BIBLE CHAPTER STUDY
Exodus 40: The Tabernacle Erected and Filled with Glory
Moses erects the tabernacle, arranges its furniture, anoints it with the holy oil, consecrates Aaron and his sons, and the glory of Jehovah fills the dwelling as the cloud guides Israel's journeys.
Scripture
1And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying,
2On the first day of the first month shalt thou rear up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting.
3And thou shalt put therein the ark of the testimony, and thou shalt screen the ark with the veil.
4And thou shalt bring in the table, and set in order the things that are upon it; and thou shalt bring in the candlestick, and light the lamps thereof.
5And thou shalt set the golden altar for incense before the ark of the testimony, and put the screen of the door to the tabernacle.
6And thou shalt set the altar of burnt-offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting.
7And thou shalt set the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar, and shalt put water therein.
8And thou shalt set up the court round about, and hang up the screen of the gate of the court.
9And thou shalt take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle, and all that is therein, and shalt hallow it, and all the furniture thereof: and it shall be holy.
10And thou shalt anoint the altar of burnt-offering, and all its vessels, and sanctify the altar: and the altar shall be most holy.
11And thou shalt anoint the laver and its base, and sanctify it.
12And thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons unto the door of the tent of meeting, and shalt wash them with water.
13And thou shalt put upon Aaron the holy garments; and thou shalt anoint him, and sanctify him, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office.
14And thou shalt bring his sons, and put coats upon them;
15and thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office: and their anointing shall be to them for an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations.
16Thus did Moses: according to all that Jehovah commanded him, so did he.
17And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was reared up.
18And Moses reared up the tabernacle, and laid its sockets, and set up the boards thereof, and put in the bars thereof, and reared up its pillars.
19And he spread the tent over the tabernacle, and put the covering of the tent above upon it; as Jehovah commanded Moses.
20And he took and put the testimony into the ark, and set the staves on the ark, and put the mercy-seat above upon the ark:
21and he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the veil of the screen, and screened the ark of the testimony; as Jehovah commanded Moses.
22And he put the table in the tent of meeting, upon the side of the tabernacle northward, without the veil.
23And he set the bread in order upon it before Jehovah; as Jehovah commanded Moses.
24And he put the candlestick in the tent of meeting, over against the table, on the side of the tabernacle southward.
25And he lighted the lamps before Jehovah; as Jehovah commanded Moses.
26And he put the golden altar in the tent of meeting before the veil:
27and he burnt thereon incense of sweet spices; as Jehovah commanded Moses.
28And he put the screen of the door to the tabernacle.
29And he set the altar of burnt-offering at the door of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and offered upon it the burnt-offering and the meal-offering; as Jehovah commanded Moses.
30And he set the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water therein, wherewith to wash.
31And Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet thereat;
32when they went into the tent of meeting, and when they came near unto the altar, they washed; as Jehovah commanded Moses.
33And he reared up the court round about 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 glory of Jehovah filled the tabernacle.
35And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of meeting, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of Jehovah filled the tabernacle.
36And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward, throughout all their journeys:
37but if the cloud was not taken up, then they journeyed not till the day that it was taken up.
38For the cloud of Jehovah was upon the tabernacle by day, and there was fire therein by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.
What this passage means
Exodus 40 divides into two movements: divine instructions for setting up the tabernacle (vv. 1–16) and Moses' careful execution of those orders (vv. 17–33). The repetition of the phrase 'as Jehovah commanded Moses' throughout the second half emphasizes obedience: every item—the ark, table, lampstand, altars, laver, and courtyard—is placed exactly where the earlier chapters of Exodus prescribed. The chapter thereby closes the long literary arc that began with the instructions in chapters 25–31.
The middle section (vv. 9–15) focuses on sanctification through the anointing oil. Both the objects and the priests are consecrated, and Aaron's sons receive the same anointing as their father, establishing 'an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations' (v. 15). This is the only place in Exodus where the priesthood is formally installed, and it ties the tabernacle's holiness directly to the lineage of those who serve before it.
The climactic event comes in verses 34–38: the cloud covers the tent of meeting and the glory of Jehovah fills the tabernacle, so that Moses himself cannot enter. The same cloud that had guided Israel from Egypt (Exodus 13:21) now rests permanently above the sanctuary, and its movement signals when the people break camp. The chapter thus presents the tabernacle as both the place where God dwells among his people and the center from which he directs their journey through the wilderness.
Context
Exodus 40 closes the book. The tabernacle instructions given in chapters 25–31 are now carried out, with the architectural details of chapters 36–39 brought together in one sequential narrative of assembly and anointing. The date given in verse 17 ('the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month') anchors this moment at the start of the second year after the exodus, after the encampment at Sinai (Exodus 19:1). The chapter forms a literary frame with the earlier vision of God's glory resting on Sinai (Exodus 24:15–18), but now the glory descends on the tabernacle itself.
Verses 36–38 transform the tabernacle from a static structure into the pivot of Israel's wilderness journey. The cloud by day and fire by night, which had earlier gone before the people on the road, now reside above the tent. The narrative ends without Israel entering the land, leaving the tabernacle's mobile role to be developed in Numbers. Cross references such as Numbers 9:15 and Psalms 78:14 pick up precisely this cloud-and-fire imagery, while 1 Kings 8:11 and 2 Chronicles 7:2 echo the moment when the glory fills the temple in a way that excludes the priests from entering.
Key words in the original
- H4908 Mishkan (מִשְׁכַּן) — 'tabernacle, dwelling.' Used throughout Exodus 25–40 for the portable sanctuary; the word pictures a place where God resides among his people.
- H4150 Mo'ed (מוֹעֵד) — 'meeting, appointed time/place.' 'Tent of meeting' (אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד) names the tabernacle as the place of divine appointment and encounter.
- H6965 Qûm (קוּם) in the hiphil form 'taqîm' (תָּקִים) — 'to set up, raise, establish.' The verb in verse 2 frames the whole chapter around the raising of the sanctuary.
Related verses
- Numbers 9:15 Numbers 9:15 records the same moment — the cloud covering the tabernacle on the day it was reared up with a fiery appearance by night — confirming that Exodus 40:34–38 and Numbers 9 form a single narrative thread about God's presence above the tent.
- 1 Kings 8:11 At Solomon's temple dedication the priests likewise cannot stand to minister because the cloud and glory of Jehovah fill the house. The pattern in Exodus 40 becomes the template for every later sanctuary: God's glory arrives and displaces normal access.
- Psalms 78:14 The psalmist compresses the wilderness journey into a single image: God led Israel by cloud in the day and by a light of fire at night. This picks up the closing lines of Exodus 40 (vv. 36–38) and presents the tabernacle as the source of that ongoing guidance.
Common questions
Why does Exodus 40 repeat the phrase 'as Jehovah commanded Moses'?
The repetition emphasizes that every element—the ark, table, lampstand, altars, laver, and courtyard—is placed exactly as God instructed in chapters 25–31. It frames the chapter as the faithful fulfillment of those earlier commands and highlights Moses' complete obedience.
What does the anointing of the tabernacle and priests accomplish?
Verses 9–15 show that the anointing oil consecrates both the objects and the people, setting them apart as holy. The priests receive the oil 'for an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations,' linking the holiness of the sanctuary to the ongoing priestly line.
Why is Moses unable to enter the tent of meeting at the end of the chapter?
The cloud abides on the tent and the glory of Jehovah fills the tabernacle, a presence so overwhelming that even Moses cannot enter. The scene portrays God's glory occupying the sanctuary and signals that Israel's journey from this point will be directed by the movement of that same cloud and fire.