Exodus 38: 1 – 31
I’m all in
38 He made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood; five cubits was its length and five cubits its width—it was square—and its height was three cubits. 2 He made its horns on its four corners; the horns were of one piece with it. And he overlaid it with bronze. 3 He made all the utensils for the altar: the pans, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and the fire pans; all its utensils he made of bronze. 4 And he made a grate of bronze network for the altar, under its rim, midway from the bottom. 5 He cast four rings for the four corners of the bronze grating, as holders for the poles. 6 And he made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with bronze. 7 Then he put the poles into the rings on the sides of the altar, with which to bear it. He made the altar hollow with boards. 8 He made the laver of bronze and its base of bronze, from the bronze mirrors of the serving women who assembled at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 9 Then he made the court on the south side; the hangings of the court were of fine woven linen, one hundred cubits long. 10 There were twenty pillars for them, with twenty bronze sockets. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were silver. 11 On the north side the hangings were one hundred cubits long, with twenty pillars and their twenty bronze sockets. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were silver. 12 And on the west side there were hangings of fifty cubits, with ten pillars and their ten sockets. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were silver. 13 For the east side the hangings were fifty cubits. 14 The hangings of one side of the gate were fifteen cubits long, with their three pillars and their three sockets, 15 and the same for the other side of the court gate; on this side and that were hangings of fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets. 16 All the hangings of the court all around were of fine woven linen. 17 The sockets for the pillars were bronze, the hooks of the pillars and their bands were silver, and the overlay of their capitals was silver; and all the pillars of the court had bands of silver. 18 The screen for the gate of the court was woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and of fine woven linen. The length was twenty cubits, and the height along its width was five cubits, corresponding to the hangings of the court. 19 And there were four pillars with their four sockets of bronze; their hooks were silver, and the overlay of their capitals and their bands was silver. 20 All the pegs of the tabernacle, and of the court all around, were bronze. 21 This is the inventory of the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the Testimony, which was counted according to the commandment of Moses, for the service of the Levites, by the hand of Ithamar, son of Aaron the priest. 22 Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all that the LORD had commanded Moses. 23 And with him was Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an engraver and designer, a weaver of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and of fine linen. 24 All the gold that was used in all the work of the holy place, that is, the gold of the offering, was twenty-nine talents and seven hundred and thirty shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 25 And the silver from those who were numbered of the congregation was one hundred talents and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary: 26 a bekah for each man (that is, half a shekel, according to the shekel of the sanctuary), for everyone included in the numbering from twenty years old and above, for six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men. 27 And from the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil: one hundred sockets from the hundred talents, one talent for each socket. 28 Then from the one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels he made hooks for the pillars, overlaid their capitals, and made bands for them. 29 The offering of bronze was seventy talents and two thousand four hundred shekels. 30 And with it he made the sockets for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, the bronze altar, the bronze grating for it, and all the utensils for the altar, 31 the sockets for the court all around, the bases for the court gate, all the pegs for the tabernacle, and all the pegs for the court all around.
Do you ever get that nagging feeling something is missing in your Christian life? When we stop to listen to our hearts, there’s a cry for more that’s hard to ignore. You want and need more joy; more meaning; more purpose; and more love. We need above all more out of our relationship with God.
Maybe you’ve gone searching for more already — attended conferences, read books, tried spiritual disciplines — but still came up empty handed. There’s nothing wrong with these activities, but the greatest cause of dissatisfaction among Christians is neglecting Jesus’ call on their lives.
Jesus didn’t make it complicated. There are four things we need to remember:
Jesus came to give us abundant life as His words were recorded in the Gospel of John 10:10 "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."
We also learn in the Gospel of Matthew 6:24 that abundant life will cost us everything. “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”
Also Matthew 28:19-20 teaches us that abundant life happens when we prioritize Jesus’ mission. “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
Abundant life only happens through the empowering presence of Jesus. This fact is described in Matthew 28:19-20, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
I watched this young woman in church serve with joy on all occasions. She is the dream servant. She would come up to me on Sunday Mornings and ask me if I needed help anywhere. Can you believe that statement?
One day I told her that to me she is different that all the young women of her age. Her joy is in serving. I then asked her, ‘why is that? I love her response. She said to me that if Jesus Is All that we have been preaching, then why not be all in.’
Like my young sister we all have a choice to make. We can remain discontent, relying on our own strength, and holding on to terms and conditions in our relationship with our Holy Lord Jesus. Or we can make an unqualified, total commitment to obey Jesus anytime, anywhere, at any cost, to do anything. With Jesus at the center, we’ll discover a joy we've never known. Our lives will be full of purpose and meaning as we live out our unique part in fulfilling Jesus’ mission to reach others.
Are you all in? Today we are going to study more items in the Lord’s Tabernacle. One of them is the brazen altar. The sacrifices involved the whole lamb. We will see that this reflects exactly what I have just mentioned. We need to totally place our whole selves also on the Lord’s altar. To do anything less dishonors the Holy Son of God who gave His Whole Self for us. Shall we take a look now at today’s scripture?
38 He made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood; five cubits was its length and five cubits its width—it was square—and its height was three cubits. 2 He made its horns on its four corners; the horns were of one piece with it. And he overlaid it with bronze. 3 He made all the utensils for the altar: the pans, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and the fire pans; all its utensils he made of bronze. 4 And he made a grate of bronze network for the altar, under its rim, midway from the bottom. 5 He cast four rings for the four corners of the bronze grating, as holders for the poles. 6 And he made the poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with bronze. 7 Then he put the poles into the rings on the sides of the altar, with which to bear it. He made the altar hollow with boards.
The altar was located in the outer court of the Tabernacle. If you study this object you will notice that it is shaped like a cross? That is what it represents. The four corners: North, South, East and West point out that the cross is effectual for all the four corners of the earth; for all nations, for all peoples. It also depicts how we approach God: by the cross. When we come to Him in our sins, we are cleansed of them once and for all!
The altar itself was made of bronze. It was so durable that it could never be burned up. Sacrifices were offered continually upon it and arose as a sweet smelling savor to the Lord, reminding Him of His beloved Son, The Precious Lamb of God. Even the four corners have meanings and speak of our Christian life.
The lamb is always killed on the North side because for Israel, evil always came from the North. The man bringing the lamb would lay his hands on its head, his sins would pass to the innocent lamb and the representative righteousness of the lamb would pass to the man in a Divine exchange. The innocent was slain for the guilty.
That’s how our Christian life begins: With the cross and the death of Christ. We come to recognize that ‘The Innocent Lamb of God’ was slain for you the guilty man or woman. His Eternal Righteousness passed to us as our sins were laid on Him and the Divine exchange took place. The righteousness of Christ that we receive is therefore eternal not temporal as under the Old Covenant. We only need cleansing from sin ‘ONE TIME’ for our entire lives. Our Lord Jesus Christ does not have to offered up daily.
The East side of the bronze altar is the place of ashes. Once you are born again, you approach the Cross no longer from the North side but, ever after, from the East!
The East side of the bronze altar, being the place of ashes, reminds you that all your sins were (please notice -past tense) reduced to ashes. There is no more judgment for your sins because they have all been judged! Our Precious and Holy Lord Jesus consumed in His body the Father’s entire wrath, all the indignation and all the righteous anger for all our sins on our behalf. We all stand before God completely free of all sin because of the cross! Thank you Lord Jesus.
The prophet Ezekiel has something to say about the South side of the altar in chapter 47 of his book, “Then he brought me back to the door of the temple; and there was water, flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the East, for the front of the temple faced East; the water was flowing from under the right side of the temple, South of the altar. He brought me out by way of the north gate, and led me around on the outside to the outer gateway that faces east; and there was water, running out on the right side.
After our Lord Jesus died, the Roman soldier came to check and see if He was really dead. He thrust a spear into His right side and there flowed out blood and water. Water is a picture of the Holy Spirit. The mature Christian life can only be lived successfully when we are flowing in the Spirit.
The Bronze Altar now as we can see gives us clues as to how true flowing in the Spirit is accomplished. First we come to Christ Jesus our Master and King by the North side of the altar with our lamb that was slain in our place –the innocent for the guilty. Then we come upon the East side to the place of ashes where we come to understand the there is no more condemnation. We shed sin-consciousness here, or at least we’re supposed to. Then and only then can we proceed to the South side where we can truly be lead by the Holy Spirit.
So lastly we come to the West side of the altar. What is on the West side of the altar? You see The Tabernacle - The house of God where His people dwell together. That is where we gather together as a people to worship. Here is where the corporate anointing flows from God to His People as a body. There is strength in numbers. Sheep were made to dwell in flocks. We don’t necessarily need to be doing “holy” things. It is just good to be together and fellowship with others of like precious faith where there is mutual encouragement and strength.
8 He made the laver of bronze and its base of bronze, from the bronze mirrors of the serving women who assembled at the door of the tabernacle of meeting.
The laver of bronze was a wash basin used by priests in the tabernacle in the wilderness, as a place where they cleansed their hands and feet
Unlike the other elements in the tabernacle, no measurements were given for the laver's size. We read in Exodus 38:8 that it was made from the bronze mirrors of the women in the assembly. The Hebrew word "kikkar," associated with this basin, implies it was round.
Only priests washed in this large basin. Cleaning their hands and feet with water prepared the priests for service.
Coming into the courtyard, a priest would first make a sacrifice for himself at the brazen altar, and then he would approach the laver of bronze, which was placed between the altar and the door of the holy place. It was significant that the altar, representing salvation, came first, then the laver, preparing for acts of service, came second
Before entering the holy place, priests washed so they could approach God clean. After leaving the holy place, they also washed because they were returning to serve the people
Symbolically, the priests washed their hands because they worked and served with their hands. Their feet signified travel, namely where they went, their path in life, and their walk with God
The entire tabernacle, including the laver of bronze, pointed to the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ. Throughout the Bible, water represented cleansing
For us believers the laver stands for the Word of God. We read in Psalm 119 verses 9 through 11 this aspect of cleansing, “How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. 10 With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! 11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.”
You can see from this passage in the Bible that the Word of God gives spiritual life and protects the believer from the uncleanness of the world.
In addition, the laver of bronze represented the act of confession. Even after accepting Christ's sacrifice, Christians continue to fall short. Like the priests who prepared to serve the Lord by washing their hands and feet in the bronze laver, believers are cleansed as they confess their sins before the Lord. (1 John 1:9)
9 Then he made the court on the south side; the hangings of the court were of fine woven linen, one hundred cubits long. 10 There were twenty pillars for them, with twenty bronze sockets. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were silver. 11 On the north side the hangings were one hundred cubits long, with twenty pillars and their twenty bronze sockets. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were silver. 12 And on the west side there were hangings of fifty cubits, with ten pillars and their ten sockets. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were silver. 13 For the east side the hangings were fifty cubits. 14 The hangings of one side of the gate were fifteen cubits long, with their three pillars and their three sockets, 15 and the same for the other side of the court gate; on this side and that were hangings of fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three sockets. 16 All the hangings of the court all around were of fine woven linen. 17 The sockets for the pillars were bronze, the hooks of the pillars and their bands were silver, and the overlay of their capitals was silver; and all the pillars of the court had bands of silver. 18 The screen for the gate of the court was woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and of fine woven linen. The length was twenty cubits, and the height along its width was five cubits, corresponding to the hangings of the court. 19 And there were four pillars with their four sockets of bronze; their hooks were silver, and the overlay of their capitals and their bands was silver. 20 All the pegs of the tabernacle, and of the court all around, were bronze.
The first thing that we see was that the tabernacle’s outer court was enclosed by a curtain fence. The Tabernacle was 150 feet long and 75 feet wide. The curtain around the outer court was of fine white linen, which was fastened to 60 supporting pillars of bronze.
In the court of the Tabernacle, we find a surrounding of fine twisted linen curtains hanging around the entire perimeter of the Tabernacle complex. The fine twined linen speaks of personal righteousness which bars out all men from God’s Presence. Unlike the veils within the Tabernacle, adorned with the three colors — blue, purple, and scarlet — which symbolize Christ, the curtains surrounding the court are white and represent self-righteousness apart from the Person and work of Jesus.
Standing at 5 cubits in height (or about 7.5 feet or 2.3 meters) the curtains measure out the standard of righteousness which God demands, excluding both the most depraved of sinners as well as the most scrupulous of atheists. For all men have fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) and fail to measure up to the perfect standard of God’s righteousness.
There was only one way into the court and this was through an entrance on the east side. This entrance itself is a picture of the Lord Jesus. He Is the door. He Is the gate. He Is the only entrance into salvation. As our Might King Jesus said and recorded in the Gospel of John chapter 10, - “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture.
It will be noted that this is now dealt with commencing with the most valuable and going down to the least valuable. The gold was for the items in the inner Sanctuary, the silver for the sockets of the inner Sanctuary and the brazen copper for the court of the Tabernacle and the things within it. The presumed intention is to outline the total amount of ‘precious metals’ use in the making of the Tabernacle.
21 This is the inventory of the tabernacle, the tabernacle of the Testimony, which was counted according to the commandment of Moses, for the service of the Levites, by the hand of Ithamar, son of Aaron the priest. 22 Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all that the LORD had commanded Moses. 23 And with him was Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an engraver and designer, a weaver of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and of fine linen.
The sum total of what was used is about to be detailed. The emphasis at this stage is about when all was new on the fact that the Tabernacle will house the Testimony. Also the materials were under the command of Moses, and that Ithamar dispensed them. Possibly he was the one among the sons of Aaron who had the necessary skills. He then passed the materials to the Levites, who no doubt watched over the work and through them to the overseers, Bezalel and Oholiab and their helpers. The Levites had seemingly already gained a special position due to their ‘faithfulness’ at the time of the molten calf.
We are then informed that the skilled overseers had done all that Yahweh had commanded Moses. Bezalel had been in overall charge. Oholiab’s speciality had been in engraving, embroidering and weaving.
24 All the gold that was used in all the work of the holy place, that is, the gold of the offering, was twenty-nine talents and seven hundred and thirty shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary. 25 And the silver from those who were numbered of the congregation was one hundred talents and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary: 26 a bekah for each man (that is, half a shekel, according to the shekel of the sanctuary), for everyone included in the numbering from twenty years old and above, for six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men.
We need to consider these verses carefully for if we do not we will misinterpret their input. First of all we must recognize that what is being described is ‘the sum of the things for the Tabernacle --- as they were assessed --- by the hand of Ithamar’ (38.21). Then we are given the assessments for gold (verse 24), silver (verse 25) and bronze ( verse 29) in that order. So the assessments are the totals of all that was collected. Thus while at a casual reading it appears as if the silver was that collected at a numbering of the people in accordance with instruction of chapter 30.11-16. Chapter 35.5, 24 make quite clear that silver was also collected as a freewill offering, which must also be seen as included in the amounts stated, which are the sum total available for use.
The full total of the gold was 29 talents and seven hundred and thirty shekels (verse 24), a huge amount considering their situation even though they had ‘spoiled the Egyptians’ (Exodus 12.36).
The silver of those who were numbered of the congregation was a hundred talents and one thousand seven hundred and seventy five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary. There was a half a shekel, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for everyone who passed over to those who were numbered, from twenty years old and upward, for six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty men.’
27 And from the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil: one hundred sockets from the hundred talents, one talent for each socket. 28 Then from the one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels he made hooks for the pillars, overlaid their capitals, and made bands for them.
Of the silver the talents were used for making the sockets for the Sanctuary itself. There were one hundred of them (40 + 40 + 16 + 4). The remaining silver items were made from the one thousand, seven hundred and seventy five shekels of silver.
29 The offering of bronze was seventy talents and two thousand four hundred shekels. 30 And with it he made the sockets for the door of the tabernacle of meeting, the bronze altar, the bronze grating for it, and all the utensils for the altar, 31 the sockets for the court all around, the bases for the court gate, all the pegs for the tabernacle, and all the pegs for the court all around.
The main use made of the bronze is here described. With it was made the entrance sockets, the altar of burnt offering with its grating and vessels, the sockets for the pillars of the screen for the outer court and for the entrance, and all the tent pegs.
