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Pentateuch · WORLD ENGLISH BIBLE

Exodus 40

Israel's deliverance, covenant at Sinai, God's presence, and a people formed for worship.

Old Testament

Exodus 40

1The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

2“On the first day of the first month you shall raise up the tabernacle of the Tent of Meeting.

3You shall put the ark of the covenant in it, and you shall screen the ark with the veil.

4You shall bring in the table, and set in order the things that are on it. You shall bring in the lamp stand, and light its lamps.

5You shall set the golden altar for incense before the ark of the covenant, and put the screen of the door to the tabernacle.

6“You shall set the altar of burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the Tent of Meeting.

7You shall set the basin between the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and shall put water therein.

8You shall set up the court around it, and hang up the screen of the gate of the court.

9“You shall take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it, and shall make it holy, and all its furniture, and it will be holy.

10You shall anoint the altar of burnt offering, with all its vessels, and sanctify the altar, and the altar will be most holy.

11You shall anoint the basin and its base, and sanctify it.

12“You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and shall wash them with water.

13You shall put on Aaron the holy garments; and you shall anoint him, and sanctify him, that he may minister to me in the priest’s office.

14You shall bring his sons, and put tunics on them.

15You shall anoint them, as you anointed their father, that they may minister to me in the priest’s office. Their anointing shall be to them for an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.”

16Moses did so. According to all that the LORD commanded him, so he did.

17In the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was raised up.

18Moses raised up the tabernacle, and laid its sockets, and set up its boards, and put in its bars, and raised up its pillars.

19He spread the covering over the tent, and put the roof of the tabernacle above on it, as the LORD commanded Moses.

20He took and put the covenant into the ark, and set the poles on the ark, and put the mercy seat above on the ark.

21He brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the veil of the screen, and screened the ark of the covenant, as the LORD commanded Moses.

22He put the table in the Tent of Meeting, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside of the veil.

23He set the bread in order on it before the LORD, as the LORD commanded Moses.

24He put the lamp stand in the Tent of Meeting, opposite the table, on the south side of the tabernacle.

25He lit the lamps before the LORD, as the LORD commanded Moses.

26He put the golden altar in the Tent of Meeting before the veil;

27and he burned incense of sweet spices on it, as the LORD commanded Moses.

28He put up the screen of the door to the tabernacle.

29He set the altar of burnt offering at the door of the tabernacle of the Tent of Meeting, and offered on it the burnt offering and the meal offering, as the LORD commanded Moses.

30He set the basin between the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and put water therein, with which to wash.

31Moses, Aaron, and his sons washed their hands and their feet there.

32When they went into the Tent of Meeting, and when they came near to the altar, they washed, as the LORD commanded Moses.

33He raised up the court around the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the screen of the gate of the court. So Moses finished the work.

34Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the LORD’s glory filled the tabernacle.

35Moses wasn’t able to enter into the Tent of Meeting, because the cloud stayed on it, and the LORD’s glory filled the tabernacle.

36When the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward, throughout all their journeys;

37but if the cloud wasn’t taken up, then they didn’t travel until the day that it was taken up.

38For the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.

READ IN CONTEXT

Before applying this chapter

Israel's deliverance, covenant at Sinai, God's presence, and a people formed for worship. Read Exodus 40 within the complete Exodus overview, and use the contextual Bible reading guide before forming a personal application. Chapter divisions aid navigation, but the literary unit may begin earlier or continue into the next chapter.

Observe first

Mark repeated words, changes of speaker, commands, promises, contrasts, questions, and the relationship between paragraphs.

Apply responsibly

Distinguish description from command and immediate audience from later readers before forming a personal application.

TEXT-DERIVED READING NOTES

What to notice in Exodus 40

Exodus 40 contains 38 verses and about 769 words in this translation. These observations come from the chapter itself; they are prompts for close reading, not claims about its only possible meaning.

The opening movement

Verse 1 begins: “The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,” Ask what situation, voice, image, or argument this opening establishes for everything that follows.

The closing movement

Verse 38 closes: “For the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.” Compare the ending with the opening and note what changed, resolved, intensified, or remained open.

Vocabulary worth tracing

Recurring or prominent content words include tabernacle, moses, tent, meeting, altar, commanded. Follow where each word appears and whether its meaning shifts with the speaker or setting.

COMMON QUESTIONS

About Exodus 40

Which Bible translation is shown here?+

This page reproduces the World English Bible Protestant edition (WEBP), a modern-English translation dedicated to the public domain.

How should I cite a specific verse?+

Use the book, chapter, and verse—for example, Exodus 40:1—and name the World English Bible if the wording matters. Each verse number above is a direct anchor link.

Does the chapter number define the complete literary unit?+

Not always. Chapter and verse numbers were added for navigation. Check the paragraphs, scenes, poetic stanzas, or argument before and after this chapter.

A SMALL NEXT STEP

You do not have to have everything figured out.

Begin with one honest question, one passage read carefully, and one faithful next step.

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