Exodus 40 :: New Living Translation (NLT)

The Tabernacle Completed

Exo 40:1Then the LORD said to Moses,

Exo 40:2“Set up the Tabernacle[fn] on the first day of the new year.[fn]

Exo 40:3Place the Ark of the Covenant[fn] inside, and install the inner curtain to enclose the Ark within the Most Holy Place.

Exo 40:4

Exo 40:4Then bring in the table, and arrange the utensils on it. And bring in the lampstand, and set up the lamps.

Exo 40:5

Exo 40:5“Place the gold incense altar in front of the Ark of the Covenant. Then hang the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle.

Exo 40:6

Exo 40:6Place the altar of burnt offering in front of the Tabernacle entrance.

Exo 40:7

Exo 40:7Set the washbasin between the Tabernacle[fn] and the altar, and fill it with water.

Exo 40:8

Exo 40:8Then set up the courtyard around the outside of the tent, and hang the curtain for the courtyard entrance.

Exo 40:9

Exo 40:9“Take the anointing oil and anoint the Tabernacle and all its furnishings to consecrate them and make them holy.

Exo 40:10

Exo 40:10Anoint the altar of burnt offering and its utensils to consecrate them. Then the altar will become absolutely holy.

Exo 40:11

Exo 40:11Next anoint the washbasin and its stand to consecrate them.

Exo 40:12

Exo 40:12“Present Aaron and his sons at the entrance of the Tabernacle, and wash them with water.

Exo 40:13

Exo 40:13Dress Aaron with the sacred garments and anoint him, consecrating him to serve me as a priest.

Exo 40:14

Exo 40:14Then present his sons and dress them in their tunics.

Exo 40:15

Exo 40:15Anoint 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.”

Exo 40:16

Exo 40:16Moses proceeded to do everything just as the LORD had commanded him.

Exo 40:17

Exo 40:17So the Tabernacle was set up on the first day of the first month of the second year.

Exo 40:18

Exo 40:18Moses erected the Tabernacle by setting down its bases, inserting the frames, attaching the crossbars, and setting up the posts.

Exo 40:19

Exo 40:19Then he spread the coverings over the Tabernacle framework and put on the protective layers, just as the LORD had commanded him.

Exo 40:20

Exo 40:20He took the stone tablets inscribed with the terms of the covenant and placed them[fn] 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.

Exo 40:21

Exo 40:21Then 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.

Exo 40:22

Exo 40:22Next Moses placed the table in the Tabernacle, along the north side of the Holy Place, just outside the inner curtain.

Exo 40:23

Exo 40:23And he arranged the Bread of the Presence on the table before the LORD, just as the LORD had commanded him.

Exo 40:24

Exo 40:24He set the lampstand in the Tabernacle across from the table on the south side of the Holy Place.

Exo 40:25

Exo 40:25Then he lit the lamps in the LORD’s presence, just as the LORD had commanded him.

Exo 40:26

Exo 40:26He also placed the gold incense altar in the Tabernacle, in the Holy Place in front of the inner curtain.

Exo 40:27

Exo 40:27On it he burned the fragrant incense, just as the LORD had commanded him.

Exo 40:28

Exo 40:28He hung the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle,

Exo 40:29

Exo 40:29and 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.

Exo 40:30

Exo 40:30Next Moses placed the washbasin between the Tabernacle and the altar. He filled it with water so the priests could wash themselves.

Exo 40:31

Exo 40:31Moses and Aaron and Aaron’s sons used water from it to wash their hands and feet.

Exo 40:32

Exo 40:32Whenever they approached the altar and entered the Tabernacle, they washed themselves, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

Exo 40:33

Exo 40:33Then 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.

The LORD’s Glory Fills the Tabernacle

(Exo 13:21, 22; Num 9:15–23 )

Exo 40:34

Exo 40:34Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the LORD filled the Tabernacle.

Exo 40:35

Exo 40:35Moses could no longer enter the Tabernacle because the cloud had settled down over it, and the glory of the LORD filled the Tabernacle.

Exo 40:36

Exo 40:36Now whenever the cloud lifted from the Tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out on their journey, following it.

Exo 40:37

Exo 40:37But if the cloud did not rise, they remained where they were until it lifted.

Exo 40:38

Exo 40:38The 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.