Setting Up the Tabernacle

40 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, ² “^(A)On the first day of the first month you shall set up the ^[a]tabernacle of the tent of meeting. ^3 (B)You shall place the ark of the testimony there, and you shall screen the ark with the veil. ⁴ You shall ^(C)bring in the table and ^[b](D)arrange what belongs on it; and you shall ^(E)bring in the lampstand and ^[c]mount its lamps. ⁵ Moreover, you shall ^(F)set the gold altar of incense before the ark of the testimony and set up the veil for the doorway to the tabernacle. ⁶ You shall set the altar of burnt offering in front of the doorway of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. ⁷ You shall ^(G)set the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water ^[d]in it. ⁸ You shall set up the court all around and ^[e]hang up the screen for the gateway of the court. ⁹ Then you shall take the anointing oil and ^(H)anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it and set it apart as holy and all its ^[f]furnishings; and it shall be holy. ¹⁰ You shall anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and set the altar apart as holy, and ^(I)the altar shall be most holy. ¹¹ You shall anoint the laver and its stand, and set it apart as holy. ¹² Then you shall ^(J)bring Aaron and his sons to the doorway of the tent of meeting and wash them with water. ^13 (K)You shall put the holy garments on Aaron and anoint him and set him apart as holy, that he may minister as a priest to Me. ¹⁴ You shall bring his sons and put tunics on them; ¹⁵ and you shall anoint them even as you have anointed their father, that they may minister as priests to Me; and their anointing will be for them for a ^(L)perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.” ¹⁶ Thus Moses did; according to all that Yahweh had commanded him, so he did.

¹⁷ Now ^(M)it happened, in the first month ^[g]of the second year, on the first day of the month, the ^[h]tabernacle was erected. ¹⁸ Moses erected the tabernacle and ^[i]laid its bases and set up its boards and ^[j]inserted its bars and erected its pillars. ¹⁹ He spread the tent over the tabernacle and placed the covering of the tent ^[k]on top of it, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses. ²⁰ Then he took ^(N)the testimony and put it into the ark and ^[l]attached the poles to the ark and put the ^[m]mercy seat ^[n]on top of the ark. ²¹ He brought the ark into the tabernacle and ^(O)placed the veil of the screen and screened off the ark of the testimony, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses. ²² Then he ^(P)put the table in the tent of meeting on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil. ²³ He set the arrangement of ^(Q)bread in order on it before Yahweh, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses. ²⁴ Then he placed the lampstand in the tent of meeting, opposite the table, on the south side of the tabernacle. ²⁵ He ^(R)lighted the lamps before Yahweh, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses. ²⁶ Then he ^(S)placed the gold altar in the tent of meeting in front of the veil; ²⁷ and he ^(T)burned fragrant incense on it, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses. ²⁸ Then he placed the screen at the doorway of the tabernacle. ²⁹ He ^(U)placed the altar of burnt offering before the doorway of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and he ^(V)offered on it the burnt offering and the meal offering, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses. ³⁰ He placed the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it for washing. ^31 (W)From it Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet. ³² When they entered the tent of meeting, and when they approached the altar, they washed, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses. ³³ He ^(X)erected the court all around the ^[o]tabernacle and the altar, and he put up the screen for the gateway of the court. Thus Moses finished the work.

The Glory of Yahweh

^34 (Y)Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the ^(Z)glory of Yahweh ^(AA)filled the tabernacle. ³⁵ And Moses ^(AB)was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had dwelt on it, and the glory of Yahweh filled the tabernacle. ³⁶ Now throughout all their journeys ^(AC)whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel would set out; ³⁷ but ^(AD)if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day when it was taken up. ³⁸ For throughout all their journeys, ^(AE)the cloud of Yahweh was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel.