later, but God is always in both places. Eventually God became a baby in a manger, a sacrifice on a cross, and a victor over the grave. Ultimately, though, He did not come simply to dwell with us, but to prepare us to dwell with Him.

That’s the message of the tabernacle, we will look at today. [LifeWay Adults (2025). Explore the Bible: Adult Leader Guide, Winter 2024-’25]

Transition: God had done a lot to teach His people things they needed to know—both about Him and about how He expected them to live. Now, He was ready to give them an object lesson that would remind them of His presence every day and His desire to have an ongoing relationship with them.

Understand the Context

Last week we briefly looked as some of the rules that God established for the treatment of other people, both within the nation of Israel and its sojourners. Today’s pronouncements revolve around making preparations for a place of worship and God’s presence within the camp.

As described in the previous session, Exodus 24:1-11 recounts the ratification ceremony that formalized God’s covenant with Israel. The incarnation had not yet occurred, when “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). Neither had God’s judgment fallen on His Son so that the sanctuary curtain was torn and God’s people given the chance to approach Him directly (Matt. 27:51). Only Israel’s official representatives, especially Moses, could travel up the mountain to meet with God.

Nevertheless, what was happening at Sinai was a giant leap forward in God’s redemptive plan. First, Moses came down and recited all God’s instructions to the people (Ex. 20:1–23:19). For a second time, the people promised to obey God’s commands fully (24:3; see also 19:8). Then Moses wrote the instructions in “the Book of the Covenant.”

The next event foreshadowed the climax of God’s redemptive plan. Moses took Israel’s official representatives up the mountain. God protected them during the experience, but Moses made it clear that they did experience the presence of God in that place. In fact, God hosted them to a meal (24:9-11).

Between references to the tablets of stone (Ex. 24:12; 31:18), Moses spent forty days and nights on the mountain. During those weeks, he received God’s detailed instructions for building the tabernacle and its furnishings. The Lord also outlined its operation and His expectations for the priests who would serve there (25:1–31:17). These directions are the focus for this session. [ETB:ALG Win’25]

Explore the Text

Exodus 25:1–7 ESV

1 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me. 3 And this is the contribution that you shall receive from them: gold, silver, and bronze, 4 blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, goats’ hair, 5 tanned rams’ skins, goatskins, acacia wood, 6 oil for the lamps, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, 7 onyx stones, and stones for setting, for the ephod and for the breastpiece.

The Lord said to Moses

This phrase is the beginning of a pattern. Moses comes before God, God speaks, Moses returns and "speaks” to the people.

Based on the seven uses of this statement in the larger context of 25:1–31:17, scholars often divide the section into these seven speeches:

Ex. 25:1–30:10

Ex. 30:11-16

Ex. 30:17-21

Ex. 30:22-33

Ex. 30:34-38

Ex. 31:1-11

Ex. 31:12-17

The frequent use of the phrase reinforces God’s authority as Creator of all and Lord over Israel. It also reminds readers of the unique and crucial role played by Moses in this passage. [ETB:ALG Win’25]

take for me a contribution

Old Testament Theology, Volume 3: Israel’s Life Gifts

All sacrifice involves the giving of a gift to the deity. But gifts can have a variety of meanings. In human relationships, giving can be an expression of love or gratitude or regret, or a way of seeking to create or develop a relationship or an obligation or a commitment, or it can be a bribe.

Although Moses and the elders were to “take” what was given, they were not to remove it from the possession of the people. Some of the other English translations reflect the possible context of the Hebrew word with “receive” or “accept.”

The word also can be translated “offering.” At the burning bush, God promised that Pharaoh would free His people and that they would plunder Egypt in the process (3:21). That promise was fulfilled in Exodus 12:36.

God had blessed Israel with the resources they needed for their journey. Now He asked them to bring some of their possessions to be used in the tabernacle (35:21-29). Most of these materials probably came from what the Egyptians forfeited after the Passover, though some could have come from trading with caravans in the Sinai. [ETB:ALG Win’25]

every man whose heart moves

A free will offering. These were to be gifts not compulsory. Later God would prescribe the tithe and “required” offerings.

God would “take” only what was freely offered. The verb moves suggests a voluntary gift. It is related to the freewill offering (Ex. 35:29; 36:3), one of three fellowship (shalom) offerings (see Lev. 7:11-21). The freewill offering was surely on Paul’s mind in 2 Corinthians 8–9. [ETB:ALG Win’25]

2 Corinthians 9:7 “7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

you shall receive from them

The “acceptable offerings” at this time were specific in nature and substance. There were no “sacrifices” of animals to be given as in later Levitical rules. All the gifts to be received at this time were for the building of the tabernacle.

gold, silver, and bronze

All the utensils, furniture, altars, and cleansing items would be made with or covered in gold, silver, and bronze. Most of the jewelry and items taken from the Egyptians made in these materials could easily be reformed into the prescribed items.

blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen

All the yarns and linen collected would be turned into clothing for the priest, the dividing curtains, or the coverings for the items used in the Holy place when they were moved. Although the people may have seen the items as they were being made and prepared for the tabernacle, once the Lord accepted them by coming into their presence, they were never again to be seen by any but the priestly line who would cover them before transport to a new location. Some of the curtains made would have additional patterns and figures added to them with the yarn given in this offering.

goats’ hair, tanned rams’ skins, goatskins

The goats’ hair and shins with the rams’ skins would be used for covering the tent. These thicker layers would seal in the incense used inside the tent and be an opaque barrier to prevent any non-priest from seeing into the tent while the Lord’s glory was upon it. The multiple layers would ensure that no light from the outside came in, and none of the Lord’s glory went out.

acacia wood

All the poles to carry the various pieces of furniture, the ark, and the supports for the tent were made from acacia wood. The exact type of wood this was is difficult to determine.

The Complete Word Study Dictionary: Old Testament 7848. שִׁטָּה šiṭṭāh

It may refer to several species of wood that grow in Palestine. It may refer specifically to Acacia seyal Delile, a species fairly common in the Sinai Peninsula and Jordan Valley.

oil for the lamps, spices

The various oils and spices collected in the offering are noted how they are to contribute to the future worship rituals. These are the only “consumables” mentioned in the list that would need to be replaced throughout the 40 years of wandering. Whenever natural groves or amiable places of trade would be necessary to replenish these supplies.

onyx stones, and stones for setting

The gemstones and the leftover bits of precious metals would be used to adorn the priests as representations of the tribes as he entered the holy place on their behalf once a year. The twelve different stones would symbolically enter the “presence of the Lord” upon the shoulders and chest of the High Priest. Centuries later, God the Son would represent the people and take upon his back and shoulder the marks for their sins.

Exodus—Saved for God's Glory Giving Our Very Best

Not everyone had pure gold, fine linen, and precious gems to contribute. Happily, some of the items God needed were less expensive. The Israelites could bring olive oil for lighting sacred lamps. Or they could offer the strong hides of the sea cows (dugongs) that swam in the Red Sea. God also accepted acacia wood—a hard, durable wood that was perfect for a portable structure. If a poor man’s heart prompted him to give, all he had to do was to go out and cut down one of the trees that was common to that region. Or he could bring goat hair and ram skins from his flock. As Petrus Dathenus comments, “In the construction of the tabernacle of the Lord, the poor people who donated goat skins or hair were as welcome to God as those who donated gold, silver or gems.”

Ask: How does our giving reflect what we believe about God? p.85

Exodus 25:8–9 ESV

8 And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. 9 Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.

The ESV Study Bible Chapter 25

The making of a dwelling place anticipates Solomon’s temple (

Exodus—Saved for God's Glory Giving to God

If he had wanted to, God could have performed a miracle and sent his people a whole tabernacle, ready-built. Instead, he gave them an opportunity to contribute to its construction.

Sanctuary

The word for sanctuary (miqdash) comes from the root meaning to “be holy.” It is where God’s people could encounter His holy presence. It first occurs in Exodus 15:17-18, the finale of Israel’s song of the exodus. These verses could point to Israel’s journey to Mount Sinai or to the tabernacle. However, the best explanation seems to point to an eternal sanctuary and a permanent divine gathering of the Lord’s people. [ETB:ALG Win’25]

Dwell in their midst

God revealed Himself to the Israelites at Sinai, but His presence would draw even closer when He began to dwell in their midst. Previously, their understanding of His presence was limited to the mountain and to the pillar/cloud that led them. But once His glory filled the tabernacle (Ex. 40:34-35), He would reside within their camp. [ETB:ALG Win’25]

Verse 8 is this week’s memory verse.

Why do you think the writers of the lesson chose that one?

This verse contains the purpose of the tabernacle to be constructed by the offering. God desired to be with His people as close as He could. Today He is “closer than a brother” and “written upon the heart” of those who have accepted the offering of His Son upon the cross. God desired to “tabernacle” with His people in the Old Testament in a tent made by men in the image of the heavenly Tent of Meeting. In the New Testament, He tabernacles in the hearts of men made by His hands in His image.

In Eden, God had provided close companionship with Adam and Eve. His presence with them was unmistakable. Sin shattered that connection; and while God appeared to His followers after Eden, He did not discuss dwelling with His people again until the tabernacle and, later, the temple. Yet, even this was a shadow of His larger plan. Through Jesus the Messiah, God came to dwell (tabernacle) with humanity as a human being (John 1:14). The Word became flesh, and His presence continues to be experienced through the work of the Holy Spirit (16:7-11). One day, Eden will be completely reversed as Jesus brings His people back into uninterrupted fellowship with the Father (Rev. 21:3-4). [ETB:ALG Win’25]

Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology Christ > Word

The New Testament views the incarnate Jesus as none other than the Old Testament word of God personified (

Transition: The Israelites had never undertaken such a building project of their own, but God had already empowered some master craftsmen to take on the challenge.

Exodus 31:1–6 ESV

1 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, 4 to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, 5 in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft. 6 And behold, I have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. And I have given to all able men ability, that they may make all that I have commanded you:

I have filled him with the spirit of God

The Open Bible Chapter 31

The first person described in Scripture as

Biblical Theology, Volume 1: The Common Grace Covenants Filled

Micah was filled with the Spirit for a certain task. We are not, however, told that the Spirit remained dwelling within him always. We find, in fact, that the filling with the Spirit under the Old covenant is always for some particular task or tasks the Spirit will enable. The same may be said of other passages in which someone is said to be filled with God’s Spirit. Such are Bazalel (filled “with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts” [

to work in gold, silver, and bronze

We see the beginning of the list of materials from our previous passage being put under the care and manipulation of Bezalel.

How was he to interact with the metals, gemstones, and wood?

to work.. cutting stone.. carving wood.

How would you answer the question, “What is the difference between and ‘craftsman’ and an ‘artist’?”

I heard an answer that has stuck with me and has proven true. A craftsman, like Bezalel, “cuts away” to show you what he sees. An artist, like Oholiab, “puts together” to show you what he sees. Most artistic types tend toward one of these perspectives, adding to or taking away with the materials. It is very rare to find someone who masters both. Although these men were probably very competent in both disciplines, God expressly endowed them in only one.

Bezalel would create all the utensils, furniture, and ritual pieces for the tabernacle. Oholiab would make the tent and all its coverings. Once completed, these men would never see the intricate work of their hands again. I guess that is true of artists and craftsmen today too.

NIV Bible Speaks Today: Notes Chapters 31–32

it is not enough for the willing-hearted to follow the whims and fancies of their hearts—doing the Lord’s work means doing the Lord’s will. A fundamental principle of service is emphasised: the craftsmen are to do their work according to how they have been commanded (6, 11).

Ask: What skills and abilities has God given you? How can you use them for His glory? p.89

The book asks “how can you use” these abilities. Most of us in this room have learned multiple ways to honor God with our abilities. The challenge for us is “Are you using them?” As we grow older the amount of work we can do for the Lord may change, but “if” is not a question addressed in the Bible. It is always inferred that they “are” used, the capacity may vary - just like monetary gifts - but if God gave it to us, we are expected to use it for Him and the edification and equipping of His church.

The book of Exodus, especially chapters 25-40, beautifully illustrate the truth of missionary Hudson Taylor’s famous quote, “God’s work, done God’s way, will never lack God’s supply.” God never assigns a task without providing the necessary resources, expertise, and strength to accomplish it. The resources provided from the Israelites’ generosity even exceeded the need (Ex. 36:2-7). [ETB:ALG Win’25]

Apply the Text

Life Application Bible Notes Chapter 25

But what can all these ancient, complicated construction details show us today? First, the high quality of the precious materials making up the Tabernacle shows God’s greatness and transcendence. Second, the curtain surrounding the Most Holy Place shows God’s moral perfection as symbolized by his separation from the common and unclean. Third, the portable nature of the Tabernacle shows God’s desire to be with his people as they traveled. Fourth, the Tabernacle, its furnishings, and the service performed there provide a picture of the atonement that would one day come through Jesus Christ.

Pray: God, please make Your presence known in our lives, both to us and those that see us using the abilities You have given us. Lord, You desire to see Your people contribute to the corporate worship of Yourself through the gift of offerings both in material and ability. Fill us with Your joy and presence as we gather together in the worship of You. Equip us for the tasks and plans You have for us this week.