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Chapter 38

Exodus 38

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¹The altar of burned offerings he made of hard wood; a square altar, five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high,

²And he put horns at its four angles made of the same, plating it all with brass;

³And brass was used for all the vessels of the altar, the baskets and the spades, the basins and the meat-hooks and the fire-trays; all the vessels he made of brass

⁴And he made a network of brass for the altar, under the frame round it, stretching half-way up;

⁵And four rings for the four angles of this network, to take the rods.

⁶The rods he made of hard wood plated with brass.

⁷He put the rods through the rings at the opposite sides of the altar for lifting it; he made the altar hollow, boarded in with wood.

⁸And he made the washing-vessel of brass on a brass base, using the polished brass looking-glasses given by the women who did work at the doors of the Tent of meeting.

⁹To make the open space, he put hangings on the south side, of the best linen, a hundred cubits long:

¹⁰Their twenty pillars and their twenty bases were brass; and the hooks of the pillars and their bands were of silver.

¹¹And for the north side. hangings a hundred cubits long, on twenty brass pillars in brass bases, with silver hooks and bands.

¹²And on the west side, hangings fifty cubits long, on ten pillars in ten bases, with silver bands.

¹³And on the east side, the open space was fifty cubits long.

¹⁴The hangings on one side of the doorway were fifteen cubits long, on three pillars with their three bases;

¹⁵And the same on the other side of the doorway; on this side and on that the hangings were fifteen cubits long, on three pillars with their three bases.

¹⁶All the hangings were of the best linen.

¹⁷And the bases of the pillars were of brass; their hooks and the bands round the tops of them were of silver; all the pillars were ringed with silver.

¹⁸And the curtain for the doorway of the open space was of the best linen, with designs of blue and purple and red in needlework; it was twenty cubits long and five cubits high, to go with the hangings round the sides.

¹⁹There were four pillars with their bases, all of brass, the hooks being of silver, and their tops and their bands being covered with silver.

²⁰All the nails used for the House and the open space round it were of brass.

²¹This is the price of the making of the House, even the House of witness, as it was valued by the word of Moses, for the work of the Levites under the direction of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest.

²²Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made everything as the Lord had given orders to Moses.

²³And with him was Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; a designer and a trained workman, expert in needlework of blue and purple and red and the best linen.

²⁴The gold used for all the different work done for the holy place, the gold which was given, was twenty-nine talents, and seven hundred and thirty shekels in weight, by the scale of the holy place.

²⁵And the silver given by those who were numbered of the people was a hundred talents, and a thousand, seven hundred and seventy-five shekels in weight, by the scale of the holy place.

²⁶A beka, that is, half a shekel by the holy scale, for everyone who was numbered; there were six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men of twenty years old and over.

²⁷Of this silver, a hundred talents was used for making the bases of the pillars of the holy place and of the veil; a talent for every base.

²⁸And a thousand, seven hundred and seventy-five shekels of silver was used to make the hooks for the pillars, and for plating the tops of the pillars and for making their bands.

²⁹The brass which was given was seventy talents, two thousand four hundred shekels;

³⁰From it he made the bases of the doorway of the Tent of meeting and the brass altar and the network for it and all the vessels for the altar,

³¹And the bases for the open space all round and for its doorway, and all the nails for the House and for the open space.

Adam Clarke
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
John Gill
Matthew Henry
Tyndale

Introduction

Bezaleel makes the altar of burnt-offering, Exo 38:1-7. He makes the laver and its foot out of the mirrors given by the women, Exo 38:8. The court, its pillars, hangings, etc., Exo 38:9-20. The whole tabernacle and its work finished by Bezaleel, Aholiab, and their assistants, Exo 38:21-23. The amount of the gold contributed, Exo 38:24. The amount of the silver, and how it was expended, Exo 38:25-28. The amount of the brass, and how this was used, Exo 38:29-31.

Verse 1

The altar of burnt-offering - See Clarke's note on Exo 27:1; and for its horns, pots, shovels, basins, etc., see the meaning of the Hebrew terms explained, Exo 27:3-5 (note).

Verse 8

He made the laver - See Clarke's note on Exo 30:18, etc. The looking-glasses - The word מראת maroth, from ראה raah, he saw, signifies reflectors or mirrors of any kind. Here metal, highly polished, must certainly be meant, as glass was not yet in use; and had it even been in use, we are sure that looking - Glasses could not make a Brazen laver. The word therefore should be rendered mirrors, not looking-glasses, which in the above verse is perfectly absurd, because from those maroth the brazen laver was made. The first mirrors known among men were the clear, still, fountain, and unruffled lake; and probably the mineral called mica, which is a very general substance through all parts of the earth. Plates of it have been found of three feet square, and it is so extremely divisible into laminae, that it has been divided into plates so thin as to be only the three hundred thousandth part of an inch. A plate of this forms an excellent mirror when any thing black is attached to the opposite side. A plate of this mineral, nine inches by eight, now lies before me; a piece of black cloth, or any other black substance, at the back, converts it into a good mirror; or it would serve as it is for a square of glass, as every object is clearly perceivable through it. It is used in Russian ships of war, instead of glass, for windows. The first artificial mirrors were apparently made of brass, afterwards of polished steel, and when luxury increased they were made of silver; but they were made at a very early period of mixed metal, particularly of tin and copper, the best of which, as Pliny tells us, were formerly manufactured at Brundusium: Optima apud majores fuerant Brundisina, stanno et aere mixtis - Hist. Nat. lib. xxxiii., cap. 9. But, according to him, the most esteemed were those made of tin; and he says that silver mirrors became so common that even the servant girls used them: Specula (ex stanno) laudatissima Brundisii temperabantur; donec argenteis uti caepere et ancillae; lib. xxxiv., cap. 17. When the Egyptian women went to the temples, they always carried their mirrors with them. The Israelitish women probably did the same, and Dr. Shaw states that the Arabian women carry them constantly hung at their breasts. It is worthy of remark, that at first these women freely gave up their ornaments for this important service, and now give their very mirrors, probably as being of little farther service, seeing they had already given up the principal decorations of their persons. Woman has been invidiously defined by Aristotle, an animal fond of dress, (though this belongs to the whole human race, and not exclusively to woman). Had this been true of the Israelitish women, in the present case we must say they nobly sacrificed their incentives to pride to the service of their God. Woman, go thou and do likewise. Of the women - which assembled at the door - What the employment of these women was at the door of the tabernacle, is not easily known. Some think they assembled there for purposes of devotion. Others, that they kept watch there during the night; and this is the most probable opinion, for they appear to have been in the same employment as those who assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation in the days of Samuel, who were abused by the sons of the high priest Eli, Sa1 2:22. Among the ancients women were generally employed in the office of porters or doorkeepers. Such were employed about the house of the high priest in our Lord's time; for a woman is actually represented as keeping the door of the palace of the high priest, Joh 18:17 : Then saith the Damsel that Kept The Door unto Peter; see also Mat 26:69. In Sa2 4:6, both the Septuagint and Vulgate make a woman porter or doorkeeper to Ishbosheth. Aristophanes mentions them in the same office, and calls them Σηκις, Sekis, which seems to signify a common maid-servant. Aristoph, in Vespis, ver. 768: - Ὁτι την θυραν ανεῳξεν ἡ Σηκις λαθρα. Homer, Odyss., ψ, ver. 225-229, mentions Actoris, Penelope's maid, whose office it was to keep the door of her chamber: - Ακτορις - - - Ἡ νωΐν ειρυτο θυρας πυκινου θαλαμοιο. And Euripides, in Troad., ver. 197, brings in Hecuba, complaining that she who was wont to sit upon a throne is now reduced to the miserable necessity of becoming a doorkeeper or a nurse, in order to get a morsel of bread. - - - η ταν Παρα προθυροις φυλακαν κατεχουσα, Η παιδων θρεπτειρα. Sir John Chardin observes, that women are employed to keep the gate of the palace of the Persian kings. Plautus, Curcul., act 1, scene 1, mentions an old woman, who was keeper of the gate. Anus hic solet cubitare, custos janitrix. Many other examples might be produced. It is therefore very likely that the persons mentioned here, and in Sa1 2:22, were the women who guarded the tabernacle; and that they regularly relieved each other, a troop or company regularly keeping watch: and indeed this seems to be implied in the original, צבאו tsabeu, they came by troops; and these troops successively consecrated their mirrors to the service of the tabernacle. See Calmet on Joh 18:16.

Verse 9

The court - See Clarke on Exo 27:9.

Verse 17

The hooks - and their fillets - The capitals, and the silver bands that went round them; see Clarke's note on Exo 26:32.

Verse 21

This is the sum of the tabernacle - That is, The foregoing account contains a detail of all the articles which Bezaleel and Aholiab were commanded to make; and which were reckoned up by the Levites, over whom Ithamar, the son of Aaron, presided.

Verse 24

All the gold that was occupied for the work, etc. - To be able to ascertain the quantum and value of the gold, silver, and brass, which were employed in the tabernacle, and its different utensils, altars, etc., it will be necessary to enter into the subject in considerable detail. In the course of my notes on this and the preceding book, I have had frequent occasion to speak of the shekel in use among the ancient Hebrews, which, following Dean Prideaux, I have always computed at 3s (shillings), English. As some value it at 2s. 6d., and others at 2s. 4d., I think it necessary to lay before the reader the learned dean's mode of computation as a proper introduction to the calculations which immediately follow. "Among the ancients, the way of reckoning their money was by talents. So the Hebrews, so the Babylonians, and so the Romans did reckon. And of these talents they had subdivisions which were usually in minas and drachms; i.e., of their talents into minas, and their minas into drachms. The Hebrews had, besides these, their shekels and half-shekels, or bekas; and the Romans their denarii, which last were very nearly of the same value with the drachms of the Greeks. What was the value of a Hebrew talent appears from Exo 38:25, Exo 38:26, for there 603,550 persons being taxed at half a shekel a head, they must have paid in the whole 301,775 shekels; and that sum is there said to amount to one hundred talents, and 1775 shekels over: if therefore we deduct the 1775 shekels from the number 301,775, and divide the remaining sum, i.e., 300,000, by a hundred, this will prove each of those talents to contain three thousand shekels. Each of these shekels weighed about three shillings of our money; and sixty of them, Ezekiel tells us, Eze 45:12, made a mina; and therefore fifty of those minas made a talent. And as to their drachms, it appears by the Gospel of St. Matthew that it was the fourth part of a shekel, that is, nine-pence of our money. For there (Mat 17:24) the tribute money annually paid to the temple, by every Jew, (Talmud in shekalim), which was half a shekel, is called Διδραχμον(i.e., the two drachm piece); and therefore, if half a shekel contained two drachms, a drachm must have been the quarter part of a shekel, and every shekel must have contained four of them: and so Josephus tells us it did; for he says, Antiq., lib. iii., c. 9, that a shekel contained four Attic drachms, which is not exactly to be understood according to the weight, but according to the valuation in the currency of common payments. For according to the weight, the heaviest Attic drachms did not exceed eight-pence farthing half-farthing, of our money; and a Hebrew drachm, as I have said, was nine-pence; but what the Attic drachm fell short of the Hebrew in weight might be made up in the fineness, and its ready currency in all countries, (which last the Hebrew drachm could not have), and so might be made equivalent in common estimation among the Jews. Allowing therefore a drachm, as well Attic as Jewish, as valued in Judea, to be equivalent to nine-pence of our money, a Beka or half-shekel will be one shilling and six-pence; a Shekel, three shillings; a Mina, nine pounds; and a Talent, four hundred and fifty pounds. So it was in the time of Moses and Ezekiel; and so was it in the time of Josephus among that people, for he tells us, Antiq., lib. xiv., c. 12, that a Hebrew mina contained two Litras and a half, which comes exactly to nine pounds of our money: for a litra, being the same with a Roman libra, contained twelve ounces troy weight, that is, ninety-six drachms; and therefore two litras and a half must contain two hundred and forty drachms, which being estimated at nine-pence a drachm, according to the Jewish valuation, comes exactly to sixty shekels, or nine pounds of our money. And this account agrees exactly with that of Alexandria. For the Alexandrian talent contained 12,000 Attic drachms; and 12,000 Attic drachms, according to the Jewish valuation, being 12,000 of our nine-pences, they amount to 450 pounds of sterling money, which is the same in value as the Mosaic talent. But here it is to be observed, that though the Alexandrian talent amounted to 12,000 Attic drachms, yet they themselves reckoned it but at 6000 drachms, because every Alexandrian drachm contained two Attic drachms; and therefore the Septuagint version being made by the Alexandrian Jews, they there render the Hebrew word shekel, by the Greek διδραχμον, which signifies two drachms, because two Alexandrian drachms make a shekel, two of them amounting to as much as four Attic drachms. And therefore computing the Alexandrian money according to the same method in which we have computed the Jewish, it will be as follows: One drachm of Alexandria will be of our money eighteen pence; one didrachm or shekel, consisting of two drachms of Alexandria, or four of Attica, will be three shillings; one mina, consisting of sixty didrachms or shekels, will be nine pounds; and one talent, consisting of fifty minas, will be four hundred and fifty pounds, which is the talent of Moses, Exo 38:25, Exo 38:26 : and so also is it the talent of Josephus, Antiq., lib. iii., c. 7; for he tells us that a Hebrew talent contained one hundred Greek (i.e., Attic) minas. For those fifty minas, which here make an Alexandrian talent, would be one hundred Attic minas in the like method of valuation; the Alexandrian talent containing double as much as the Attic talent, both in the whole, and also in all its parts, in whatever method both shall be equally distributed. Among the Greeks the established rule was, Jul. Pollux, Onomast., lib. x., c. 6, that one hundred drachms made a mina, and sixty minas a talent. But in some different states their drachms being different, accordingly their minas and talents were within the same proportion different also. But the money of Attica was the standard by which all the rest were valued, according as they more or less differed from it. And therefore, it being of most note, wherever any Greek historian speaks of talents, minas, or drachms, if they be simply mentioned, it is to be always understood of talents, minas, or drachms of Attica, and never of the talents, minas, or drachms of any other place, unless it be expressed. Mr. Brerewood, going by the goldsmith's weights, reckons an Attic drachm to be the same with a drachm now in use in their shops, that is, the eighth part of an ounce; and therefore lays it at the value of seven-pence halfpenny of our money, or the eighth part of a crown, which is or ought to be an ounce weight. But Dr. Bernard, going more accurately to work, lays the middle sort of Attic drachms at eight-pence farthing of our money, and the minas and talents accordingly, in the proportions above mentioned. The Babylonish talent, according to Pollux, Onomast., lib. x., c. 6, contained seven thousand of those drachms. The Roman talent (see Festus Pompeius) contained seventy-two Italic minas, which were the same with the Roman libras; and ninety-six Roman denariuses, each being of the value of seven-pence halfpenny of our money, made a Roman libra. But all the valuations I have hitherto mentioned must be understood only of silver money, and not of gold; for that was much higher. The proportion of gold to silver was among the ancients commonly as ten to one; sometimes it was raised to be as eleven to one, sometimes as twelve, and sometimes as thirteen to one. In the time of King Edward the First it was here, in England, at the value of ten to one; but it is now gotten at sixteen to one; and so I value it in all the reductions which I make in this history of ancient sums to the present value. But to make the whole of this matter the easier to the reader, I will lay all of it before him for his clear view in this following table of valuations: - Currency (British pound) s.(shilling) d.(penny1/12 shilling) Hebrew Money A Hebrew drachm 9 Two drachms made a beka or half-shekel, which was the tribute money paid by every Jew to the temple 1 6 Two bekas made a shekel 3 0 Sixty shekels made a mina. 9 0 0 Fifty minas made a talent 450 0 0 A talent of gold, sixteen to one 7200 0 0 Attic Money, according to Mr. Brerewood An Attic drachm 7.5 A hundred drachms made a mina 3 2 6.0 Sixty minas made a talent 187 10 0 A talent of gold, sixteen to one 3000 0 0 Attic Money, according to Dr. Bernard An Attic drachm 8.25 A hundred drachms made a mina 3 8 9.00 Sixty minas made a talent 206 5 0 A talent of gold, sixteen to one 3300 0 0 Babylonian Money, according to Mr. Brerewood A Babylonish talent of silver containing seven thousand Attic drachms 218 15 0. A Babylonish talent in gold, sixteen to one 3500 0 0. Babylonian Money, according to Dr. Bernard A Babylonish talent in silver 240 12 6 A Babylonish talent in gold, sixteen to one 3850 0 0. Alexandrian Money A drachm of Alexandria, containing two Attic drachms, as valued by the Jews 1 6 A didrachm of Alexandria, containing two Alexandrian drachms, which was a Hebrew shekel 3 0 Sixty didrachms or Hebrew shekels made a mina 9 0 0 Fifty minas made a talent 450 0 0 A talent of gold, sixteen to one 7200 0 0. Roman Money Four sesterciuses made a Roman denarius 7.5 Ninety-six Roman denariuses made an Italic mina, which was the same with a Roman libra 3 0 0 Seventy-two Roman libras made a talent 216 0 0 There were twenty-nine talents seven hundred and thirty shekels of Gold; one hundred talents one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels of Silver; and seventy talents two thousand four hundred shekels of Brass. If with Dean Prideaux we estimate the value of the silver shekel at three shillings English, we shall obtain the weight of the shekel by making use of the following proportion. As sixty-two shillings, the value of a pound weight of silver as settled by the British laws, is to two hundred and forty, the number of penny-weights in a pound troy, so is three shillings, the value of a shekel of silver, to 11 dwts. 14 22/31 grains, the weight of the shekel required. In the next place, to find the value of a shekel of gold we must make use of the proportion following: As one ounce troy is to 3. 17s. 10d., the legal value of an ounce of gold, so is 11 dwts. 14 22/31 grains, the weight of the shekel as found by the last proportion, to 2. 5s. 2 42/93d., the value of the shekel of gold required. From this datum we shall soon be able to ascertain the value of all the gold employed in the work of this holy place, by the following arithmetical process: Reduce 2. 5s. 2 42/93d. to the lowest term mentioned, which is 201,852 ninety-third parts of a farthing. Multiply this last number by 3000, the number of shekels in a talent, and the product by 29, the number of talents; and add in 730 times 201,852, on account of the 730 shekels which were above the 29 talents employed in the work, and we shall have for the last product 17,708,475,960, which, divided successively by 93, 4, 12, and 20, will give 198,347. 12s. 6d. for the total value of the gold employed in the tabernacle, etc. The value of the silver contributed by 603,550 Israelites, at half a shekel or eighteen pence per man, may be found by an easy arithmetical calculation to amount to 45,266. 5s. The value of the brass at 1s. per pound will amount to 513. 17s. The Gold of the holy place weighed 4245 pounds. The Silver of the tabernacle 14,602 pounds. The Brass 10,277 pounds troy weight. The total value of all the gold, silver, and brass of the tabernacle will consequently amount to 244,127. 14s. 6d. And the total weight of all these three metals amounts to 29,124 pounds troy, which, reduced to avoirdupois weight, is nearly ten tons and a half. When all this is considered, besides the quantity of gold which was employed in the golden calf, and which was all destroyed, it is no wonder that the sacred text should say the Hebrews spoiled the Egyptians, particularly as in those early times the precious metals were probably not very plentiful in Egypt.

Verse 26

A bekah for every man - The Hebrew word בקי beka, from בקי baka, to divide, separate into two, seems to signify, not a particular coin, but a shekel broken or cut in two; so, anciently, our farthing was a penny divided in the midst and then subdivided, so that each division contained the fourth part of the penny; hence its name fourthing or fourthling, since corrupted into farthing. There appear to be three particular reasons why much riches should be employed in the construction of the tabernacle, etc. 1. To impress the people's minds with the glory and dignity of the Divine Majesty, and the importance of his service. 2. To take out of their hands the occasion of covetousness; for as they brought much spoils out of Egypt, and could have little if any use for gold and silver in the wilderness, where it does not appear that they had much intercourse with any other people, and were miraculously supported, so that they did not need their riches, it was right to employ that in the worship of God which otherwise might have engendered that love which is the root of all evil. 3. To prevent pride and vainglory, by leading them to give up to the Divine service even the ornaments of their persons, which would have had too direct a tendency to divert their minds from better things. Thus God's worship was rendered august and respectable, incitements to sin and low desires removed, and the people instructed to consider nothing valuable, but as far as it might be employed to the glory and in the service of God.

Introduction

FURNITURE OF THE TABERNACLE. (Exo. 38:1-31) the altar of burnt offering--The repetitions are continued, in which may be traced the exact conformity of the execution to the order.

Verse 8

laver of brass . . . of the looking glasses of the women--The word mirrors should have been used, as those implements, usually round, inserted into a handle of wood, stone, or metal, were made of brass, silver, or bronze, highly polished [WILKINSON]. It was customary for the Egyptian women to carry mirrors with them to the temples; and whether by taking the looking glasses of the Hebrew women Moses designed to put it out of their power to follow a similar practice at the tabernacle, or whether the supply of brass from other sources in the camp was exhausted, it is interesting to learn how zealously and to a vast extent they surrendered those valued accompaniments of the female toilet. of the women assembling . . . at the door--not priestesses but women of pious character and influence, who frequented the courts of the sacred building (Luk 2:37), and whose parting with their mirrors, like the cutting the hair of the Nazarites, was their renouncing the world for a season [HENGSTENBERG].

Verse 9

the court--It occupied a space of one hundred and fifty feet by seventy-five, and it was enclosed by curtains of fine linen about eight feet high, suspended on brazen or copper pillars. Those curtains were secured by rods fastened to the top, and kept extended by being fastened to pins stuck in the ground.

Verse 10

hooks--The hooks of the pillars in the court were for hanging up the carcasses of the sacrificial beasts--those on the pillars at the entry of the tabernacle were for hanging the sacerdotal robes and other things used in the service.

Verse 11

sockets--mortices or holes in which the end of the pillars stood.

Verse 17

chapiters--or capitals of the pillars, were wooden posts which ran along their top, to which were attached the hooks for the hangings.

Verse 18

the height in the breadth--or, "in the measure." The sense is that the hangings of the court gate, which was twenty cubits wide, were of the same height as the hangings all round the court [WALL].

Verse 21

This is the sum of the tabernacle--Having completed his description of the component parts of the tabernacle, the inspired historian digresses into a statement respecting the gold and silver employed in it, the computation being made according to an order of Moses--by the Levites, under the direction of Ithamar, Aaron's youngest son.

Verse 24

twenty and nine talents, and seven hundred and thirty shekels--equivalent to Â£150,00 sterling.

Verse 25

the silver of them that were numbered--603,550 men at half a shekel each would contribute 301,775 shekels; which at 2s. 4d. each, amounts to Â£35,207 sterling. It may seem difficult to imagine how the Israelites should be possessed of so much wealth in the desert; but it should be remembered that they were enriched first by the spoils of the Egyptians, and afterwards by those of the Amalekites. Besides, it is highly probable that during their sojourn they traded with the neighboring nations who bordered on the wilderness [HEWLETT]. Next: Exodus Chapter 39

Introduction

INTRODUCTION TO EXODUS 38 This chapter is a continuation of the account of the making of the things belonging to the tabernacle, particularly the altar of burnt offering, Exo 38:1 the laver of brass, and the things it was made of, Exo 38:8 the court and its hangings, pillars, sockets, hooks and pins, Exo 38:9 then follows an account of the quantities of gold, silver, and brass, expended in the making of the several things appertaining to the sanctuary, Exo 38:21.

Verse 1

And he made the altar of burnt offering,.... That is, Bezaleel made it, or it was made by his direction, he having the care and oversight of it, wherefore the making of it is ascribed to him, Ch2 1:5 the account of this, its horns, vessels, rings, and staves, is carried on to Exo 38:2 of which See Gill on Exo 27:1, Exo 27:2, Exo 27:3, Exo 27:4, Exo 27:5, Exo 27:6, Exo 27:7, Exo 27:8. . Exodus 38:8 exo 38:8 exo 38:8 exo 38:8And he made the laver of brass, and the foot of it of brass,.... Not of the brass of the offering, for of that were made the brazen altar, its grate and vessels, the sockets of the court and court gate, and the pins of the tabernacle, Exo 38:29 but no mention is made there of the laver; for that was made, as here said: of the looking glasses of the women assembling, which assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation; though these are called looking glasses, it is not to be supposed that they were made of glass as ours are; for of what use could such be in the making of a brazen laver? Some indeed choose to read the words "with the looking glasses" (d), and take the sense to be, that there were looking glasses about the laver, affixed to it, that when the priests came to wash, they might see their spots, and the better know how to cleanse themselves from them: but it should be observed, that the priests did not come hither to wash their faces, but their hands and feet, Exo 30:19 and so stood in no need of looking glasses for that purpose. The particle is here, as Aben Ezra observes, instead of and denotes the matter of which the laver was made, and therefore these instruments to behold the face in, or those mirrors, were of brass, as both he and Philo the Jew (e) affirm; and, indeed, what else could they be, for a laver of brass to be made of? mirrors in former times were made of various sorts of metal polished, some of gold, some of silver, some of brass, and some of brass and tin (f); and the Indians to this day have mirrors made of brass, well polished, and exactly represent the complexion (g). Pliny says (h), that those of Brundusium, which were made of brass and tin mixed, were with the ancient Romans reckoned the best. Aristotle (i) speaks of mirrors of brass, and of their receiving and showing the least touch, because the brass is smooth and polished; and so in our times, there are such as are made of polished steel, and even of burnished brass too: De la Hay (k) says that he had one in his study, which was given him, made of brass of Damascus, and was so finely polished that no crystal one could give a truer sight of the face than that; however, it is certain the ancients used such kind of mirrors; see Job 37:18 these the good women of Israel, in their great zeal, brought for the service of the sanctuary, though they were of daily use, and peculiarly serviceable to them in their dressing; for though the word "women" is not in the text, it is rightly supplied, as it is in all the three Targums, the word being feminine, and as may be justified by a parallel passage, Sa1 2:22 indeed Varenius (l) proposes another, rendering the words thus,"of the looking glasses in great number gathered together, which they had heaped together at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation;''but the word used is active and not passive, and is used of persons gathering together, and not of things gathered, as appears from the above quoted place, and others; and these women gathered together, not for devotion and religion, to pray, as the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan paraphrase it, or to pray, and hear the words of the law, as Aben Ezra, much less to bear any part in the ministry and service of the sanctuary, which as yet was not built; for this tabernacle of the congregation was no other than the tent of Moses, or, however, some little tabernacle erected while the other was preparing, see Exo 33:7 hither the women crowded with their mirrors of brass for the service of the sanctuary; for the word signifies an assembling in troops like an army; and they came in great numbers and beset the door of the tent where Moses was, that he might take their offerings at their hands; not but that it will be allowed that devout women sometimes did assemble at the tabernacle and temple, to perform acts of religion and devotion; but this seems not to be the case here, nor this a time and place for it; see Sa1 2:22. (d) "cum speculis", Oleaster. (e) De Vita Mosis, l. 3. p. 673. (f) Vid. Doughtei Analecta Sacr. excurs. 44. p. 124. (g) Agreement of Customs between the East Indians and Jews, art. 15. p. 65. (h) Nat. Hist. l. 33. c. 9. & l. 34. c. 17. (i) De Insomniis, c. 2. (k) Apud Habikhorst. de mulier. Zobheoth in Thesaur. Theolog. Philolog. vol. 1. p. 321. (l) Apud ib. p. 318.

Verse 8

And he made the court,.... The open court of the tabernacle, where the people met, of which, its pillars, sockets, hangings, hooks, and pins, an account is given, to Exo 38:10 of which See Gill on Exo 27:9, Exo 27:10, Exo 27:11, Exo 27:12, Exo 27:13, Exo 27:14, Exo 27:15, Exo 27:16, Exo 27:17, Exo 27:18, Exo 27:19. . Exodus 38:21 exo 38:21 exo 38:21 exo 38:21This is the sum of the tabernacle,.... Not of the several parts of the tabernacle, and the several things belonging to it, before enumerated, as made and delivered to the care and custody of the Levites, but of the materials of which they were made, particularly the gold and silver, and the brass; the several sums and weight of which are given in the following verses: even of the tabernacle of the testimony; in which the law, the testimony of the will of God, was put enclosed in the ark: as it was counted, according to the commandment of Moses; when it was brought in to him by the people, and delivered by him to Bezaleel, Aholiab, and the artificers: for the service of the Levites; or by means of their ministry, who were employed in taking this account: by the hand of Ithamar, son to Aaron the priest; the youngest son of Aaron, who had the direction and oversight of this affair.

Verse 9

And Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,.... Of whom and his descent see Exo 31:2. made all that the Lord commanded Moses; gave directions about them, and took care that the tabernacle and all things belonging to it were made, which the Lord commanded Moses, and in the exact manner in which they were ordered to be made.

Verse 21

And with him was Aholiab, son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan,.... Of him see Exo 31:6. an engraver; of precious stones, as those in the ephod and breastplate: and a cunning workman; in devising and working curious figured works, either in weaving or with the needle: and an embroiderer in blue, and purple, and in scarlet, and in fine linen; which were used in the curtains and hangings of the tabernacle, and in the priests' garments.

Verse 22

All the gold that was occupied for the work, in all the work of the place,.... That was expended in making the mercy seat and cherubim, and the candlestick, which were all of pure gold; besides other things belonging to the ark and shewbread table; and the plates, with which the ark and many other things were covered or glided: even the gold of the offering; which the people brought and offered freely; as their bracelets, earrings, and jewels of gold, Exo 35:22. was twenty nine talents, and seven hundred and thirty shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary: now as it is clear from Exo 38:25 that a talent is of the value of 3000 shekels, which, according to Brerewood, amount to three hundred and seventy five pounds of our money; and reckoning as he does the value of gold to be twelve times that of silver, a talent of gold, with him, is, of our money, 4500 pounds; so that twenty nine talents, seven hundred and thirty shekels, are reckoned by him at 131,595 pounds (m); but according to Dr. Cumberland (n), who is more exact in his calculation, and who reckons a talent of silver at three hundred and fifty three pounds, eleven shillings, and ten pence halfpenny, and the value of gold to be fourteen times that of silver; so that a talent of gold is, with him, 5067 pounds, three shillings, and ten pence; wherefore this whole sum of gold expended in the tabernacle, according to him, amounted to 148,719 pounds sterling: and, according to Waserus (o), the amount of the whole is 350,920 Hungarian ducats, which make three tons and a half of gold, and nine hundred and twenty ducats: when one considers the distressed case of the Israelites in Egypt, their late deliverance from thence, and the desert in which they were, it may be wondered how they came by these riches, here and after mentioned; but when it is observed, the riches of their ancestors, particularly what Joseph got in Egypt, which descended to their posterity; the repayment of the labour of the Israelites at their departure, with what they borrowed of the Egyptians, and what they found upon their carcasses when cast up by the Red sea, it will in a good measure be accounted for; to which may be added, that, according to Jerom (p), there were, eleven miles from Mount Horeb in the wilderness, fruitful mountains of gold; called Catachrysea. (m) De Ponder. & pretiis. Vet. Num. c. 4, 5. (n) Of Scripture Weights and Measures, c. 4. p. 120, 121. (o) De Antiqu. Numis. l. 2. c. 18. (p) De locis Heb. fol. 90. A.

Verse 23

And the silver of them that were numbered of the congregation,.... This was not the offering of silver, Exo 35:24 but what was collected in numbering the people, where everyone of twenty years old and upwards paid half a shekel, Exo 30:12 the sum was an hundred talents, one thousand seven hundred and threescore fifteen shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary; which, according to Brerewood (q), make of our money, 37,721 pounds, seventeen shillings, and six pence; according to Waserus (r), the whole amounted to 150,887 dollars and a half: and so, according to Lundius (s), the sum is so many imperials, and forty five creutzers or cross pennies. (q) Ut supra. (De Ponder & pretiis Vet. Num. c. 4, 5.) (r) Ut supra. (De Antiqu. Numis. l. 2. c. 18.) (s) Apud Scheuchzer. Physic. Sacr. vol. 2. p. 253.

Verse 24

A bekah for every man, that is, half a shekel, after the shekel of the sanctuary,.... A half shekel was called a "bekah", from "bakah", to divide; because it was a shekel divided into two parts: for everyone that went to be numbered, from twenty years and upwards; in order to give a ransom, and make an atonement for their souls, as was ordered Exo 30:12. for six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty men; so that from the time of their coming out of Egypt, which was now about six months ago, there was an increase of 3550 of the above age; see Exo 12:37.

Verse 25

And of the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary, and the sockets of the vail,.... The sockets for the boards of the tabernacle, into which they were put; and the sockets for the vail, which divided between the holy and the most holy place, in which the pillars were set the vail was hung upon, and which was the silver foundation of the whole fabric: one hundred sockets of the one hundred talents, a talent for a socket; there were ninety six sockets for the sanctuary or tabernacle, and four for the vail; and on each of these a talent of silver was expended; which, according to Dr. Cumberland, was three hundred and fifty three pounds, eleven shillings, and some odd pence; so much every socket cost.

Verse 26

And of the thousand seven hundred seventy five shekels,.... Which remained of the sum collected, Exo 38:25 after the silver sockets were cast: he made hooks for the pillars: on each side of the court of the tabernacle on which the hangings were hung; these hooks, as Kimchi says (t), were in the form of the letter and were made to hang the sacrifices upon, when they took their skins off; and so it is said in the Misnah (u), that there were iron hooks fixed in the walls and pillars, on which they hung (the passover lambs) and skinned them; this was done in the second temple, when the hooks, it seems, were iron, but those of the tabernacle were silver: and overlaid their chapiters, and filleted them; that is, overlaid the heads, tops, or knobs of the pillars with silver plates, and filleted, girded, or hooped other parts of them with silver. (t) Sepher Shorash. Rad. (u) Pesachim, c. 5. sect. 9.

Verse 27

And the brass of the offering was seventy talents, and two thousand four hundred shekels. Which, according to Paris weight, were 6177 pounds, ten ounces, two drachms, and sixty four grains (w): this might be had from the neighbouring mountains of Arabia, where it is said (x) the metals of brass and iron were first dug. (w) Vid. Scheuchzer, ut supra. (Physic. Sacr. vol. 2. p. 253.) (x) Aristeas de 72. interpret. p. 42. Vid. Hieron. de loc. Hebr. fol. 90. A.

Verse 28

And therewith he made the sockets to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation,.... Which were five; see Exo 26:37. and the brazen altar, and the brazen grate for it, and all the vessels of the altar; which were all made of brass; see Exo 27:2.

Verse 29

And the sockets of the court round about, and the sockets of the court gate,.... These were also of brass, in all sixty: and all the pins of the tabernacle, and all the pins of the court round about; the pins for the curtains of the tabernacle, and for the hangings of the court; see Exo 27:19. Next: Exodus Chapter 39

Introduction

Here is an account, I. Of the making of the brazen altar (Exo 38:1-7), and the laver (Exo 38:8). II. The preparing of the hangings for the enclosing of the court in which the tabernacle was to stand (Exo 38:9-20). III. A summary of the gold, silver, and brass, that was contributed to, and used in, the preparing of the tabernacle (Exo 38:21, etc.).

Verse 1

Bezaleel having finished the gold-work, which, though the richest, yet was ordered to lie most out of sight, in the tabernacle itself, here goes on to prepare the court, which lay open to the view of all. Two things the court was furnished with, and both made of brass: - I. An altar of burnt-offering, Exo 38:1-7. On this all their sacrifices were offered, and it was this which, being sanctified itself for this purpose by the divine appointment, sanctified the gift that was in faith offered on it. Christ was himself the altar to his own sacrifice of atonement, and so he is to all our sacrifices of acknowledgment. We must have an eye to him in offering them, as God has in accepting them. II. A laver, to hold water for the priests to wash in when they went in to minister, Exo 38:8. This signified the provision that is made in the gospel of Christ for the cleansing of our souls from the moral pollution of sin by the merit and grace of Christ, that we may be fit to serve the holy God in holy duties. This is here said to be made of the looking-glasses (or mirrors) of the women that assembled at the door of the tabernacle. 1. It should seem these women were eminent and exemplary for devotion, attending more frequently and seriously at the place of public worship than others did; and notice is here taken of it to their honour. Anna was such a one long afterwards, who departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day, Luk 2:37. It seems in every age of the church there have been some who have thus distinguished themselves by their serious zealous piety, and they have thereby distinguished themselves; for devout women are really honourable women (Act 13:50), and not the less so for their being called, by the scoffers of the latter days, silly women. Probably these women were such as showed their zeal upon this occasion, by assisting in the work that was now going on for the service of the tabernacle. They assembled by troops, so the word is; a blessed sight, to see so many, and those so zealous and so unanimous, in this good work. 2. These women parted with their mirrors (which were of the finest brass, burnished for that purpose) for the use of the tabernacle. Those women that admire their own beauty, are in love with their own shadow, and make the putting on of apparel their chief adorning by which they value and recommend themselves, can but ill spare their looking-glasses; yet these women offered them to God, either, (1.) In token of their repentance for the former abuse of them, to the support of their pride and vanity; now that they were convinced of their folly, and had devoted themselves to the service of God at the door of the tabernacle, they thus threw away that which, though lawful and useful in itself, yet had been an occasion of sin to them. Thus Mary Magdalene, who had been a sinner, when she became a penitent wiped Christ's feet with her hair. Or, (2.) In token of their great zeal for the work of the tabernacle; rather than the workmen should want brass, or not have of the best, they would part with their mirrors, though they could not do well without them. God's service and glory must always be preferred by us before any satisfactions or accommodations of our own. Let us never complain of the want of that which we may honour God by parting with. 3. These mirrors were used for the making of the laver. Either they were artfully joined together, or else molten down and cast anew; but it is probable that the laver was so brightly burnished that the sides of it still served for mirrors, that the priests, when they came to wash, might there see their faces, and so discover the spots, to wash them clean. Note, In the washing of repentance, there is need of the looking-glass of self-examination. The word of God is a glass, in which we may see our own faces (see Jam 1:23); and with it we must compare our own hearts and lives, that, finding out our blemishes, we may wash with particular sorrow, and application of the blood of Christ to our souls. Usually the more particular we are in the confession of sin the more comfort we have in the sense of the pardon.

Verse 9

The walls of the court, or church-yard, were like the rest curtains or hangings, made according to the appointment, Exo 27:9, etc. This represented the state of the Old Testament church: it was a garden enclosed; the worshippers were then confined to a little compass. But the enclosure being of curtains only intimated that the confinement of the church in one particular nation was not to be perpetual. The dispensation itself was a tabernacle-dispensation, movable and mutable, and in due time to be taken down and folded up, when the place of the tent should be enlarged and its cords lengthened, to make room for the Gentile world, as is foretold, Isa 54:2, Isa 54:3. The church here on earth is but the court of God's house, and happy they that tread these courts and flourish in them; but through these courts we are passing to the holy place above. Blessed are those that dwell in that house of God: they well be still praising him. The enclosing of a court before the tabernacle teaches us a gradual approach to God. The priests that ministered must pass through the holy court, before they entered the holy house. Thus before solemn ordinances there ought to be the separated and enclosed court of a solemn preparation, in which we must wash our hands, and so draw near with a true heart.

Verse 21

Here we have a breviat of the account which, by Moses's appointment, the Levites took and kept of the gold, silver, and brass, that was brought in for the tabernacle's use, and how it was employed. Ithamar the son of Aaron was appointed to draw up this account, and was thus by less services trained up and fitted for greater, Exo 38:21. Bezaleel and Aholiab must bring in the account (Exo 38:22, Exo 38:23), and Ithamar must audit it, and give it in to Moses. And it was thus: - 1. All the gold was a free-will offering; every man brought as he could and would, and it amounted to twenty-nine talents, and 730 shekels over, which some compute to be about 150,000l. worth of gold, according to the present value of it. Of this were made all the golden furniture and vessels. 2. The silver was levied by way of tax; every man was assessed half a shekel, a kind of poll-money, which amounted in the whole to 100 talents, and 1775 shekels over, Exo 38:25, Exo 38:26. Of this they made the sockets into which the boards of the tabernacle were let, and on which they rested; so that they were as the foundation of the tabernacle, Exo 38:27. The silver amounted to about 34,000l. of our money. The raising of the gold by voluntary contribution, and of the silver by way of tribute, shows that either way may be taken for the defraying of public expenses, provided that nothing be done with partiality. 3. The brass, though less valuable, was of use not only for the brazen altar, but for the sockets of the court, which probably in other tents were of wood: but it is promised (Isa 60:17), For wood I will bring brass. See how liberal the people were and how faithful the workmen were, in both which respects their good example ought to be followed.

(Exodus) Exodus 38 Introduction

(Exodus) Exodus 38:18

(Through the Bible) Exodus 30-32

Studies in 1 Thessalonians 01 Conversion

The Tabernacle 12 Boards-Bars (Incomplete)

The Brazen Laver

The Washbasin

The Pins of the Tabernacle.

Introduction

Verse 1

Verse 8

Verse 9

Verse 17

Verse 21

Verse 24

Verse 26

Introduction

Verse 8

Verse 9

Verse 10

Verse 11

Verse 17

Verse 18

Verse 21

Verse 24

Verse 25

Introduction

Verse 1

Verse 8

Verse 9

Verse 21

Verse 22

Verse 23

Verse 24

Verse 25

Verse 26

Verse 27

Verse 28

Verse 29

Introduction

Verse 1

Verse 9

Verse 21

Verse 1

Verse 8

Verse 21

Verse 26