Exodus 35:30

And Moses said unto the children of Israel,.... After they had brought their several freewill offerings: see; observe, take notice of this, for your encouragement, that your service will not be in

And Moses said unto the children of Israel, See, the LORD hath called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; See, the Lord hath ... Moses had made this communication before.

AND AHOLIAB SET OVER THE WORK.(30-35) This passage is the sequel to Exodus 31:1-6, where Bezaleel and Aholiab were designated for their respective offices, and follows closely the order, and even the wording, of that passage. The verbal resemblance is even greater in the original than in the Authorised Version. The only additions made are in Exodus 35:34-35. (34) He hath put in his heart that he may teach.—It was essential that the two master-craftsmen should be able to instruct their subordinates, to whom the actual accomplishment of the works which they designed had to be committed. God specially qualified them to act as instructors. Both he and Aholiab.—Aholiab, though subordinate to Bezaleel, was the director of his own department, that of weaving and embroidery (Exodus 38:23), and had to instruct in it as Bezaleel had in his. (35) Them hath he filled with wisdom of heart.—See Notes 1 and 2 on Exodus 28:3; and comp. Exodus 31:3. Of the engraver.—Rather, of the artificer. The word used is a generic one, equally applicable to workers in stone, wood, and metal. Of the cunning workman.—Rather, of the skilful weaver. (See the last Note on Exodus 26:1.) The “skilful weaver” (khoshêb) was the man who wove a patterned fabric. The ordinary “weaver” (’orêg) wove a plain one. The “embroiderer” (rokêm) adorned a fabric of either kind with the needle.

Verse 30. The Lord hath called by name Bezaleel] See this subject discussed at large in the note on Exodus 28:3, See Clarke on Exodus 28:3, where the subject of superseding the work of the hand by the extra use of machinery is particularly considered. 1. FROM the nature of the offerings made for the service of the tabernacle, we see of what sort the spoils were which the Israelites brought out of Egypt: gold, silver, brass, blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen, rams' skins dyed red, what we call badgers' skins, oil, spices, incense, onyx stones, and other stones, the names of which are not here mentioned. They must also have brought looms, spinning wheels, instruments for cutting precious stones, anvils, hammers, furnaces, melting-pots, with a vast variety of tools for the different artists employed on the work of the tabernacle, viz., smiths, joiners, carvers, gilders, c. 2. God could have erected his tabernacle without the help or skill of man but he condescended to employ him. As all are interested in the worship of God, so all should bear a part in it; here God employs the whole congregation: every male and female, with even their sons and their daughters, and the very ornaments of their persons, are given to raise and adorn the house of God. The women who had not ornaments, and could neither give gold nor silver, could spin goat's hair, and the Lord graciously employs them in this work, and accepts what they can give and what they can do, for they did it with a willing mind; they were wise of heart - had learned a useful business, their hearts were lifted up in the work, Exodus 35:21, and all felt it a high privilege to be able to put only a nail in the holy place. By the free-will offerings of the people the tabernacle was erected, and all the costly utensils belonging to it provided. This was the primitive mode of providing proper places for Divine worship; and as it was the primitive, so it is the most rational mode. Taxes levied by law for building or repairing churches were not known in the ancient times of religious simplicity. It is an honour to be permitted to do any thing for the support of public worship; and he must have a strange, unfeeling, and ungodly heart, who does not esteem it a high privilege to have a stone of his own laying or procuring in the house of God. How easily might all the buildings necessary for the purpose of public worship be raised, if the money that is spent in needless self-indulgence by ourselves, our sons, and our daughters, were devoted to this purpose! By sacrifices of this kind the house of the Lord would be soon built, and the top-stone brought on with shouting, Grace, grace unto it!