EXODUS 40

The Tabernacle Completed

Verse 1:
Then the Lord said to Moses,

Verse 2:
“Set up the Tabernacle on the first day of the new year.

Verse 3:
Place the Ark of the Covenant inside, and install the inner curtain to enclose the Ark within the Most Holy Place.

Verse 4:
Then bring in the table, and arrange the utensils on it. And bring in the lampstand, and set up the lamps.

Verse 5:
“Place the gold incense altar in front of the Ark of the Covenant. Then hang the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle.

Verse 6:
Place the altar of burnt offering in front of the Tabernacle entrance.

Verse 7:
Set the washbasin between the Tabernacle and the altar, and fill it with water.

Verse 8:
Then set up the courtyard around the outside of the tent, and hang the curtain for the courtyard entrance.

Verse 9:
“Take the anointing oil and anoint the Tabernacle and all its furnishings to consecrate them and make them holy.

Verse 10:
Anoint the altar of burnt offering and its utensils to consecrate them. Then the altar will become absolutely holy.

Verse 11:
Next anoint the washbasin and its stand to consecrate them.

Verse 12:
“Present Aaron and his sons at the entrance of the Tabernacle, and wash them with water.

Verse 13:
Dress Aaron with the sacred garments and anoint him, consecrating him to serve me as a priest.

Verse 14:
Then present his sons and dress them in their tunics.

Verse 15:
Anoint them as you did their father, so they may also serve me as priests. With their anointing, Aaron’s descendants are set apart for the priesthood forever, from generation to generation.

Verse 16:
Moses proceeded to do everything just as the Lord had commanded him.

Verse 17:
So the Tabernacle was set up on the first day of the first month of the second year.

Verse 18:
Moses erected the Tabernacle by setting down its bases, inserting the frames, attaching the crossbars, and setting up the posts.

Verse 19:
Then he spread the coverings over the Tabernacle framework and put on the protective layers, just as the Lord had commanded him.

Verse 20:
He took the stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant and placed them inside the Ark. Then he attached the carrying poles to the Ark, and he set the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—on top of it.

Verse 21:
Then he brought the Ark of the Covenant into the Tabernacle and hung the inner curtain to shield it from view, just as the Lord had commanded him.

Verse 22:
Next Moses placed the table in the Tabernacle, along the north side of the Holy Place, just outside the inner curtain.

Verse 23:
And he arranged the Bread of the Presence on the table before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded him.

Verse 24:
He set the lampstand in the Tabernacle across from the table on the south side of the Holy Place.

Verse 25:
Then he lit the lamps in the Lord’s presence, just as the Lord had commanded him.

Verse 26:
He also placed the gold incense altar in the Tabernacle, in the Holy Place in front of the inner curtain.

Verse 27:
On it he burned the fragrant incense, just as the Lord had commanded him.

Verse 28:
He hung the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle,

Verse 29:
and he placed the altar of burnt offering near the Tabernacle entrance. On it he offered a burnt offering and a grain offering, just as the Lord had commanded him.

Verse 30:
Next Moses placed the washbasin between the Tabernacle and the altar. He filled it with water so the priests could wash themselves.

Verse 31:
Moses and Aaron and Aaron’s sons used water from it to wash their hands and feet.

Verse 32:
Whenever they approached the altar and entered the Tabernacle, they washed themselves, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Verse 33:
Then he hung the curtains forming the courtyard around the Tabernacle and the altar. And he set up the curtain at the entrance of the courtyard. So at last Moses finished the work.

The Lord’s Glory Fills the Tabernacle

Verse 34:
Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.

Verse 35:
Moses could no longer enter the Tabernacle because the cloud had settled down over it, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.

Verse 36:
Now whenever the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out on their journey, following it.

Verse 37:
But if the cloud did not rise, they remained where they were until it lifted.

Verse 38:
The cloud of the Lord hovered over the Tabernacle during the day, and at night fire glowed inside the cloud so the whole family of Israel could see it. This continued throughout all their journeys.




Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.