A Portable place of worship
An expression of Yehovah’s desire to dwell among His people
A Brief Insight
While on the mountain, Moses received detailed instructions for a sacred dwelling that would one day accompany the people through the wilderness. At this stage nothing had yet been built; the pattern was being revealed. The people would later be invited to bring voluntary offerings — precious metals, fabrics, wood, oil, and skilled workmanship — showing that worship involves willing hearts and purposeful action. The design itself was not left to human creativity but given from heaven, teaching that approaching the Holy One requires reverence and obedience rather than personal preference.
This future sanctuary would testify that the Creator chooses to dwell among a people who walk with Him. The lesson endures: when lives are ordered according to His instruction and generosity flows from willing hearts, His presence is not distant but experienced in the midst of His people.
Read the Story as Told in Scripture
25 And Yehovah spake unto Moshe, saying, 2Speak unto the children of Israel, that they take for me an offering: of every man whose heart maketh him willing ye shall take my offering. 3And this is the offering which ye shall take of them: gold, and silver, and brass, 4and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, 5and rams’ skins dyed red, and sealskins, and acacia wood, 6oil for the light, spices for the anointing oil, and for the sweet incense, 7onyx stones, and stones to be set, for the ephod, and for the breastplate. 8And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. 9According to all that I show thee, the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the furniture thereof, even so shall ye make it.
10And they shall make an ark of acacia 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. 11And 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. 12And thou shalt cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in the four feet thereof; and two rings shall be on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. 13And thou shalt make staves of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. 14And thou shalt put the staves into the rings on the sides of the ark, wherewith to bear the ark. 15The staves shall be in the rings of the ark: they shall not be taken from it. 16And thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee. 17And 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. 18And thou shalt make two cherubim of gold; of beaten work shalt thou make them, at the two ends of the mercy-seat. 19And make one cherub at the one end, and one cherub at the other end: of one piece with the mercy-seat shall ye make the cherubim on the two ends thereof. 20And the cherubim shall spread out their wings on high, covering the mercy-seat with their wings, with their faces one to another; toward the mercy-seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. 21And thou shalt put the mercy-seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee. 22And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.
23And thou shalt make a table of acacia wood: two cubits shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. 24And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, and make thereto a crown of gold round about. 25And thou shalt make unto it a border of a handbreadth round about; and thou shalt make a golden crown to the border thereof round about. 26And thou shalt make for it four rings of gold, and put the rings in the four corners that are on the four feet thereof. 27Close by the border shall the rings be, for places for the staves to bear the table. 28And thou shalt make the staves of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold, that the table may be borne with them. 29And thou shalt make the dishes thereof, and the spoons thereof, and the flagons thereof, and the bowls thereof, wherewith to pour out: of pure gold shalt thou make them. 30And thou shalt set upon the table showbread before me alway.
31And thou shalt make a menorah (candlestick) of pure gold: of beaten work shall the menorah be made, even its base, and its shaft; its cups, its knops, and its flowers, shall be of one piece with it: 32and there shall be six branches going out of the sides thereof; three branches of the menorah out of the one side thereof, and three branches of the menorah out of the other side thereof: 33three cups made like almond-blossoms in one branch, a knop and a flower; and three cups made like almond-blossoms in the other branch, a knop and a flower: so for the six branches going out of the menorah: 34and in the menorah four cups made like almond-blossoms, the knops thereof, and the flowers thereof; 35and a knop under two branches of one piece with it, and a knop under two branches of one piece with it, and a knop under two branches of one piece with it, for the six branches going out of the menorah. 36Their knops and their branches shall be of one piece with it; the whole of it one beaten work of pure gold. 37And thou shalt make the lamps thereof, seven: and they shall light the lamps thereof, to give light over against it. 38And the snuffers thereof, and the snuffdishes thereof, shall be of pure gold. 39Of a talent of pure gold shall it be made, with all these vessels. 40And see that thou make them after their pattern, which hath been showed thee in the mount.
26 Moreover thou shalt make the Tabernacle with ten curtains; of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, with cherubim the work of the skilful workman shalt thou make them. 2The length of each curtain shall be eight and twenty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits: all the curtains shall have one measure. 3Five curtains shall be coupled together one to another; and the other five curtains shall be coupled one to another. 4And thou shalt make loops of blue upon the edge of the one curtain from the selvedge in the coupling; and likewise shalt thou make in the edge of the curtain that is outmost in the second coupling. 5Fifty loops shalt thou make in the one curtain, and fifty loops shalt thou make in the edge of the curtain that is in the second coupling; the loops shall be opposite one to another. 6And thou shalt make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains one to another with the clasps: and the tabernacle shall be one whole.
7And thou shalt make curtains of goats’ hair for a tent over the tabernacle: eleven curtains shalt thou make them. 8The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits: the eleven curtains shall have one measure. 9And thou shalt couple five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves, and shalt double over the sixth curtain in the forefront of the tent. 10And thou shalt make fifty loops on the edge of the one curtain that is outmost in the coupling, and fifty loops upon the edge of the curtain which is outmost in the second coupling. 11And thou shalt make fifty clasps of brass, and put the clasps into the loops, and couple the tent together, that it may be one. 12And the overhanging part that remaineth of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remaineth, shall hang over the back of the tabernacle. 13And the cubit on the one side, and the cubit on the other side, of that which remaineth in 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. 14And thou shalt make a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and a covering of sealskins above.
15And thou shalt make the boards for the Tabernacle of acacia wood, standing up. 16Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half the breadth of each board. 17Two tenons shall there be in each board, joined one to another: thus shalt thou make for all the boards of the tabernacle. 18And thou shalt make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side southward. 19And thou shalt make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards; two sockets under one board for its two tenons, and two sockets under another board for its two tenons: 20and for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, twenty boards, 21and their forty sockets of silver; two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board. 22And for the hinder part of the tabernacle westward thou shalt make six boards. 23And two boards shalt thou make for the corners of the Tabernacle in the hinder part. 24And they shall be double beneath, and in like manner they shall be entire unto the top thereof unto one ring: thus shall it be for them both; they shall be for the two corners. 25And there shall be eight boards, and their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets; two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board.
26And thou shalt make bars of acacia wood: five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle, 27and 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 hinder part westward. 28And the middle bar in the midst of the boards shall pass through from end to end. 29And 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. 30And thou shalt rear up the tabernacle according to the fashion thereof which hath been showed thee in the mount.
31And thou shalt make a veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen: with cherubim the work of the skilful workman shall it be made: 32and thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold; their hooks shall be of gold, upon four sockets of silver. 33And thou shalt hang up the veil under the clasps, and shalt bring in thither within the veil the ark of the testimony: and the veil shall separate unto you between the holy place and the most holy. 34And thou shalt put the mercy-seat upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place. 35And thou shalt set the table without the veil, and the candlestick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south: and thou shalt put the table on the north side.
36And thou shalt make a screen for the door of the Tent, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, the work of the embroiderer. 37And thou shalt make for the screen five pillars of acacia, and overlay them with gold: their hooks shall be of gold: and thou shalt cast five sockets of brass for them.
27 And thou shalt make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits. 2And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof; the horns thereof shall be of one piece with it: and thou shalt overlay it with brass. 3And thou shalt make its pots to take away its ashes, and its shovels, and its basins, and its flesh-hooks, and its firepans: all the vessels thereof thou shalt make of brass. 4And thou shalt make for it a grating of network of brass: and upon the net shalt thou make four brazen rings in the four corners thereof. 5And thou shalt put it under the ledge round the altar beneath, that the net may reach halfway up the altar. 6And thou shalt make staves for the altar, staves of acacia wood, and overlay them with brass. 7And the staves thereof shall be put into the rings, and the staves shall be upon the two sides of the altar, in bearing it. 8Hollow with planks shalt thou make it: as it hath been showed thee in the mount, so shall they make it.
9And thou shalt make the court of the tabernacle: for the south side southward there shall be hangings for the court of fine twined linen a hundred cubits long for one side: 10and the pillars thereof shall be twenty, and their sockets twenty, of brass; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. 11And likewise for the north side in length there shall be hangings a hundred cubits long, and the pillars thereof twenty, and their sockets twenty, of brass; the hooks of the pillars, and their fillets, of silver. 12And for the breadth of the court on the west side shall be hangings of fifty cubits; their pillars ten, and their sockets ten. 13And the breadth of the court on the east side eastward shall be fifty cubits. 14The hangings for the one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits; their pillars three, and their sockets three. 15And for the other side shall be hangings of fifteen cubits; their pillars three, and their sockets three. 16And for the gate of the court shall be a screen of twenty cubits, of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, the work of the embroiderer; their pillars four, and their sockets four. 17All the pillars of the court round about shall be filleted with silver; their hooks of silver, and their sockets of brass. 18The length of the court shall be a hundred cubits, and the breadth fifty every where, and the height five cubits, of fine twined linen, and their sockets of brass. 19All the instruments of the tabernacle in all the service thereof, and all the pins thereof, and all the pins of the court, shall be of brass.
1 Kings 5:12
12And Yehovah gave Shlomo wisdom, as he promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Shlomo; and they two made a league together.
13And king Shlomo raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men. 14And he sent them to L’vanon, ten thousand a month by courses; a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home; and Adoniram was over the men subject to taskwork. 15And Shlomo had threescore and ten thousand that bare burdens, and fourscore thousand that were hewers in the mountains; 16besides Shlomo’s chief officers that were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, who bare rule over the people that wrought in the work. 17And the king commanded, and they hewed out great stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house with wrought stone. 18And Shlomn’s and Hiram’s builders along with the men from G’val worked the stones and prepared the timber and stones for building the house.
6 And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Shlomo’s reign over Israel, in the month Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of Yehovah. 2And the house which king Shlomo built for Yehovah, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits. 3And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house. 4And for the house he made windows of fixed lattice-work. 5And against the wall of the house he built stories round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the oracle; and he made side-chambers round about. 6The nethermost story was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made offsets in the wall of the house round about, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house. 7And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready at the quarry; and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building. 8The door for the middle side-chambers was in the right side of the house: and they went up by winding stairs into the middle story, and out of the middle into the third. 9So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar. 10And he built the stories against all the house, each five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.
11And the word of Yehovah came to Shlomo, saying, 12Concerning this house which thou art building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute mine ordinances, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I establish my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father. 13And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.
Matthew 12:35
35The good man out of his good treasure bringeth forth good things: and the evil man out of his evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. 36And I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. 37For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
38Then certain of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, Teacher, we would see a sign from thee. 39But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of Yonah the prophet: 40for as Yonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41The men of Ninveh shall stand up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Yonah; and behold, a greater than Yonah is here. 42The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Shlomo; and behold, a greater than Shlomo is here. 43But the unclean spirit, when he is gone out of the man, passeth through waterless places, seeking rest, and findeth it not. 44Then he saith, I will return into my house whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. 45Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more evil than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man becometh worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this evil generation.
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