Construction Continues

37 ^(A)Now Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; its length was two and a half ^[a]cubits, and its width one and a half cubits, and its height one and a half cubits; ² and he overlaid it with pure gold inside and out, and made a gold molding for it all around. ³ He cast four rings of gold for it on its four feet; even two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the ^[b]other side of it. ⁴ He made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. ⁵ He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry ^[c]it. ⁶ He made a ^[d]mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits ^[e]long and one and a half cubits ^[f]wide. ⁷ He made two cherubim of gold; he made them of hammered work ^[g]at the two ends of the mercy seat; ⁸ one cherub ^[h]at the one end and one cherub ^[i]at the other end; he made the cherubim of one piece with the mercy seat ^[j]at the two ends. ⁹ The cherubim had their wings spread upward, covering the ^[k]mercy seat with their wings, with their faces toward each other; the faces of the cherubim were toward the mercy seat.

^10 (B)Then he made the table of acacia wood, two ^[l]cubits ^[m]long and a cubit ^[n]wide and one and a half cubits ^[o]high. ¹¹ He overlaid it with pure gold, and made a gold molding for it all around. ¹² He made a rim for it of a handbreadth all around, and made a gold molding for its rim all around. ¹³ He cast four gold rings for it and put the rings on the four corners that were on its four feet. ¹⁴ Close by the rim were the rings, the holders for the poles to carry the table. ¹⁵ He made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold, to carry the table. ¹⁶ He made the utensils which were on the table, its ^[p]dishes and its pans and its ^[q]bowls and its jars, with which to pour out drink offerings, of pure gold.

^17 (C)Then he made the lampstand of pure gold. He made the lampstand of hammered work, its base and its shaft; its cups, its ^[r]bulbs and its flowers were of one piece with it. ¹⁸ There were six branches going out of its sides; three branches of the lampstand from the one side of it and three branches of the lampstand from the ^[s]other side of it; ¹⁹ three cups shaped like almond blossoms, a ^[t]bulb and a flower in one branch, and three cups shaped like almond blossoms, a ^[u]bulb and a flower in the other branch—so for the six branches going out of the lampstand. ²⁰ In the lampstand there were four cups shaped like almond blossoms, its ^[v]bulbs and its flowers; ²¹ and a ^[w]bulb was under the first pair of branches coming out of it, and a ^[x]bulb under the second pair of branches coming out of it, and a ^[y]bulb under the third pair of branches coming out of it, for the six branches coming out of the lampstand. ²² Their ^[z]bulbs and their branches were of one piece with it; the whole of it was a single hammered work of pure gold. ²³ He made its seven lamps with its snuffers and its ^[aa]trays of pure gold. ²⁴ He made it and all its utensils from a talent of pure gold.

^25 (D)Then he made the altar of incense of acacia wood: a cubit ^[ab]long and a cubit ^[ac]wide, square, and two cubits ^[ad]high; its horns were of one piece with it. ²⁶ He overlaid it with pure gold, its top and its ^[ae]sides all around, and its horns; and he made a gold molding for it all around. ²⁷ He made two golden rings for it under its molding, on its two sides—on opposite sides—as holders for poles with which to carry it. ²⁸ He made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. ^29 (E)And he made the holy anointing oil and the pure, fragrant incense of spices, the work of a perfumer.

The Nations Exhorted to Praise God.

For the choir director; with stringed instruments. A Psalm. A Song.

Laborers in the Vineyard

20 “For ^(A)the kingdom of heaven is like ^[a]a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his ^(B)vineyard. ² When he had agreed with the laborers for a ^[b]denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. ³ And he went out about the ^[c]third hour and saw others standing idle in the market place; ⁴ and to those he said, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ And so they went. ⁵ Again he went out about the ^[d]sixth and the ninth hour, and did ^[e]the same thing. ⁶ And about the ^[f]eleventh hour he went out and found others standing around; and he *said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day long?’ ⁷ They *said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He *said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’

⁸ “When ^(C)evening came, the ^[g]owner of the vineyard *said to his ^(D)foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first.’ ⁹ When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a ^[h]denarius. ¹⁰ When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; ^[i]but each of them also received a denarius. ¹¹ When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, ¹² saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the ^(E)scorching heat of the day.’ ¹³ But he answered and said to one of them, ‘^(F)Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? ¹⁴ Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. ¹⁵ Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your ^(G)eye ^[j]envious because I am ^[k]generous?’ ¹⁶ So ^(H)the last shall be first, and the first last.”