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(CHAPTER 38)
21. These are the inventories [p'qudey] of the Tabernacle--the Dwelling Place of the Testimony --which were numbered at the command of Moshe--the service of the Levites in the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aharon the priest.
Inventories: From the same word used of the census in 30:12, or of a general mustering troops one by one, by laying one’s hand on them to count each soldier face to face, so that he knows whom he can count on and who is counting on him, as opposed to a general sending them off to die from a faraway office where none of them are known personally to him. It means to make a reckoning, but more precisely to pay close attention to these things to make sure they are there and that they are done the way YHWH had specified.
22. When B'tzal-El, the son of Uri, the son of Chuwr, of the branch of Yehudah, made all that YHWH had commanded Moshe,
23. and along with him Aholiav, the son of Ahisamakh, of the branch of Dan, an engraver and an inventive artisan, as well as an embroiderer in blue, purple, crimson-scarlet, and bleached [linen],
Aholiav answers to B’tzal-El, who is supervised by Ithamar, who reports to Moshe, who answers to YHWH. It is wise for many people to take responsibility for each thing, for if one could not get the work done properly after many attempts, those above them could assist in making sure that no problem escaped notice and the work turned out perfectly. Their skills were learned in Egypt, and we too need to use the everyday skills we have learned in our captivity, but turn them toward a Kingdom purpose. We all need to get in touch with the raw materials YHWH has already placed at our disposal—and use them, so that it can also be said of us that we did all that YHWH commanded.
24. all the gold put to effective use in the workmanship for all the representation of the Holy Place (that is, the gold of the wave offering) was 29 talents and 730 sheqels according to the sanctuary sheqel.
Wave offering: anything that was offered that would not be burned. It could include leavened bread, and even Aharon and his sons! Waving it was figurative of presenting it as now fully belonging to YHWH. Gold clearly relates to that which one worships—and people often directly worship it or the currency that was originally based on it. We have to wonder what aspect of the Tent of Appointment YHWH had to withhold because we had wasted some of the gold on making that calf. Bringing the gold to be turned into the pictures of the Kingdom that should be being built instead was part of our repentance for having worshiped the wrong thing. In turning over whatever is “golden” to us, we make the pattern for the Kingdom possible. A talent (kikkar, meaning circle, hence a round weight) is 3,000 sheqels in weight. Sanctuary sheqel: There were several kinds of sheqels used for different purposes. 29 talents: Fitting to the context of this donation, the Hebrew phrases (elsewhere in the Torah)“they shall bring in”, “and they offer”, and “You keep alive” each have the numeric value of 29. 730 sheqels: The phrases “bow down”, “gather”, “for the veil”, and “and he worshiped” have the value of 730.
25. And the silver of the things inventoried was 100 talents and 1,775 sheqels, by the sanctuary sheqel--
The total is 301,775 when counted all by sheqels.
26. A beqa per head, [which is] half the sheqel, according to the sanctuary sheqel, for everyone who crosses over to those numbered, from twenty years [of age] and upward, came to 603,550.
The silver was inventoried in a different way: it was a tax, and not given freely like the gold and bronze. It was weighed out with tiny gerah weights—0.02 ounces each. It was required from everyone who was counted as a potential warrior in Israel’s army (idiomatically, “everyone who crosses over”—but this is also related to the word for "Hebrew". It can thus also picture Gentiles who leave their paganism behind and choose to become part of the sanctuary the true Elohim is building.) Per head: literally, for a skull. This was the payment for the blood shed in war--paid for in silver. 603,550: Angus Wootten points out that the Jewish population in Israel did not reach this same number until 1948, and that is when it became a nation; 1967 was when the number of potential men of war reached this number, and that is when Yerusahalayim was given back to them. This is exactly double the number of sheqels in v. 25, since it was ½ sheqel (or one beqa) per person. Beqa means “splitting” or dividing into parts, for each of us is only part of the whole, for no single Israelite is complete on his own; he must unite with all of Israel to be sure he is connected with the one who complements his gifts and calling. (Prager) A beqa was the weight of the nose ring sent to Rivqah by Yitzhaq, because she would be the one who completed him. YHWH's dwelling place is really built of people. Human beings were always purchased—or redeemed—with silver. When we see our neighbors’ lives as just as valuable as our own, the repair of the world can begin. We are all connected; what we do and even what we think affects others. Thus the silver given for the sanctuary represents the reversal of selfishly thinking that we are a whole sheqel, and for not being faithful servants by completing one another as parts of the whole, since we need one another to be whole. As the gold was the repair for our idolatry, silver can be seen as the reparation for the sin of worshiping ourselves.
27. And the 100 talents of silver were [used] for casting the socket-bases of the Holy Place, and the sockets of the veil: 100 sockets corresponding to the 100 talents--a talent per socket.
Silver represents redemption, and the phrase “he shall let her be redeemed” (referring to one who is betrothed) in Ex. 21:8 has the numeric value of 100. Socket-base: has the connotation of making firm, since it comes from the word adon --a (strong) master.
28. And the 1,775 [sheqels] he fashioned into hooks for the [upright] columns, and he overlaid their capitals [with silver] and attached them together.
Attached: elsewhere the word means "desire", "set one's love on", or "long for". The Hebrew language tells us so much more than mere details of the construction of one building. It reveals exactly how the many members of the one Body, the many components of the one sanctuary, are to be joined together--through love for and commitment to one another.
29. And the bronze of the wave offering was 70 talents plus 2,400 sheqels.
30. With it he made the socket-bases for the entryway of the Tent of Appointment, the altar of bronze, its bronze meshed grillwork, and all the implements of the altar,
The Hebrew phrase “its sockets” has the numeric value of 70. 70 talents were brought. (v. 29)
31. the socket-bases of the court all around, and the socket-bases of the gate of the court, all the stakes of the Tabernacle, and all the stakes of the court all around [on every side].
The metals used in the various parts of the Tent help us understand what we are accounting for and why. Bronze, a base metal, is more ignoble than gold and silver. It takes a lot more work to keep bronze looking nice. Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, neither of which is strong in itself, but when mixed it is stronger than either is alone, due to the way they combine. Silver will tarnish more easily than gold, which is why it is less valuable. Inside--closer to the presence of YHWH--is gold set on silver. Silver—associated with blood--stands between the holy and the profane. The covenant is founded on blood. But why? Blood is where the life is. In general, gold is a picture of the Kingdom. The Torah is meant to benefit the whole world. It is not about escaping the mess that the world is in, but repairing it. If Israel gets this right, the other nations can too. The pictures in the Tabernacle’s structure define the specifics of how the world can be repaired. If the gold was to remedy our idolatry and the silver our selfishness, what was the bronze brought to repair? Yeshayahu (Isaiah) 48:4 identifies a forehead of brass with being obstinate, dense, or hard-headed— stubborn and unwilling to learn or change our ways. We may not be idolaters or even selfish, but this hits closer to home. It is a refusal to change because we are comfortable with what we are. Bronze is very heat-resistant; it takes a lot to melt it; obstinacy is one of the hardest things to get rid of. Notice that the total in sheqels would be 212,400, whereas the gold collected totaled only 87,730. Our refusal to change is more than twice as heavy as our idolatry was! The bronze altar is our initial approach to YHWH. The firepans added to it later remind us of what it costs us to be stubborn. It teaches us to relearn how to approach Him. The foundations of the courtyard are of bronze, and if there is no courtyard, there is no place for the assembly, and there can be no Kingdom. The pegs which hold things tight and thus stand the tent upright are made of bronze. They anchor the foundation. Proverbs 24:3 says a house is built through wisdom, understanding, and knowledge. A “thick head” can prevent us from achieving these. If we are only processing what we hear through our own likes, dislikes, and comfort level, we cannot hear what is really being said, and so we cannot possibly do the right thing. Pay attention to what is foundational. It will tarnish quickly, so inspect it often. Atone for this obstinacy at a level that supports the whole structure. Learn to listen to the instructions that really count, and rework our views of self and our purpose. Take the bronze from our foreheads and put it on the ground, where our feet go; walk in someone else’s shoes. See from his perspective, then you can judge. (Gibor) We bring the gold by worshipping only YHWH and repudiating all rivals. We bring the silver by serving the community instead of self. We bring the gifts of bronze by hearing and doing. There is no drawing near to YHWH without the bronze washbasin. It was made from mirrors. When we look into the mirror of YHWH’s Torah, we are expected to examine ourselves and not forget what we saw. (Yaaqov 1:22) If we forget what the Torah revealed to be broken, we can never work on those things. Look for the doors YHWH has opened for us to change. Like Moshe, we must give an accounting for what is and is not repaired. But we must also listen fully before putting our hand to it, or we will miss the last part of what he says, and will therefore be operating on assumptions and not knowledge. Then the copper can become useful to the Kingdom too. Our stubbornness can take the form of not being shaken from hearing and doing when other pressures come against us. Then we can be called repairers of the breach, and restorers of the ancient ways. (Yeshayahu 58:12) If one looked at the Tabernacle from the outside, he would see only ordinary-looking things if he could even see over the high fence. We cannot see any gold from the outside. The precious things were hidden inside from all but those who chose to draw near. (See 40:3) He does not want to be profaned by those who do not believe in Him. (Compare Luke 8:10) According to the Midrash, the Tabernacle is a whole body: the Holy of Holies is like the brain, the Holy Place the heart, and the courtyards like arms to draw people in toward the heart.
CHAPTER 39
1. Then from the blue, purple, and crimson-scarlet, they made interwoven garments [in which] to attend to the sanctuary; they also made the holy garments which were for Aharon, just as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
Holy garments: That is, set apart for one exclusive purpose. Prophets, kings, widows, and mourners could all be recognized by their distinctive clothing in ancient Israel, for each was to be approached or treated in a special way. But the garments described here were not worn “on the street”. (Y’hezq’El 42:14; 44:17-19) Priests, if they ever went outside the precincts where they served, would dress like other Israelites, for their distinctiveness was for YHWH’s sake, not to benefit themselves as such. The priesthood does not serve the people directly; it exists to serve YHWH, though in serving Him it does meet Israel’s needs, which He knows better than we do, so the value may not be obvious on the surface. The priests are dressed to reveal pictures of the Kingdom; YHWH designed them to catch our attention. (Chapter 28.) This chapter tells us how those who are concerned about what YHWH wants are to be clothed. And who is more concerned for what someone wants than his wife? Yeshua, who said, “Not My will, but Yours be done” made the restoration of this bride for YHWH possible. Attend to: The term means to wait on someone, serve them directly like a butler or valet, being concerned to meet their every wish. It connotes giving personal attention and tending to His desires. It implies closeness; it is not worship from a distance like the pagans want to achieve, not even mentioning their deity’s name, lest he pay them too much direct attention (a habit Yehudah picked up from the Babylonians during their captivity there, but it is not appropriate for YHWH’s bride, for it is like booking two separate hotel rooms on one’s honeymoon!) The Holy of Holies is YHWH’s “bedroom”. Ancient Middle Eastern clothing is loose-fitting and suggests pajamas and the comfort of being relaxed in YHWH’s presence. The more we can literally dress like ancient Israelites did, the more in context we will put our minds as we head back to the “ancient path”. It also helps us keep the Sabbath and festivals set apart from other days.
2. And he made the efod from gold, blue, purple, crimson-scarlet, and fine-twisted linen.
The components of these clothes had been obtained in Egypt. Even today, Egyptian cotton is very desirable. But in Scripture clothing is also symbolic of our works of righteousness, and we must be dressed in these at all times—not in a vague general sense, but according to the pattern clearly detailed in the Torah. We, being in exile, must also derive the threads of our “garments” from Egypt, but the last thing we would want to wear is a pagan garment. So we must unstitch them, carefully working the threads loose so we can extract them, undamaged, from the wrong arrangement in which we have received them, so we can weave the still-usable threads into “kingdom garments”. The advertising industry knows how to tell us what to desire, and encourages many short-lived fads to fuel our motivation to keep purchasing from it. We need to still more strongly crave things that are not temporary. So we need to get the “desire” threads out of the unacceptable garment and reattach them to worthy things like holiness, our covenant Land, pleasing YHWH, and helping our brothers and sisters. We need to remove the finances and prioritization skills that have been sewn into the wrong things, and put them into the Kingdom instead.
3. Then they hammered out thin sheets of the gold, and cut it into threads, so [they could] work it throughout the blue, the purple, the crimson-scarlet, and the bleached linen with intricate workmanship.
Intricate: imaginative, calculated, or well-designed. Gold, a symbol of what we worship, pay attention to, and long to spend time with, is woven right into the garment.
4. Then they made its shoulder-pieces that join it together; it was joined together at its two extremities,
5. as well as the intricately-designed fastening-band which is on them, of its same [type of] workmanship--gold, blue, purple, crimson-scarlet, and fine twisted linen, just as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
6. Then they made onyx stones set in a woven checker-work of gold, engraved [like the] engravings of a signet-seal in regard to the names of the sons of Israel.
7. And he set them in place upon the shoulder-pieces of the efod--stones [to be] a reminder to the sons of Israel, just as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
A reminder of what? That his job was to intervene on behalf of all of the tribes whose names he wore. Interestingly, onyx (shoham) stone was the stone of the tribe of Yosef on the breastplate. Sh’khem (which means “shoulder”) was given to Yosef by Yaaqov as his “extra portion” (double portion)as the one given the role of firstborn after Reuven failed. Yaaqov also linked Yosef in a special way to shepherding Israel (Gen. 49:24). There are other things we are told to remember: the Sabbath (ch. 28), that it was YHWH who brought us out of slavery (Deut. 5:15), what He did to Miryam on the way (Deut. 24:9), and what Amaleq did to us when we were slack (Deut. 25:17). If we do not remember what we have already heard, we cannot build upon it and continue to progress. Remembering depends on listening well, distinguishing what YHWH considers important from what He does not (which the Torah teaches us), and keeping the memory fresh in our minds. YHWH gives us commands such as tzitziyoth (Num. 15:39), the festivals, and lively ceremonies that utilize more than just one of our senses, enhancing the likelihood that they will make a vivid impression on our minds and stay with us longer.
8. Then he made the pouch--the workmanship of imaginative craftsmanship like the design of the efod: gold, blue, purple, crimson-scarlet, and fine twisted linen.
9. And they fashioned the pouch as a square doubled
over, its length a span and its breadth a span [when]
doubled over.
10. And on it they filled in four rows of stone[s]:
sardius, topaz, and carbuncle as the first row;
11. and the second row, emerald, sapphire, and diamond;
12. and the third row, opal, agate, and amethyst;
13. and the fourth row: chrysolyte, onyx, and beryl,
surrounded by a braided checker-work of gold in their
settings.
What is carbuncle or agate worth in comparison to a
diamond? Yet each has a purpose for which it is the
best-suited. All are made to be set in gold and thus to
become unified in our worship of YHWH, each with our
giftings, strengths, and inclinations which complement
one another. We each need to stand back and see how
the piece we are re-weaving from the materials allotted to us fits into the big picture. The system that interconnects all the tribes into one entity has been all but lost. We are not even used to thinking in these terms. It will require a lot of work to learn the details of how. That is where the onyx (shoham) stones on the shoulders come into play. They are located where the breastplate bearing the stones of all the tribes is attached to the rest of the garment, holding it all in place and bearing their weight, and also have the names of all the tribes on the two of them. (vv. 6, 7) The stone in the breastplate that bears Yosef’s name is also onyx. Yosef cared for all of his brothers when in Egypt. His descendants have a special responsibility for the rest of Israel. It is Yosef, joined with Yehudah, who will ultimately defeat our enemies. (Ovadyah 18) This huge network of cloth that connects all the tribes together is a picture of the Kingdom. There is a place in Y'hezq'El's vision which belongs to all of the tribes, just outside the Holy City. It is probably a
festival campground! The pilgrimage festivals, the “family
reunions” with the whole House of Israel, where we can all
be together, can get us in practice. The Kingdom cannot
come unless we forge the connections between the tribes
now. As Yosef prepared the way for his brothers, we can act
in various ways (including teaching one another how to
obey YHWH) for the sake of all Israel even now to ensure
that all of Israel is provided for.
14. And the stones were [based] on the names of the sons of Israel; there were twelve of them, by their names, engravings of a signet-seal, [each] man according to his name for the twelve tribes.
The stones were not set on a separate metal plate, but in gold settings interwoven with the cloth, so all of the stones would be held in tension by the rest; each tribe is responsible to bear one another’s burdens. The more we put on the garments of service, the better we will be able to do so. The third row was missing from the apparel of the “King of Tyre”, whose description in Yehezqel 28 expands to be equated with that of Heylel (Yesh. 14) or haSatan, who used to attend to YHWH’s throne, as the “anointed kh’ruv that covers”—in the very same position as the kh’ruvim which symbolize YHWH and His bride over the Ark of the Covenant. These stones are therefore the “uniform” of one who attends to YHWH. HaSatan was in Eden until lifted up with pride, and now through Israel and Y’shua, YHWH is creating another to fill this position, just as Hadassah replaced Vashti in the book of Esther, for the New Yerushalayim, made up of “living stones” who form a priesthood and a dwelling place for YHWH (1 Kefa 2:5), is decorated in the same way (Yeshayahu 54:11), as a bride for her husband. (Rev. 21:2-3; see note on v. 32 below.)
15. And they fashioned on the breastplate border-chains of interwoven foliage, produced from pure gold.
Border-chains of interwoven foliage: Aramaic: "corded chains".
16. Then they made two woven checker-works of gold, and two gold rings, and they fastened both of the rings onto two extremities of the pouch,
Rings are symbols of authority in Hebrew. That there are two of them hints at the two foremost authorities: Moshe (who transcribed YHWH’s instructions) and Yeshua (who sits on the throne of David).
17. and they fastened both gold chains onto the two rings on the extremities of the pouch.
18. Then two extremities on both interwoven chains they fastened onto both of the braidings, and set them on the shoulder-pieces of the efod toward its front surface.
19. And they made two gold rings and fastened them onto the two extremities of the pouch, on the opposite side of the efod--[that is,] on the inward side.
20. [Again] they made two gold rings and fastened them onto the shoulder-pieces of the efod going from the lower [part] of its front surface parallel to its other joining-place above the efod's imaginatively-designed band.
21. Then they connected the pouch by its rings to the efod's rings with a twisted cord of blue [wool] so it could be above the imaginatively-designed band so that the pouch could not become dislodged from the efod, just as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
22. Then he made the outer robe of the efod of woven workmanship, entirely of [wool dyed] blue,
This correlates with the blue tablecloth spread over the Table of the Bread of the Faces. (Num. 4:7) Both form a backdrop for the reminders of all twelve tribes of Israel.
23. with a [head] opening like the opening of a coat of mail, with a [woven] edging all around its opening so it would not be torn.
This is to help prevent the high priest from disobeying the command to never tear his garment. (Lev. 21:10) That the high priest who tried Y’shua did tear his garment was one more commentary on the corrupt condition of the priesthood in his day.
24. Then on the hem of the robe [at its bottom] they fashioned pomegranates from blue, purple, and crimson-scarlet [wool] and twisted [linen].
25. And they made bells of pure gold, and fastened the bells on the hem of the robe, between the pomegranates [that were] on the hem of the robe all around--
The pomegranates are full of seeds and what looks like blood, both of which represent the fruitful continuance of the nation of Israel through many living children from the same bloodline. The bells called attention to the pomegranates, to make sure they were noticed. But all of Israel has a reminder on the edges of our garments to carry out all of YHWH’s commands (Num. 15:38), and if we teach them diligently to our children (Deut. 6:7), we also assure the continuance of the kind of covenant people YHWH wants. The root behind the word for pomegranate (rimmon) is ruwm, which means to "rise up", for the pomegranate grows upward from the branch rather than downward. Thus they were also a call to ascend to the presence of YHWH.
26. a bell then a pomegranate, then a bell, then a pomegranate--all around the hem of the robe in [which he would] carry out his service, just as YHWH commanded Moshe.
27. Then they made tunics of fine [bleached] linen--the workmanship of a weaver--for Aharon and his sons,
Elsewhere in Scripture, priests are clothed with garments of deliverance (2 Chron. 6:40; Yeshayahu 61:10) and with righteousness (Ps. 132:9). We are called to be a “kingdom of priests” (Ex. 19:6), so we should all be dressed this way. Deliverance is more than redemption; it also includes our return to the Land where He is at home. White garments represent the righteousness of the set-apart ones. (Rev. 3:4; 4:4; 6:11; 7:9; 15:6; 19:8) It is how YHWH’s special messengers appear. (Mark 16:5; Acts 1:10 et al) Hebraically, righteousness is defined through our actions. Most of His commands relate to how Israelites treat each other and the order by which things are run in Israel. HaSatan was wondrously adorned “UNTIL…” (Yehezq’el 28) If priests are defiled, they are to immerse their bodies and wash their garments as well. Our deeds must line up with what we know, so that we may not also lose our position of special service to YHWH.
28. and a winding turban of fine bleached linen, and ornamental head-gear of fine bleached linen, and divided undergarments of fine twisted bleached [linen].
Divided undergarments: i.e., split into two parts like shorts for added modesty. The term itself connotes something that hides.
29. Then a sash of fine twisted bleached [linen] skillfully embroidered with blue, purple, and crimson-scarlet [wool], just as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
30. And they made the glittering plate of the crown of consecration from pure gold, and wrote on it with the writing [style] of a signet-engraving, "SET APART UNTO YHWH".
31. And they provided it with a twisted cord of blue, to allow it to be placed over the winding turban, just as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
Provided it with a twisted cord of blue: Aramaic, "suspended it on a thread of blue".
32. Thus was all the work [of service] of the Tent of Appointment completed. The descendants of Israel indeed carried it out in accordance with all that YHWH commanded Moshe; they did it exactly this way.
Completed: the very same Hebrew word means “a bride”; indeed, a bride completes her husband, as Adam discovered. Thus all the service described above also provided YHWH with a bride! Not all clothes a bride wears are pleasing to YHWH. There is a kind of righteousness that strikes YHWH as tantamount to “menstrual garments”. (Yeshayahu 64:6) In ancient Israel, a woman in her monthly period would wear clothing that let men know not to touch her. The context here describes Israel as wearing such clothing designed to keep Him at bay lest He come close enough to see us as we really are. This bride fails to be aroused to take hold of Him like a lover who wants to be intimate—which is the aim of all worship and Torah study. She does not even call on His Name; this is part of the reason we have been unclean. Now His Name is being restored to us, so we must whisper it the way His ears desire to hear it—as someone who longs for Him. This is what keeps us outside His Land. He wants to keep His water in a clean vessel, and we are not that yet. We are already in the season when the Kingdom is meant to come, but His bride is not ready. Are we really concerned with what YHWH wants? Is what we do for our sake or His? We need to put on those clean white garments that tell Him that we no longer consider ourselves off limits to Him. We prove whether or not we can love Him by how we treat each other. (Yochanan 13:35) Ultimately we must ascend closer to Him as a whole nation. So if we have ascended to some extent, we need to remind the rest of Israel of our calling and prod one another onward.
33. And they brought to Moshe the sanctuary, the tent, all its implements, its hooks, its poles, its pillars, and its socket-bases,
Each person built a piece or a part of a piece, not knowing how it was going to all fit together or what the end product would look like, just as we are being shaped as individual components to fit in with all the other pieces of the true Dwelling-Place of YHWH, which this physical object foreshadowed. We do not always know why we are chipped and chiseled the way we are. The dividing cells in a developing embryo’s body have the potential to become any number of organs; which they actually do become depends on which part of the body they end up moving to. It is the same with us as members of Yeshua’s Body; YHWH has equipped us with many spiritual resources, but the work on which we must focus depends on what position He places us in and which other "pieces" we need to fit beside. (Romans 14:19)
34. and the covering of rams' skins dyed red, and the covering of takhash skins, and the veil for the screen,
35. the Ark of the Testimony, its poles, and the Atoning Covering,
36. the Table and all its utensils, and the Bread of the Faces,
37. the pure menorah along with its lamps--lamps to be arranged in rows--all its implements, and the illuminating oil,
38. the golden altar and the anointing oil, the fragrant incense, the screen for the tent's entryway,
39. the bronze altar, its bronze grating, its poles, and all its tools, the washbasin and its pedestal,
40. the drapes of the courtyard-enclosure, its pillars, its socket-bases,the screen for the gateway to the enclosure, its cords and its stakes, all the vessels for the service of the Dwelling-place--for the Tent of Appointment,
41. the woven garments [in which] to serve in the Sanctuary, the holy garments for Aharon the priest, and the garments for his sons to serve in the role of priests.
42. So the descendants of Israel indeed carried out all the service that YHWH had commanded Moshe [to do].
43. Then Moshe surveyed all the work, and, behold, they had indeed done it just as YHWH had commanded. So Moshe blessed them.
Note the amazing parallels with Genesis 1:31-2:3, when YHWH surveys all He had created, sees that it is very beneficial--just as He wanted it--and then blesses the Sabbath day. The word for “service” in v. 42 means work done voluntarily, without pay, but the word for “work” here means work that is remunerated. This is become the final outcome did include a reward—this blessing—though that was not the reason it was to be done. And like Moshe, we must give an accounting for the work we have been made responsible for. If it is not done rightly, there is no point in doing it, because it will not count. Will YHWH judge our work to be deserving of a blessing? Only if we do it exactly the way we were told to do it (v. 32), not whatever way might seem right to us or the culture we grew up in. These people did not have any written Scriptures to interpret privately; they had to trust Moshe to actually be telling them what YHWH had said rather than just something that came from his own mind. Our society programs us to assume we have choices at every turn, and not to trust our leaders. But we must recover this pattern, or the Kingdom that operates according to Torah can never work.
CHAPTER 40
1. Then YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,
2. "On the day of the first renewing--on [day] one to the month--you shall raise up the Dwelling Place, the Tent of Appointment.
40 is the number of transition. As the Dwelling Place about which we have learned so much in the last several chapters finally comes together, all the pictures are now joined into one big picture of the Kingdom to come. Right now the Kingdom is hidden from us, for time stands in the way. That is why it is called the Kingdom of the Heavens, not because it is somewhere on a cloud! It is not meant to remain permanently invisible; it just resides in an unseen place outside of time. Before Adam refused to take responsibility and repent, time was irrelevant to him, for he did not expect to ever die. What we are after is to get back to what Adam had, to get back outside of time. The Dwelling Place is an important prerequisite to living in the Promised Land. The first month also brings us full circle to the time of preparation for the Passover and the Exodus a year before. But the root meanings of this unusual sentence hint at, “On the day of the first renewing of unity for the renewal”, and the setting up of the Dwelling Place of YHWH was indeed a restoration of the light much like that which took place on the very first day (Gen. 1:5), when YHWH began to remedy the loss of light that occurred when haSatan rebelled, creating the “ruin and desolation”. YHWH was creating a new bridal chamber for Himself. Even the Hebrew word for tent comes from a root meaning “to shine” or “be clear”—exactly what Adam was before he, too, fell from his earlier condition. Israel, and particularly the Sanctuary, is another such fresh start. This is not just about our ancestors. YHWH is calling us to do the same again. The Dwelling Place is mainly about unity—with one another and with YHWH. It is the place where YHWH settles down, but it is only built so that we can see how to become the real Dwelling Place that it only foreshadows. It is the instruction manual for how to become one people in a covenant relationship with YHWH. The Kingdom was meant to begin at this point, soon after they left Egypt, over 3,000 years ago. Several more times it has been on the brink of becoming a reality, but we rebelled or spat on our part of the covenant or became slack or followed our own hearts. Now it is our turn to take the same information and establish the Kingdom. The first day of the month of Aviv—the beginning of the year on the new calendar YHWH gave only to Israel—starts the festival season each year that runs through Sukkoth. After this the darkness swells, but in Egypt Israel had light in its dwellings when Egypt did not, because we looked at how to help our brothers. The festival season each year is the time to learn to be unified so we can survive our dark times.
3. "And there you shall set the ark of the testimony, and you shall shut in the ark with the veil.
The root word for “ark” means “to pluck for gathering”. So the word for “ark” normally means “a box for fruit”. This is the where the fruit that bears witness, or testimony, comes from. Yet how can something meant to give testimony be hidden from view? Because “it is Elohim’s prerogative to conceal a matter, but the honor of kings to search it out.” (Prov.25:2) The word for "veil" stems from a word meaning "break apart", for it “partitions off” the place of being one with YHWH. But the high priest went in bearing the memory of the twelve tribes, as a picture of Y’shua, the one who made a breach in the foundation of the wall that stood between us and YHWH. The veil corresponds with the flaming sword stationed at the entrance to Eden along with the kh’ruvim (the creatures that adorned the ark as well). The singular form, kh'ruv, is very similar to the word "Q'ruv", which means "intimate acquaintance". It is a word play inviting us to "draw near" once we have learned to walk in His ways as one bride for YHWH. When we get there, there will be no more flaming sword for us, but only intimacy with Him again. So get there we must.
4. "Then bring in the table and arrange all of its items that [need] to be set in order, then bring in the menorah and cause its lamps to ascend.
The table represents the twelve tribes in unity, dressed for dinner in His home. Only after this is put in place—after there is something for the light to illuminate—is the light brought in. The menorah is a picture of our family tree. It does not matter who our ancestors were if we attach ourselves to Israel by, like Yeshua, becoming a servant to other servants.
5. "Then set the golden altar of incense in front of the Ark of the Testimony, and put in place the screen for the entryway to the Dwelling-place.
Once the light is present, we can pray knowledgeably (which the incense represents). There is a secondary level of set-apartness established here. The priesthood came behind the first veil—this screen mentioned here—for the purpose of service. This is the veil that was torn when Yeshua died, opening the way for us to come in and serve. Our exile is meant to teach us how to be YHWH’s bride so we can join Him inside the second veil--in the Holy of Holies, for in Y’hezq’El’s vision of the temple, the throne is inside the temple building itself. The more we change our priorities and move closer to YHWH, the more He reveals about what is behind that veil. When we know what it looks like, and make it a living reality, there will no longer be a need for the veil—or the ark itself (Yirmeyahu 3:16), for what it represents will be fulfilled. The priesthood represents all the firstborn among Israel. (Num. 3:12) If we are called to be firstfruits (the same Hebrew word as firstborn), we do not need to wait until others catch up. Someone has to be the first to understand so they can teach the rest. We must keep climbing the steps even if no one joins us, and not drag our old motivations along with us to each new step, for they will only weigh us down. YHWH measures our relationship with Himself by what we do for one another. Only after we get this right can the second veil be lifted.
6. "Then place the altar of ascending in front of the entryway of the Tent of Appointment.
The altar makes a way for others to draw near. We have to build this before inviting anyone to the House of Prayer for All Nations. Without the death that it represents, no one can enter YHWH’s presence. It takes care of what stands between our present state and where we need to be. Before we can enter the place of working to serve the Sanctuary, we have to come up higher by fixing what we broke. Yeshua says not even to come to the altar until we have confessed, repented of, and made restitution for anything that we have done against our brothers. (Mat. 5:24) He does not even want us coming this far if we cannot work things out with one another, for righteousness is not just for the sanctuary, but for everyday situations.
7. "And set the washbasin between the Tent of Appointment and the altar, and put water there.
Yes, don't forget the water! Without it, the washbasin would be pointless. But the fact that YHWH includes this important detail shows us that He has included as much detail as He intends, for He says to add nothing to His commands and take nothing from them. (Deut. 12:32) The washing by the Word of YHWH comes between the judgment and the service.
8. "Then set up the enclosure all around, and set up the screen [for] the entryway to the courtyard.
A cloth fence is no defense for all these costly items, but YHWH’s presence is there, and it simply defines what is set apart, and what is common. Any action that benefits the Kingdom goes on inside, and we must have boundaries as clear as this: Will the action I am contemplating benefit the Kingdom or not?
9. "Then take the anointing oil and anoint the Dwelling-place and everything in it; thus you shall set it and all its vessels apart as sacred, and it shall be holy.
Once the set-apart space (a microcosm of the Holy Land) has been demarcated, He identifies what is to be used there and nowhere else. Holy does not necessarily mean it must all be as hidden away as the ark, but it must all be used for the sole purpose of maintaining the unified Dwelling Place of YHWH. It cannot be put to common use. Everything in our lives must likewise be dedicated to that purpose. We need to consider everything in our lives—our relationships, our use of time, what we invest thought in: Is it useful to YHWH? Can He have anything to do with it? If not, set it outside the fence. Setting apart the wrong things will also not get the job done as He wants it. This anointing oil must be from the first pressing. It should be sufficient that the Torah says to do it; we should not have to add that Y’shua and the Apostles kept the same laws, or find ways to justify the actions as beneficial in a broader sense, though they will be that when understood properly. But oil that requires more than one pressing to come forth does not delight YHWH, and oil is what is needed:
10. "Then anoint the altar of ascending [offerings] and all its implements. Thus you shall set the altar apart as sacred, and it shall be most holy.
Even the craftsmen who built these things could no longer touch them. He chooses to use some people to prepare things to be holy, but it does not necessarily mean He has chosen them to be the ones to use them. Strive to be chosen for the latter category, not the former.
11. "And you shall anoint the washbasin and its stand, and render it holy.
This was a symbolic action, but YHWH used it to demarcate the time they were dedicated for a singular use.
12. "Then bring Aharon and his sons to the entryway of the Tent of Appointment, and bathe them with water,
The order seems to be backwards. One would think those who put the Tabernacle together should have been sanctified first. But it is only when the tools are in the right order and our vessels are cleansed of whatever fouled them that the human component can also be set apart. There must be a task or an order to be set apart to, or the priesthood is a meaningless concept, as it has so often seemed while we have had no sanctuary. But those who are set apart must stay ready for when they can again be put back into service, or it still cannot begin.
13. "and clothe Aharon with the holy garments, and anoint him and set him apart to serve Me as a priest.
14. "Then bring his sons, and clothe them with tunics,
15. "and anoint them as you anointed their father, so they may serve as priests to Me, and it shall be that their anointing shall be for a perpetual [office of] priesthood for their generations."
Remember that the anointing oil had fragrant spices mixed into it, so everything that was set apart to YHWH would have the same distinctive smell. This oil that runs down Aharon’s beard onto his garments without touching his flesh is a picture of unity among brothers. (Psalm 133)
16. So Moshe did so; he did everything just as YHWH had commanded him.
This is the most beautiful statement—repeated in several ways throughout the book—and the biggest lesson for us. Doing as we are told rather than the way that seems right to us, reading the directions before starting, following the pattern to the letter, makes all the difference in the world; otherwise the result will not be what He wants. It was not enough to build these things; they had to be put to use. The knowledge must be there, but it must be applied. If the menorah does not give light, it is as useless as scrap metal, no matter how beautiful. The table still has no bread on it. If we do not fill it, the priesthood will go hungry.
17. Thus it came about that in the first month of the second year, on the first of the month, the Dwelling-place was raised up
Moshe did not do it one day too early or one day too late. He had it done in time for the first anniversary of the Passover. Second year: both words are based on the same root, which means a duplication—starting something over again. It was in a very real way a new creation—making the presence of YHWH that had been lost in Eden accessible again. This took place on a new moon, which YHWH has set apart as the way to measure His times and seasons. We start a journey every year during this month as we recount our coming out of Egypt, not just in ancient times, but this time around as well. Like all the articles constructed here, everyone that has been trained is to come together as His Dwelling Place at this time in particular. This tent is a picture of the Kingdom of the Heavens—not in the heavens, but established on the principles brought from the unseen realm. The understanding comes from a dimension we do not usually experience, but is very earthly and tangible. Moshe went up a mountain into a cloud, so he was in the sky; however you slice it, these laws therefore came from the heavenlies. He saw what the paraphernalia of the Tabernacle meant. It had to be built in the wilderness so it could be established in us before we entered the Land, where we were meant to become what it represents. Because of our ego and lack of love for one another, YHWH was not always willing to stay in such a house. He came and went, as Israel vacillated back and forth between righteousness and sin. He would not commit to moving permanently into a house that kept swaying all the time. We lost the Land and His presence because Israel did not do its part, though YHWH always did His. But we still have the blueprint; it is the Torah. This House can be built as long as it remains. Now it is our turn to “build”, and we must not “screw up”! Eden is still there, hidden only by the flaming sword of time. Only when a limit was put on our lives did time become important. Once we die, we are back outside of time. But the Kingdom will not magically appears when a certain date comes. It will be established only as we learn to love one another. The Torah was given for that purpose. That is what our year is about, and it starts on the first day of the year. If we miss it this time, we have to wait for another round. Time is overcome, ironically, by walking in His times. (Gibor) As we put ourselves back in His pattern—stop every seven days, follow His calendar—the ways we are inconsistent with Eden will eventually disappear. Was raised up: A “new man” unlike anything seen since Adam was standing up, and again this is taking place today. Are we on schedule?
18. when Moshe erected the Dwelling-place, and put its socket-bases in place, and set up its boards, and put its bars [through them], and raised up its pillars.
Moshe setting up YHWH's dwelling place symbolizes the Torah being the framework for the dwelling place He wants to build out of people who are so linked together.
19. Then he spread the tent over the Dwelling-place, and laid the covering of the tent over it from above, as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
20. Then he took the articles of evidence and put [them] into the Ark, and put the poles in place on the Ark, and set the Atoning-cover onto the Ark from above.
With the poles in place, it was ready to move.
21. Then he brought the Ark into the Dwelling-place, and set the curtain in place to block the approach [to it]; thus he shut in the Ark of the Testimony, as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
22. Then he put the table inside the Dwelling-place on its northward flank, outside the curtain,
23. and set the bread in order on it before the face of YHWH, as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
24. Then he placed the menorah in the Tent of Appointment, across from the table, on the southward flank of the Dwelling-place,
25. and he caused the lights to ascend before YHWH's face, as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
26. Then he placed the golden altar inside the Tent of Appointment, in front of the curtain,
27. and he caused spiced incense to smoke on it, as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
28. Then he placed the screen at the entryway to the Dwelling-place,
29. and set the altar of ascending [offering] at the entryway to the Dwelling-place, and caused the ascending [offering] and the grain offering to burn on it, as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
30. And he set the washbasin between the Tent of Appointment and the altar, and put water there to wash oneself with.
31. Then Moshe, Aharon, and his sons washed their hands and feet from it;
This shows that Moshe continued to function as a priest, though he was not a descendant of Aharon. (But he was a Levite.)
32. Whenever they would enter the Tent of Appointment or approach the altar, they would wash themselves, just as YHWH had commanded Moshe.
Wash: i.e., become ritually pure. Each time they came back to the set-apart place, they had to wash off the attitudes and influences they had brought in from outside. And each new generation needs to consciously set itself apart so the meaning of these pictrues becomes our own, not just the possession of our ancestors.
33. Then he raised up the enclosure surrounding the Dwelling-place and the altar, and set up the screen of the courtyard's gateway. Thus Moshe finished the work.
Now not only is the picture complete, but the covering it represents (the gifts brought by those who had a willing heart after having made the golden calf) is a monument saying that YHWH does forgive Israel and there can be intimacy with Him again if we seek it and do what He requires. While the Dwelling Place was being built, Moshe records no dissension or rebellion; no one seems to have given him any trouble when this became the focus of the community. We need something to concentrate on that is bigger than ourselves. We cannot fully carry out Torah if we have no like-minded neighbors with whom to walk it out. Such a unity almost came about when it was not supposed to, at the Tower of Bavel; if we form such a unity when YHWH does want it, rebellion will melt away. Serving this nation leaves us no time for things not profitable for the Kingdom. Moshe finished the work: Being over 80 years old, it is unlikely that Moshe physically did all this work, but it was erected completely by his vision and his obedience, and he was responsible to see that it all got done, as he had to answer for it. But the term for “work” is based on “message” as representative of the one who sent him as a messenger. And he definitely brought the whole message YHWH told him to relay. Moshe (as symbolic of the Torah that he wrote) completes the work, yet we do it. We only experience the weight of YHWH’s presence when we follow Moshe’s instructions:
34. Then the cloud covered the Tent of Appointment, and the weightiness of YHWH filled the sanctuary,
Weightiness: Kavod, from the word for heavy, and thus, important. His honor, His reputation filled every piece of the Tabernacle, and He came to dwell in the place set aside for Him alone.
35. and Moshe was not able to enter the sanctuary, because the cloud settled upon it, and the weightiness of YHWH filled the sanctuary.
Even the one whom YHWH talked with face to face could not fit a tent that was already full. YHWH’s weightiness precluded anything else. When His things are in our vessels, there is no room there for self. When the ark was carried into the Holy Place, a link between heaven and earth was formed, so the cloud could come down and fill the room. But a cloud will penetrate outward wherever permitted, and thus it was visible outside the Tent as well. This is the perfect picture of what King Shlomo said when he finished the more fixed sanctuary over 400 years later: not even the heaven of heavens, much less one building, can ever contain the fullness of YHWH. (1 Kings 8:27)
36. And whenever the cloud lifted from the sanctuary, the descendants of Israel would set out on all their journeyings.
37. But if the cloud did not lift, they did not travel, until the day when it lifted,
They only traveled by day, since it was only then that the cloud was present (v. 38). Yeshua told us to walk in the light. (Yochanan 12:35) In Matithyahu 6, he told us that what brings light is a clear eye rather than an evil eye—a Hebrew idiom for being generous, not stingy. Loving our neighbor as ourselves brings light. When there was enough light in His people, YHWH was able to move them closer to the Promised Land. The more veils we remove, the more light there will be in our eyes. We will know where we are going—not to Heaven, but to His Land to build His Kingdom, and the more we will be able to build a Tabernacle, not a Tower (Gen. 11), for we will recognize that His position is always above us like the cloud.
38. because the cloud of YHWH was over the sanctuary in the daytime, and fire was upon it by night, in front of the eyes of the whole house of Israel in all their travels.
They are not yet at their goal; therefore this story must continue past the end of this book. This tent and its accoutrements will be broken down and re-erected many times before Israel will get to the Land. After all of the materials are received by the craftsmen, they get to put their physical hands to actually making the tent YHWH wants into a reality. We have to see ourselves in this—not just as history, but envision it occurring again in our day, because that is our calling. The whole nation moves at once, not one by one. We must travel only when and where YHWH does, and not stay where we have become comfortable, when He is moving. Those who decided to move into the Land after He had closed the door would end up dead or seriously injured. We must be willing to stay even when we have the itch to travel, if YHWH is not the One instructing the change in understanding or approach. But He may give different orders tomorrow. We do need to camp on each, but only in tents, not fixed homes, for we must be ready to move. There were 32 steps to the Second Temple (still there today). We are not meant to remain on any of them, for that way they become only museums, though each was necessary to bring us a "step" closer to holiness. He was genuinely involved in many “movements” of the past, even when we did not know we were Israel. He once sat over the Protestant Reformation, but He moved on from there. But some built permanent structures where He only intended temporary ones, and stayed behind when He moved on. If these people had kept following YHWH, they would now be keeping the Sabbath and rejoicing in His festivals. Heaven forbid that we become nothing more than another denomination! So "come, let us know--let us press on to know YHWH"! (Hoshea 6:3).
TORAH PORTION
P'qudey
(Exodus 38:21 - 40:38)
INTRODUCTION: As Exodus draws to a close, everything that was donated for the Tabernacle is accounted for, and the artisans have to take responsibility to keep everything in line with what YHWH had said (compare Mat. 25; Rom. 14:12)--not for fear of punishment, but because it is the honorable thing to do. Here the focus is on the components of the Tent of Appointment. But it also relates very closely to the people who make up the real Dwelling Place of which the Tent is only a metaphor. All of the components come together to form one complete picture of the environment in which He wants to dwell. Where He lives there will be prayer, unity, honesty, purity, and service to one another. We are about to read of gold, silver, and bronze, but we have even greater things to account for—not just honor, but wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, self-examination, and loving our neighbors as ourselves. Everyone has a part to play. What is important is not how big or how shiny you are, but that you are in the right place and are doing your job well. If you leave one tent peg out, the whole tent has a problem. You cannot build an altar out of wool or a lampstand out of goatskins. All types of materials are needed to bring the balance needed among His people. He requested each thread, and He wants His home built out of us all. And if we trace the thread of the types of stones on the high priest’s chest throughout the rest of Scripture, we discover an amazing truth about just what YHWH is creating and why…
Taking Inventory
We are told here that our two master artisans, B’tzal-El and Aholiav, “made everything that YHWH commanded” (Exodus 38:22), and, better still, that they did it properly (39:32, 42). It passed the inspection (39:33, 43), and Moshe not only gave his approval but his blessing, because this was no ordinary task; it was a holy one.
Moshe also did his job rightly (40:16), and YHWH liked the result! As soon as it was all set up, He moved in, leaving room there for nothing else. (40:34; compare Yeshayahu 6:1)
Thus right when a new year began, the people of Israel were able to make a fresh start with YHWH. (40:1) The tent of meeting was now no longer Moshe’s own tent, outside the camp; it was this new tent, built, in effect, by all the people, because they contributed toward it and even did much of the preparation work before donating it to B’tzal-El in a form that was ready to use. It was designed not to be YHWH’s dwelling place, but to hold and cover the dwelling place which was not as tangible as the tent, because it was meant to “house” something more intangible still.
YHWH’s presence—the fact that He was back among us and, later, was still among us--was communicated by something visible but, again, without a clear or particular shape—a flame and a cloud, which can be ever-changing in form, so that we could never say, “This is what He looks like”, for that was the idea that had led Him to depart the camp in the first place.
As we begin to make our way back to the Promised Land again, His dwelling place is scattered all over the world, and so is especially shapeless, though for the full picture to return, we need to coalesce into a unified whole as the Tabernacle did.
So we need to take inventory again: Are all the elements “gathered”? That is, does everyone who is meant to be part of the reconvened Israel know that he is meant to be a part of it? If not, maybe that is where we need to begin—by “evangelizing” the people who think they are the ones evangelizing, by sharpening their definitions to make them more like Scripture’s, giving them the glad news that they are invited back into not a different covenant than the one the people in the Bible participated in, but the same one—renewed. Only thus can the same dwelling place, made up of the descendants of the same people who surrounded this tent (and others too), be re-established
So our inventory must include making sure our children have a clear picture of their heritage and their place in Israel. They may have been raised as Israelites and not have as much religious baggage to contrast it with, but still they have many voices pulling them in other directions, toward other priorities and interests which may conflict with the Sabbath, the Festivals, dietary requirements, or even the command, “Thou shalt not covet”!
And aside from the clear-cut commands, are our attitudes in raising them winsome, accurately reflecting not just the weightiness but the beauty of YHWH’s presence that was seen here? Because if they don’t find what is important also attractive, we could easily lose them.
This year, the first of the Hebrew year is delayed by a month, so we have more time to take inventory of our readiness to recount (at Passover) what YHWH did at this season in ancient times, and prepare to do it in ways that speak their language, because they are the ones who must keep the line of Israel going when we no longer can.
Study questions:
1. If what was made with it was the important thing, why do you think the total weight of each type of metal donated is given? (38:24-29)
2. If, per 38:26, the number of only men age 20 and above (probably only up to age 50, the age when men were no longer required to join the army) was 603,550, what do you estimate was the size of the entire community of Israel in the wilderness? As you realize this, what thoughts come to your mind?
3. The courtyard (38:31) may seem less important than the tent itself, but what was the importance of the courtyard? What did it provide? What would have been lacking without it?
4. At least 10 times in chapter 39 the phrase “as YHWH commanded Moshe”, or something nearly identical, is used of the work of these two men and their assistants. What does the number 10 often indicate in Scripture? Based on this (and on 39:43 and 40:34), do you think YHWH was satisfied with how they did their job? Can the same be said about your work?
5. Aharon’s garments are called “holy” (39:1), in contrast to those worn by all of his sons and himself on other occasions (39:27). What does this tell us about them? About their use?
6. The stones on Aharon’s shoulders were to be a reminder to the Israelites. (39:7) What were they to remind us of?
7. The stones on Aharon’s breastplate were “about the names of the twelve sons of Israel”. (39:14) This being the case, compare the twelve stones here with those associated with the King of Tzur (Y’hezq’El/Ezekiel 28) , who is described in the same terms as Heylel (Lucifer) in Yeshayahu/Isaiah 14. What do you notice about the third row of stones described in 39:12 here? Which sons of Yaaqov would these correlate with? What might this tell you about those tribes in particular?
8. How did the construction of Aharon’s outer robe (39:22-23) help Aharon obey the command given in Leviticus 21:10.
9. What is significant about the time YHWH’s earthly Dwelling Place was actually set up? (40:2, 17) What else was it just in time for?
10. What can you deduce from the order in which the components of the Dwelling Place were set up? (40:2-8; 40:18-33)
11. What was the purpose of anointing certain pieces and people with oil? (40:9-15) Why was this done publicly? What does Psalm 133 say this oil is similar to or a picture of?
12. What objective means did Israel have to end all vacillation about when the whole camp should move? (40:36-38) How do you think such certainty can be recovered as the whole community of Israel begins to reunite? How can we, in the meantime, know that YHWH is the one guiding us to move in a certain direction?
Companion Passage:
The Sidewalk
for Kids
Do you like puzzles? Do you like to solve mysteries? YHWH likes to hide special surprises in the Scriptures for us to dig out and discover. And this Torah portion contains one big clue.
Verses 10-13 of chapter 39 tell us that the stones in the high priest’s breastplate were in four rows:
"The first row was a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle: this was the first row.
The second row, an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond.
And the third row, a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst.
And the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper."
What was written on the stones? Each had a name of one of the tribes of Israel.
Now let’s do a scavenger hunt through the Bible to see what else we can find out about these stones:
Look at what Ezekiel/Y’hezq’el 28:13 says about the king of Tzur, a city on the Mediterranean coast just north of Israel:
"You have been in Eden the garden of Elohim; every precious stone was your covering, the sardius, topaz, and the carbuncle, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the diamond, and gold… on the day that you were created."
First, what difference do you see in the two lists of stones? Something is missing, right?
This human king did not exist back in the garden of Eden. The next few verses show more clearly that he symbolizes someone else who was there, who was once a kheruv like those pictured on top of the Ark of the Covenant, who used to lead the angels in worship of YHWH, but who then wanted the attention for himself—or maybe herself—and therefore became crooked and was thrown off a place called, even then, the Mountain of Elohim, because he/she contaminated YHWH’s sanctuary with this attitude of pride. Yeshayahu/Isaiah 14:12-14 tells us even more: this one is described as having fallen from heaven for wanting to be just like El Elyon (the Most High), and also weakened the nations with such an attitude, and so was thrown down to the earth.
Who do we see in the book of Genesis trying to convince the human beings, whom YHWH has now put in charge of His creation, in the same position that kheruv once had, to disobey and try to become like Elohim? The first thing Adam and Hawwah notice after they do is that something is missing!
After humans are punished for that, and also thrown out of Eden, we see YHWH constantly rescuing humans from total destruction—through Noakh, then creating a new thing called Israel. Now that Israel is a whole nation, He says, “Build me a place so I can live among My people.” And along with that, He puts a man in charge that has these same stones on his garment. The position that was lost—the leader of worship to YHWH—is being brought back!
Now fast-forward about 1,500 years to just after someone called the Second Adam puts another big piece in place in rebuilding what was destroyed in Eden:
"You also, as living stones, are built up (into) a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to YHWH through Yeshua the Messiah. This is why the Scripture also contains this: 'Look! In Zion I am laying down a chief cornerstone, chosen, precious: and he that trusts in him will not be put to shame.'” (1 Kefa 2:5-6)
Precious stones and priests and being acceptable to YHWH again! Are we onto something here?
Now fast-forward again to the glimpse Kefa’s close friend had of the very last piece of the puzzle, and things start to look familiar:
"And I… saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from Elohim out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Look! Elohim’s dwelling-place is with men, and he will live with them, and they will be his people, and Elohim himself will be with them, and be their Elohim. (Revelation 21:2-3)
Just a few verses later, we get a few more details about this city: It
"had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel… And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all kinds of precious stones:
The first foundation was jasper;
the second, sapphire;
the third, a chalcedony;
the fourth, an emerald;
the fifth, sardonyx;
the sixth, sardius;
the seventh, chrysolite;
the eighth, beryl;
the ninth, a topaz;
the tenth, a chrysoprase;
the eleventh, a jacinth;
the twelfth, an amethyst." (21:12, 19-20)
There is the list again—a few of the stones have different names (and maybe someday you will be the one to figure out why), but twelve stones instead of just nine, because what YHWH has been making is even better than the one that failed.
So that kheruv that was thrown out of heaven was like a wife to YHWH. Now we see Him replacing the wife that displeased Him with something He likes better, just like Esther replaced Vashti as we'll soon celebrate at Purim, and we, the living stones, who are building that more complete dwelling place for YHWH, can enter into it by coming back together as the twelve tribes of Israel again.
Each of these clues is called, in Hebrew, a remez, hinting at another clue that is somewhere else in Scripture, hyper-linked together by the use of the same words. Each place gives us more details. And you can do this with lots of different words, especially when you learn to read them in Hebrew.
The Bible is not boring, after all, is it?
Photo from the Temple Institute
Photo from the Temple Institute
Photo from the Temple Institute
The Renewal of P'QUDEY
All of the donations toward the Mishkan (Tabernacle) were accounted for and their use documented carefully here so that those who gave might know it was used properly and so that they would be given the proper credit for what they did. (Exodus 38:21-31)
But, as always, there is a lesson in it for us. In the Renewed Covenant, Yeshua told parables about people having to account for what was left in their charge when the owner was away (e.g., Mat. 25; Luke 16:2) These are actually where we got the idea of “talents” meaning special gifts we are trusted with to develop and use to help others, because prior to that, all “talent” ever meant was a measure of weight, as we see right here in this Torah portion in the counts of how much silver, gold, and bronze, measured in talents, were brought to build the parts and tools related to the Mishkan. (Ex. 38:21-24)
So we can deduce from the way Yeshua used the word that talents in this other sense can also be used as building materials. But he also spoke about having to account for something else:
“Every careless word that people may speak, they must give an account of in the day of judgment, because by your words you will be justified or by your words you will be condemned.” (Mat. 12:36-37)
We all have bad thoughts sometimes, but this shows us just how important it is that we put a guard on our tongues, so we will not let those bad thoughts escape through words and do real damage. Proverbs 12:18; 15:2, 4; 21:23; 23:25, etc. and Yaaqov/James 3:1-12 give us much more detail about why and how. But later we actually find a verse that directly connects what we say with what we build:
“Let no rotten [worthless, unwholesome] word come out of your mouth, but only what is good for edification, according to the need at that moment, so it may provide a supply of what will [most] benefit those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:29)
“Edification” specifically means “building up”. (Remember, an “edifice” is a building.) We build people up or tear them down with both the way we use our talents and with what we say. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” (Proverbs 18:21) Isaiah said, “YHWH has given me the tongue of one who has been taught, so that I may know how to sustain a weary person with a word.” (Yeshayahu 50:4) What an example! But what kind of effect would words that have already become “rotten” have?
So we have brought all of the pictures full circle and see that they are all related. When all of the parts of the Mishkan were built, they were brought to Moshe to examine. When he “saw all the work, sure enough, they had done it just as YHWH had commanded, and Moshe blessed them.” (39:43)
In the parable of the talents that Yeshua told, we also see a similar outcome. When the master came back to check on what they had been doing, some of the people who were entrusted with some talents were reprimanded for how they could have done better with what they were given. But those who did things rightly—who used the raw materials they were given to build something even better—were told, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful over a few things; I will put you in charge of many! Enter [with joy] into your master’s [good graces and] favor.” (Mat. 25:21, 23)
With that in mind, Paul tells us to do our work, even our everyday jobs, “not just when people are watching, as men-pleasers, but since we are [really] the servants of the Messiah, we should do from the heart what YHWH wants, doing even menial work with good will, as to YHWH, and not to men, knowing that whatever good thing anyone does, he will receive the same from YHWH.” (Ephesians 6:6-8)
How to Finish Well
“When all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was completed, the children of Israel had done according to all that YHWH commanded Moshe… Moshe saw all the work, and, indeed, they had finished it; they had done it exactly as YHWH had commanded. And Moshe blessed them.” (Ex. 39:32, 43)
Will that be the report about us on the day the dwelling-place made of living stones is complete? Will we hear, “Well done, you good and faithful servant!... Enter into the joy of your Master!” (Mat. 25:41)?
Of course no one starts out perfect, and we all suffer setbacks. But are you pushing forward anyway? Even someone as mature as Paul could still say, “I do pursue the possibility of apprehending what I was apprehended for by the Anointed Yeshua... I don’t consider myself to have gotten hold of it yet. But one thing [I do]: no longer caring about things that are behind, but rather straining forward to the things ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of YHWH’s higher calling…” (Philippians 3:12-14)
How did he get to the point where he could finally say, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith”? (2 Timothy 4:7) Well, how did the first holy implements go from jewelry that was probably riddled with Egyptian idolatry to something fit for the Master’s use?
On an analogous occasion when plunder was taken from the objects of YHWH’s avenging wrath, He commanded, "The gold, the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead—everything that [can] go through the fire--you must pass through the fire, and it will be ceremonially pure, though indeed it will be purified with the water of separation, while whatever cannot stand the fire, you must pass through the water.” (Numbers 31:22-23) So we can be pretty sure the plunder from the Egyptians had to undergo the same. Paul did go through much “fire”—and literal water (2 Cor. 11:23-27)--and it all did its job.
After another great battle in days to come—when Israel’s attackers have been destroyed for the last time, when plunder is again taken and a fountain of purification is provided for the royal House of David—when the finishing touches are being put on the new dwelling-place, YHWH says, “I will bring one third through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and I will test them as gold is tested, and they will call upon my Name, and I will answer and say, ‘This is My people!’…” (Z’kharyah 13:9) Sounds like, “Well done!”
And I don’t dare leave out the most comforting words for such times: “When you pass through the water, I will be with you, and through the deep rivers, they will not overflow you; when you walk through the fire you will not be burnt…” (Isaiah 43:2)
Hananyah, Misha’el, and Azaryah experienced this literally. (Dani’el 3:23-28) The only thing that burned was what kept them bound. For us, it may be metaphorical—or not.
But as Job was confident that “when He has tested me, I will come forth like gold” (Iyov 23:10), one of Yeshua’s most trusted trainees, having experienced much testing himself, assured those who let the fire do its work that “the Elohim and Father of our Master…, in… great mercy, has begotten us afresh to a living hope, through Yeshua’s resurrection…, into an inheritance not liable to decay, unsoiled, unfading, kept under guard in the heavenly realms for you who, by YHWH’s power, are protected through faithfulness for a deliverance already prepared, to be unveiled in the final, decisive epoch, for which [cause] you leap for joy, even if now,, for a little while it is necessary to be afflicted by various tests so the proving of your confidence (much more valuable than gold, which can get ruined, even though made acceptable by fire) may be found commendable, honorable, and worthy when Yeshua the Messiah is made manifest…” (1 Kefa/Peter 1:3-7)
Let that awesome expectation give you the mettle to endure what burns away the metal’s dross, and the shaping and tempering that we all need, so the place YHWH can feel at home gets built the right way!
It All Comes Together
This Torah portion enumerates in detail how much of each of the materials used in the making of the Tabernacle was collected. The whole process took nearly a year (Exodus 40:2). But after the donations had been transformed into the shapes YHWH had prescribed, “Thus was finished all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting; and the children of Israel did according to all that YHWH commanded Moshe... And they brought the tabernacle unto Moshe, the Tent, and all its furniture, its clasps, its boards, its bars, and its pillars, and its sockets… And Moshe saw all the work, and, behold, they had done it; as YHWH had commanded, even so had they done it, and Moshe blessed them.” (Exodus 39:32-33, 43)
Notice what the first things mentioned when they brought it to Moshe were. They were not the major components, but the things that held them all together, for without these attaching instruments, the first time a gust of wind rose up, the curtains would separate from one another and blow off of the pillars on which they rested—if the pillars were still even standing after the sheer weight of these coverings was placed over them. So the connectors may have been the most important parts, after all.
As we, the living sanctuary, are brought together, there are many forces that will try to drive us apart, so there are measures we need to take to ensure that this does not occur. But how? We are all so different, especially since this “tent” will be made up of both Jews and the tribes who are just beginning to come back to their Hebrew heritage and who don’t all do things the same way. It’s not done just with tools; some of the people YHWH has made parts of this “structure” are raised up for that very purpose:
“He provided some [to be] delegated envoys, some spokesmen, some bearers of the Glad News, some shepherds, and some teachers …to build up of the body of [the] Messiah until we all arrive at the unanimity of conviction and of the [precisely] correct understanding of the Son of Elohim, aiming to be a complete man, attaining the [proper] measure of maturity of what brings [the] Messiah to [his] fullness, so that we may no longer be childish, …but [that], telling the truth with committed love, we may all grow up into him who is the head—the Messiah--from whom the whole body, being laid out and framed together and caused to coalesce by means of every joint that assists according to the energizing through one standard measurement of each of the constituent parts, producing the growth of the body into [something that can keep] building itself up through benevolent affection.” (Ephesians 4:11-16)
The imagery is of muscles and ligaments that hold a body together tightly enough to be optimally useful, but it can just as well describe a building gaining stability as its frame is held in just the right balance by tension from all directions; the picture is the same. We see this same imagery again in Romans 14:19-20:
“Eagerly pursue things that promote peace and [facilitate] the building [process in which we can fit different materials] into one another. Don’t undo YHWH’s work for the sake of [any personal privilege]!”
Here the original word for “building” describes a process of fitting items made of wood, metal, stone, etc. together as smoothly as if they were naturally the same material, though they are not—a picture of making the kinds of choices that will enable both houses of Israel, in our respective, different callings, to nonetheless fit and adhere together as one unified entity. (Eph. 2:13-22) Yeshua’s initial envoys told those returning from the other lost tribes to start with eating only kosher food and basic moral practices so we could first just eat at the same table, and progress onward from there. (Acts 15:19-21)
The traditional exhortation as we end a book of the Torah applies well: “Chazaq! Chazaq! V’Nitchazeq!” (Be strong… and we will [all] be strengthened!) But this particular word for “strong” means “get a firm grip and hold on tight”. We connectors must never let go, so that YHWH’s dream may come true.
The Fire and the Flames
At first there seems to be a lot of redundancy in these chapters from what was said earlier in the book. But the fact that the Tabernacle and priestly garments get so much “air time” in the Torah should make us ask why. YHWH often warns us to keep our words as few as possible (Prov. 10:19; 12:13; 13:3; 17:28; 18:7; Qoheleth/Eccles. 5:2), so He Himself would not waste words repeating something that was not extremely significant. And this is different. This is the “and they did…as YHWH commanded Moshe” stage.
Now the work was actually done and these things could be put to use—even more important than their appearance, dazzling though it was. And YHWH showed His approval of the job they had done by visibly inhabiting it. (40:34) Such a commendation from Heaven is well worth the profuse ink to anyone who receives such a “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
The cloud that symbolized His presence and approval soon became Israel’s guide through unknown territory, and ultimately back to the Land promised to their forefathers. But we don’t have that now. Is there an equivalent today? How do we know the way through uncharted terrain? What is our “cloud”?
Remember, what looked like a cloud by day appeared as a fire by night. (40:38) In Acts 2 we see YHWH again make His presence and approval known visibly through fire hovering over something, only this time rather than being one pillar of fire, it was distributed among at least 120 people (Acts 1:15), with individual flames above each one’s head.
What was the catalyst? YHWH’s spirit, which indeed inhabits human “temples”. (1 Cor. 6:19) It is also described as something that “leads us”. It led Yeshua himself back into the wilderness to be tested (Luke 4:1)—just like our ancestors in Exodus! And he said it would guide us “into all truth”. (Yochanan 16:13) The flame was divided because Israel was scattered. But YHWH knew where His lost sheep were—every one of them (Amos 9:9)—and so He sent those on whom the flames rested to find them. All who are sent as witnesses “to the ends of the earth” that inclusion in the Covenant is available again so the Kingdom can be restored to Israel (Acts 1:6) are empowered by this spirit of holiness. (1:8) And though without the initial visual effects, it has continued to spread from them into all whom they influence.
How it aligns with this account of the guiding cloud is seen when the apostles “attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit would not allow them.” (Acts 16:7) They were led elsewhere. Why? Steve Collins’ research shows that at one time the House of Israel was known to have settled en masse in Bithynia, so they expected to find them there. But they had moved on from there by that time, so there was no reason to look there for the lost sheep of the House of Israel.
Do we find His leading hard to discern? The cloud and fiery pillar are no longer visible. Today there is a lot more “noise” and “static”, but to those who listen (shema’), YHWH will make it as clear as it needs to be. All “sons of Elohim” are promised this leading by His spirit. (Romans 8:14) Who are those “sons of Elohim”? Those who were once “not a people” (Hoshea 1:10) but who had before that been the people of Israel. It all comes full circle; watch:
That “spirit of holiness”, in Hebrew, is Ruakh haQodesh--literally “wind of the Qodesh”, which is the very name of the antechamber to the Holy of Holies in none other than the Tabernacle. So it is, at least in part, the homing device by which YHWH will “blow” all of us back to the center of His camp where we can meet with Him—together.
While we are in exile, the flame is divided. But one day all the flames will come back together again, and settle at the Holy Place where He chose to dwell with His people!
What's in a Number?
Both times the census was taken while Israel was in the wilderness (the end of the first and fortieth years), the number of military-aged males was around 600,000. (Numbers 1:46; Exodus 38:26; Numbers 26:51) Is this important?
Angus Wootten, a beloved pioneer in the Hebraic roots movement, pointed out that (after centuries of very sparse population) when the total modern population in what is now Israel had grown to 600,000, the British drove the Ottoman Empire out of the Land. (1917) When there were 600,000 Jewish immigrants to Israel, it became a nation again (1948). When there were 600,000 men of biblical military age (20-50) in the Land, Jerusalem was recaptured. (1967; this one I could not find statistics to verify, but considering the overall population at that time, it is probable.) And though Mr. Wootten is no longer with us, we could add that when the number of settlers “occupying” the disputed parts of the territory reached 600,000, Jerusalem was recognized as Israel’s capital by nations other than Israel. (2017) It seems YHWH considers us ready for some major milestones only when we reach a certain threshold.
Though YHWH “can easily deliver with many or with few” (1 Shmu’el 14:6), for some reason He only acts when some things reach a critical mass. He waited until the sins of the Emorites had reached the tipping point (Gen. 15:16). It appears it was 490 years (70 x 7), the same length of time He allowed Judah’s failure to let the Land rest every 7 years to add up, then He charged them 70 years (of being unable to use the Land at all—not destroyed, but banished to exile until they paid back the years they owed). Yeshua gave that same number, 70 times 7, as the answer when asked how often one should forgive a brother. (Mat. 18:22)
It’s not infinite (even YHWH’s patience can run out if people simply refuse to repent). But on the other hand, who’s going to keep count of how many times he has forgiven each brother? For our purposes it seems it should be considered infinite, for we never know all the mitigating factors as YHWH does—and is still patient! He’s described in Hebrew’s wonderful verbal imagery as “long-nostriled”. (Think fire-breathing dragon; the longer the nostrils, the more the heat of His anger has time to cool before it affects anything else.)
His patience (and His love for His intercessors) is so great that He would have even held off the destruction of S’dom and ‘Amorrah if there had been enough righteous men. (Gen. 18:24ff) Since He said He’d hold it off for ten, Jews traditionally have considered 10 a quorum (minyan) for certain prayers to be considered representative of the whole community.
Every Hebrew letter has a numerical value, so every word has the total value of its component letters. This kind of counting is called gematria. If one Hebrew word has the same value as another, it is considered somehow related. In such Biblical mathematics, it took a Messiah to cancel out the work of the Serpent, because the two words (mashiakh and nakhash) have equivalent value. “The Son of Elohim was manifested to destroy the works of the devil.” (1 Yochanan 3:8) “Manifested” there means “realized, made actual or visible.” So not just the word but the number was made flesh!
There may be times when numbers can have a similar effect for us. When YHWH invited him to affect the actual outcome of a dire circumstance by simply acting out a dramatized victory, His prophet told (Northern) King Yo’ash that because he only shot 3 arrows symbolically at an enemy instead of 5 or 6, Israel’s preeminence over that enemy in the real world would be proportionately short-lived. (2 Kings 13:14-19) What does that say about making our actions count?
Remember high school chemistry? There are 92 naturally-occurring elements on the periodic table. 6 of them (last in each column) are called “noble”, because they are unusually stable. A group of Jewish scientists noticed there are 92 unique words (counting all occurrences that stem from the same root, whatever its grammatical form, as 1 word) in the Hebrew creation account (Genesis 1:1-2:3); in the verses referring to the 7th day, there are 6 unique words—for what could be more stable than the Sabbath, when YHWH rested? Words are the “elements” He used to create the world!
And we won’t even get into the equidistant letter sequences, first noticed by Russian scientist Ivan Panin over a century ago, and made famous by books on the “Bible Codes”, showing how impossible it would have been for human minds to write the masterwork that YHWH inspired word by word in the original language. So if there seem to be redundant or superfluous words in a given text, without which the meaning would seem to have still been clear, know that they’re there for a reason. The numbers have to add up to something specific for His words to have their greatest effect.
Our words, on the other hand, ought to be few (Eccl. 5:2), especially in prayer (Mat. 6:7), for “where there are many words, error is not lacking”. (Prov. 10:19) Not so with YHWH’s words; with the psalmist we exclaim in awe, “Forever, O YHWH, Your word is settled (fixed, determined, established) in Heaven!” (Psalm 119:89) How is that for stability?
So don’t skip over the numbers in Scripture; pay attention to them. They’re not just meaningless statistics!
