Exodus 40

19 Jun 2026 - Theology

The Bridegroom is Among Us

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 - Exodus 40
10. “Honeymoon” year (Deuteronomy 24:5)

This chapter contains what can be considered the “consummation” of the marriage between God and His people.

Exodus 40:34,38 - “Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. For the cloud of the Lord was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.”

Now that the tabernacle and all its instruments are complete, the Lord came to dwell in the tabernacle and be with the people “in the sight of all the house of Israel”.

It is interesting that even Moses was not able to enter the tent because he was not the High Priest (35). In ancient Jewish weddings, there is a room set aside for the consummation of the marriage. There is a “best man” who stands at the door and listens, and who proclaims that the marriage is consummated.

John 3:29 - “He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.”

John the Baptist was announcing that the wedding has happened, the bridegroom [Jesus] is here, and the Kingdom of God is at hand.

Creation Parallel

Just as we noted in Exodus 39 that the phrase “as the Lord commanded Moses” appears seven times, the same phrase appears here in Exodus 40 exactly seven times.

“as the Lord commanded Moses”:

1. Exodus 40:19
2. Exodus 40:21
3. Exodus 40:23
4. Exodus 40:25
5. Exodus 40:27
6. Exodus 40:29
7. Exodus 40:32

It appears that Exodus 40 is also mirroring the seven days of creation in Genesis 1.

Exodus 40:1-2 - “And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, On the first day of the first month shalt thou set up the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation.”

As Nahum Sarna points out, the contruction of the tabernacle on the first day of the first month (the New Year), may indicate its meaning as a site for re-creation.

Exodus 40:33 - “…So Moses finished the work.”

Genesis 2:1-2 - “Thus the heavens and the earth were finished… And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made…”

You may have noticed a repetitive structure of the text from Exodus 24 to Exodus 40. First the Lord gave instructions for the tabernacle to Moses, and then later Moses gave the exact same instructions to the people in reverse order. It turns out that scholars have identified a large-scale chiasm in the creation of the tabernacle.

1. Glory of the Lord (24:15-18)
2. Tabernacle and priestly garments (24:25-30)
3. Bezaleel and Aholiab (31:1-11)
4. Sabbath (31:12-18)
5. Sabbath (35:1-3)
6. Bezaleel and Aholiab (35:30-35)
7. Tabernacle and priestly garments (35:36-39)
8. Glory of the Lord (40:34-38)

Middle:

Exodus 33:14 - “And he [the Lord] said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.”

If we go back to Genesis 2 and look at the two creation stories, we see the middle of the chiasm in Genesis 2:2.

Genesis 2:2 - “By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.”

It is clear that the narrative of the creation of the tabernacle is a call back to the narrative of the creation of the world.

References:

1. The Hebrew - Greek Key Study Bible (KJV Version)
2. The BEMA Podcast, Episode 22: Under the Chuppah
3. The BEMA Podcast, Episode 23: Falling on Joyful Faces
4. The Torah Portion-by-Portion by Rabbi Seymour Rossel (2007)
5. The Tabernacle, the Creation, and the Ideal of an Orderly World