The Priestly Garments

39 Now from the (A)[a]violet, purple, and scarlet material they made finely (B)woven garments for ministering in the Holy Place, [b]as well as the holy garments which were for Aaron, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

(C)He made the ephod of gold and of violet, purple, and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen. Then they hammered out gold sheets and cut them into threads [c]to be woven in with the violet, the purple, and the scarlet material, and the fine linen, the work of a skilled embroiderer. They made attaching shoulder pieces for [d]the ephod; it was attached at its two upper ends. And the skillfully woven band of its overlay which was on it was like its workmanship, [e]of the same material: of gold and of violet, purple, and scarlet material, and fine twisted linen, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

(D)They also made the onyx stones, set in gold filigree settings; they were engraved like the engravings of a signet, according to the names of the sons of Israel. And (E)he placed them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

And (F)he made the breastpiece, the work of a skilled embroiderer, like the workmanship of the ephod: of gold and of violet, purple, and scarlet material and fine twisted linen. It was square; they made the breastpiece folded double, a [f]span [g]long and a span [h]wide when folded double. 10 And they [i]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 set in gold filigree settings when they were [j]mounted. 14 The stones corresponded to the names of the sons of Israel; they were twelve, corresponding to their names, engraved with the engravings of a signet, each with its name for the twelve tribes. 15 And they made for the breastpiece chains like cords, work of twisted cords of pure gold. 16 They made two gold filigree settings and two gold rings, and put the two rings on the two ends of the breastpiece. 17 Then they put the two gold cords in the two rings at the ends of the breastpiece. 18 And 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 gold rings and placed them on the two ends of the breastpiece, on its inner edge which was next to the ephod. 20 Furthermore, they made two gold rings and placed them on the bottom of the two shoulder pieces of the ephod, on the front of it, close to the place where it joined, above the woven band of the ephod. 21 And they bound the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a violet cord, so that it would be on the woven band of the ephod, and that the breastpiece would not come loose from the ephod, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

22 (G)Then he made the robe of the ephod of woven work, all of violet; 23 (H)and the opening of the robe was at the top in the center, as the opening of a coat of mail, with a binding all around its opening, so that it would not be torn. 24 And they made pomegranates of violet, purple, and scarlet material and twisted linen on the hem of the robe. 25 They also made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates all around on the hem of the [k]robe, 26 [l]alternating a bell and a pomegranate all around on the hem of the robe for the service, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

27 (I)They also made the tunics of finely woven linen for Aaron and his sons, 28 and the turban of fine linen, and the decorated [m]caps of fine linen, and the linen undergarments of fine twisted linen, 29 and the sash of fine twisted linen, and violet, purple, and scarlet material, the work of the [n]weaver, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

30 (J)They also made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and [o]inscribed it like the engravings of a signet, “Holy to the Lord.” 31 Then they [p]fastened a violet cord to it, to [q]fasten it on the turban above, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

32 So all the work of the [r]tabernacle of the tent of meeting was completed; and the sons of Israel did according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses; so they did. 33 Then they brought the tabernacle to Moses, the tent and all its [s]furnishings: its clasps, its boards, its bars, its pillars, and its bases; 34 and the covering of rams’ skins [t]dyed red, and the covering of [u]fine leather, and the covering curtain; 35 the ark of the testimony, its poles, and the [v]atoning cover; 36 the table, all its utensils, and the bread of the [w]Presence; 37 the pure gold lampstand, [x]with its arrangement of lamps and all its utensils, and the oil for the light; 38 and the gold altar, and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense, and the curtain for the doorway of the tent; 39 the [y]bronze altar and its [z]bronze grating, its poles and all its utensils, the basin and its stand; 40 the hangings for the courtyard, its pillars and its bases, and the curtain for the gate of the courtyard, its ropes and its pegs, and all the [aa]equipment for the service of the tabernacle, for the tent of meeting; 41 the woven garments for ministering in the Holy Place, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons, to serve as priests. 42 So the sons of Israel did all the work according to everything that the Lord had commanded Moses. 43 And Moses [ab]examined all the work, and behold, they had done it; just as the Lord had commanded, this they had done. So Moses (K)blessed them.

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 39:1 Or bluish; LXX hyacinth in color, and so throughout the ch
  2. Exodus 39:1 Lit and they made
  3. Exodus 39:3 Lit to work
  4. Exodus 39:4 Lit it
  5. Exodus 39:5 Lit from it
  6. Exodus 39:9 About 9 in. or 23 cm
  7. Exodus 39:9 Lit its length
  8. Exodus 39:9 Lit its width
  9. Exodus 39:10 Lit filled
  10. Exodus 39:13 Lit filled
  11. Exodus 39:25 Lit robe, between the pomegranates
  12. Exodus 39:26 Lit a bell and a pomegranate, a bell...
  13. Exodus 39:28 Lit headgear
  14. Exodus 39:29 Lit variegator; i.e., a weaver in colors
  15. Exodus 39:30 Lit wrote on it a writing
  16. Exodus 39:31 Lit put
  17. Exodus 39:31 Lit put
  18. Exodus 39:32 Lit dwelling place
  19. Exodus 39:33 Or utensils
  20. Exodus 39:34 Or tanned
  21. Exodus 39:34 Meaning of the Heb uncertain
  22. Exodus 39:35 Also called mercy seat; i.e., where blood was sprinkled on the Day of Atonement
  23. Exodus 39:36 Lit Face
  24. Exodus 39:37 Lit its lamps, the lamps set in order
  25. Exodus 39:39 Or copper
  26. Exodus 39:39 Or copper
  27. Exodus 39:40 Or utensils
  28. Exodus 39:43 Lit saw

Clothing for the Priests

39 The craftsmen made beautiful sacred garments of blue, purple, and scarlet cloth—clothing for Aaron to wear while ministering in the Holy Place, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Making the Ephod

Bezalel[a] made the ephod of finely woven linen and embroidered it with gold and with blue, purple, and scarlet thread. He made gold thread by hammering out thin sheets of gold and cutting it into fine strands. With great skill and care, he worked it into the fine linen with the blue, purple, and scarlet thread.

The ephod consisted of two pieces, front and back, joined at the shoulders with two shoulder-pieces. The decorative sash was made of the same materials: finely woven linen embroidered with gold and with blue, purple, and scarlet thread, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. They mounted the two onyx stones in settings of gold filigree. The stones were engraved with the names of the tribes of Israel, just as a seal is engraved. He fastened these stones on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod as a reminder that the priest represents the people of Israel. All this was done just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Making the Chestpiece

Bezalel made the chestpiece with great skill and care. He made it to match the ephod, using finely woven linen embroidered with gold and with blue, purple, and scarlet thread. He made the chestpiece of a single piece of cloth folded to form a pouch nine inches[b] square. 10 They mounted four rows of gemstones[c] on it. The first row contained a red carnelian, a pale-green peridot, and an emerald. 11 The second row contained a turquoise, a blue lapis lazuli, and a white moonstone. 12 The third row contained an orange jacinth, an agate, and a purple amethyst. 13 The fourth row contained a blue-green beryl, an onyx, and a green jasper. All these stones were set in gold filigree. 14 Each stone represented one of the twelve sons of Israel, and the name of that tribe was engraved on it like a seal.

15 To attach the chestpiece to the ephod, they made braided cords of pure gold thread. 16 They also made two settings of gold filigree and two gold rings and attached them to the top corners of the chestpiece. 17 They tied the two gold cords to the rings on the chestpiece. 18 They tied the other ends of the cords to the gold settings on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod. 19 Then they made two more gold rings and attached them to the inside edges of the chestpiece next to the ephod. 20 Then they made two more gold rings and attached them to the front of the ephod, below the shoulder-pieces, just above the knot where the decorative sash was fastened to the ephod. 21 They attached the bottom rings of the chestpiece to the rings on the ephod with blue cords. In this way, the chestpiece was held securely to the ephod above the decorative sash. All this was done just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Additional Clothing for the Priests

22 Bezalel made the robe that is worn with the ephod from a single piece of blue woven cloth, 23 with an opening for Aaron’s head in the middle of it. The opening was reinforced with a woven collar[d] so it would not tear. 24 They made pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and attached them to the hem of the robe. 25 They also made bells of pure gold and placed them between the pomegranates along the hem of the robe, 26 with bells and pomegranates alternating all around the hem. This robe was to be worn whenever the priest ministered before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

27 They made tunics for Aaron and his sons from fine linen cloth. 28 The turban and the special head coverings were made of fine linen, and the undergarments were also made of finely woven linen. 29 The sashes were made of finely woven linen and embroidered with blue, purple, and scarlet thread, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

30 Finally, they made the sacred medallion—the badge of holiness—of pure gold. They engraved it like a seal with these words: Holy to the lord. 31 They attached the medallion with a blue cord to Aaron’s turban, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Moses Inspects the Work

32 And so at last the Tabernacle[e] was finished. The Israelites had done everything just as the Lord had commanded Moses. 33 And they brought the entire Tabernacle to Moses:

the sacred tent with all its furnishings, clasps, frames, crossbars, posts, and bases;
34 the tent coverings of tanned ram skins and fine goatskin leather;
the inner curtain to shield the Ark;
35 the Ark of the Covenant[f] and its carrying poles;
the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement;
36 the table and all its utensils;
the Bread of the Presence;
37 the pure gold lampstand with its symmetrical lamp cups, all its accessories, and the olive oil for lighting;
38 the gold altar;
the anointing oil and fragrant incense;
the curtain for the entrance of the sacred tent;
39 the bronze altar;
the bronze grating and its carrying poles and utensils;
the washbasin with its stand;
40 the curtains for the walls of the courtyard;
the posts and their bases;
the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard;
the ropes and tent pegs;
all the furnishings to be used in worship at the Tabernacle;
41 the beautifully stitched garments for the priests to wear while ministering in the Holy Place—the sacred garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments for his sons to wear as they minister as priests.

42 So the people of Israel followed all of the Lord’s instructions to Moses. 43 Then Moses inspected all their work. When he found it had been done just as the Lord had commanded him, he blessed them.

Footnotes

  1. 39:2 Hebrew He; also in 39:8, 22.
  2. 39:9 Hebrew 1 span [23 centimeters].
  3. 39:10 The identification of some of these gemstones is uncertain.
  4. 39:23 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  5. 39:32 Hebrew the Tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting; also in 39:40.
  6. 39:35 Or Ark of the Testimony.