Exodus 37

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¹Bezalel went on to construct the ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. ✦ ²He overlaid it with pure gold, both inside and out, and made a gold molding around it. ✦ ³And he cast four gold rings for its four feet, two rings on one side and two on the other. ⁴Then he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. ✦ ⁵He inserted the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark in order to carry it. ✦ ⁶He constructed a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. ✦ ⁷He made two cherubim of hammered gold at the ends of the mercy seat, ✦ ⁸one cherub on one end and one on the other, all made from one piece of gold. ⁹And the cherubim had wings that spread upward, overshadowing the mercy seat. The cherubim faced each other, looking toward the mercy seat. ✦ ¹⁰He also made the table of acacia wood two cubits long, a cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high. ✦ ¹¹He overlaid it with pure gold and made a gold molding around it. ¹²And he made a rim around it a handbreadth wide and put a gold molding on the rim. ¹³He cast four gold rings for the table and fastened them to the four corners at its four legs. ¹⁴The rings were placed close to the rim, to serve as holders for the poles used to carry the table. ¹⁵He made the poles of acacia wood for carrying the table and overlaid them with gold. ¹⁶He also made the utensils for the table out of pure gold: its plates and dishes, as well as its bowls and pitchers for pouring drink offerings. ✦ ¹⁷Then he made the lampstand out of pure hammered gold, all of one piece: its base and shaft, its cups, and its buds and petals. ✦ ¹⁸Six branches extended from the sides, three on one side and three on the other. ¹⁹There were three cups shaped like almond blossoms on the first branch, each with buds and petals, three on the next branch, and the same for all six branches that extended from the lampstand. ²⁰And on the lampstand were four cups shaped like almond blossoms with buds and petals. ✦ ²¹A bud was under the first pair of branches that extended from the lampstand, a bud under the second pair, and a bud under the third pair. ✦ ²²The buds and branches were all of one piece with the lampstand, hammered out of pure gold. ✦ ²³He also made its seven lamps, its wick trimmers, and trays of pure gold. ✦ ²⁴He made the lampstand and all its utensils from a talent of pure gold. ²⁵He made the altar of incense out of acacia wood. It was square, a cubit long, a cubit wide, and two cubits high. Its horns were of one piece. ✦ ²⁶And he overlaid with pure gold the top and all the sides and horns. Then he made a molding of gold around it. ²⁷He made two gold rings below the molding on opposite sides to hold the poles used to carry it. ²⁸And he made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. ²⁹He also made the sacred anointing oil and the pure, fragrant incense, the work of a perfumer. ✦

Tap any verse for its study page. Underlined terms mark a concept, person, or place; ✦ marks verses with cross-references.

Where this chapter connects

Exod 25 ·10 Exod 40 ·7 John 1 ·4 Rev 1 ·3 1 Pet 1 ·3 Exod 30 ·3 1 Jn 2 ·3 Zech 4 ·3

Christ at the center

The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.

How Exodus 37 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Resources, by level

Lay

★ Start hereDocumentaryExpedition BibleJoel Kramer · Free · evangelical
On-location biblical archaeology from a credentialed archaeologist (M.A., excavated in Israel) — the best free place to start on "did it really happen?"
★ Start hereVideoBibleProject — video overviews & word studiesBibleProject · 5–10 min · Free · evangelical
Free animated overviews of every book of the Bible, plus themes and Hebrew/Greek word studies — the best visual on-ramp to any book. (Biblical-theology, broadly evangelical, not distinctly Reformed.)
★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical
A clear ~10-minute audio teaching for every one of the Bible's 1,189 chapters — the most systematic free way to study chapter by chapter.
VideoSpoken GospelSpoken Gospel · Free · evangelical
Short, gospel-centered videos and spoken-word poems showing how each passage points to Jesus — especially strong on the Old Testament.
DocumentaryPatterns of Evidence: The ExodusTim Mahoney · Paid · evangelical
Investigates the archaeological evidence for the Exodus. Note: it advances a minority biblical chronology that mainstream scholars dispute — engaging, but weigh its conclusions critically.

Pastoral

★ Start hereCommentaryExodus (New American Commentary)Douglas K. Stuart · Paid · evangelical
The best evangelical, semi-technical commentary on Exodus — accessible to pastors and serious students.
DocumentaryThat the World May KnowRay Vander Laan · Paid · evangelical
Ray Vander Laan's on-location series immersing you in the Bible's historical and cultural world. (Mostly paid via Focus on the Family; some free clips.)
SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical
Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.

Commentaries & study tools

VideoBibleProject — Exodus videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
VideoWatch teaching on Exodus 37YouTube · Lay · Free
Sermons and chapter teaching from across YouTube.
CommentaryEnduring Word — Exodus 37David Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical
Readable, verse-by-verse exposition of the whole chapter.
CommentaryMatthew Henry on ExodusMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
ReferenceBlue Letter Bible — Exodus 37Blue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free
Interlinear, lexicon, and study tools across the chapter.

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