371 And Bezaleel made the ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the breadth of it, and a cubit and a half the height of it: 2 And he overlaid it with pure gold within and without, and made a crown of gold to it round about. 3 And he cast for it four rings of gold, to be set by the four corners of it; even two rings upon the one side of it, and two rings upon the other side of it. 4 And he made staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold. 5 And he put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark, to bear the ark. 6 And he made the mercy seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half was the length thereof, and one cubit and a half the breadth thereof. 7 And he made two cherubims of gold, beaten out of one piece [1] made he them, on the two ends of the mercy seat; 8 One cherub on the end [2] on this side, and another cherub on the other end on that side: out of the mercy seat made he the cherubims on the two ends thereof. 9 And the cherubims spread out their wings on high, and covered with their wings over the mercy seat, with their faces one to another; even to the mercy seatward were the faces of the cherubims.
10 And he made the table of shittim wood: two cubits was the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof: 11 And he overlaid it with pure gold, and made thereunto a crown of gold round about. 12 Also he made thereunto a border of an handbreadth round about; and made a crown of gold for the border thereof round about. 13 And he cast for it four rings of gold, and put the rings upon the four corners that were in the four feet thereof. 14 Over against the border were the rings, the places for the staves to bear the table. 15 And he made the staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold, to bear the table. 16 And he made the vessels which were upon the table, his dishes, and his spoons, and his bowls, and his covers to cover [3] withal, of pure gold.
371 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood-two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.
10 They
371 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood. Two cubits
10 He also made the table of acacia wood. Two cubits was its length, a cubit its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. 11 And he overlaid it with pure gold, and made a molding of gold around it. 12 And he made a rim around it a handbreadth
371 Bezalel made the Chest using acacia wood: He made it three and three-quarters feet long and two and a quarter feet wide and deep. 2 He covered it inside and out with a veneer of pure gold and made a molding of gold all around it. 3 He cast four gold rings and attached them to its four feet, two rings on one side and two rings on the other. 4 He made poles from acacia wood, covered them with a veneer of gold, 5 and inserted the poles for carrying the Chest into the rings on the sides. 6 Next he made a lid of pure gold for the Chest, an Atonement-Cover, three and three-quarters feet long and two and a quarter feet wide. 7 He sculpted two winged angel-cherubim out of hammered gold for the ends of the Atonement-Cover, 8 one angel at one end, one angel at the other. He made them of one piece with the Atonement-Cover. 9 The angels had outstretched wings and appeared to hover over the Atonement-Cover, facing one another but looking down on the Atonement-Cover.
10 He made the Table from acacia wood. He made it three feet long, one and a half feet wide and two and a quarter feet high. 11 He covered it with a veneer of pure gold and made a molding of gold all around it. 12 He made a border a handbreadth wide all around it and a rim of gold for the border. 13 He cast four rings of gold for it and attached the rings to the four legs 14 parallel to the table top. They will serve as holders for the poles used to carry the Table. 15 He made the poles of acacia wood and covered them with a veneer of gold. They will be used to carry the Table. 16 Out of pure gold he made the utensils for the Table: its plates, bowls, jars, and jugs used for pouring.
371 Then Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; two and a half cubits was its length, a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a half its height. 2 He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and made a molding of gold all around it. 3 And he cast for it four rings of gold to be set in its four corners: two rings on one side, and two rings on the other side of it. 4 He made poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold. 5 And he put the poles into the rings at the sides of the ark, to bear the ark. 6 He also made the mercy seat of pure gold; two and a half cubits was its length and a cubit and a half its width. 7 He made two cherubim of beaten gold; he made them of one piece at the two ends of the mercy seat: 8 one cherub at one end on this side, and the other cherub at the other end on that side. He made the cherubim at the two ends of one piece with the mercy seat. 9 The cherubim spread out their wings above, and covered the mercy seat with their wings. They faced one another; the faces of the cherubim were toward the mercy seat.
10 He made the table of acacia wood; two cubits was its length, a cubit its width, and a cubit and a half its height. 11 And he overlaid it with pure gold, and made a molding of gold all around it. 12 Also he made a frame of a handbreadth all around it, and made a molding of gold for the frame all around it. 13 And he cast for it four rings of gold, and put the rings on the four corners that were at its four legs. 14 The rings were close to the frame, as holders for the poles to bear the table. 15 And he made the poles of acacia wood to bear the table, and overlaid them with gold. 16 He made of pure gold the utensils which were on the table: its dishes, its cups, its bowls, and its pitchers for pouring.
371 Next Bezalel made the Ark of acacia wood-a sacred chest 45Â inches long, 27Â inches wide, and 27Â inches high. 2 He overlaid it inside and outside with pure gold, and he ran a molding of gold all around it. 3 He cast four gold rings and attached them to its four feet, two rings on each side. 4 Then he made poles from acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. 5 He inserted the poles into the rings at the sides of the Ark to carry it. 6 Then he made the Ark's cover-the place of atonement-from pure gold. It was 45Â inches long and 27Â inches wide. 7 He made two cherubim from hammered gold and placed them on the two ends of the atonement cover. 8 He molded the cherubim on each end of the atonement cover, making it all of one piece of gold. 9 The cherubim faced each other and looked down on the atonement cover. With their wings spread above it, they protected it.
10 Then Bezalel made the table of acacia wood, 36Â inches long, 18Â inches wide, and 27Â inches high. 11 He overlaid it with pure gold and ran a gold molding around the edge. 12 He decorated it with a 3-inch border all around, and he ran a gold molding along the border. 13 Then he cast four gold rings for the table and attached them at the four corners next to the four legs. 14 The rings were attached near the border to hold the poles that were used to carry the table. 15 He made these poles from acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. 16 Then he made special containers of pure gold for the table-bowls, ladles, jars, and pitchers-to be used in pouring out liquid offerings.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Exodus 37:1-16
Chapter Contents
The making of the ark, and the furniture of the tabernacle.
In the furniture of the tabernacle were emblems of a spiritual and acceptable service. The incense represented the prayers of the saints. The sacrifice of the alter represented the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world. The golden pot with manna, or bread from heaven, the flesh of Jesus Christ, which he gave for the life of the world. The candlestick, with its lights, the teaching and enlightening of the Holy Spirit. The shew-bread represented that provision for those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, which the gospel, the ordinances and the sacraments of the house of prayer, abundantly bestow. The exactness of the workmen to their rule, should be followed by us; seeking for the influences of the Holy Spirit, that we may rejoice in and glorify God while in this world, and at length be with him for ever.