Exodus Chapters 35-40 John Karmelich
  1. Believe it or not, we’ve made it to the final lesson of Exodus! Congratulations to all of you who have been with me all this time!
    1. We’re going to cover the last 5 chapters in one lesson.
      1. It sounds like a lot, but a lot of these chapters are repetitive.
    2. Most of Exodus 35-40 is about the Israelites building the tabernacle.
    3. From Chapters 25-32, we read all the details of God giving the instructions on
      1. how to build the tabernacle.
      2. Chapters 35-40 are the Israelites actually building the tabernacle.
  2. The first, and logical question is why the repetition?
    1. Isn’t that a waste of good parchment? Remember, in those days, writing material was expensive. Books and word processors were many centuries away! Why repeat a lot of this material?
    2. The answer is that God desires obedience. I am convinced that the reason all these details are given is that God delights in us being obedient to his instructions.
      1. So why not just say "The Israelites built the tabernacle as instructed" and save 5 chapters of reading?
        1. The answer is for God to emphasize the importance of obedience.
      2. "If we expect God to be concerned about the details of our lives, we must pay attention to the details of his instructions." Warren Wiersbe
  3. With that said, I’m going to "skim through" the next five chapters with emphasis on:
    1. 1) What’s new & different (what is said here that’s not said the first time).
    2. 2) The "highlights" of the tabernacle. The most important parts to remember.
      1. Remember that the tabernacle is "word-pictures". God did not ask the Israelites to build an all-gold, big palace to worship Him. The tabernacle is to be relatively small and portable. God wants to go where we go.
        1. The tabernacle is a model for worshipping God. Each part, piece, dimension and material is instructions for us in how to worship God.
      2. Remember that all the principals of worshipping God here in the tabernacle are also taught in the New Testament. Hopefully I made that clear in my past lessons on the tabernacle. Remember this principal.
        1. The New Testament is in the Old Testament concealed.
        2. The Old Testament is in the New Testament revealed.
        3. Or to put it another way:
          1. The pictures in the Old Testament are
            the principals of the New Testament
  4. I also want to wrap this up with a page to spare for concluding comments (won’t be easy! J)
    1. I never intended these lessons to be a complete detailed study of Exodus.
    2. I pray weekly for God to show me:
      1. What do you want me to learn from this week’s lesson?
      2. What do you want me to pass on to those who read it?
      3. This is a good model for any teacher.
    3. There are volumes of commentaries on every book of the Bible. One can spend a lifetime studying the Bible. The important thing in your daily reading is to ask the Holy Spirit what you want me to learn today from these studies, or your daily reading.
  5. With that said, lets get rolling! 35:1 And Moses assembled all the community of the Israelites and said to them, "These are the words that the Lord has commanded you to do. 35:2 In six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there must be a holy day for you, a sabbath of complete rest to the Lord. Anyone who does work on it will be put to death. 35:3 You must not kindle a fire in all your homes on the sabbath day.
    1. Remember at the end of Chapter 34, Moses went up on the mountain after the whole "Golden Calf incident". He interceded on behalf of the people and also got to see the "presence" of the Lord.
      1. Chapter 35 is forty days later. This is Moses coming down off the mountain.
    2. So Moses came down off the mountain with the new two-tablets of stone and a set of "blue prints" for the tabernacle. What would you talk about first?
      1. Would you start with: "guess what God told us to build?"
      2. Would you start with the reading of the 10 commandments again?
      3. Would you start by searching the camp for another golden calf? J
        1. Personally, I would have picked one of those.
    3. Yet Moses began by re-stating the importance of the Sabbath. Why?
      1. The Sabbath is about resting in God. It is the most important principal we live for as Christians. That is, to glorify God.
      2. It’s not just about taking a day off work. It’s about taking time off from your normal routine to spend time with God. That could mean community worship (church), private or family worship, prayer, or time in God’s Word.
      3. To ignore the Sabbath is to ignore what God wants for our life: Time with Him!
      4. Let’s close this topic with Paul’s commentary on the Sabbath.
        1. "One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. (Romans 14:5 NIV)
  6. 35:4 And Moses spoke to all the community of the Israelites, "This is the word that the Lord has commanded: 35:5 'Take from you an offering for the Lord. Let everyone who has a willing heart bring an offering to the Lord, gold, silver, bronze, 35:6 blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, fine linen, goat's hair, 35:7 ram's skins dyed red, fine leather, acacia wood, 35:8 olive oil for the light, spices for the anointing oil and for the fragrant incense, 35:9 onyx stones, and other gems for mounting on the ephod and the pouch.
    1. This is the exact same list as Exodus 25:3-7. Verbatim. There is a lot of that in Exodus Chapters 35-40. God re-states the details as to emphasize obedience.
    2. Like the previous instructions on the tabernacle, Moses needed to start with "the ingredient" list. When one reads a recipe, the grocery-list comes first. This is God’s "grocery list" to build the tabernacle.
    3. This verse supports that it’s ok for a minister to specify needs in building a ministry.
  7. 35:10 And every skilled person among you is to come and make all that the Lord has commanded:
    1. Moses requests not only materials, but also skilled workers.
    2. If you have a special skill and your church has need for that skill, consider volunteering as such. Remember it is God who gave you that skill in the first place!
  8. Chapter 35, Verses 11-19 summarize each of the pieces of furniture of the tabernacle, as well as the structure, coverings and garments for the priests. Since we already covered the tabernacle, it is not necessary to repeat these verses.
  9. Verse 20 begins the scene at the end of Moses speech. 35:20 So all the community of the Israelites went out from the presence of Moses. 35:21 And they came forward-every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whose spirit was willing; they brought the offering for the Lord for the work of the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the holy garments. 35:22 And they came forward, men and women alike, all who had willing hearts; they brought brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments, all kinds of gold jewelry, and every one who waved a wave offering of gold to the Lord.
    1. We have two things going on here.
      1. God "stirring" the hearts of people to volunteer (Verse 21).
      2. Individual Israelites out of their own "free-will" giving to the project (Verse 22).
    2. These two verses add to the "great debate" over "pre-destiny" versus "free-will".
      1. Did the people volunteer because God put it in their hearts to do so? Yes
      2. Did the same people do it out of their own free will? Yes
      3. Reconciling the two is a great theological debate.
      4. My personal view is that God never violates our free will. He will urge us to do something, but never force us. (Grant it, God can make our life miserable if we refuse his urging, but it is never forced upon us.)
  10. (Verses 23-24 are about the people bringing the individual ingredients.) Notice the next two verses focus on women. 35:25 And every woman who was skilled spun with her hands, and brought what she had spun, blue, or purple, or scarlet yarn, or fine linen. 35:26 And all the women whose heart stirred them up and who were skilled, spun goats' hair.
    1. Again, this is a case where people with a special skill using it for God’s Glory.
  11. 35:27 And the leaders brought onyx stones, and other gems for mounting for the ephod and the pouch; 35:28 and spices, and olive oil for the light and for the anointing oil, and for the fragrant incense.
    1. 35:27 emphsizes "the leaders". Why the leaders? Remember that these "gems" were 12 individual jewels to be mounted on the High Priest’s breastplate.
      1. Each one represents one of the 12 tribes of Israel.
      2. Each one is unique.
        1. Just as each believer is unique and a "jewel" in God’s eyes.
        2. (Remember, with the tabernacle, we’re dealing with word-pictures!)
      3. Therefore, God wanted the leaders to bring these stones.
    2. The spices/oils all had unique smells.
      1. If you remember, God wanted the tabernacle to have unique scents, unlike any other aspect of the Israelites life. It was a reminder to keep the tabernacle holy and special.
      2. Also, the oil used for the lamp (which represents the Holy Spirit) is what illuminates the tabernacle.
      3. All of these sets of ingredients were important enough to where God called the leaders to be responsible for them.
  12. 35:29 The Israelites brought a freewill offering to the Lord, every man and woman whose heart was willing to bring for all the work which the Lord had commanded them to do through Moses.
    1. You have to love this verse. The same principal applies in the New Testament.
    2. God wants our giving to be free willing, not out of guilt.
      1. Paul said it best: "So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Cor 9:7 NKJV)
      2. "cheerful" in the Greek is literally "hilarious"! Give hilariously!
  13. 35:30 Then Moses said to the Israelites, "See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 35:31 He has filled him with the Spirit of God-with skill, with understanding, with knowledge, and with all kinds of work, 35:32 to design artistic designs, to work in gold, in silver, and in bronze, 35:33 and in cutting stones for their setting, and in cutting wood, to do work in every artistic craft. 35:34 And he has put it in his heart to teach, he and Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. 35:35 He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as craftsmen, designers, embroiderers in blue and purple and scarlet yarn and in fine linen, and weavers. They were craftsmen in all the work and artistic designers.
    1. This guy (Bezalel ) was appointed by God to be the leader of the construction project.
    2. God calls individuals to be the leaders.
      1. I suppose part of this was for practical purposes as other people with big ego’s thought they should be in charge. God is establishing a chain-of-command.
        1. His #2 guy (Oholiab) is named in Verse 34.
    3. If God calls you into such leadership, you’ll know it is God if he gives you the ability to perform such a leadership.
      1. Jesus said "From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked." (Luke 12:48b, NIV)
    4. Notice also verse 34. This guy, Bezalel also has the gift of teaching. Part of being a leader is the ability to teach others how to perform their jobs.
  14. 36:1 "So Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person in whom the Lord had put skill and ability to know how to do all the work of the service of the sanctuary, are to do the work according to all that the Lord had commanded."
    1. The key word phrase here is "according to all that the Lord had commanded."
      1. This phrase is repeated over and over again in the last 4 chapters.
        1. God loves our obedience, and records incidents of it for our learning.
  15. 36:2 Then Moses called Bazalel and Oholiab and every skilled person in whom the Lord had put skill-everyone whose heart stirred him up to volunteer for the work, to do it. 36:3 And they received from Moses all the offering the Israelites had brought to do the work of the service of the sanctuary, and they still brought him a freewill offering each morning. 36:4 So all the skilled people who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came from their work they were doing, 36:5 and told Moses, "The people are bringing much more than is needed for the service of the work that the Lord commanded us to do."
    1. Here are all the people doing the work that God "stirred up their hearts" to do so.
      1. Again, there are times to listen to what God called us to do and act upon it.
      2. If you don’t know what God is "stirring up your hear to do, ask Him!
        1. A clue is often what comes natural to you.
        2. For me, it is this writing. Writing comes easy to me and I enjoy sharing my love of God’s word with others. For others, it may be some sort of service or support. We are all involved in the ministry. The primary purpose of the church is to build-up (mature) the Body of Christ.
          1. Again, ask God to show you how you can be involved in the
    2. Verse 5 is a wonderful line: "The people are bringing more than what is needed".
      1. Now there is a quote you rarely hear about in any church!
  16. 36:6 Moses instructed them to take his message throughout the camp, saying, "Let no man or woman do any more work for the offering for the sanctuary." So the people were restrained from bringing any more. 36:7 Now the materials were more than enough for them to do all the work.
    1. Every heard a pastor say "You people are giving too much. That’s enough giving!"
      1. If there is silence in the room, both sides are guilty of non-goal achievement! J
    2. I believe this verse is directed to leaders of the church as well as us!
      1. Yes, it is a guilt-ridden message for us to give our time/resources to God.
      2. But it is also a call for leaders to put up boundaries.
        1. The leaders of our church need to walk by faith that God will provide for tomorrow’s needs tomorrow. Sometimes they need to say stop giving of our time and resources if today’s needs are being met!
        2. It also applies to the people who are working themselves to death volunteering for everything and never having any balance in their lives.
        3. Sometimes a pastor has to say "That’s enough, slow down a little.
        4. Unfortunately, often it is the opposite that is necessary.
      3. The conclusion is to pray for God for balance in your life and your time/
        resources given to your church. Are you doing too much or not enough?
  17. 36:8 And every skilled person among those who were doing the work made the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn, with cherubim woven in by the work of the designer.
    1. Verses 9-19 are the descriptions for building the tabernacle. They are fairly identical to the Chapter 26, Verses 1-30.
    2. Let’s re-summarize the highlights.
    3. The "tabernacle" refers to the covered area. The outside courtyard is separate. The tabernacle is further divided into two areas, one about one-third & one is two-thirds.
    4. Remember that there are four differing coverings over the tabernacle.
      1. The first is the most beautiful. It has "cheribums" decorated in the curtains. Cheribums are not "fat little angels". They are an angelic creature that are described as a mixture of "man, lion, eagle, & ox." Each of these four-animals/ human describe some aspect of the character of Jesus Christ. Many churches, including mine, have 4 windows with a picture of each one in the window. Each of the four gospels emphasizes one of the four animals (or man).
        1. The colors are white (for purity), blue (for the heavens, where God dwells) purple (for royalty) and scarlet/red (for blood). Again, word-pictures of aspects of our Lord.
      2. The 2nd covering was goat’s hair. It was black and represented sin. The covering was larger than the tapestry cover.
      3. The 3rd covering was ram-skin dyed red. A model of Jesus’ sacrifice.
      4. The 4th covering was badger (or porpoise) skin. A model of preservation.
    5. Put them all together. We have God preserving us, through Jesus sacrifice, as a covering for our sins. Then, and only then, can we appreciate the beauty of Jesus Christ.
    6. Chapter 36 also re-describes "the boards" . These are wood beams covered in Gold.
      1. Here are the "highlights" of the boards.
      2. Most commentators see the boards as members of the church (i.e. you & me!)
      3. We are wood (humanity) covered in gold (all underneath the 4 coverings)
        1. It is only by the coverings of Jesus Christ do we get our deity
        2. The boards inter-twine with one another. We as Christians are meant to work as a team, not as individual boards! That is why we are refereed to as "the body of Christ".
        3. The boards rest on silver sockets. Silver, Biblically speaks of "blood".
          1. Just as Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of "silver". Silver is called "blood-money" in the Bible.
          2. We rest on the blood of Jesus Christ!
      4. Other commentators see the wood as another type of Jesus, as our support structure. (I prefer the wood-as-us, but others see it this way.)
    7. Last thing. Verse 35 mentions another curtain. This one separates the smaller 1/3 area from the larger 2/3 area. The smaller area is called "The Holy of Holies". Only the Ark of Covenant is kept in the smaller area.
      1. Centuries later, the Israelites built a permanent structure modeled after this one.
      2. This curtain was torn in two after Jesus died on the cross. It represents the barrier between God & Man. It was "broken" for our sins, and the barrier no longer exists.
    8. (Most of this is review. Again, I’m trying to cover the highlights!)
  18. 37:1a And Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; (Verses 37:1-37:9 are about the construction of the ark of the covenant and the lid. The lid is a separate piece of furniture.
    1. This is the ark of the covenant. This is the most important item in the tabernacle. It represents the presence of God himself.
      1. So why would God want to be remembered, as a "gold-covered box" to represent him?
      2. The best modern analogy would be the "safety deposit box". It is the place where we store our most valued possessions for safekeeping.
      3. So what valuables go in the box?
        1. The law. God’s law represents God’s expectation of us. God’s law was not eliminated when Jesus Came. Jesus came to fulfill the law. That law was to be preserved for all time. The law, then, today & forver is God’s standard for righteousness. It is always there to remind us how short we come by our own righteounsess.
        2. Also Aaron’s Rod that "budded". (Numbers 17:10) It represents the resurrection.
        3. Also, a jar of manna. This represents "preservation.
    2. The box itself was a word-picture of Jesus Christ.
      1. It was made of wood and pure-gold.
      2. It represents both the humanity and deity of Jesus.
        1. "Jesus is 100% God and 100% man."
    3. There was also the lid, called "the mercy seat". This is a separate piece of furnitue.
      1. The most important thing to remember about the mercy seat is that this is where God meets us. The symbol of God’s presence was not in the ark, but in the mercy seat "above" the ark.
      2. Remember that God is everywhere. God is not specifically sitting or hanging out between the two cherubim on the Mercy Seat. These are word-pictures for our learning. Why here?
      3. Remember, that we are dealing with the lid for the ark of the covenant. A lid covers an item. The blood sprinkled on the lid (a.k.a. "The Mercy Seat") represents are sins being "covered" by the blood. This is an excellent word-picture for Christians.
  19. 37:10 And he made the table of acacia wood; Verses 10-16 are on the Table of Showbread
    1. It is about "preservation". Every week, 12 loaves of bread were placed on these tables, to symbolize the 12 tribes of Israel.
    2. The Christian equivalent is when we pray to God for our daily needs.
      1. "Give us this day our daily bread".
      2. The work of putting that bread there is up to the priests (us!). We ask God to give us the ability and the knowledge of how/where to get the bread, etc.
  20. 37:17 And he made the lampstand of pure gold. Verses 17-23 are about the 7-branch-lamp.
    1. This was an oil-based lamp.
    2. It was the only light in the tabernacle.
      1. Jesus compares himself to this light. Jesus says "I am the light of the world (John 8:12) and "I am the vine, you are the branches" (John 15:5)
        1. The number seven, Biblically speaks of "perfection" and "rest".
      2. The "oil" used represents the Holy Spirit. The oil is the "source" of the light. Just as we should ask the Holy Spirit what to pray for. The Holy Spirit is our guidance to approaching God.
  21. 37:25 And he made an incense altar of acacia wood. Verses 25-28 are about the incense altar.
    1. This was the altar used for incense. It speaks of prayer as the word picture shows the sweet smelling smoke rising up to heaven. (That’s how God views our prayers!)
    2. Notice the Alter had to be in the same room as the 7-branch candlestick. That candlestick represents the Holy Spirit, which is our guide for our prayer life.
  22. 37:29 He made the sacred anointing oil and the pure fragrant incense, the work of the perfumer.
    1. The tabernacle was to have a unique smell. This was a mental-reminder to keep God holy. The unique sweet-smelling alter reminds us to separate everything else when worshipping God (again, the key word is "unique") and it’s a pleasant aroma to God.
  23. 38:1 And he made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood. It is verses 38:1-7
    1. This is a large altar outside of the covered area of the tabernacle.
    2. It is the first thing we see when entering the tabernacle.
    3. Before entering, one must present a "burnt-offering". This means giving your all. (Think 100% burnt-up). Just as Jesus gave himself as an offering, so we must fully dedicate ourselves to God before we are of any use.
      1. Jesus said: "In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has, cannot be my disciple." (Luke 14:33 NIV emphasis added)
  24. 38:8 They made the bronze basin and its bronze stand from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
    1. After getting past the burnt offering, there was a big-bronze basin
      1. It was reflective (brass - mirrors). Here the priests washed their hands and feet before going in.
        1. As Christians, we must stop and reflect on our sins and trespasses (accidental sins), before worshipping God.
        2. We are all saved once-and-for-all by Jesus on the Cross. However our daily walk is a constant check of sins and asking for forgiveness.
        3. Thus, the hands and feet only were washed here.
  25. 38:9 Then he made the courtyard. This is verses 38: 9-20
    1. From ground level, one can only see the walls of the courtyard. The beauty of a relationship from God can only be seen from the inside.
    2. The curtains are all white, representing purity.
    3. The curtains hanged on silver sockets. Silver speaks of blood in the Bible.
      1. Our relationship with God rests on the blood of Christ.
    4. The curtains rested on bronze sockets. Bronze speaks of judgement.
      1. The curtains represent the separation between us and the world.
      2. Thus the word-pictures of "purity (white), judgement (bronze) and blood (silver sockets).
  26. I know I’ve gone through this rather superficially. We’ve covered all this in Exodus 25-31. I’m going over the highlights here.
    1. Let’s stop and put all of these word-pictures together.
    2. In order to approach God, first we have to enter the tabernacle. It is all white, except a beautiful tapestry door at the entrance. There is also a unique smell. Therefore, there is an appeal by God. Those white walls represent separation and purity.
    3. The first thing we come to when we enter is an altar for burnt offerings. Here, we 100% burn an animal as a word-picture of us, giving 100% of ourselves to God.
      1. It also symbolizes what Jesus did on the cross for us.
    4. The second thing we come to is this mirror-lined wash tub. Here God instructs the priests to wash their hands and feet. What do we do with mirrors? We examine ourselves! That is the word-picture. Before we can go inside the tent to worship God, we need to examine our lives. Check for any sins that require repentance.
      1. This is the word-picture of "washing our hands and feet". Our "walk in the world" has made us dirty with sin. We don’t need "full bath". That is symbolic of our salvation, what Jesus did for us on the cross. This is the next step once we’re saved.
        1. Jesus said "A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean.." (John 13:10a NIV)
    5. Now we can enter the covered area, "the tabernacle.
      1. To the left is our only light, the 7-branch candlestick. We need to ask the Holy Spirit to help us pray and show us what we ought to pray for!
      2. To the right is the table of showbread. This is our preservation. Here is where we ask God for our provisions for our day.
      3. To the center is the altar of incense. This is the prayer altar. It is only after the burnt sacrifice, after washing ourselves, after being illuminated by the light, can we approach God with our prayers.
      4. All 3 of these are in the larger, 2/3 area of the (covered) tabernacle.
    6. Next, is a veil separating the smaller 1/3 area. In this smaller area is only the ark of the covenant and the lid (aka mercy seat).
      1. In the Old Testament, only the High Priest went behind that veil once a year. He sprinkled blood on the mercy seat, so that their sins were covered for the year.
      2. After Jesus died on the cross, the "veil" was torn from top to bottom. The separation between God and man no longer exists. We can pray directly to God with no separation.
    7. Hopefully now, you can see how all these word-pictures symbolize our relationship with God and how we are to approach Him!
    8. The next time you work your way through Exodus, the tabernacle, or the temple (the permanent structure modeled after the tabernacle), look for the word-pictures and mediate on what they teach us about obedience to God!
  27. Chapter 38, Verses 21-31 are a detailed inventory of the materials used. Reading these helps to give you the actual scope of how expensive this thing was.
    1. I believe the main reason it is included is to show the obedience of the Israelites. They were generous in their free-will offerings to God. It further is used as an example if a church is willing to take on a big building project, and it is blessed by God, God will "stir up the hearts" of people to give, and provide the spiritual gifts to the workers to build this project.
    2. Now think about some project God may be calling you to lead or participate in. If God is stirring up your heart to give financially, or to give your God-given-skills, do it!
  28. Chapter 39 Versus 1-31 is all about the priests’ garments. The descriptions have already been described in Exodus Chapters 28-29.
    1. The most important things to remember is that the "High Priest" is a word-picture of Jesus as intercessor between God and Man. The book of Hebrews covers that in detail.
    2. The "Sons of the High Priests" refer to you and me. As Christians we are called to serve. That does not mean we all become pastors. Priests, as biblically defined, are giving of one self for service to the church. Any time you serve the church, help fellow Christians or be a good witness to a non-believer, you are acting as a priest.
      1. For references for all Christians as priests, see (1 Peter 2:9, (Rev. 1:6, 5:10)
    3. The clothes are described in detail. All the colors, materials, jewels, etc. have special meanings. Again, the details are discussed in my lesson on Chapters 28-29.
    4. Remember that all these clothes were made for the priests. There was no participation by the priests themselves, other than putting them on. This speaks of Jesus "paying it all" for us. All we have to do is accept the free gift. By "putting on the clothes, etc.", we are walking in faith as God called us.
  29. Now they are all done. Here comes Moses for the final inspection and sign-off on the paperwork J: 39:32 So all the work of the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, was completed. And the Israelites did according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses-so they did. 39:33 And they brought the tabernacle to Moses, the tent and all its furnishings, its clasps, its frames, its bars, its posts, and its bases; (Verses 34-41 go on to re-describe all the tabernacle pieces.)
    39:42 According to all that the Lord had commanded Moses, so the Israelites did all the work. 39:43 When Moses saw all the work, that they had done it just as the Lord had commanded-they done it just so-he blessed them.
    1. Verse 42 is a good one to underline. To paraphrase verse 29: "Moses lead, the people obeyed". God called Moses for leadership. Despite all his self-doubts, initial failures, Moses did all that God commanded him to do. The people followed and obeyed. As a Christian, you can’t get a better role model for leadership other than Jesus himself.
    2. Verse 43 is about Moses’ blessing the people. The importance of a leader complimenting his workers.
  30. 40:1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 40:2 "On the first day of the first month you are to set up the tabernacle, the tent of meeting
    1. On New Year’s Day (Jewish calendar,) God says "set it up". Why this day?
    2. When you celebrate a New Year, what do you do?
      1. We reflect, make resolutions to do better next year, set goals.
      2. What a better word picture for a time to be with God/
      3. Every time we approach God, we reflect, make resolutions (i.e. confess our sins), ask God to make us better Christians, etc.
  31. Chapter 40, versus 3 through 43 are about Moses setting the tabernacle, as instructed, detail by detail on New Year’s day, as God instructed.
    1. The big-picture focus is on obedience. God repeats the details over and over to emphasize the importance of obedience.
  32. 40:34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 40:35 And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 40:36 But when the cloud was taken up from on the tabernacle, the Israelites would set out on all their journeys; 40:37 but if the cloud was not lifted up, then they would not journey on until the day it was taken up. 40:38 For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, but fire would be on it at night, in plain view of all the house of Israel, in all their journeys.
    1. The presence of God is in the form of a cloud. Why a cloud?
      1. Well, think about the word-picture of a cloud.
        1. We’ll, a cloud is a covering. It provides shade. Just like the "pillar of fire" (Verse 38) provides warmth.
        2. The simple word-picture is God "covering" us. He protects us like a mother protecting their young.
    2. When the cloud moved, so did the Israelites. When the cloud didn’t, they didn’t.
      1. That’s one of the tough parts of being a Christian. Not getting ahead of God’s plan for our lives. That is not moving, until we can sense God wanting us to move. We need to walk forward in faith that God is guiding our paths.
      2. Sometimes, silence from God can mean "wait for further instructions".
    3. We have here the glorious conclusion of Exodus. The redeemed people do as instructed, build a tabernacle, and God fills the tabernacle with God’s presence.
    4. That is the long-term plan for you & I in a few sentences.
      1. God calls us out of the world.
      2. He calls us to be obedience.
      3. He rewards that obedience with His presence.
      4. That is our greatest calling in Life, to Glorify God!
  33. OK, Forty Chapters of Exodus in 23 lessons.
    1. As I said in my first lesson, you can’t bring up every possible detail, commentary and application of any book in the Bible in these lessons.
      1. I’ve prayed each week for God to show me what he wants me to learn, and what he wants me to pass on.
    2. Hopefully, as you read-through-the Bible in a year (as all good Christians should!) you’ll pick up a lot of insights the next time you read through Exodus.
  34. What is the most important things to get out of these lessons?
    1. First of all, a sense of how to read, study and meditate on the Bible.
    2. I wanted to present you the lessons, applications, word-pictures and help you to learn how they apply to the Bible-as-a-whole, and more importantly to your life.
    3. Exodus has wonderful lessons and some of the most important truths of the Bible.
      1. The ten commandments are here. This is a model for our happiness.
      2. The miracles of the plagues of Egypt. Hopefully, you understand by now that your salvation was just as great a miracle as the Israelites salvation from Egypt.
      3. Exodus is full of word-pictures and types. Not just the tabernacle, but learning things like Egypt represents "the world’s view on life" as opposed to God’s.
      4. Exodus is full of prophecies about the coming of Jesus. Truly, the volume of the Old Testament and the Volume of Exodus is about Jesus. Think back on the Passover Instructions alone and how they point to Jesus, as an example.
    4. Back in my introduction lesson on Exodus, I said that this is a book on redemption.
      1. If we played word-association, and you said "Exodus?"
        1. I would respond with "redemption".
    5. It is a book about how the Israelites were redeemed in a mighty, striking way for the purpose of serving, and glorifying The true and living God.
    6. In that sense, it is a model for our lives too. By turning our lives over to Jesus, we too, have been redeemed. By turning our lives over, we are saying that we belong to God and will do whatever He says. What "he says" is to glorify Him. How do we do that? That’s why we read the Bible to find out! By having love for one another, by giving of our selves/time/resources to build up fellow Christians and worshipping God. That is our model of happiness and that is the greatest purpose in life one could ever hope for.
    7. To God be the Glory for the things he has done!

Supplement: Bibliography

"If I have stood out among the crowd, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants."

(Source unknown)

Without prayer and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, all these commentaries are useless. My weekly prayer was for God to show me the things He wanted me to learn, and second, the lessons He wanted me to pass on in my writings. I have quoted many sources throughout these lessons. If any of these writers appeal to you, I invite you to read or listen to further commentaries as listed below. I have also quoted other sources not listed, and those names are usually listed in the lessons. These other authors were usually quoted from the materials listed below and taken from those sources.

First and foremost, the greatest commentary on the Bible is the Bible itself. I mostly quote The New International Version (NIV), The New King James Version (NKJV), and the paraphrased-translation: The Living Bible (TLB). The text used is from the "The New English" Translation. This is a fairly new English translation posted on the internet. (http://www.netbible.org/)

Here are the commentaries I have referenced over the past lessons, (in no particular order).

  1. Gleanings in Exodus, Pink, Arthur. Paperback, 1964, Moody Press; ISBN: 0802430015
  2. Commentary on Exodus by Jon Curson, (available for free on the internet, via Real Audio at, http://www.applegatefellowship.org/teachings.htm. This was an expository Bible study given On Exodus during 1998-99 . There is an older (faster-paced) -commentary of Exodus from Jon Curson available on-line via Real Audio at http://firefighters.org/html/library.cfm
  3. The Expositor’s Bible Encyclopedia, Zondervan Publications, (via CD-ROM 1998 release). This is a multi-volume encyclopedia with notes on every verse of the Bible. (Available at Christian Bookstores.) Paperback books are published on individual Bible books from this source.
  4. Exodus by J. Vernon McGee. Nelson Publishing, 1982. This is available in book and computer software formats. The late Dr. McGee has written commentaries on every book of the Bible. He is still broadcast daily in 60 languages around the world on Christian Radio.
  5. Audio Commentary on Exodus by Chuck Missler, available at K-House Ministries 1-800-KHOUSE1. The web address is http://www.khouse.org/
  6. Commentary on Exodus by David Guzik. (available for free on the internet, in text versions. The web address is http://www.calvarychapel.com/simivalley/commentaries/
  7. Commentary on Exodus by Dr. David Hocking. The notes are available for download (PDF format) at www.hopefortoday.com. Dr. Hocking did a weekly commentary approx. ‘94-‘95. I listed to those lectures at that time. Tapes are available via this ministry.
  8. Commentary on the Levitucs by Ray Steadman 24 Messages. (This was used in the discussion of the High Priests and the various offerings). Available at http://pbc.org/dp/stedman/leviticus/index.html
  9. Exodus: Design For Deliverance by Ray Steadman (Single Message available on the internet at http://pbc.org/dp/stedman/adventure/0202.html or call (650) 494-3840.
  10. The Life Application Bible, Zondervan Publishing (available at most Christian Bookstores in NIV, Living Bible and other translations).
  11. Nelson’s Quick Reference Chapter-by-Chapter Bible Commentary Warren Wiersbe, Nelson Publishing 1991. (Available at Christian Bookstores.)
  12. Halley's Bible Handbook by Henry H. Halley Zondervan Publishing Revised edition, 1979 (Available at Christian Bookstores.)
  13. When Critics Ask : A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties -- Norman L. Geisler, Thomas Howe; Baker Book House 1999 (Available at Christian Bookstores.)
  14. Numbers in Scripture by E.W. Bullinger (Kregel Publications, 1967 Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1983). (Available at Christian Bookstores.)
  15. Complete Works of C.S. Spurgeon New Ages Bible Software (CD-ROM format).