Exodus 39
Expanded Bible
Clothes for the Priests
39 They used blue, purple, and ·red [scarlet] thread to make woven clothes for the priests to wear when they ·served [ministered] in the Holy Place. They made the holy clothes for Aaron as the Lord had commanded Moses.
2 They made the ·holy vest [ephod] of gold, and blue, purple, and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen [28:6–14]. 3 They hammered the gold into sheets and then cut it into long, thin strips. They worked the gold into the blue, purple, and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen. This was done ·by skilled craftsmen [or with a skilled design]. 4 They made the shoulder straps for the ·holy vest [ephod], which were attached to the top corners of it and tied together over each shoulder. 5 The skillfully ·woven belt [embroidered waistband] was made in the same way; it was joined to ·the holy vest [L it] as one piece. It was made of gold, and blue, purple, and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen, the way the Lord commanded Moses.
6 They put gold [L filigree] around the onyx stones and then ·wrote [engraved] the names of the sons of Israel on these gems, ·as a person carves words and designs on a seal [like the engravings on a seal/signet]. 7 Then they attached the gems on the shoulder straps of the ·holy vest [ephod], as reminders of the twelve sons of Israel. This was done just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
8 ·The skilled craftsmen [L They] made the ·chest covering [breastpiece] like the ·holy vest [ephod]; it was made of gold, and blue, purple, and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen. 9 ·The chest covering [L It] was square—·nine inches [a span] long and ·nine inches [a span] wide—and it was ·folded double to make a pocket [L doubled]. 10 Then they put four rows of ·beautiful jewels [L stones] on it: In the first row there was a ·ruby [or carnelian], a ·topaz [or chrysolite], and a ·yellow quartz [or emerald]; 11 in the second there was a turquoise, a ·sapphire [or lapis], and an ·emerald [or moonstone]; 12 in the third there was a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; 13 in the fourth there was a ·chrysolite [or beryl], an onyx, and a jasper [C identification is uncertain]. Gold [L filigree] was put around these ·jewels [stones] to attach them to the ·chest covering [breastpiece], 14 and the names of the sons of Israel were ·carved [engraved] on these twelve ·jewels [stones] as a person ·carves [engraves] a ·seal [signet]. Each ·jewel [stone] had the name of one of the twelve tribes of Israel.
15 They made chains of pure gold, twisted together like a rope, for the ·chest covering [breastpiece]. 16 They made two gold pieces and two gold rings. They put the two gold rings on the two upper corners of the ·chest covering [breastpiece]. 17 Then they put two gold chains in the two rings at the ends of the ·chest covering [breastpiece], 18 and they fastened the other two ends of the chains to the two ·gold pieces [or settings]. They attached these gold pieces to the two shoulder straps in the front of the ·holy vest [ephod]. 19 They made two gold rings and put them at the lower corners of the ·chest covering [breastpiece] on the inside edge next to the ·holy vest [ephod]. 20 They made two more gold rings on the bottom of the shoulder straps in front of the ·holy vest [ephod], near the seam, just above the ·woven belt [embroidered waistband] of the ·holy vest [ephod]. 21 They used a blue ·ribbon [cord] and tied the rings of the ·chest covering [breastpiece] to the rings of the ·holy vest [ephod], connecting it to the ·woven belt [L embroidered waistband]. In this way the ·chest covering [breastpiece] would not ·swing out [get loose] from the ·holy vest [ephod]. They did all these things the way the Lord commanded.
22 Then they made the outer robe ·to be worn under the holy vest [L of the ephod]. It was woven only of blue cloth. 23 They made a ·hole [opening] in the center of the outer robe, with a woven collar ·sewn around it [L like a coat of mail; C the Hebrew is obscure] so it would not tear. 24 Then they made balls like pomegranates of blue, purple, and ·red [scarlet] thread, and fine linen and hung them around the bottom of the outer robe. 25 They also made bells of pure gold and hung these around the bottom of the outer robe between the balls. 26 So around the bottom of the outer robe there was a bell and a pomegranate ball, a bell and a pomegranate ball. The priest wore this outer robe when he ·served as priest [ministered], just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
27 They ·wove [L made] inner robes of fine linen for Aaron and his sons, 28 and they made turbans, ·headbands [headdresses], and underclothes of fine linen. 29 Then they made the ·cloth belt [sash] of fine linen, and blue, purple, and ·red [scarlet] thread·, and designs were sewn onto it [embroidered with needlework], just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
30 They made a ·strip [rosette; medallion; plate; L flower] of pure gold, which is the holy ·crown [diadem], and ·carved [engraved] these words in the gold, as one might ·carve [engrave] on a ·seal [signet]: “Holy to the Lord.” 31 Then they tied ·this flat piece [a blue cord to it to fasten it] to the turban with a blue ribbon, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
32 So all the work on the [L Tabernacle of the] Meeting Tent was finished. The ·Israelites [L sons/T children of Israel] did everything just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 33 Then they brought the ·Holy Tent [L Tabernacle] to Moses: the Tent and all its furniture, hooks, frames, crossbars, ·posts [pillars], and bases; 34 the covering made of male ·sheepskins [ramskins] colored red, the covering made of ·fine leather [sea cow/porpoise hide], and the curtain ·that covered the entrance to the Most Holy Place [L for the screen]; 35 the Ark of the ·Agreement [Covenant; Treaty; L Testimony; 25:10], its poles and ·lid [the mercy seat/atonement cover; 25:17–22]; 36 the table [25:23–40], all its ·containers [utensils; tools], and the bread ·that showed they were in God’s presence [L of presence]; 37 the pure ·gold lampstand [L Menorah; 25:31–40] with its lamps in a row, all its ·tools [utensils], and the olive oil for the light; 38 the gold altar [C the incense altar; 30:1–6], the special olive oil used for ·appointing priests [anointing], the sweet-smelling incense, and the ·curtain that covered [screen at] the entrance to the Tent; 39 the bronze altar [27:1–8] and its ·screen [L bronze grating], its poles and all its ·tools [utensils], the bowl and its stand [30:17–21]; 40 the curtains for the courtyard with their ·posts [pillars] and bases, the ·curtain that covered the entry to [L screen for the gate of] the courtyard, the cords, pegs, and all the ·things [L utensils for service] in the Meeting Tent. 41 They brought the clothes for the priests to wear when they ·served [ministered] in the Holy ·Tent [Place]—the ·holy [sacred] clothes for Aaron the priest and the clothes for his sons, which they wore when they served as priests.
42 The ·Israelites [L sons/T children of Israel] had done all this work just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 43 Moses looked closely at all the work and saw they had done it just as the Lord had commanded. So Moses blessed them.
Exodus 39
Amplified Bible
The Priestly Garments
39 Moreover, from the blue and purple and scarlet fabric, they made finely woven garments for serving and ministering in the Holy Place; they made the holy garments for Aaron, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
2 Bezalel made the ephod of gold, and of blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen. 3 Then Bezalel and Oholiab hammered the gold [into thin sheets] and cut it into threads to work into the blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and into the fine linen, the work of a skilled craftsman. 4 They made attaching shoulder pieces for the ephod; it was attached at its two [upper] edges. 5 The skillfully woven sash with which to bind it, which was on the ephod [to hold it in place], was like its workmanship, of the same material: of gold and of blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
6 They made the onyx stones, set in settings of gold filigree; they were engraved as signets are engraved, with the names of [the twelve tribes of] the sons of Israel. 7 And he put them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod to be memorial stones (a remembrance) for the sons of Israel (Jacob), just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
8 Bezalel made the breastpiece, the work of a skillful craftsman, like the workmanship of the ephod: of gold and of blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen. 9 It was square; they made the breastpiece folded double, a [hand’s] span long and a [hand’s] span wide when folded double. 10 And they mounted four rows of stones on it. The first row was a row of ruby, topaz, and emerald; 11 and the second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond; 12 and the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; 13 and the fourth row, a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper; they were mounted in settings of gold filigree. 14 The stones corresponded to the names of the sons of Israel; they were twelve [in all], corresponding to their names, engraved like a signet, each with its name, for the twelve tribes. 15 And they made on the breastpiece twisted chains like cords of pure gold. 16 They made two settings of gold filigree and two gold rings, and put the two rings on the two ends of the breastpiece. 17 Then they put the two twisted cords of gold in the two rings on the ends of the breastpiece. 18 They put the [other] two ends of the two cords on the two filigree settings, and put them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front of it. 19 They made two rings of gold and put them on the two ends of the breastpiece, on its inner edge which was next to the ephod. 20 Furthermore, they made two [other] gold rings and attached them to the bottom of the two shoulder pieces of the ephod, at the front of it, close to the place where it is joined, above the woven sash of the ephod. 21 They bound the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a blue cord, so that it would lie on the woven sash of the ephod, and so that the breastpiece would not come loose from the ephod, just as the Lord commanded Moses.
22 Then Bezalel made the robe of the ephod of woven work, all of blue; 23 there was an opening [for the head] in the middle of the robe, like the opening in a coat of armor, with a hem around it, so that it would not be frayed or torn. 24 On the hem of the robe they made pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, and fine twisted linen. 25 They also made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates around the hem of the robe; 26 a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, all [the way] around the hem of the robe, for service and ministering, just as the Lord commanded Moses.
27 And they made tunics of finely woven linen for Aaron and his sons, 28 and the turban of fine linen, and the ornamental caps of fine linen, and the linen undergarments of fine twisted linen, 29 and the sash of fine twisted linen, and blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, the work of an embroiderer, just as the Lord commanded Moses.
30 They made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote on it an inscription, like the engravings of a signet, “Holy to the Lord.”(A) 31 They tied a blue cord to it, to fasten it on the turban above, just as the Lord commanded Moses.
32 Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the Tent of Meeting was finished; and the Israelites did according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses; that is what they did. 33 They brought the tabernacle to Moses [for him to inspect]: the tent and all its furnishings, its hooks, its [frame] boards, its bars, its support poles, its sockets or bases; 34 and the covering of rams’ skins dyed red, and the covering of [a]porpoise skins, and the veil (partition) of the screen (curtain); 35 the ark of the Testimony, its carrying poles and the mercy seat; 36 the table and all its utensils and the bread of the Presence (showbread); 37 the pure gold lampstand and its lamps, with the lamps placed in order, all its utensils, and the oil for the light; 38 the golden altar [of incense], the anointing oil and the fragrant incense, and the [hanging] veil for the doorway of the tent; 39 the bronze altar [of burnt offering] and its grating of bronze, its poles and all its utensils, the basin and its base; 40 the curtains of the courtyard, its support poles and sockets, and the screen (curtain) for the courtyard gate, its cords and pegs, and all the utensils for the service of the tabernacle, for the Tent of Meeting [of God with His people];(B) 41 the [finely] woven garments for serving and ministering in the Holy Place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons to minister as priests. 42 So the Israelites did all the work according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses. 43 And Moses [carefully] inspected all the work, and behold, they had done it; just as the Lord had commanded, so had they done it. So Moses blessed them.
Footnotes
- Exodus 39:34 The meaning of the Hebrew word is not certain; some scholars have suggested that the material is instead a fine leather of unspecified origin.
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