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The Priests’ Special Clothes

39 The workers used the blue, purple, and red yarn to make special clothes for the priests to wear when they served in the holy place. They also made the special clothes for Aaron as the Lord had commanded Moses.

The Ephod

They made the ephod from gold thread, fine linen, and blue, purple, and red yarn. (They hammered the gold into thin strips and cut the gold into long threads. They wove the gold into the blue, purple, and red yarn and fine linen. This was the work of a very skilled person.) They made the shoulder pieces for the ephod. They tied these shoulder pieces to the two corners of the ephod. They wove the cloth belt and fastened it to the ephod. It was made the same way as the ephod—they used gold thread, fine linen, and blue, purple, and red yarn, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

The workers put the onyx stones for the ephod in gold settings. They wrote the names of the sons of Israel on these stones. Then they put these jewels on the shoulder pieces of the ephod. These jewels were to help God to remember the Israelites. This was done as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Judgment Pouch

Then they made the judgment pouch. It was the work of a skilled person, just like the ephod. It was made from gold threads, fine linen, and blue, purple, and red yarn. The judgment pouch was folded in half to make a square pocket. It was 1 span[a] long and 1 span wide. 10 Then the workers put four rows of beautiful jewels on the judgment pouch. The first row had a ruby, a topaz, and a beryl. 11 The second row had a turquoise, a sapphire, and an emerald. 12 The third row had a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst. 13 The fourth row had a chrysolite, an onyx, and a jasper. All these jewels were set in gold. 14 There were twelve jewels on the judgment pouch—one jewel for each of the sons of Israel. Each stone had the name of one of the sons of Israel carved onto it, like a seal.

15 The workers made two chains from pure gold for the judgment pouch. The chains were braided like a rope. 16 The workers made two gold rings and fastened them to two corners of the judgment pouch. Then they made two gold settings for the shoulder pieces. 17 They fastened the gold chains to the rings at the corners of the judgment pouch. 18 They fastened the other ends of the gold chains to the settings on the shoulder pieces. They fastened these to the front of the ephod. 19 Then they made two more gold rings and put them on the other two corners of the judgment pouch. This was on the inside edge of the judgment pouch next to the ephod. 20 They also put two gold rings on the bottom of the shoulder pieces on the front of the ephod. These rings were near the fastener, just above the cloth belt. 21 Then they used a blue ribbon and tied the rings of the judgment pouch to the rings of the ephod. In this way the judgment pouch would rest close to the cloth belt and would be held tight against the ephod. They did everything just as the Lord commanded.

Other Clothes for the Priests

22 Then they made the robe for the ephod from blue cloth. It was woven by a skilled worker. 23 They made a hole in the center of the robe and sewed a piece of cloth around the edge of this hole. This cloth kept the hole from tearing.

24 Then they used fine linen and blue, purple, and red yarn to make the cloth pomegranates. They hung these pomegranates around the bottom edge of the robe. 25 Then they made bells from pure gold. They hung these bells around the bottom edge of the robe between the pomegranates. 26 Around the bottom edge of the robe there were bells and pomegranates. There was a bell following each pomegranate. This robe was for the priest to wear when he served the Lord. It was made just as the Lord commanded Moses.

27 Skilled workers wove shirts for Aaron and his sons. These shirts were made from fine linen. 28 And the workers made a turban from fine linen. They also used fine linen to make cloth caps and underclothes. 29 Then they made the cloth belt from fine linen and blue, purple, and red yarn. Designs were sewn into the cloth. These things were made as the Lord had commanded Moses.

30 Then they made a strip of pure gold for the holy crown. They carved these words into the gold like the writing on a seal: holy to the lord.[b] 31 They fastened the gold strip to a blue ribbon. Then they tied the blue ribbon around the turban like the Lord had commanded Moses.

Moses Inspects the Holy Tent

32 So all the work on the Holy Tent, that is, the Meeting Tent, was finished. The Israelites did everything just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 33 Then they showed the Holy Tent and everything in it to Moses. They showed him the rings, the frames, the braces, the posts, and the bases. 34 They showed him the covering of the Tent that was made from ram skins dyed red and the covering that was made from fine leather. And they showed him the curtain that covered the entrance to the Most Holy Place.

35 They showed Moses the Box of the Agreement, the poles used for carrying it, and the mercy-cover. 36 They showed him the table with everything on it and the special bread.[c] 37 They showed him the pure gold lampstand and the lamps on it, the oil, and all the other things that were used with the lamps. 38 They showed Moses the golden altar, the anointing oil, the sweet-smelling incense, and the curtain that covered the entrance to the Tent. 39 They showed him the bronze altar, the bronze screen, the poles used for carrying the altar, and everything that was used on the altar. They showed him the bowl and the base under the bowl.

40 They showed Moses the wall of curtains around the courtyard with the posts and bases. They showed him the curtain that covered the entrance to the courtyard. They showed him the ropes and the tent pegs. They showed him everything in the Holy Tent, that is, the Meeting Tent.

41 Then they showed Moses the clothes that were made for the priests serving in the holy area.[d] They showed him the special clothes for Aaron the priest and his sons to wear when they served as priests.

42 The Israelites did all this work exactly as the Lord had commanded Moses. 43 Moses looked closely at all the work and saw that it was done exactly as the Lord had commanded. So Moses blessed them.

Moses Sets Up the Holy Tent

40 Then the Lord said to Moses, “On the first day of the first month, set up the Holy Tent, that is, the Meeting Tent. Put the Box of the Agreement in the Holy Tent. Cover the Box with the curtain. Then bring in the table. Put the things on the table that should be there. Then put the lampstand in the Tent. Put the lamps on the lampstand in the right places. Put the golden altar for offering incense in the Tent in front of the Box of the Agreement. Then put the curtain at the entrance to the Holy Tent.

“Put the altar for burning offerings in front of the entrance of the Holy Tent, that is, the Meeting Tent. Put the bowl between the Meeting Tent and the altar. Put water in the bowl. Set up the wall of curtains around the courtyard. Then put the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard.

“Use the anointing oil and anoint the Holy Tent and everything in it. When you put the oil on these things, you will make them holy. 10 Anoint the altar for burning offerings. Anoint everything on the altar. You will make the altar holy. It will be very holy. 11 Then anoint the bowl and the base under it to make these things holy.

12 “Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the Meeting Tent. Wash them with water. 13 Then put the special clothes on Aaron. Anoint him with the oil and make him holy. Then he can serve me as a priest. 14 Then put the clothes on his sons. 15 Anoint the sons in the same way you anointed their father. Then they can also serve me as priests. When you anoint them, they will become priests. That family will continue to be priests for all time to come.” 16 Moses obeyed the Lord. He did everything that the Lord commanded him.

17 So the Holy Tent was set up at the right time. It was the first day of the first month during the second year from the time they left Egypt. 18 Moses set up the Holy Tent just as the Lord had said. He put the bases down first. Then he put the frames on the bases. Then he put the braces on and set up the posts. 19 After that Moses put the outer tent over the Holy Tent. Then he put the covering over the outer tent. He did these things just as the Lord had commanded.

20 Moses took the Agreement and put it in the Holy Box. He put the poles on the Box and put the mercy-cover on it. 21 Then Moses put the Holy Box into the Holy Tent. He hung the curtain in the right place to protect it. In this way he protected the Box of the Agreement behind the curtain just as the Lord had commanded him. 22 Then Moses put the table in the Meeting Tent on the north side of the Holy Tent. He put it in the Holy Place, in front of the curtain. 23 Then he put the bread on the table before the Lord. He did this just as the Lord had commanded him. 24 Then Moses put the lampstand in the Meeting Tent on the south side of the Tent, across from the table. 25 Then Moses put the lamps on the lampstand before the Lord. He did this just as the Lord had commanded him.

26 Then Moses put the golden altar in the Meeting Tent, in front of the curtain. 27 Then he burned sweet-smelling incense on the altar. He did this as the Lord had commanded him. 28 Then Moses put the curtain at the entrance to the Holy Tent.

29 Moses put the altar for burning offerings at the entrance to the Holy Tent, that is, the Meeting Tent. Then Moses offered a burnt offering on that altar. He also offered grain offerings to the Lord. He did these things just as the Lord had commanded him.

30 Then Moses put the bowl between the Meeting Tent and the altar. He put water in the bowl for washing. 31 Moses, Aaron, and Aaron’s sons used this bowl to wash their hands and feet. 32 They washed themselves every time they entered the Meeting Tent. They also washed themselves every time they went near the altar. They did these things just as the Lord commanded Moses.

33 Then Moses set up the curtains around the courtyard of the Holy Tent. He put the altar in the courtyard. Then he put the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard. So he finished all the work.

The Glory of the Lord

34 Then the cloud covered the Meeting Tent and the Glory of the Lord filled the Holy Tent. 35 Moses could not go into the Meeting Tent because the cloud had settled on it, and the Glory of the Lord had filled the Holy Tent.

36 When the cloud rose from the Holy Tent, the Israelites would begin to travel. 37 But when the cloud stayed on the Holy Tent, the people did not try to move. They stayed in that place until the cloud rose. 38 So the cloud of the Lord was over the Holy Tent during the day, and at night there was a fire in the cloud. So all the Israelites could see the cloud while they traveled.

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 39:9 1 span The distance from the tip of the thumb to the tip of the little finger, about 9" (23 cm).
  2. Exodus 39:30 Holy to the Lord These words were written on everything that was used in the Temple. This showed that these things belonged to the Lord, and that they could be used only for special purposes. Dishes with this label could be used only by the priests in a holy place.
  3. Exodus 39:36 special bread Also called “bread of the Presence.” Every day this bread was put before God on the special table in the Holy Place.
  4. Exodus 39:41 holy area A restricted area that was considered sacred (special) because of God’s presence.

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