Exodus 40

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¹Then the Lord said to Moses, ²“Set up the Tabernacle on the first day of the new year. ✦ ³Place the Ark of the Covenant inside, and install the inner curtain to enclose the Ark within the Most Holy Place. ✦ ⁴Then bring in the table, and arrange the utensils on it. And bring in the lampstand, and set up the lamps. ✦ ⁵“Place the gold incense altar in front of the Ark of the Covenant. Then hang the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle. ✦ ⁶Place the altar of burnt offering in front of the Tabernacle entrance. ✦ ⁷Set the washbasin between the Tabernacle and the altar, and fill it with water. ✦ ⁸Then set up the courtyard around the outside of the tent, and hang the curtain for the courtyard entrance. ✦ ⁹“Take the anointing oil and anoint the Tabernacle and all its furnishings to consecrate them and make them holy. ✦ ¹⁰Anoint the altar of burnt offering and its utensils to consecrate them. Then the altar will become absolutely holy. ✦ ¹¹Next anoint the washbasin and its stand to consecrate them. ¹²“Present Aaron and his sons at the entrance of the Tabernacle, and wash them with water. ✦ ¹³Dress Aaron with the sacred garments and anoint him, consecrating him to serve me as a priest. ✦ ¹⁴Then present his sons and dress them in their tunics. ✦ ¹⁵Anoint them as you did their father, so they may also serve me as priests. With their anointing, Aaron’s descendants are set apart for the priesthood forever, from generation to generation.” ✦ ¹⁶Moses proceeded to do everything just as the Lord had commanded him. ✦ ¹⁷So the Tabernacle was set up on the first day of the first month of the second year. ✦ ¹⁸Moses erected the Tabernacle by setting down its bases, inserting the frames, attaching the crossbars, and setting up the posts. ✦ ¹⁹Then he spread the coverings over the Tabernacle framework and put on the protective layers, just as the Lord had commanded him. ✦ ²⁰He took the stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant and placed them inside the Ark. Then he attached the carrying poles to the Ark, and he set the Ark’s cover—the place of atonement—on top of it. ✦ ²¹Then he brought the Ark of the Covenant into the Tabernacle and hung the inner curtain to shield it from view, just as the Lord had commanded him. ✦ ²²Next Moses placed the table in the Tabernacle, along the north side of the Holy Place, just outside the inner curtain. ✦ ²³And he arranged the Bread of the Presence on the table before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded him. ✦ ²⁴He set the lampstand in the Tabernacle across from the table on the south side of the Holy Place. ✦ ²⁵Then he lit the lamps in the Lord’s presence, just as the Lord had commanded him. ✦ ²⁶He also placed the gold incense altar in the Tabernacle, in the Holy Place in front of the inner curtain. ✦ ²⁷On it he burned the fragrant incense, just as the Lord had commanded him. ✦ ²⁸He hung the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle, ✦ ²⁹and he placed the altar of burnt offering near the Tabernacle entrance. On it he offered a burnt offering and a grain offering, just as the Lord had commanded him. ✦ ³⁰Next Moses placed the washbasin between the Tabernacle and the altar. He filled it with water so the priests could wash themselves. ✦ ³¹Moses and Aaron and Aaron’s sons used water from it to wash their hands and feet. ✦ ³²Whenever they approached the altar and entered the Tabernacle, they washed themselves, just as the Lord had commanded Moses. ✦ ³³Then he hung the curtains forming the courtyard around the Tabernacle and the altar. And he set up the curtain at the entrance of the courtyard. So at last Moses finished the work. ✦ ³⁴Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. ✦ ³⁵Moses could no longer enter the Tabernacle because the cloud had settled down over it, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. ✦ ³⁶Now whenever the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out on their journey, following it. ✦ ³⁷But if the cloud did not rise, they remained where they were until it lifted. ✦ ³⁸The cloud of the Lord hovered over the Tabernacle during the day, and at night fire glowed inside the cloud so the whole family of Israel could see it. This continued throughout all their journeys. ✦

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

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Where this chapter connects

Exod 40 ·22 Exod 26 ·13 Exod 30 ·11 Heb 10 ·9 Exod 25 ·9 1 Jn 2 ·7 Exod 38 ·6 Exod 37 ·6

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 40 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 40YouTube · Lay · Free
Sermons and chapter teaching from across YouTube.
CommentaryEnduring Word — Exodus 40David 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 40Blue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free
Interlinear, lexicon, and study tools across the chapter.

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