Exodus 40
New King James Version
The Tabernacle Erected and Arranged
40 Then the Lord (A)spoke to Moses, saying: 2 “On the first day of the (B)first month you shall set up (C)the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. 3 (D)You shall put in it the ark of the Testimony, and [a]partition off the ark with the veil. 4 (E)You shall bring in the table and (F)arrange the things that are to be set in order on it; (G)and you shall bring in the lampstand and [b]light its lamps. 5 (H)You shall also set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the Testimony, and put up the screen for the door of the tabernacle. 6 Then you shall set the (I)altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting. 7 And (J)you shall set the laver between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar, and put water in it. 8 You shall set up the court all around, and hang up the screen at the court gate.
9 “And you shall take the anointing oil, and (K)anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it; and you shall hallow it and all its utensils, and it shall be holy. 10 You shall (L)anoint the altar of the burnt offering and all its utensils, and consecrate the altar. (M)The altar shall be most holy. 11 And you shall anoint the laver and its base, and consecrate it.
12 (N)“Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tabernacle of meeting and wash them with water. 13 You shall put the holy (O)garments on Aaron, (P)and anoint him and consecrate him, that he may minister to Me as priest. 14 And you shall bring his sons and clothe them with tunics. 15 You shall anoint them, as you anointed their father, that they may minister to Me as priests; for their anointing shall surely be (Q)an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.”
16 Thus Moses did; according to all that the Lord had commanded him, so he did.
17 And it came to pass in the first month of the second year, on the first day of the month, that the (R)tabernacle was [c]raised up. 18 So Moses raised up the tabernacle, fastened its sockets, set up its boards, put in its bars, and raised up its pillars. 19 And he spread out the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent on top of it, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 20 He took (S)the Testimony and put it into the ark, inserted the poles through the rings of the ark, and put the mercy seat on top of the ark. 21 And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, (T)hung up the veil of the covering, and partitioned off the ark of the Testimony, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
22 (U)He put the table in the tabernacle of meeting, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil; 23 (V)and he set the bread in order upon it before the Lord, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 24 (W)He put the lampstand in the tabernacle of meeting, across from the table, on the south side of the tabernacle; 25 and (X)he lit the lamps before the Lord, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 26 (Y)He put the gold altar in the tabernacle of meeting in front of the veil; 27 (Z)and he burned sweet incense on it, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 28 (AA)He hung up the screen at the door of the tabernacle. 29 (AB)And he put the altar of burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and (AC)offered upon it the burnt offering and the grain offering, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 30 (AD)He set the laver between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar, and put water there for washing; 31 and Moses, Aaron, and his sons would (AE)wash their hands and their feet with water from it. 32 Whenever they went into the tabernacle of meeting, and when they came near the altar, they washed, (AF)as the Lord had commanded Moses. 33 (AG)And he raised up the court all around the tabernacle and the altar, and hung up the screen of the court gate. So Moses (AH)finished the work.
The Cloud and the Glory(AI)
34 (AJ)Then the (AK)cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the (AL)glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 And Moses (AM)was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 36 (AN)Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would [d]go onward in all their journeys. 37 But (AO)if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not journey till the day that it was taken up. 38 For (AP)the cloud of the Lord was above the tabernacle by day, and fire was over it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.
Footnotes
- Exodus 40:3 screen
- Exodus 40:4 set up
- Exodus 40:17 erected
- Exodus 40:36 journey
Exodus 40
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 40
God Commands Moses To Consecrate the Tabernacle and the Priests. 1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses and said to him, 2 “On the first day of the first month you shall set up the tabernacle, the meeting tent. 3 Put the Ark of Testimony inside, and in front of the Ark hang the veil. 4 Bring in the table and arrange its accessories. Then bring in the lampstand and put on its lamps. 5 Place the altar of gold for incense before the Ark of Testimony and set up the screen at the entrance to the tent.
6 “Set the altar of burnt offerings in front of the entrance to the tabernacle, the meeting tent. 7 Place the basin between the meeting tent and the altar, and pour water into it. 8 Set up the courtyard all around, and put up the screen for the entrance to the courtyard.
9 “Take the oil of anointing and anoint the tabernacle and everything in it. Consecrate it and all its furnishings, and it will become holy. 10 Also anoint the altar of burnt offerings and all its accessories. Consecrate the altar, and it will become most holy. 11 Also anoint the basin and its base and consecrate them.
12 “Then have Aaron and his sons approach the entrance to the meeting tent and wash them with water. 13 Put the holy vestments on Aaron and anoint him and consecrate him so that he might serve me as a priest. 14 Also have his sons approach and put their tunics on them. 15 Anoint them, like their father, so that they might exercise my priesthood. In this way their anointing will confer upon them an eternal priesthood, for all their generations.”
16 Moses Carries Out the Orders Received from God. Moses did everything as the Lord had commanded him. 17 Thus, in the second year, the first day of the first month, the tabernacle was set up. 18 Moses erected the tabernacle. He laid its bases and set up its boards. He fixed the bars and raised the columns. 19 He then extended the tent over the tabernacle and over that he placed the covering for the tent, just as the Lord had commanded him.
20 He took the Testimony and placed it inside the Ark. He attached the poles to the Ark and put the seat of atonement on the Ark. 21 He then placed the Ark in the tabernacle, setting up the veil as a screen and hanging it in front of the Testimony, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
22 Moses placed the table in the meeting tent, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil. 23 He set up rows of bread upon it before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded him.
24 He set up the lampstand in the meeting tent, opposite the table, on the south side of the tabernacle. 25 He placed the lamps on it before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded him.
26 Moses then placed the golden altar in the meeting tent, in front of the veil, 27 and he burned fragrant incense upon it, just as the Lord had commanded him. 28 He placed the screen at the entrance to the tabernacle.
29 He then placed the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the tabernacle, the meeting tent, and he offered burnt offerings and grain offerings upon it, just as the Lord had commanded him.
30 He placed the basin between the meeting tent and the altar and he put water in it for ablutions. 31 Moses, Aaron, and his sons then washed their hands and their feet with it. 32 Whenever they entered the meeting tent and approached the altar, they washed themselves, as the Lord had commanded Moses.
33 Finally, Moses erected the courtyard around the tabernacle and the altar and put up the screen to the entrance of the courtyard. Thus Moses finished the work.
34 The Glory of God Fills the Tabernacle. Then a cloud covered the tent and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.[a] 35 Moses could not enter the meeting tent, for the cloud had settled upon it and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
36 The Guiding Cloud. Throughout their journeys, whenever the cloud would be taken up and leave the tabernacle, the children of Israel would break camp. 37 If the cloud did not go up, they did not leave until it had gone up. 38 Throughout their journeys the cloud of the Lord remained in the tabernacle during the day, and during the night there was a fire in it, visible to all the households of Israel.
Footnotes
- Exodus 40:34 The Lord takes possession of the tent in the wilderness as he will later of Solomon’s temple (1 Ki 8:10-11).
Exodus 40
King James Version
40 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
2 On the first day of the first month shalt thou set up the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation.
3 And thou shalt put therein the ark of the testimony, and cover the ark with the vail.
4 And thou shalt bring in the table, and set in order the things that are to be set in order upon it; and thou shalt bring in the candlestick, and light the lamps thereof.
5 And thou shalt set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the testimony, and put the hanging of the door to the tabernacle.
6 And thou shalt set the altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation.
7 And thou shalt set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and shalt put water therein.
8 And thou shalt set up the court round about, and hang up the hanging at the court gate.
9 And thou shalt take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle, and all that is therein, and shalt hallow it, and all the vessels thereof: and it shall be holy.
10 And thou shalt anoint the altar of the burnt offering, and all his vessels, and sanctify the altar: and it shall be an altar most holy.
11 And thou shalt anoint the laver and his foot, and sanctify it.
12 And thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and wash them with water.
13 And thou shalt put upon Aaron the holy garments, and anoint him, and sanctify him; that he may minister unto me in the priest's office.
14 And thou shalt bring his sons, and clothe them with coats:
15 And thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office: for their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.
16 Thus did Moses: according to all that the Lord commanded him, so did he.
17 And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was reared up.
18 And Moses reared up the tabernacle, and fastened his sockets, and set up the boards thereof, and put in the bars thereof, and reared up his pillars.
19 And he spread abroad the tent over the tabernacle, and put the covering of the tent above upon it; as the Lord commanded Moses.
20 And he took and put the testimony into the ark, and set the staves on the ark, and put the mercy seat above upon the ark:
21 And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the vail of the covering, and covered the ark of the testimony; as the Lord commanded Moses.
22 And he put the table in the tent of the congregation, upon the side of the tabernacle northward, without the vail.
23 And he set the bread in order upon it before the Lord; as the Lord had commanded Moses.
24 And he put the candlestick in the tent of the congregation, over against the table, on the side of the tabernacle southward.
25 And he lighted the lamps before the Lord; as the Lord commanded Moses.
26 And he put the golden altar in the tent of the congregation before the vail:
27 And he burnt sweet incense thereon; as the Lord commanded Moses.
28 And he set up the hanging at the door of the tabernacle.
29 And he put the altar of burnt offering by the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation, and offered upon it the burnt offering and the meat offering; as the Lord commanded Moses.
30 And he set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and put water there, to wash withal.
31 And Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet thereat:
32 When they went into the tent of the congregation, and when they came near unto the altar, they washed; as the Lord commanded Moses.
33 And he reared up the court round about the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the hanging of the court gate. So Moses finished the work.
34 Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
35 And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
36 And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward in all their journeys:
37 But if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not till the day that it was taken up.
38 For the cloud of the Lord was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.
Exodus 40
Expanded Bible
Setting Up the Holy Tent
40 Then the Lord said to Moses: 2 “On the first day of the first month, set up the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], which is the Meeting Tent. 3 Put the Ark of the ·Agreement [Covenant; Treaty; L Testimony; 25:10] in it and ·hang the curtain in front of the Ark [L screen the Ark with a curtain]. 4 Bring in the table [25:23–30] and arrange ·everything on the table that should be there [L its setting]. Then bring in the ·lampstand [L Menorah; 25:31–40] and set up its lamps. 5 Put the gold altar for ·burning incense [L offering smoke; 30:1–6] in front of the Ark of the ·Agreement [Covenant; Treaty; L Testimony], and put the ·curtain [screen] at the entrance to the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle].
6 “Put the altar of burnt offerings [27:1–8] in front of the entrance of the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], the Meeting Tent. 7 Put the bowl [30:17–21] between the Meeting Tent and the altar, and put water in it. 8 Set up the courtyard ·around the Holy Tent [L all around], and put the ·curtain [screen] at the ·entry [L gate] to the courtyard.
9 “Use the ·special [anointing] olive oil and ·pour it on [L anoint] the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] and everything in it, in order to ·give the Tent and all that is in it for service to the Lord [sanctify/consecrate it and all its utensils/tools]. They will be holy. 10 ·Pour the special oil on [L Anoint] the altar for burnt offerings and on all its ·tools [utensils]. ·Give the altar for service to God [Consecrate/Sanctify the altar], and it will be ·very holy [T a holy of holies]. 11 Then ·pour the special olive oil on [L anoint] the bowl and the base under it so that they will be ·given for service to God [consecrated; sanctified].
12 “Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the Meeting Tent, and wash them with water. 13 Then put the ·holy [sacred] clothes on Aaron. ·Pour the special oil on [L Anoint] him [Ps. 133], and ·give him for service to God [L consecrate/sanctify him] so that he may serve me as a priest. 14 Bring his sons and put the inner robes [28:39–41] on them. 15 ·Pour the special oil on [L Anoint] them in the same way that you ·appointed [L anointed] their father as priest so that they may also serve me as priests. ·Pouring oil on [L Anointing] them will make them a family of priests, they and their descendants ·from now on [L throughout their generations].” 16 Moses did everything that the Lord commanded him.
17 So the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] was set up on the first day of the first month during the second ·year after they left Egypt [L year]. 18 When Moses set up the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], he put the bases in place, and he put the frames on the bases. Next he put ·the crossbars through the rings of the frames [L in the poles] and set up the ·posts [pillars]. 19 After that, Moses spread ·the cloth over the Holy Tent [L the tent over the Tabernacle] and put the covering over it, just as the Lord commanded.
20 Moses put the ·stone tablets that had the Agreement written on them [Covenant; Testimony; Treaty] into the Ark. He put the poles ·through the rings of [L on] the Ark and put the ·lid [mercy seat; atonement cover] on it. 21 Next he brought the Ark into the ·Tent [Tabernacle] and hung the curtain to ·cover [screen] the Ark [L of the Testimony], just as the Lord commanded him.
22 Moses put the table in the Meeting Tent on the north side of the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] in front of the curtain. 23 Then he ·put [arranged] the bread ·on the table [L in rows] before the Lord, just as the Lord commanded him. 24 Moses put the lampstand [L Menorah] in the Meeting Tent on the south side of the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] across from the table. 25 Then he put the lamps on the lampstand before the Lord, just as the Lord commanded him.
26 Moses put the gold altar for burning incense in the Meeting Tent in front of the curtain. 27 Then he ·burned [L turned into smoke] sweet-smelling incense on it, just as the Lord commanded him. 28 Then he hung the ·curtain [screen] at the entrance to the ·Holy Tent [L Tabernacle].
29 He put the altar for burnt offerings [Lev. 1] at the entrance to the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], the Meeting Tent, and offered a whole burnt offering and ·grain [L gift; tribute; Lev. 3] offerings on it, just as the Lord commanded him. 30 Moses put the bowl [30:17–21] between the Meeting Tent and the altar for burnt offerings, and he put water in it for washing. 31 Moses, Aaron, and Aaron’s sons used this water to wash their hands and feet [C cleansing rituals]. 32 They washed themselves every time they entered the Meeting Tent and every time they went near the altar for burnt offerings, just as the Lord commanded Moses.
33 Then Moses set up the courtyard around the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] and the altar, and he put up the ·curtain [screen] at the entry to the courtyard. So Moses finished the work.
The Cloud over the Holy Tent
34 Then the cloud covered the Meeting Tent [C representing God’s presence], and the glory of the Lord filled the Holy Tent [C representing his manifest presence]. 35 Moses could not enter the Meeting Tent, because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle].
36 When the cloud rose from the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], the Israelites would begin to travel, 37 but as long as the cloud ·stayed on the Holy Tent [L did not rise], they did not travel. They stayed in that place until the cloud rose. 38 So the cloud of the Lord was over the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] during the day, and there was a fire in the cloud at night. So all the ·Israelites [L house of Israel] could see the cloud while they traveled.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.