A Prophecy of Esau and Jacob

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Exodus 25

¹ And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying, — when on the mount, and in the midst of the cloud with him;

² “Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring Me an offering. From every man who giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take My offering. — of every man that giveth it willingly, with his heart, ye shall take my offering; or take what was offered to him, be it more or less, and of whatsoever person, high and low, rich and poor, so be it it is freely given from the heart;

³ And this is the offering which ye shall take from them: gold and silver and brass; — gold, and silver, and brass; the supply of these metals possessed by the Israelites at this time probably included what they had inherited from their forefathers, what they had obtained from the Egyptians, and what may have been found amongst the spoils of the Amalekites;

⁴ and blue and purple and scarlet, and fine linen and goats’ hair; — these are to be made into yarn, and wove, and was much used in the garments of the priests, in the curtains of the tabernacle, and in the vail between the holy and the most holy place;

⁵ and rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, and shittim wood; — and rams’ skins died red; of these were made a covering for the tent or tabernacle; other materials enough to furnish planks for the construction of the ark;

⁶ oil for the light, spices for anointing oil and for sweet incense; — oil for the light; such is needed that the “sanctuary,” which is to be built, will be lighted; that anointing oil will be needed, and that spices will be a necessary ingredient in such oil;

⁷ onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod and in the breastplate. — and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate; two onyx stones were set in the ephod, one of the garments of the high priest, and an onyx stone, with eleven other precious stones, were set in the breastplate of the high priest:

— these stones were doubtless among the jewels set in gold and silver the Israelites had of the Egyptians, and brought with them out of Egypt.

⁸ And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. — and let them make me a sanctuary; an holy place to dwell in, and so called from his dwelling in it;

— that I may dwell among them; the purpose of the sanctuary is here definitely declared by the Lord Himself. It was to be the constant witness of His presence among His people.

⁹ According to all that I show thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it. — the sanctuary is to be constructed in accordance with a model shown to Moses in the mount, which he must conform to in all points.

¹⁰ “And they shall make an ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. — the ark of the covenant was the central point of the sanctuary; it was designed to contain the testimony; others are the table of shew-bread, and the seven-branched candlestick, or lamp-stand;

¹¹ And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold; within and without shalt thou overlay it, and shalt make upon it a crown of gold round about. — within and without shalt thou overlay it; so that nothing of the wood could be seen;

¹² And thou shalt cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in the four corners thereof; and two rings shall be on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. — four rings of gold; though the ark was not to be carried in procession, like some pagan arks, yet it would have to be carried when the Israelites resumed their journeyings.

¹³ And thou shalt make staves of shittim wood and overlay them with gold.

¹⁴ And thou shalt put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark, that the ark may be borne with them. — that the ark might be borne with them; which staves overlaid with gold, and put into golden rings;

¹⁵ The staves shall be in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. — the staves were to remain always in the rings, whether the ark was in motion or at rest; that there might never at any time be a necessity for touching the ark itself, or even the rings. He who touched the ark risked his life;

¹⁶ And thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee. — the stone tables of the Ten Commandments are called the Testimony, or the tables of the Testimony;

¹⁷ “And thou shalt make a mercy seat of pure gold: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof. — a mercy seat of pure gold, to serve as a lid, covering it exactly.

¹⁸ And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold; of beaten work shalt thou make them at the two ends of the mercy seat. — the cherubim were fixed to the mercy-seat, and of a piece with it, and spread their wings over it; they stretched out their wings, and their faces were turned towards the mercy seat;

¹⁹ And make one cherub on the one end, and the other cherub on the other end; even of the mercy seat shall ye make the cherubims on the two ends thereof. — they were made not only of the same kind of metal with that, but out of the same mass or lump of gold, a lid of gold being made commensurate to the ark, what remained above that measure, at the ends of it, were beaten and formed into two cherubim.

²⁰ And the cherubims shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and their faces shall look one to another. Toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubims be. — the two wings of both cherubs were to be elevated and advanced so as to overshadow the mercy seat, and, as it were, protect it.

²¹ And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee. — and thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; over it, as a covering for it: this situation of the mercy seat above the ark; 

²² And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the Testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel. — and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim; hence the Lord is frequently described as “dwelling between the cherubim;”

— the theocracy was to be a government by God in reality. There was to be constant “communing” between God and the earthly ruler of the nation, and therefore a place of communing.

²³ “Thou shalt also make a table of shittim wood: two cubits shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. — a table was to be made of wood, overlaid with gold, to stand in the outer tabernacle, to be always furnished with the shew-bread.

²⁴ And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, and make thereto a crown of gold round about. — a crown of gold round about; that is, on both sides and at both ends; and a border, or edging of gold, something to prevent what was placed on the table from readily falling off.

²⁵ And thou shalt make unto it a border of a handbreadth round about, and thou shalt make a golden crown for the border thereof round about. — and thou shalt make a golden crown to the border thereof round about; this was not the same spoke of in the former verse;

— but another; that was above, and upon the table, this below and under it; or rather that was, as it may be better expressed, a lip, rim, or border, that went round within the table; and this crown, surrounded that on the edge of it.

²⁶ And thou shalt make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings in the four corners that are on the four feet thereof. — and put the rings in the four corners that are on the four feet thereof; as there were four feet at the four corners of the table, to each foot a ring was fastened; the use of these follows.

²⁷ Over against the border shall the rings be for places for the staves to bear the table. — shall the rings be for placing of the staves to bear the table; into these rings staves were to be put, to carry the table from place to place, as while in the wilderness, and before the tabernacle had a fixed settled place for it.

²⁸ And thou shalt make the staves of shittim wood and overlay them with gold, that the table may be borne with them. — and thou shall make the staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold; in like manner as the staves for the ark, and which were made of the same wood;

²⁹ And thou shalt make the dishes thereof and spoons thereof and covers thereof and bowls thereof for pouring; of pure gold shalt thou make them. — all the above said vessels were to be made of pure gold;

³⁰ And thou shalt set upon the table showbread before Me always. — the Hebrew expression translated “showbread” is literally, “bread of face,” or “bread of presence”—bread, that is, which was set forth always before the presence of God;

³¹ “And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold; of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: his shaft and his branches, his bowls, his buds, and his flowers shall be of the same. — a lampstand rather than a candlestick; its purpose was to support seven oil-lamps. Its height appears to have been about three feet, and its width two feet. 

³² And six branches shall come out of the sides of it: three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three branches of the candlestick out of the other side. — from the sides of the candlestick, that is, of the upright stem in the middle, there were to be six branches, three on either side;

— added to one in the middle, there would be seven candlesticks; representing the seven true Churches of God of Revelation 2 and 3; they are “true” Churches despite their weaknesses and limitations;

³³ Three bowls made like unto almonds with a bud and a flower on one branch, and three bowls made like almonds on the other branch with a bud and a flower — so for the six branches that come out of the candlestick. — there were three bowls or cups in the form of almond nuts to each branch, which were probably to hold oil for the lamps;

³⁴ And on the candlestick shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their buds and their flowers. — and in the candlestick shall be four bowls; that is, in the trunk or body of it; the branches had but three apiece, made like unto almonds, with their knops and their flowers; as the bowls on the branches had with them;

³⁵ And there shall be a bud under two branches of the same, and a bud under two branches of the same, and a bud under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick.

— and there shall be a knop under two branches of the same; that is, from the middle of the knop, which probably was like a pomegranate; this clause is repeated twice in this verse, signifying there should be a knop under each of the three branches on one side, and three on the other side;

— the buds signify a living significance, each growing from something small into something big; such is a parallel with the mustard seed, the Kingdom of God, which will grow into an enormous Kingdom.

He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 

Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches” Matthew 13:31-21

³⁶ Their buds and their branches shall be of the same. All of it shall be one beaten work of pure gold. — their knops and their branches shall be of the same; of the same metal, gold; that is, of the same highest quality of substance or essence, like gold is;

³⁷ And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof; and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over the face of it. — the candlestick represents the light of God’s word; his seven Churches, as light to the world,

³⁸ And the tongs thereof and the snuff dishes thereof shall be of pure gold; — tongs, trays and snuffers thereof shall be of pure gold; but snuff-dishes; these were shallow vessels used to receive the burnt fragments of wick removed by the tongs.

³⁹ of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels. — the signification of the seven-armed candlestick is apparent from its purpose, viz., to carry seven lamps, which were trimmed and filled with oil every morning, and lighted every evening, and were to burn throughout the night.

⁴⁰ And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shown thee on the mount. — the symbolical character of the candlestick is clearly indicated in the Scriptures. The prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 4:1-14) sees a golden candlestick with seven lamps and two olive-trees, one on either side, from which the oil-vessel is supplied;

— and the angel who is talking with him informs him that the olive-trees are the two representatives of the kingdom and priesthood, the divinely appointed organs through which the Spirit of God was communicated to the covenant nation;

— and in Revelation 1:20, the seven churches, that is, the Church, which would proceed to represent the Kingdom of God, are shown to the holy seer in the form of seven candlesticks standing before the throne of God.

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Exodus 26

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¹ “Moreover thou shalt make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue and purple and scarlet. With cherubims of the work of a skilled embroiderer shalt thou make them. — with ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet; the ground of these curtains was fine linen, twined or doubled;

² The length of one curtain shall be eight and twenty cubits, and the breadth of one curtain four cubits; and every one of the curtains shall have one measure. — and everyone of the curtains shall have one measure; be of equal length and breadth, that is, the same with all the other curtains.

³ The five curtains shall be coupled together one to another, and other five curtains shall be coupled one to another. — the five curtains shall be coupled together one to another, so as to form two grand divisions, each eleven yards wide.

⁴ And thou shalt make loops of blue upon the edge of the one curtain from the selvage in the coupling, and likewise shalt thou do on the uttermost edge of another curtain, in the coupling of the second. — at the coupling; that is, at the selvedge, nearest to the place where the two curtains were to be coupled together.

⁵ Fifty loops shalt thou make in the one curtain, and fifty loops shalt thou make on the edge of the curtain that is in the coupling of the second, that the loops may take hold one to another.

⁶ And thou shalt make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains together with the clasps; and it shall be one tabernacle.

⁷ “And thou shalt make curtains of goats’ hair to be a covering upon the tabernacle; eleven curtains shalt thou make. — curtains of goats’ hair; the flower or down of goats, the softer and finer part of their hair,

⁸ The length of one curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the breadth of one curtain four cubits; and the eleven curtains shall be all the same measure.

⁹ And thou shalt couple five curtains by themselves and six curtains by themselves, and shalt double the sixth curtain at the forefront of the tabernacle. — the Tent over the Dwelling, consisting of eleven curtains of cloth made of goats’ hair, each 30 cubits long, and 4 cubits wide, fastened together so as to form a single large curtain, 30 cubits broad, and 44 cubits long.

¹⁰ And thou shalt make fifty loops on the edge of the one curtain that is outmost in the coupling, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain which coupleth the second.

¹¹ “And thou shalt make fifty clasps of brass, and put the clasps into the loops, and couple the tent together, that it may be one.

¹² And the remnant that remaineth of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remaineth, shall hang over the backside of the tabernacle.

¹³ And a cubit on the one side and a cubit on the other side, of that which remaineth of the length of the curtains of the tent, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle on this side and on that side to cover it.

¹⁴ And thou shalt make a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and a covering above of badgers’ skins. — and a covering above of badgers’ skins; this was a fourth covering of the tabernacle; the first was of linen curtains, the second of goats’ hair, the third of rams’ skins, and the fourth of badgers’ skins, which seems to have been thicker and courser, since shoes were made of them;

¹⁵ “And thou shalt make boards for the tabernacle of shittim wood standing upright.

¹⁶ Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half shall be the breadth of one board.

¹⁷ Two tenons shall there be in one board, set in order to join one to another. Thus shalt thou make for all the boards of the tabernacle.

¹⁸ And thou shalt make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side southward.

¹⁹ And thou shalt make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards: two sockets under one board for his two tenons, and two sockets under another board for his two tenons.

²⁰ And for the second side of the tabernacle on the north side, there shall be twenty boards

²¹ and their forty sockets of silver: two sockets under one board and two sockets under another board.

²² And for the sides of the tabernacle westward, thou shalt make six boards.

²³ And two boards shalt thou make for the corners of the tabernacle at the two sides.

²⁴ And they shall be coupled together beneath, and they shall be coupled together above the head of it into one ring. Thus shall it be for them both; they shall be for the two corners.

²⁵ And there shall be eight boards with their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets: two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board.

²⁶ “And thou shalt make bars of shittim wood: five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle,

²⁷ and five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle, for the two sides westward.

²⁸ And the middle bar in the midst of the boards shall reach from end to end.

²⁹ And thou shalt overlay the boards with gold, and make their rings of gold for places for the bars; and thou shalt overlay the bars with gold.

³⁰ And thou shalt raise up the tabernacle according to the fashion thereof which was shown thee on the mount.

³¹ “And thou shalt make a veil of blue and purple and scarlet, and finetwined linen of skillful work; with cherubims shall it be made.

³² And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold; their hooks shall be of gold, upon the four sockets of silver.

³³ And thou shalt hang up the veil under the clasps, that thou mayest bring in thither within the veil the ark of the Testimony; and the veil shall divide unto you between the holy place and the Most Holy.

³⁴ And thou shalt put the mercy seat upon the ark of the Testimony in the Most Holy Place.

³⁵ And thou shalt set the table outside the veil, and the candlestick opposite the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south; and thou shalt put the table on the north side.

³⁶ “And thou shalt make a hanging for the door of the tent of blue and purple and scarlet and finetwined linen, wrought with needlework.

³⁷ And thou shalt make for the hanging five pillars of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold, and their hooks shall be of gold; and thou shalt cast five sockets of brass for them.

~ by Joel on November 23, 2023.

Posted in Books of Moses