26 And thou shalt make bars of acacia-wood; five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle,
-- And he made bars of acacia-wood: five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the tabernacle at the rear, westward. And he made the middle bar in the midst of the boards reach from one end to the other. And he overlaid the boards with gold; and made their rings of gold [as] receptacles for the bars; and overlaid the bars with gold. And he made the veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined byssus: of artistic work he made it [with] cherubim. And he made four pillars of acacia[-wood] for it, and overlaid them with gold; their hooks were of gold; and he cast for them four bases of silver. And he made a curtain for the entrance of the tent of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined byssus, of embroidery; and its five pillars with their hooks; and he overlaid their capitals and their connecting-rods with gold; and their five bases were of copper.
And the charge of the sons of Merari consisted in the oversight of the boards of the tabernacle, and its bars, and its pillars, and its bases, and all its furniture, and all that belongs to its service,
But *we* ought, we that are strong, to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
For being free from all, I have made myself bondman to all, that I might gain the most [possible]. And I became to the Jews as a Jew, in order that I might gain the Jews: to those under law, as under law, not being myself under law, in order that I might gain those under law:
from whom the whole body, fitted together, and connected by every joint of supply, according to [the] working in [its] measure of each one part, works for itself the increase of the body to its self-building up in love.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Exodus 26
Commentary on Exodus 26 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 26
Moses here receives instructions,
These particulars, thus largely recorded, seem of little use to us now; yet, having been of great use to Moses and Israel, and God having thought fit to preserve down to us the remembrance of them, we ought not to overlook them. Even the antiquity renders this account venerable.
Exd 26:1-6
Exd 26:7-14
Moses is here ordered to make a double covering for the tabernacle, that it might not rain in, and that the beauty of those fine curtains might not be damaged.
Exd 26:15-30
Very particular directions are here given about the boards of the tabernacle, which were to bear up the curtains, as the stakes of a tent which had need to be strong, Isa. 54:2. These boards had tenons which fell into the mortises that were made for them in silver bases. God took care to have every thing strong, as well as fine, in his tabernacle. Curtains without boards would have been shaken by every wind; but it is a good thing to have the heart established with grace, which is as the boards to support the curtains of profession, which otherwise will not hold out long. The boards were coupled together with gold rings at top and bottom (v. 24), and kept firm with bars that ran through golden staples in every board (v. 26), and the boards and bars were all richly gilded, v. 29. Thus every thing in the tabernacle was very splendid, agreeable to that infant state of the church, when such things were proper enough to please children, to possess the minds of the worshippers with a reverence of the divine glory, and to affect them with the greatness of that prince who said, Here will I dwell; in allusion to this the new Jerusalem is said to be of pure gold, Rev. 21:18. But the builders of the gospel church said, Silver and gold have we none; and yet the glory of their building far exceeded that of the tabernacle, 2 Co. 3:10, 11. How much better is wisdom than gold! No orders are given here about the floor of the tabernacle; probably that also was boarded; for we cannot think that within all these fine curtains they trod upon the cold or wet ground; if it was so left, it may remind us of ch. 20:24, An altar of earth shalt thou make unto me.
Exd 26:31-37
Two veils are here ordered to be made,