Exodus 37:1-9
New English Translation
The Making of the Ark
37 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; its length was 45 inches, its width 27 inches, and its height 27 inches. 2 He overlaid it with pure gold, inside and out, and he made a surrounding border[a] of gold for it. 3 He cast four gold rings for it that he put[b] on its four feet, with[c] two rings on one side and two rings on the other side. 4 He made poles of acacia wood, overlaid them with gold, 5 and put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark in order to carry the ark.
6 He made[d] an atonement lid of pure gold; its length was 45 inches, and its width was 27 inches. 7 He made two cherubim of gold; he made them of hammered metal on the two ends of the atonement lid, 8 one cherub on one end[e] and one cherub on the other end.[f] He made the cherubim from the atonement lid on its two ends. 9 The cherubim were spreading their wings[g] upward, overshadowing the atonement lid with their wings. The cherubim[h] faced each other,[i] looking toward the atonement lid.[j]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Exodus 37:2 tn Or “molding.”
- Exodus 37:3 tn “that he put” has been supplied.
- Exodus 37:3 tn This is taken as a circumstantial clause; the clause begins with the conjunction vav.
- Exodus 37:6 tn Heb “and he made.”
- Exodus 37:8 tn Heb “from/at [the] end, from this.”
- Exodus 37:8 tn The repetition of the expression indicates it has the distributive sense.
- Exodus 37:9 tn The construction is a participle in construct followed by the genitive “wings”—“spreaders of wings.”
- Exodus 37:9 tn The subject, “the cherubim,” has been added again in the translation for smoothness.
- Exodus 37:9 tn Heb “and their faces a man to his brother.”
- Exodus 37:9 tn Heb “to the atonement lid were the faces of the cherubim.”
Exodus 37:1-9
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Making the Ark of the Covenant
37 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; it was two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.(A) 2 He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside and made a molding of gold around it. 3 He cast for it four rings of gold for its four feet, two rings on its one side and two rings on its other side.(B) 4 He made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold 5 and put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark. 6 He made a cover of pure gold; two cubits and a half was its length and a cubit and a half its width.(C) 7 He made two cherubim of hammered gold; at the two ends of the cover he made them, 8 one cherub at one end and one cherub at the other end; of one piece with the cover he made the cherubim at its two ends. 9 The cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the cover with their wings. They faced one another; the faces of the cherubim were turned toward the cover.
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