Exodus 25

After the covenant at Sinai is ratified in Exodus 24, Moses goes up the mountain and remains there forty days. The tabernacle instructions he receives during this time continue through chapters 25–31. This chapter, the first part of those instructions, begins with the central furnishings to be placed inside the tabernacle.

Outline

• Verses 1–7 God commands that an offering be received from everyone who gives willingly. The offering is to include gold, silver, and brass; blue, purple, and scarlet yarn; fine linen; goats' hair; skins; shittim wood (a kind of acacia); oil; spices; and precious stones.
• Verses 8–9 The people are to build a "sanctuary; that I may dwell among them," making it according to the pattern (design) that God shows.
• Verses 10–16 An ark is to be made of shittim wood, two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half in both width and height, overlaid with pure gold. Poles are passed through four rings so that it can be carried, and the poles are not to be removed. The testimony is to be placed inside the ark.
• Verses 17–22 A mercy seat (the cover of the ark) is to be made of pure gold, with two cherubim of one piece with it at its two ends, their wings spread and facing each other. God says that He will meet with Moses and speak with him from between the two cherubim.
• Verses 23–30 A table (two cubits long, one cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high) is to be made of shittim wood and overlaid with gold. Vessels of pure gold are to be made with it, and the showbread is to be set on the table continually.
• Verses 31–40 A lampstand is to be made of beaten work from a talent of pure gold. Six branches extend from the sides of its shaft, and cups shaped like almond blossoms are attached. There are seven lamps. The chapter closes with the command to make everything according to the pattern shown on the mountain.

Key Verses

• Exodus 25:8 "And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them." This verse states that the purpose of building the tabernacle is for God to dwell among His people.
• Exodus 25:22 "And there I will meet with thee." This verse shows that the place above the mercy seat is the place of meeting with God.
• Exodus 25:40 The command to build according to the pattern shown is quoted in Hebrews 8:5.

People and Places

• The LORD: the one who commands that the tabernacle be built.
• Moses: receives the instructions on the mountain.
• Mount Sinai: referred to in the text as "the mount," the place where the pattern was shown.
• Furnishings: the ark of the covenant, the showbread, and the lampstand appear; the cherubim on the ark are discussed in the article Seraphim and Cherubim. The overall structure of the tabernacle in which these furnishings are placed is described from chapter 26 onward.

Points for Reflection

• Translation differences: The New Korean Revised Version (Gaeyeok Gaejeong) changed the word for "lampstand" in verse 31 from deungdae to deungjandae. The term rendered "mercy seat" (sokjoeso) is translated sokjoepan ("atonement cover") in the Korean New Translation (Saebeonyeok). The "badgers' skins" of verse 5 are rendered differently from version to version because the meaning of the original Hebrew word is uncertain.
• Contents of the ark: The only item this chapter directs to be placed in the ark is the testimony. The pot of manna and Aaron's rod mentioned in Hebrews 9:4 come from other passages.
• Connection with the New Testament: The New Testament, in Hebrews 8–9 and elsewhere, explains the tabernacle as a copy of heavenly things. An interpretation linking the word "dwelt" in John 1:14 to the tabernacle is also widely known. The word the Septuagint uses to translate "mercy seat" is the same as the word rendered "propitiation" in Romans 3:25, so some interpreters read the two passages together.
• Range of interpretation: Some take a typological approach that interprets each material and color of the furnishings as a symbol of Christ. Others, by contrast, caution against extending allegory too far beyond what the text says.

In the Korean Church

The phrase "every man that giveth it willingly with his heart" in verse 2 is treated separately in the article Exodus 25:2 and is frequently cited in sermons on offerings and building fund offerings. Some churches display tabernacle models or hold lectures and Bible studies on the tabernacle.