Exodus 31

03 Jun 2026 - Theology

The Sabbath

Ancient Eastern Weddings:

1. Betrothal (Cup of the Covenant) - Genesis 12
2. Groom leaves to prepare the house - Exodus 1-12
3. Arrival of the bridegroom - Exodus 12
4. Bride is consecrated - Exodus 19:10-15
5. Shofar is sounded (bride’s entrance) - Exodus 19:16
6. Gather under the chuppah - Exodus 19:17
7. Presentation of the ketubah - Exodus 20-23
8. Exchange of wedding gifts - Exodus 25-40, Leviticus
9. Consummation of the marriage
10. “Honeymoon” year (Deuteronomy 24:5)

Exodus 31

The Lord again speaks to Moses and tells him that He has set apart two people who are especially wise and gifted to create the tabernacle, the ark of the covenant, and all its instruments.

Exodus 31:2,6 - “ See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee;”

In ancient times artists were thought to be godly people. They built temples and carved statues of the gods, they cut stone and crafted jewelry. For this reason we still know the names of many ancient artists. Verse 3 says that the Lord has filled Bezaleel “with the spirit of God.”

Exodus 31:3 - “And I have filled him [Bezaleel] with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship”

The Lord also gives Bezaleel three traits to build the Tabernacle: wisdom, understanding, and knowledge.

Proverbs 3:19-20 - “The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew.”

The Lord created the world with the exact same three traits!

The Lord then spoke to Moses to command the people of Israel to keep the Sabbath:

Exodus 31:13 - “Speak thou also unto the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you.”

Exodus 31:16-17 - “Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.”

Rabbinic tradition has noticed that the instructions from the Lord to Moses in Exodus 25-31 is structured around exactly seven divine speeches. Each speech begins with the same distinct formula: “And the Lord spake unto Moses…” This intentionally mirrors the seven days of creation in Genesis 1.

“And the Lord spake unto Moses…”:

1. Exodus 25:1
2. Exodus 30:11
3. Exodus 30:17
4. Exodus 30:22
5. Exodus 30:34
6. Exodus 31:1
7. Exodus 31:12

Just as the final day of the seven days of creation ends with the Sabbath, so too does the phrase “And the Lord spake unto Moses” end with the Sabbath in Exodus 31:12-17. By organizing the instructions this way, the text singals that the tabernacle is a microcosm, a miniature universe meant to bring the perfect order of God’s original creation down to earth. We will see a continuation of this parallel later in Exodus.

The Finger of God

The Ten Commandments may have been spoken by God in Exodus 20, but it is here in Exodus 31 that God gave the two stone tablets to Moses with the Ten Commandments written down:

Exodus 31:18 - “And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.”

Does God have a finger? Or do the words “written with the finger of God” mean something else? Rashi said that the words could mean that God personally carved the tables or else that the Torah is just saying that the tablets contained the work of heaven.

Maimonides rejected the idea that God was human in any way. He imagined that the tablets were prepared by God during the days of creation.

We have seen the phrase “the finger of God” before. In Exodus 8, when the Lord sent the plague of lice down to Egypt, the magician-priests of Egypt tried to replicate the plague. When they are unable to produce lice, they realize that the plagues are the “finger of God.”

The words on the tablets were so important that no matter who actually carved them on the stone, they came from God.

References:

1. The Hebrew - Greek Key Study Bible (KJV Version)
2. The BEMA Podcast, Episode 23: Falling on Joyful Faces
3. The Torah Portion-by-Portion by Rabbi Seymour Rossel (2007)
4. The Tabernacle, the Creation, and the Ideal of an Orderly World