Exodus 31 to 40

Exodus 31
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, Behold, I, I have called by name Bezaleel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all workmanship, to devise designs; to work in gold, and in silver, and in bronze, and in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all workmanship. And behold, I have given to him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. And I have put wisdom in the hearts of all the wise-hearted, so that they may make all that I have commanded you: the tabernacle of the congregation, and the ark of the testimony, and the mercy-seat that is upon it, and all the vessels of the tabernacle, and the table and its vessels, and the pure lampstand with all its vessels, and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering with all its vessels, and the laver and its base, and the woven garments, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest’s office, and the anointing oil, and sweet incense for the holy place. According to all that I have commanded you, they shall do.

Conclusion paragraph.  Subtle evidence, in text, Exodus was written before Genesis.  Mention of iron work has disappeared.  Build all the crap I just told to you over the last 5000 words or so.

And the LORD spoke to Moses saying, Speak also to the sons of Israel, saying, Truly you shall keep My sabbaths. For it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, to know that I am the LORD who sanctifies you. You shall keep the Sabbath therefore, for it is holy to you. Everyone that defiles it shall surely be put to death. For whoever does any work in it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. Six days may work be done, but on the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work in the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. Therefore the sons of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant. It is a sign between Me and the sons of Israel forever. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed. And He gave to Moses, when He had made an end of speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written by the finger of God.

The LORD is dead serious about not working on the sabbath.  Death for anyone who works on Saturday.  No freaking way the volumes of details above were written on two tablets of stone.

Exodus 32
And the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, and the people gathered themselves to Aaron. And they said to him, Up! Make us gods who shall go before us. For this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him. And Aaron said to them, Break off the golden earrings which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them to me. And all the people broke off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. And he took them from their hand, and fashioned it with an engraving tool. And he made it a molten calf. And they said, These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. And when Aaron saw, he built an altar before it. And Aaron made proclamation and said, Tomorrow is a feast to Jehovah. And they rose up early on the next day and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings. And the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

Moses takes too long, so they make a golden calf.

And the LORD said to Moses, Go! Get down, for your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt, are corrupted. They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them. They have made them a molten calf, and have worshiped it, and have sacrificed to it, and said, These are your gods, O Israel, who have brought you up out of the land of Egypt. And the LORD said to Moses, I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people. And now leave Me alone, so that My wrath may become hot against them and so that I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation. And Moses prayed to the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why does Your wrath become hot against Your people whom You have brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians speak and say, He brought them out for harm, to kill them in the mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from Your fierce wrath, and be moved to pity as to this evil against Your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give to your seed, and they shall inherit it forever. And the LORD was moved to pity as to the evil which He spoke of doing to His people.

Why do the people turn away so quickly?  Don’t they remember crossing the Red Sea and the pillars of cloud and fire?  Why doesn’t the LORD tell the people directly?  The Bible is so internally inconsistent.  

And Moses turned, and went down from the mountain, and the two tablets of the testimony were in his hand. The tablets were written on both their sides; on the one side and on the other. And the tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God. It was engraved on the tablets. And Joshua heard the voice of the people in their shouting. And he said to Moses, A sound of war in the camp! And he said, It is not a sound of a cry of victory, nor a sound of the cry of defeat. I am hearing the sound of singing. And it happened, as he came near to the camp and saw the calf and dances, the anger of Moses became hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands, and broke them at the bottom of the mountain. And he took the calf which they had made and burned it in the fire, and ground it to powder, and dropped it upon the water, and made the sons of Israel drink of it.

So Moses smashes the tablets…that took forever to make.  Then destroys the golden calf and makes them…drink it?!?  

And Moses said to Aaron, What did this people do to you, that you have brought so great a sin upon them? And Aaron said, Let not the anger of my lord become hot. You know the people, that they are set on mischief. For they said to me, Make us gods who shall go before us. For this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him. And I said to them, Whoever has any gold, let them break it off. And they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and there came out this calf. And when Moses saw that the people were naked, (for Aaron had made them naked to their shame among their enemies,) then Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said, Who is on the LORD’s side? Come to me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves to him. And he said to them, Thus says the LORD God of Israel: Each man put his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and kill each one his brother, and each one his neighbor, and each one his kindred. And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And there fell of the people that day about three thousand men. For Moses had said, Consecrate yourselves today to the LORD, since each one has been against his son, and against his brother, and in order to give you a blessing today.

What the fuck?  What happened to shall not kill?  Did they not get the memo?  You have to kill your son and/or brother to get a blessing today?  The fuck.  How is this book a source or morality?

And it happened on the next day, Moses said to the people, You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the LORD. Perhaps I shall make an atonement for your sin. And Moses returned to the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made themselves gods of gold. And now will You forgive their sin! And if not, I pray You, blot me out of Your book which You have written. And the LORD said to Moses, Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot him out of My book. And now go, lead the people to the place of which I have spoken to you. Behold, My Angel shall go before you. And in the day of My visitation I will visit their sin upon them. And the LORD plagued the people because they made the calf, which Aaron made.

So, the horrible sin…was the sin of graven images.  Not killing, worshipping an idol.  Wow.  Just.  Wow.  

Exodus 33
And the LORD said to Moses, Come, go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought up out of the land of Egypt, to the land which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, To your seed I will give it. And I will send an angel before you. And I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; to a land flowing with milk and honey. For I will not go up in the midst of you, for you are a stiff-necked people, lest I consume you in the way. And the people heard these evil tidings, and they mourned, and put no ornaments on themselves. And the LORD had said to Moses, Say to the sons of Israel, You are a stiff-necked people. I will come up into the midst of you in a moment, and I will consume you. And now put off your ornaments from you, that I may know what to do with you. And the sons of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by Mount Horeb.

This is a really familiar paragraph.  If I cared, I would cite where I read this already, but I don’t.

And Moses took the tabernacle and pitched it outside the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the tabernacle of the congregation. And it happened, everyone who sought the LORD went out to the tabernacle of the congregation, which was outside the camp. And it happened as Moses went out to the tabernacle, all the people rose up, and each man stood at his tent door and looked after Moses until he had gone into the tabernacle. And it happened as Moses went into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD spoke with Moses. And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door. And all the people rose up and worshiped, each man in his tent door. And the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he turned again to the camp. But his servant, Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not leave the middle of the tabernacle.

Finally, the LORD shows up in person.

And Moses said to the LORD, Behold, You say to me, Bring up this people. And You have not told me whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My sight. Now therefore, I pray You, if I have found grace in Your sight, make me see now Your ways, that I may know You, that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people. And He said, My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest. And he said to Him, If Your presence does not go with me, do not carry us up from here. For in what shall it be known that I and Your people have found grace in Your sight? Is it not in that You go with us? So we shall be separated, I and Your people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth. And the LORD said to Moses, I will do this thing also that you have spoken. For you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name. And he said, I beseech You, let me see Your glory. And He said, I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will have mercy on whom I will have mercy. And He said, You cannot see My face. For there no man can see Me and live. And the LORD said, Behold! There is a place by Me, and you shall stand upon a rock. And it will be, while My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. And I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back parts. But My face shall not be seen.

Gobblygook, followed by the line…you can see my LORD ass, but not my face.  

Exodus 34
And the LORD said to Moses, cut out two tablets of stone like the first. And I will write upon the tablets the words that were in the first tablets which you broke. And be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself there to Me in the top of the mountain. And no man shall come up with you, neither let any man be seen throughout all the mountain. Also do not let the flocks nor herds feed before that mountain. And he cut out two tablets of stone like the first. And Moses rose up early in the morning and went up to Mount Sinai, as the LORD had commanded him, and took in his hand the two tablets of stone.

Replacement tablets.

And the LORD came down in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. And the LORD passed by before him and proclaimed, Jehovah! Jehovah God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the sons, and on the sons of sons, to the third and to the fourth generation. And Moses made haste and bowed toward the earth, and worshiped. And he said, If now I have found grace in Your sight, O LORD, I pray You, let my Lord go among us. For it is a stiff-necked people. And pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for Your inheritance.

I personally hate the idea of the great and great great grandchildren of people paying for the sins of long dead ancestors.  You had no control, why should you pay?  I am so glad this is not the basis of our legal system.

And He said, Behold! I make a covenant. Before all your people I will do marvels such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation. And all the people in whose midst you are shall see the work of the LORD, for it is an awesome thing that I will do with you. Observe that which I command you this day. Behold! I drive out before you the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite. Take heed to yourself, lest you make a covenant with the people of the land where you go, lest it be for a snare in the midst of you. But you shall destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves. For you shall worship no other god. For the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God; lest you make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice to their gods, and call you, and you eat of his sacrifice; and lest you take from their daughters for your sons, and their daughters go whoring after their gods and make your sons go whoring after their gods. You shall make you no molten gods.

The LORD really is insecure and Jealous.  Strange for an omnipotent being.  

You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. You shall eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded you, in the time of the month Abib. For in the month Abib you came out from Egypt. All that opens the womb is Mine; and all yours male livestock, a firstling of ox or sheep. But the firstling of an ass you shall redeem with a lamb. And if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck. All the first-born of your sons you shall redeem. And none shall appear before Me empty. You shall work six days, but on the seventh day you shall rest. In plowing time and in harvest you shall rest. And you shall observe the Feast of Weeks, of the first-fruits of wheat harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering at the year’s end. Three times in the year your men shall appear before the Lord God, the God of Israel. For I will cast out the nations before you and enlarge your borders. Neither shall any man desire your land when you shall go up to appear before the LORD your God three times in the year. You shall not slaughter the blood of My sacrifice on leavened bread. Neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the Passover be left to the morning. The first of the first-fruits of your land you shall bring to the house of the LORD your God. You shall not boil a kid in its mother’s milk. And the LORD said to Moses, Write these words for yourself; for on the mouth of these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.

Not this shit, again.  Keep sabbath holy, don’t boil goats in mother’s milk, passover, etc.  

And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights. He neither ate bread, nor drank water. And He wrote upon the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments. And it happened as Moses was going down from the mountain of Sinai, the two tablets of the testimony being in Moses’ hand as he went down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face had become luminous through His speaking with him. And Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face had become luminous. And they were afraid to come near him. And Moses called to them. And Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned to him, and Moses talked with them. And afterward all the sons of Israel came near. And he commanded them all that the LORD had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. And Moses finished speaking with them, and he put a veil on his face. But when Moses went in before the LORD to speak with Him, he took the veil off until he came out. And he came out and spoke to the sons of Israel that which he was commanded. And the sons of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face had become luminous. And Moses put the veil upon his face again, until he went in to speak with Him.

Okay, why are these 10 commandments differently worded than the previous ten commandments?  What happened to not killing, etc?  So poorly written.

Exodus 35
And Moses gathered all the congregation of the sons of Israel together and said to them, These are the words which the LORD has commanded, to do them. Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you a holy day, a sabbath of rest to the LORD. Whoever does work in it shall be put to death. You shall kindle no fire throughout your living places upon the Sabbath day. And Moses spoke to all the congregation of the sons of Israel saying, This is the thing which the LORD commanded. He said, Take from among you an offering to the LORD. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it, an offering of the LORD: gold, and silver, and bronze, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and bleached linen, and goats’ hair, and rams’ skins dyed red, and badgers’ skins, and acacia-wood, and oil for the light, and spices for anointing oil, and for the sweet incense, and onyx stones, and stones to be set for the ephod and for the breast-pocket. And every wise-hearted one among you shall come and make all that the LORD has commanded: the tabernacle, its tent, its covering, its clasps, and its boards, its bars, its pillars, and its sockets. And make the ark and the staves of it, the mercy-seat, and the veil of the covering, the table, and its staves, and all its vessels, and showbread, also the lampstand for the light, and its vessels, and its lamp, with the oil for the light, and the incense altar, and its staves, and the anointing oil, and the sweet incense, and the hanging of the door at the entering in of the tabernacle. And make the altar of burnt offering, with its bronze grate, its staves, and all its vessels, the laver and its base, the hangings of the court, its pillars and their sockets, and the hanging, for the door of the court, the pins of the tabernacle, and the pins of the court, and their cords, the woven garments to do service in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest’s office.

Fuck, I am not doing this again. Skimming the next few chapters.

And all the congregation of the sons of Israel departed from the presence of Moses. And they came, every one whose heart stirred him up, and every one whom His spirit made willing. They brought the LORD’s offering to the work of the tabernacle of the congregation, and for all His service, and for the holy garments. And the men came in together with the women, as many as were willing-hearted, bringing bracelets and earrings, and rings and ornaments, all jewels of gold. And everyone who offered waved a wave offering of gold to the LORD. And everyone with whom was found blue, and purple, and scarlet, and bleached linen, and goats’ hair, and red skins of rams, and badgers’ skins, brought them. Everyone lifting up an offering of silver and bronze brought the LORD’s offering. And everyone with whom was found acacia-wood for any work of the service, brought it. And every wise-hearted woman spun with her hands. And they brought spun yarn, blue, and purple, scarlet, and bleached linen. And all the women whose hearts were lifted up in wisdom spun goats’ hair. And the rulers brought onyx stones, and stones to be set, for the ephod and for the breast-pocket. And they brought spice and oil, for the light and for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense. The sons of Israel brought a willing offering to the LORD, every man and woman whose heart made them willing to bring for all kinds of work which the LORD had commanded to be made by the hand of Moses.

Classic 80’s montage.

And Moses said to the sons of Israel, See, the LORD has called the son of Uri the son of Hur, by the name Bezaleel, of the tribe of Judah. And He has filled him with the spirit of God in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all kinds of work, and to devise designs, to work in gold, and in silver, and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones to set, and in carving of wood, to make any kind of skillful work. And He has put in his heart that he may teach, he and Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with wisdom of heart to work all kinds of work; of the smith, and of the skillful worker, and of the embroiderer, in blue, and in purple, in scarlet, and in bleached linen, and of the weaver, of those who do any work, and of those who work out artful work.

Almost identical to Exodus 31.  What’s the fucking point?

Exodus 36
And Bezaleel and Aholiab shall work with everyone wise of heart to whom the LORD has given wisdom and intelligence, to know how to do every work of the service of the sanctuary, concerning all which the LORD had commanded. And Moses called Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise-hearted man in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, even everyone whose heart stirred him up to come, to do the work. And they received all the offerings from Moses, the offering which the sons of Israel had brought for the work of the service of the sanctuary, to make it. And they still brought to him free offerings every morning. And all the wise men who worked all the work of the sanctuary came, every man from his work which they made. And they spoke to Moses, saying, The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the LORD commanded to make. And Moses commanded, and they caused it to be known throughout the camp, saying, Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary. And the people were kept from bringing. For the stuff which they had was enough for all the work to make it, and too much.

No one is fucking read this at this point, so I can say anything that I want.  This book is a pile of steaming horseshit.

And every wise-hearted one among them that worked the work of the tabernacle, made ten curtains of fine twined bleached linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet. He made them with cherubs of skillful work. The length of one curtain was twenty-eight cubits, and the breadth of one curtain was four cubits. The curtains were all of one size. And he coupled the five curtains to one another, and he coupled the other five curtains to one another. And he made loops of blue on the edge of one curtain from the edge in the coupling. Likewise he made loops in the outermost side, in the coupling of the second curtain. He made fifty loops in one curtain, and he made fifty loops in the edge of the curtain which was in the coupling of the second. The loops held one to another. And he made fifty clasps of gold, and coupled the curtains to one another with the clasps. And it became one tabernacle.

Fuck you, and the 50 fucking loops and clasps.

And he made curtains of goats’ hair for the tent over the tabernacle. He made eleven curtains. The length of one curtain was thirty cubits, and four cubits the breadth of one curtain. The eleven curtains were of one size. And he coupled five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves. And he made fifty loops on the outermost edge of the curtain in the coupling, and he made fifty loops upon the edge of the curtains which coupled the second. And he made fifty clasps of bronze to couple the tent together, so that it might be one. And he made a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and a covering of dugong skins above. And he made boards for the tabernacle of acacia-wood, standing up. The length of a board was ten cubits, and the breadth of a board was one and a half cubits. By two pins the one board was connected, one to another. So he made for all the boards of the tabernacle. And he made boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side southward. And he made forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards, two sockets under one board for its two pins, and two sockets under another board for its two pins. And for the other side of the tabernacle, toward the north, he made twenty boards, and their forty sockets were of silver; two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board. And he made six boards for the sides of the tabernacle westward. And he made two boards for the corners of the tabernacle in the sides. And they were coupled beneath, and coupled together at the head of it, to one ring. So he did to both of them in both the corners. And there were eight boards. And their sockets were sixteen sockets of silver, two sockets under every board. 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 for the westward sides. And he made the middle bar to shoot through the boards from the one end to the other. And he overlaid the boards with gold, and made their rings of gold to be places for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold.

I hate this.

And he made a veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined bleached linen. He made it the work of an artisan, with cherubs. And he made for it four pillars of acacia. And he overlaid them with gold. Their hooks were of gold, and he cast four sockets of silver for them. And he made a screen for the tabernacle door, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined bleached linen, of needlework; and the five pillars of it, and their hooks. And he overlaid their capitals and their fillets with gold, but their five sockets were of bronze.

Rerun.

Exodus 37
And Bezaleel made the ark of acacia-wood: two cubits and a half long, and a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. And he overlaid it with pure gold inside and out, and made a crown of gold around it. And he cast four rings of gold for it, for the corners of it, even two rings on the one side of it and two rings on the other side of it. And he made staves of acacia-wood and overlaid them with gold. And he put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark, in order to bear the ark. And he made the mercy-seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half long, and one cubit and a half wide. And he made two cherubs of gold on the two ends of the mercy-seat. He made them of beaten work, one cherub here at one end, and one cherub there at the other end. He made the cherubs out of the mercy-seat on the two ends of it. And the cherubs were spreading out their wings above, covering the mercy-seat with their wings, their faces each toward the other. The faces of the cherubs were toward the mercy-seat.

Re-run, different tense.

And he made the table of acacia-wood. Two cubits long, a cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high. And he overlaid it with pure gold, and made for it a crown of gold all around. Also he made for it a border all around, of a hand’s breadth. And he made a crown of gold for the border of it all around. And he cast for it four rings of gold, and put the rings on the four corners that were in the four feet of it. The rings were near the border, the housings for the staves to carry the table. And he made the staves of acacia-wood, and overlaid them with gold, to carry the table. And he made the vessels which were on the table, its dishes and its spoons, and its bowls, and its pitchers by which a drink offering is made, of pure gold. And he made the lampstand of pure gold. He made the lampstand of beaten work; its shaft and its branch, its cups, its knobs, and its blossoms, were of the same. And six branches went out of the sides of it; three branches of the lampstand out of the one side of it, and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side of it. Three almond-like cups were on the one branch, a knob and a blossom; and three almond-like cups on the one branch, a knob and a blossom. So throughout the six branches going out of the lampstand. And on the lampstand were four almond-like cups, its knobs and its blossoms. And a knob was under two branches of the same, and a knob under two branches of the same, and a knob under two branches of the same, to the six branches going out of it. Their knobs and their branches were of the same; all of it was one beaten work of pure gold. And he made its seven lamps, and its snuffers, and its snuff-dishes, of pure gold. He made it of a talent of pure gold, and all the vessels of it.

Re-run, different tense.

And he made the incense altar of acacia-wood. Its length was a cubit, and its breadth a cubit, square. And its height was two cubits. Its horns were of the same. And he overlaid it with pure gold, the top of it and the sides of it all around, and the horns of it. Also he made for it a crown of gold all around. And he made two rings of gold for it under the crown of it, by the two corners of it, upon the two sides of it, to be places for the staves to bear it with. And he made the staves of acacia-wood, and overlaid them with gold. And he made the holy anointing oil, and the pure incense of sweet spices, the work of the perfumer.

Re-run, different tense.

Exodus 38
And he made the altar of burnt offering of acacia-wood. Its length was five cubits, and its breadth five cubits, square; and its height three cubits. And he made its horns on its four corners. Its horns were of it. And he overlaid it with bronze. And he made all the vessels of the altar, the pots, and the shovels, and the basins, the flesh-hooks, and the fire-pans. All the vessels of it he made of bronze. And he made a bronze grate of network for the altar, under the compass of it, beneath to the middle of it. And he cast four rings for the four ends of the grate of bronze, places for the staves. And he made the staves of acacia-wood and overlaid them with bronze. And he put the staves into the rings on the sides of the altar, to bear it with. He made it hollow with boards. And he made the laver of bronze, and its base bronze, out of the mirrors of serving women who assembled at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

Re-run, different tense.

And he made the court. On the south side southward the hangings of the court were of fine twined bleached linen, a hundred cubits. Their pillars were twenty, and their bronze sockets twenty. The hooks of the pillar and their bands were of silver. And for the north side, a hundred by the cubit, their pillars twenty, and their twenty sockets bronze. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were of silver. And for the west side were hangings of fifty cubits, their pillars ten, and their sockets ten. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were of silver. And for the east side eastward fifty cubits. The hangings of the one side were fifteen cubits, and their pillars three, and their sockets three. And for the other side of the court gate, on this hand and that hand, were hangings of fifteen cubits, their pillars three, and their sockets three. All the hangings of the court all around were of fine twined bleached linen. And the sockets for the pillars were of bronze. The hooks of the pillars and their bands were of silver. And the overlaying of their capitals was of silver. And all the pillars of the court were banded with silver. And the screen for the gate of the court was needlework: blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined bleached linen. And it was twenty cubits long, and the height and the width five cubits, to match the hangings of the court. And the pillars were four, and their bronze sockets four; their hooks silver, and the overlaying of their capitals and their bands silver. And all the pins of the tabernacle and of the court all around, were of bronze.

Re-run, different tense.

This is the sum of the tabernacle, of the tabernacle of testimony, as it was counted, according to the command of Moses, for the service of the Levites by the hand of Ithamar, the son of Aaron the priest. And Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, made all that the LORD commanded Moses. And with him was Aholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, an engraver, and a skillful workman, and an embroiderer in blue and in purple and in scarlet and bleached linen. All the gold that was used for the work in all the work of the sanctuary, even the gold of the offering, was twenty-nine talents and seven hundred thirty shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary. And the silver from those numbered of the congregation was a hundred talents, and seventeen hundred seventy-five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary; a bekah for every man, half a shekel, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for everyone that went to be numbered, from twenty years old and upward, for six hundred three thousand, five hundred fifty men. And the sockets of the sanctuary were cast of the hundred talents of silver, and the sockets of the veil also, a hundred sockets of the hundred talents, a talent for a socket. And he made hooks for the pillars out of the seventeen hundred seventy-five shekels, and overlaid their capitals and joined them. And the bronze of the wave offering was seventy talents, and twenty-four hundred shekels, and with it he made the sockets to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the bronze altar, and the bronze grate for it, and all the vessels of the altar, and the sockets of the court all around, and the sockets of the court gate, and all the pins of the tabernacle, and all the pins of the court all around bronze.

Re-run, different tense.

Exodus 39
And of the blue, and purple, and scarlet, they made woven garments for ministering in the sanctuary. And they made the holy garments for Aaron, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he made the ephod of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined bleached linen. And they beat the gold into thin plates, and cut threads to work it into the blue, and into the purple, and into the scarlet, and into the bleached linen, the work of an artisan. They made shoulder-pieces for it, to couple it together. It was coupled together by the two edges. And its fastening band which was on it, was of it, according to its work; gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined bleached linen, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And they made stones of onyx set in plaited work of gold, engraved as signets are engraved, with the names of the sons of Israel. And he put them on the shoulders of the ephod, stones for a memorial to the sons of Israel, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he made the breast-pocket a work of an artisan, like the work of the ephod, of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined bleached linen; it was square. They made the breast-pocket double. Its length was a span, and its breadth a span, doubled. And they set four rows of stones in it. One row was a ruby, a topaz, and a carbuncle, the first row. And the second row: an turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond. And the third row: a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst. And the fourth row: a chrysolite, an agate, and a jasper; set in plaited work of gold in their settings. And the stones were according to the names of the sons of Israel, twelve, according to their names, like the engravings of a signet, every one with its name according to the twelve tribes. And they made cords of chains upon the breast-pocket, of woven work of pure gold. And they made two plaitings of gold and two gold rings. And they put the two rings on the two ends of the breast-pocket. And they put the two cords of gold in the two rings on the ends of the breast-pocket. And the two ends of the two cords were fastened in the two plaitings. And they put them on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, on its front. And they made two rings of gold. And they put them on the two ends of the breast-pocket, on its border, on the side of the ephod inward. And they made two golden rings, and put them on the two sides of the ephod underneath, toward the front of it, near the other coupling of it, above to the band of the ephod. And they bound the breast-pocket by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a lace of blue, so that it might be above the band of the ephod, and so that the breast-pocket might not be loosened from the ephod, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he made the robe of the ephod of woven work, all of blue. And the opening in the middle of the robe was like the opening of a corselet, with a band around the opening, so that it might not tear. And they made upon the hems of the robe pomegranates of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined bleached linen. And they made bells of pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates upon the hems of the robe, all around, between the pomegranates: a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, all around the hem of the robe to minister in, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And they made the tunics of bleached linen of woven work for Aaron and for his sons. And they made a miter of bleached linen, and the headdress of the caps of bleached linen, and linen breeches of fine twined bleached linen, and a girdle of fine twined bleached linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, of needlework, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And they made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote upon it an inscription of the engravings of a signet, HOLINESS TO THE LORD. And they tied a lace of blue to it, in order to fasten it on high upon the miter, even as the LORD commanded Moses.

Re-run, different tense.

And all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation was finished. And the sons of Israel did according to all that the LORD commanded Moses. So they did. And they brought the tabernacle to Moses, the tent, and all its furniture, its clasps, its boards, its bars, and its pillars, and its sockets, and the covering of rams’ skins dyed red, and the covering of dugong skins, and the veil of the covering, the ark of the testimony, and its staves, and the mercy-seat, the table, and all its vessels, and the showbread, the pure lampstand, its lamps, even the lamps to be set in order, and all the vessels of it, and the oil for light, and the golden altar, and the anointing oil, and the sweet incense, and the screen for the tabernacle door, the bronze altar, and its grate of bronze, its staves, and all its vessels, the laver and its base, the curtains of the court, its pillars and its sockets, and the screen for the court gate, its cords, and its pins, and all the vessels of the service of the tabernacle for the tent of the congregation, the woven garments for ministering in the sanctuary, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and his sons’ garments, to minister in the priest’s office. According to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel made all the work. And Moses looked upon all the work, and, behold, they had done it. As the LORD commanded, even so they had done it. And Moses blessed them.

Re-run, different tense.

Exodus 40
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, You shall set up the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation on the first day of the first month. And you shall put the ark of the testimony in it, and you hall cover the ark with the veil. And you shall bring the table in, and set in order its arrangement. And you shall bring the lampstand in and light the lamps of it. And you shall set the altar of gold for the incense in front of the ark of the testimony, and put the screen of the door to the tabernacle. And you shall set the altar of the burnt offering in front of the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation. And you shall set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and shall put water in it. And you shall set up the court all around, and place the screen at the court gate. And you shall take the anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle, and all in it, and shall sanctify it and all the vessels of it. And it shall be holy. And you shall anoint the altar of the burnt offering, and all its vessels, and sanctify the altar. And it shall be a most holy altar. And you shall anoint the laver and its base, and sanctify it. And you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and wash them with water. And you shall put the holy garments on Aaron, and anoint him and sanctify him, so that he may minister to Me in the priest’s office. And you shall bring his sons and clothe them with tunics. And you shall anoint them, even as you anointed their father, so that they may minister to Me in the priest’s office. For their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood for their generations.

Re-run, different tense.

And Moses did so. According to all that the LORD commanded him, so he did. And it will be in the first month in the second year, on the first of the month, the tabernacle was reared up. And Moses reared up the tabernacle and fastened its sockets, and set up its boards, and put in its bars, and reared up its pillars. And he spread the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent above upon it, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he took and placed the Testimony into the ark, and set the staves on the ark, and put the mercy-seat on the ark from above. And he brought the ark into the tabernacle and set up the veil of the covering, and covered the Ark of Testimony, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he put the table in the tent of the congregation, on the side of the tabernacle northward, outside the veil. And he set the bread in order upon it before the LORD, even as the LORD had commanded Moses. And he put the lampstand in the tent of the congregation across from the table, on the side of the tabernacle southward. And he set up the lamps before the LORD, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he put the golden altar in the tent of the congregation in front of the veil. And he burned sweet incense on it, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he set up the screen at the door of the tabernacle. And he put the altar of burnt offering by the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation, and offered on it the burnt offering and the food offering, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and put water there, for washing. And Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet there. When they went into the tent of the congregation, and when they came near the altar, they washed, even as the LORD commanded Moses. And he reared up the court all around the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the screen of the court gate. And Moses finished the work.

Re-run, different tense.

And the cloud covered the tabernacle of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter into the tabernacle of the congregation because the cloud stayed on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel journeyed on in all their journeys. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not journey until the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the LORD was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, in all their journeys.

Re-run, different tense.

The entire second half of Exodus is almost unreadable.  Then…it fucking repeats.  It is bizarre, self contradictory and repetitive.  Was the author paid by the word?  The morals are terrible and short sighted, and the endless instructions on mundane items, down to fucking underwear…

 

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