A modern English translation drawn directly from the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts. Translated word-for-word where possible, by a committee with scholarly oversight.
Uses the same source texts as the ESV, NASB, and most academic Bibles, including the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia and the Nestle-Aland critical edition.
Exodus 36
Exodus 36 is the thirty-sixth chapter of the book of Exodus and the chapter that begins the actual construction. The 38-verse chapter contains the only moment in the Bible where a building project has to be stopped because the people are bringing too much, and then proceeds to the tabernacle structure: curtains, framework, veil, and screen.
The chapter opens with Bezalel, Oholiab, and every skilled craftsman to whom the LORD has given skill and ability beginning the work. Moses gives them all the freewill offerings the Israelites have brought.
Then, every morning, the people keep bringing more. The craftsmen come to Moses and say, "The people are bringing more than enough for doing the work the LORD has commanded us to do." Moses sends word throughout the camp: "Let no man or woman do any more work for the sanctuary offering." The people are restrained from bringing more. The materials they have are sufficient for them to do all the work, and more than enough.
The chapter then turns to the doing. The skilled workers among them make the ten inner curtains of fine twisted linen with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and cherubim woven in, joined into two sets of five and fastened with fifty gold clasps. They make the eleven goat-hair curtains for the tent over the tabernacle, joined into a set of five and a set of six, fastened with fifty bronze clasps. They make the protective coverings of ram skins dyed red and fine leather.
They make the framework. Forty-eight acacia frames stand upright, each ten cubits high and a cubit and a half wide, overlaid with gold, set on silver bases. Five crossbars hold each side together, the middle one running end to end. They make the veil of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and fine twisted linen with cherubim, hung on four acacia posts overlaid with gold on silver bases. They make the entrance screen of the same materials without cherubim, hung on five acacia posts overlaid with gold on bronze bases.
Verse 1. “So Bezalel, Oholiab, and every skilled person are to carry out everything commanded by the LORD, who has given them skill and ability to know how to perform all the work of constructing the sanctuary.”
Verse 2. Then Moses summoned Bezalel, Oholiab, and every skilled person whom the LORD had gifted—everyone whose heart stirred him to come and do the work.
Verse 3. They received from Moses all the contributions that the Israelites had brought to carry out the service of constructing the sanctuary. Meanwhile, the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning,
Verse 4. so that all the skilled craftsmen who were doing all the work on the sanctuary left their work
Verse 5. and said to Moses, “The people are bringing more than enough for doing the work the LORD has commanded us to do.”
Verse 6. After Moses had given an order, they sent a proclamation throughout the camp: “No man or woman should make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from bringing more,
Verse 7. since what they already had was more than enough to perform all the work.
Verse 8. All the skilled craftsmen among the workmen made the ten curtains for the tabernacle. They were made of finely spun linen, as well as blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, with cherubim skillfully worked into them.
Verse 9. Each curtain was twenty-eight cubits long and four cubits wide; all the curtains were the same size.
Verse 10. And he joined five of the curtains together, and the other five he joined as well.
Verse 11. He made loops of blue material on the edge of the end curtain in the first set, and also on the end curtain in the second set.
Verse 12. He made fifty loops on one curtain and fifty loops on the end curtain of the second set, so that the loops lined up opposite one another.
Verse 13. He also made fifty gold clasps to join the curtains together, so that the tabernacle was a unit.
Verse 14. He then made curtains of goat hair for the tent over the tabernacle—eleven curtains in all.
Verse 15. Each of the eleven curtains was the same size—thirty cubits long and four cubits wide.
Verse 16. He joined five of the curtains into one set and the other six into another.
Verse 17. He made fifty loops along the edge of the end curtain in the first set, and fifty loops along the edge of the corresponding curtain in the second set.
Verse 18. He also made fifty bronze clasps to join the tent together as a unit.
Verse 19. Additionally, he made for the tent a covering of ram skins dyed red, and over that a covering of fine leather.
Verse 20. Next, he constructed upright frames of acacia wood for the tabernacle.
Verse 21. Each frame was ten cubits long and a cubit and a half wide.
Verse 22. Two tenons were connected to each other for each frame. He made all the frames of the tabernacle in this way.
Verse 23. He constructed twenty frames for the south side of the tabernacle,
Verse 24. with forty silver bases to put under the twenty frames—two bases for each frame, one under each tenon.
Verse 25. For the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, he made twenty frames
Verse 26. and forty silver bases—two bases under each frame.
Verse 27. He made six frames for the rear of the tabernacle, the west side,
Verse 28. and two frames for the two back corners of the tabernacle,
Verse 29. coupled together from bottom to top and fitted into a single ring. He made both corners in this way.
Verse 30. So there were eight frames and sixteen silver bases—two under each frame.
Verse 31. He also made five crossbars of acacia wood for the frames on one side of the tabernacle,
Verse 32. five for those on the other side, and five for those on the rear side of the tabernacle, to the west.
Verse 33. He made the central crossbar to run through the center of the frames, from one end to the other.
Verse 34. And he overlaid the frames with gold and made gold rings to hold the crossbars. He also overlaid the crossbars with gold.
Verse 35. Next, he made the veil of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen, with cherubim skillfully worked into it.
Verse 36. He also made four posts of acacia wood for it and overlaid them with gold, along with gold hooks; and he cast four silver bases for the posts.
Verse 37. For the entrance to the tent, he made a curtain embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen,
Verse 38. together with five posts and their hooks. He overlaid the tops of the posts and their bands with gold, and their five bases were bronze.
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