The Second Book of Moses, called Exodus
Exodus 25
Chapter XXV · Vol. I, pp. 335–338
1 Directions what the Israelites are to offer for the making of the tabernacle. 10 The form of the ark. 17 The mercy-seat, with the cherubims. 23 The table, with its furniture and show-bread. 31 The candlestick, with the instruments thereof.
1 AND the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, that they a bring me an offering:2 of every man that giveth it b willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering.
A.M. 2513. B.C. 1491.
a Heb. take for me, ch. 35.5-29.
2 Or, heave-offering.
b ch. 35.5,21;36.5. Ju. 5.9. 1 Ch. 29.3-14. Ezr. 2.68; 3.5. Ne. 11.2. Ps. 110.3. 2 Co. 8.11,12;9.7.
3 And this is the offering which ye shall take of them; gold, and silver, and brass,
4 And c blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fined linen, and goats' hair,
c Wool. He. 9.19. Re. 1.5;7.14.
d Or, silk, Re. 19.8, 14. Eze. 10.10.
6 Oilf for the light, spices for anointing oil, and for sweet incense,
f ver. 37; ch. 40.24,25; 27.20;30.23-36. Jn. 1.14, 16.
7 Onyx-stones,g and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate.
g ch. 28.9,17-20. 1 Pe. 2.4,5.
8 And h let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.
h ch. 29.45,46. Le. 26.12. Nu. 35.34. 1 Ki. 6.13. Zec. 2.10;8.3. 2 Co. 6.16. He. 3.6. Re. 21.2,3.
9 According to all that I show thee, after the pattern i of the tabernacle, and the pattern of k all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.4
i ver. 40; ch. 26.30;39.32. 1 Ch. 28.11,12,18,19. He. 8.5.
k ch. xxvi.-xxxi. xxxv.-xxxix.; 31.6-11; 35.10-19; 39.32-42; 40.2-15,17-30. Nu. 3.25,26, 31, 36, 37; 4.4-33. Le. viii. ix.
4 Every part of the tabernacle and its furniture was shown in pattern to Moses: nothing being left to human imagination or discovery—a lesson of universal application. Let the church receive it, and order all things on the divine model. Let private Christians receive it, and remember that they 'are the temples of the living God.'—C.
10 Andl they shall make an ark of shittim-wood: two cubits and a half[≈ 1.1 m · 3 ft 9 in] shall be the length thereof, and5 a cubit and a half[≈ 69 cm · 2 ft 3 in] the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half[≈ 69 cm · 2 ft 3 in] the height thereof.
5 Its length was 4 feet 7 inches, and its breadth 2 feet 9 inches.
l ch. 37.1-9. Nu. 3.31. Jos. iii. iv. vi. 1 Sa. iv.-vi. 2 Sa. vi. 1 Ki. 8.1-11. 2 Ch. 8.11. He. 9.4. Re. 11.19.
11 And thou shalt overlay it with m pure gold: within and without shalt thou overlay it; and shalt make upon it a n crown of gold round about.
m Jn. 1.14. Col. 2.9. Ro. 9.5. He. 1.3.
n Cornice, Mat. 28.18. Ps. 2.6;21.3,5. He. 2.9,10.
12 And thou shalt cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in the four corners thereof; and two rings shall be in the one side of it, and two rings in the other side of it.
14 And thou shalt put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark, that the ark may be p borne with them.
p Nu. 4.5-15; 7.9. 2 Ch. 35.3. Ac. 9.15. Ep. 3.8.
15 The staves shall be in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it.
17 And thou shalt make a r mercy-seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half[≈ 1.1 m · 3 ft 9 in] shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half[≈ 69 cm · 2 ft 3 in] the breadth thereof.
18 And thou shalt make two s cherubims of gold: of beaten work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy-seat.
s 1 Ki. 6.23. Eze. 1.5; 10.1. 1 Ti. 3.16. Mat. 4.11. Col. 2.10. He. 1.14, or 1 Co. 12.28;4.1,11,12; 2.2;11.23,24.
19 And make one cherub on the one end, and the other cherub on the other end; even t of the mercy-seat shall ye make the cherubims on the two ends thereof.
20 And the u cherubims shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy-seat with their wings, and their faces shall look one to another; x toward the mercy-seat shall the faces of the cherubims be.
u 1 Ki. 8.7. 1 Ch. 28.18. He. 9.5;1.14, or 1 Co. 1.23,24;2.2.
x 1 Pe. 1.12. Ep. 3.10, or Ac. 10.43. Ro. 3.21. 1 Co. 2.2.
21 And thou shalt put the y mercy-seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the z testimony that I shall give thee.
y Ro. 8.3,4; 10.4. Is. 42.21; 53.10,11. 2 Co. 5.21.
z See ver. 16; ch. 40.3,20.
22 And a there6 I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.
23 Thoub shalt also make a table of shittim-wood: two cubits[≈ 91 cm · 3 ft] shall be the length thereof, and a cubit[≈ 46 cm · 1 ft 6 in] the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half[≈ 69 cm · 2 ft 3 in] the height thereof.
b ch. 37.10-16; 40.4,22,23. Nu. 3.31. 1 Ki. 7.48. 2 Ch. 4.8. Col. 1.19. Jn. 1.14,16. Phi. 4.19.
24 And thou shalt overlay it with c pure gold, and make thereto a d crown of gold round about.
c Col. 2.9. Ro. 9.5. Phi. 2.6-11.
d Or, cornice, see ver. 11.
25 And thou shalt make unto it e a border of an hand-breadth[≈ 7.6 cm · 3 in] round about; and thou shalt make a golden crown to the border thereof round about.
26 And thou shalt make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings in the four corners that are on the four feet thereof.
28 And thou shalt make the g staves of shittim-wood, and overlay them with gold, that the table may be borne with them.
g Ministers and ordinances, Eze. 43.12. Is. 52.11.
29 Andh thou shalt make the dishes thereof, and spoons thereof, and covers thereof, and bowls thereof, to cover, withal:7 ofi pure gold shalt thou make them.8
h Le. 24.5-7. Nu. 4.7; 7.13. Je. 52.18,19.
7 Or, to pour out withal.
i Ps. 93.5. Eze. 43.12.
8 The words rendered 'spoons,' 'covers,' and 'bowls,' signify 'censers,' 'flagons,' and 'goblets.' The censers were for incense; the flagons and goblets for the 'drink-offerings,' or libations of wine.—P.
30 And thou shalt set upon the table k show-bread before me alway.9
k Le. 24.8. ch. 40.4,23. Nu. 4.7. Mar. 2.26. He. 9.2,24. Jn. 6.32.
9 The 'show-bread' consisted of (it is said) twelve unleavened loaves. It was placed in front of the holy of holies, where the Shekinah glory was enshrined, and it is hence called in Hebrew 'bread of the face' (show-bread), as being before the face of God. It was intended to symbolize the unfailing provision which God makes for his people.—P.
31 Andl thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold; of beaten work shall the candlestick8 be made: his shaft, and his branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be of the same.
A.M. 2513. B.C. 1491.
l ch. 37.17-24; 40.4,24,25. Nu. 3.31; 8.4. 1 Ki. 7.49. Zec. 4.2. Re. 1.12,20; 2.5. Ps. 119.105. Pr. 6.23.
8 The candlestick, or rather lamp-bearer, consisted of one upright shaft, with six branches, each one adorned with flowers, supposed to resemble lilies; with large knops, supposed to resemble pomegranates, and smaller ones resembling an almond. Upon the top of the shaft and extremities of the branches were seven lamps, fed with pure olive-oil, and lighted every evening by the priests in their courses. It was situated in the holy place, and gave light to the altar of incense and table of show-bread, which stood in the same apartment. The candlestick, with its appurtenances, is the emblem of the church of Christ, Mat. 5.14-16. All, even to the tongs and snuffdishes, is pure gold—the most precious metal of exchange, use, or ornament. Believers of every rank and office must be pure, Mat. 5.8; being renewed, Ep. 4.23,24; cleansed, 1 Co. 6.11; and enriched, as with gold, for they buy it, Re. 3.18—which buying, according to Is. 55.1, is 'without money and without price'—the gift of free and loving grace, which faith appropriates on the authority of God, while their 'light shines before men, who, seeing their good works, glorify their Father who is in heaven,' Mat. 5.16.—C.
32 And m six branches shall come out of the sides of it; three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three branches of the candlestick out of the other side:
33 Three bowls made like unto almonds, with a knop and a flower in one branch; and three bowls made like almonds in the other branch, with a knop and a flower: so in the six branches that come out of the candlestick.
34 And in the candlestick shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their knops and their flowers.
35 And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick.
36 Their knops and their branches shall be of the same: all of it shall be one beaten work of pure gold.
37 And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light9 the lamps thereof, that they may give light n over against it.1
9 Or, cause to ascend.
n ch. 27.20,21; 30.8. Nu. 8.2,3. Le. 24.5. 2 Co. 3.18; 4.6. Mat. 5.16. Phi. 2.15,16.
1 Heb. the face of it.
38 And o the tongs thereof, and the snuffdishes thereof, shall be of pure gold.
o Eze. 43.11,12. ver. 9. 1 Ki. 7.50. 1 Th. 2.10.
39 Of a talent[≈ 34 kg · 75 lb] of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels.
Notes
Ver. 1. These and other ceremonial institutes are minutely described, because they flowed from the holy will of God. They were significant of great and important things; and were to be strictly observed in the adoration of a God, jealous with respect to his own worship.
Ver. 5. [Shittim-wood. The particular wood called shittim, sittinus, and sittah, is merely matter of conjecture. The Septuagint translate it incorruptible-wood—a name that, in some degree, may apply to many species. Jerome says it grows in Arabia, and resembles the white-thorn in colour and leaves; and is so large as to yield long planks, which are hard, tough, smooth, and extremely beautiful. It is thought that the wood described by Jerome is the black acacia. It is abundant in the mountains of Sinai and the surrounding desert. In Is. 41. 19 the shittim is joined with the myrtle and other fragrant shrubs; and as the flowers of the acacia furnish, according to Dr. Shaw, an excellent perfume, we have here an additional evidence of its identity with the sittah. C.]
Ver. 8. While this tabernacle was a sign of God's presence with and protection of his people, it was a type (1) of Christ's person, He. 8. 2; (2) of the gospel-church, the habitation of God by the Spirit, 2 Co. 6. 16; (3) of every Christian in whose heart God dwells, 1 Cor. 3.16;6.19; (4) of the new blessed and heavenly state, Is. 66. 1; and according to these different significations may the furniture thereof be understood in different views.
Ver. 10. The ark was the chief of all the sacred furniture which peculiarly sanctified the tabernacle, and for which it was principally made.
Ver. 16. The two tables of stone upon which the law was written are called the testimony, because they witnessed the covenant between God and the people; testified what God required of them; and testified against them if they observed it not.
Ver. 17. The lid, or mercy-seat, placed between the tables of the law and the Shekinah, or cloudy symbol of the divine presence, denoted Jesus' atonement; which answers to all the demands of the law, and interposes between us and Jehovah, that he may deal mercifully with us in Christ.
Ver. 18. The cherubims signified angels, as prying into the mysteries of redemption, and ministering to Christ and his people; or ministers, as founded on Christ, admiring his work, and attending on God and his service.
Ver. 23. This table typified Christ as having all fulness in him, and supporting and sacrificing before God for the people; and also the gospel-church and the ordinances of it.
Ver. 31. This candlestick typified Christ himself, or his gospel-church and ordinances thereof.
Ver. 39. [With all these vessels. The talent of gold is estimated from £5250 to £7013. This is the first time the word talent occurs in Scripture. May not the first use of it illustrate the impressive parable of the talents? Mat. 25. 14. One talent[≈ 34 kg · 75 lb] formed the candlestick, with all its necessary and ornamental parts; yet the candlestick itself gave no light; for that were required the oil and the fire. And such is the man who, with knowledge unsanctified by the Spirit, and affections unlighted by the love of Christ, 'holds,' rather bridles in the truth in unrighteousness; who, knowing God, glorifies him not as God; who changes his truth into a lie, and worships and serves the creature more than the Creator; who does not like to retain God in his knowledge; and who, knowing the judgment of death against sin, not only commits sin himself, but derives his pleasure from his companions in guiltiness, Ro. 1. 18, 21, 25, 28, 32. C.]
Reflections.—Since, in deep compassion to human poverty, Jehovah hath freely taken upon himself the immensity of the work of redemption; the infinite duty of raising up a Saviour, erecting a church, and preparing a new life and a heavenly state, as means of his residence amongst us;—since he has made Jesus an ark for holding and fulfilling his law; a propitiatory or mercy-seat, whence, to the everlasting astonishment of angels and men, and by their ministration, he may declare his oracles, promises, and laws; a table to feed his people, and on which the tribes of the redeemed are, in their successive generations, safely and honourably to come before God; and a light to his church, by his word and Spirit;—may I, may thousands more, be the willing members of his church! Let us surrender ourselves, and all that we have, whether more or less valuable, to the service of Christ! Following with care the prescriptions of Heaven, let us come boldly to the throne of his grace, and commune with our God! Let us feast from day to day, especially from one Sabbath to another, upon Jesus, the bread indeed—Jesus, the finest of the wheat; that we may be to God a sweet savour of Christ! And even in this earthly tabernacle and militant church let us walk in the light of the Lord; so shall we shine as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life!
Measures in square brackets are modern equivalents added for this edition. They are not in the King James text or in Brown’s notes. They use common scholarly estimates: a cubit is about 45.7 cm (18 in), a shekel about 11.4 g (0.4 oz), an ephah about 22 litres. Money values give the worth of the silver or gold at spot prices on 28 October 2026, not what the sum would buy in the ancient world.