Exodus 35-37
17 Jun 2026 - Theology
Instructions Carried Out
Ancient Eastern Weddings:
- Betrothal (Cup of the Covenant) - Genesis 12
- Groom leaves to prepare the house - Exodus 1-12
- Arrival of the bridegroom - Exodus 12
- Bride is consecrated - Exodus 19:10-15
- Shofar is sounded (bride’s entrance) - Exodus 19:16
- Gather under the chuppah - Exodus 19:17
- Presentation of the ketubah - Exodus 20-23
- Exchange of wedding gifts - Exodus 25-40, Leviticus
- Consummation of the marriage
- “Honeymoon” year (Deuteronomy 24:5)
All the instructions for gifts that the Lord gave to Moses will now be shared with the rest of the people to be carried out. This appears to be a repeat of the instructions in Exodus 25-27 and Exodus 28-30.
Exodus 35
Exodus 35:1 - “And Moses gathered all the congregation of the children of Israel together, and said unto them, These are the words which the Lord hath commanded, that ye should do them.”
This chapter begins with a command to keep the Sabbath holy as a day of rest to the Lord:
Exodus 35:2-3 - “Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the Lord: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death. Ye shall kindle no fire throughout your habitations upon the sabbath day.”
We then see a repeat of the Lord’s request to Moses, that the people who are willing take an offering to the Lord. (5,21,22,29)
Exodus 35:21 - “And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom his spirit made willing, and they brought the Lord’s offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all his service, and for the holy garments.”
Moses then calls Bezaleel and Aholiab, which the Lord had called by name in Exodus 31. These two people were specifically set apart by God and gifted with wisdom to create the tabernacle, the ark of the covenant, and all its instruments.
Exodus 35:30,34 - “And Moses said unto the children of Israel, See, the Lord hath called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; And he hath put in his heart that he may teach, both he, and Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan.”
Not only were they both gifted in wisdom to do the work necessary, they were also given the ability to teach other wise men how to do the work.
Exodus 36 and 37
Exodus 36:4-5 - “And all the wise men, that wrought all the work of the sanctuary, came every man from his work which they made; And they spake unto Moses, saying, The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work, which the Lord commanded to make.”
It is suprising to me that the Israelites in the desert were somehow able to find everything neccessary to construct the tabernacle and its instruments, including uncommon animal skins and rare jewells and stones. It is even more suprising to me that they had so much more than was necessary, so much so that Moses had to proclaim through the camp that the people could not give any more!
Exodus 36:6-7 - “And Moses gave commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing. For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.”
How often when taking a willing offering today do we view it as “making up a shortfall”, rather than remembering what God has done for His people in the past and trusting that He will give the church more than enough?
And so we read that everything was created as the Lord had commanded: the tabernacle, the ark of the covenant, and all its instruments. The work will continue in the next few chapters of Exodus.
References:
- The Hebrew - Greek Key Study Bible (KJV Version)
- The BEMA Podcast, Episode 23: Falling on Joyful Faces
- The Torah Portion-by-Portion by Rabbi Seymour Rossel (2007)