Exodus 26:19
Ver. 19. And thou shall make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards,.... Or bases {s}, and which were properly the foundation of the tabernacle, on which it was settled and established; these sockets were the mortises for the two tenons of each board or plank to be placed in, and were as broad as the plank, and, joining each other, made one entire basis for the whole structure; each socket contained a talent of silver, and was made of the silver given at the numbering of the people, Ex 38:25, and a talent of silver, according to Bishop Cumberland, amounted to three hundred and fifty three pounds, eleven shillings and some odd pence of our money: by which may be judged the whole value of this silver foundation, which, with the four sockets of the vail, consisted of one hundred of them, which answer to the one hundred talents of silver collected at the above offering:
two sockets under one board for his two tenons, and two sockets under another board for his two tenons; and so in all the twenty boards, which took up the whole forty on the south side.{s} ynda "bases", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, Piscator, Drusius. Exodus 26:20Ver. 20. And for the second side of the tabernacle the north side,.... The direction of the tabernacle was east and west; at the east end was the entrance into the holy place, and at the west end the holy of holies; and the two sides were north and south; and as on the south side, so on the north[there shall be] twenty boards: just the same number as the laws of building required. Exodus 26:21Ver. 21. And their forty sockets of silver,.... answerable to the twenty boards, for their two tenons to be placed in as in mortises: two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board; and so under all the boards on the north side as on the south. Exodus 26:22Ver. 22. And for the sides of the tabernacle,.... Or the ends of it, the east and west, and the account begins with the west:westward thou shalt make six boards; so that the breadth of the tabernacle was but nine cubits, or four yards and a half, according to a common cubit; but two boards more placed at the two corners of the sides, next observed, added to the breadth of it. Exodus 26:23Ver. 23. And two boards shalt thou make for the corners of the tabernacle in the two sides. For the northwest and southwest corners, in the north and south sides; concerning which Dr. Lightfoot thus writes {t}: and the west end had six planks entire, besides a plank at either corner, joining end and sides together; these corner planks were of the same breadth that all the others were, and, thus set, the middle of the breadth of the one plank was laid close to the end of the south side, or to that plank that was furthest west; so that a quarter of a yard of the breadth of the corner plank was inward, to make up the tabernacle breadth, a quarter was taken up with the thickness of the side plank to which it joined, and a quarter lay outward: thus at the southwest, just so was it at the northwest corner: then count; the two corner planks were inward a quarter of a yard apiece, and the six planks that stood between them of three quarters apiece, behold five yards, just the breadth of the house between wall and wall: these corners knit end and side together, and were the strength of the building; as, adds he,"Christ is of his church, making Jews and Gentiles one spiritual temple.''{t} Ut supra. (Works, vol 1. p. 719.) Exodus 26:24Ver. 24. And they shall be coupled together beneath,.... At the bottom of the boards or planks:and they shall be coupled together above the head of it unto one ring at the top of the boards there was a ring, to which they were coupled and fastened, and so at the bottom of them, though not expressed: some understand this of all the planks, both at the two sides and at the west end; but it seems rather to respect only the corner planks, since it follows:thus shall it be for them both, they shall be for the two corners; which were coupled and joined alike at each corner as if they were twins, as the word used signifies; or the meaning is, that these were double boards, and so like twins, which were so closely put together that they seemed but one board; which was done that the corners might be thicker and stronger, and so for the greater firmness of the building. Exodus 26:25Ver. 25. And they shall be eight boards,.... Six at the west end and one at each corner, northwest and southwest:and their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets the same as those for the boards on both sides north and south: they were of the same metal, silver; and they were two under one board, to receive its two tenons as follows:two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board; and so under all eight, and which sockets joining with those of the two sides, and in all made ninety six, were the basis and foundation of the tabernacle, and was a figure of Christ, the only foundation of his church and people; and the several tenons of the boards joined into those sockets of silver may denote the union of the members of Christ and ministers of his word to him, and their dependence on him. Exodus 26:26Ver. 26. And thou shalt make bars of shittim wood, &e.] Which being put into rings or staples of gold, kept the boards tight, close, and firm together:five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle: for instance, the south side; four of these were placed, two at the upper end of the boards, and two at the lower end, and the fifth in the middle, particularly taken notice of, Ex 26:28, how long these bars were it is not said, but it is reasonable to conclude that they reached the length of the tabernacle, which was thirty cubits; and as it was not easy to get bars of such a length, the notion of Josephus {u} perhaps, may be right, that each two consisted of divers parts which joined one another, the head of one entering into the hollow of the other and as he supposes they were five cubits long, a row of them must have six parts, which went along the sides, north and south, and the west end two, which was but ten cubits.{u} Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 3. c. 6. sect. 3.) Exodus 26:27Ver. 27. And five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle,.... Suppose the north, these bars were disposed of in the same manner as those on the south side:and five bars for the boards of that side of the tabernacle; or the end of it, the west end, as follows:for the two sides westward; that is, the two corners at the west end, the southwest and the northwest corners; and these five bars reached from the one to the other, two at the upper part of the boards, and two at the lower part, and one in the middle. Exodus 26:28Ver. 28. And the middle bar in the midst of the boards shall reach from end to end. From east to west, as Jarchi interprets it; but this can only be said of the middle bar on the north and south sides of the tabernacle, for the middle bar at the west end was north to south: about this bar there is some difficulty, as that it is said to be "from end to end", as if that only was; whereas it is reasonable to suppose that the rest were so likewise; it may be, they might come somewhat short of reaching the end, whereas this did entirely; or rather the truer reason is, because the rest of the bars consisted of various parts; whereas this was a long bar of one entire piece, reaching from one end of the tabernacle to the other: likewise it is said to be "in the midst of the boards"; and the Jewish writers are generally of opinion, that it did not run along in rings as the other bars did, but the boards and planks being bored, this went through the thickness of the wood throughout; and in this they are followed by Arias Moatanus, Vatablus, Dr. Lightfoot, and others: but to this it may be objected, that the boards must be very thick indeed, even incredibly so, to admit of such a bore as to let in a bar of this kind, and is not so consistent with its being a portable house; and besides, when it was at any time taken down, in order to be removed, such a bar must give a great deal of trouble, and be in danger of being broke to pieces; besides, if it was thus covered in the boards, as it must be, what need was there that it should be overlaid with gold, as in the next verse? it is more probable, therefore, that it went not through the midst of the thickness of the wood, but in the middle of the length of the planks, and so expresses its different situation from the rest of the bars, which were at or towards the top and bottom of the planks, and this in the middle of them. It is not said of these bars, whether they were within or on the outside of the tabernacle; it is most likely they were on the outside, as Josephus {w} says they were; since they would not have made a good appearance within side, where they would have been always seen by the priests within, whereas being without they were covered with the curtains.{w} Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 3. c. 6. sect. 3.) Exodus 26:29Ver. 29. And thou shalt overlay the boards with gold,.... Not merely gild them, but cover them with thin plates of gold; and which, because it would take up a great quantity of gold, and make the boards very heavy, unless the plates were very thin, when they were taken down and carried from place to place, some have thought they were only glided:and make their rings of gold, [for] places for the bars; these were made of solid gold, and were as staples to let the bars into: and, according to Jarchi, there were two rings to every board:and thou shalt overlay the bars with gold: cover them with plates of gold; and these bars and staples of gold show how compact and firm the church of God is, through his almighty power, as well as how glorious and splendid it is by his grace. Exodus 26:30Ver. 30. And thou shall rear up the tabernacle,.... When thus finished, and all the furniture belonging to it completed:according to the fashion thereof, which was showed thee in the mount; this is the third time that this is observed to Moses in the account of the tabernacle; which shows how punctually God would have the pattern observed he had given him, and that all things might be particularly and exactly done according to it, see Heb 8:5. Exodus 26:31Ver. 31. And thou shalt make a vail,.... The use of this, as follows, was to divide the holy place from the most holy place in the tabernacle; it has its name from hardness, it being very stiff and strong, for it was made of thread six times doubled, and was four fingers thick, as the Jewish writers say: this vail may represent the sin of man, which separates between God and man, was removed by the death of Christ when the vail was rent, and so the way to heaven opened; or the obscurity of the legal dispensation, the Gospel being veiled under the shadows of the law, and the way into the holiest of all then not so manifest, and particularly the ceremonial law, which separated between Jew and Gentile, and is now abolished by the death of Christ; or rather it was typical of the human nature of Christ, his flesh, called in allusion to it the vail of his flesh, Heb 10:20. This vail was made ofblue, and purple, and scarlet, of fine twined linen of cunning work; it seems to have been made of the same materials, and in the same curious manner of workmanship with the curtains of the tabernacle, Ex 26:1, and was itself no other than a curtain, and so it is interpreted by some Jewish writers {x}. It being made of "fine linen" denotes the purity of Christ, of his nature, life, and righteousness; of "twined linen", his strength, courage and steadiness; "of blue, purple, and scarlet", the several graces of the Spirit, with which his human nature was adorned, his flaming zeal for his Father's glory and the good of his people, his bloody wounds, sufferings, and death, the preciousness of his blood, the dignity of his person, and his glorious exaltation, purple and scarlet being the colours wore by kings:with cherubim shall it be made; signifying either the ministration of angels to him in his incarnate state, or the mission of Gospel ministers by him, see Ps 139:15.{x} Vid. R. Sol. Urbin. Ohel Moed, fol. 37. 2. Exodus 26:32Ver. 32. And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim wood, overlaid with gold,.... For it was ten cubits long, and as many broad; and being of such a stiffness and thickness as it was, required so many pillars to support it: these pillars may signify the deity of Christ, which is the support of his human nature, and in which it has its personal subsistence, and gives all its actions and sufferings virtue and efficacy; and being of "shittim wood", which is incorruptible, may denote his eternity, and being covered with gold, his glory:their hooks shall be of gold; which were upon the tops of the pillars on which the vail was hung: and the pillars wereupon the four sockets of silver; which were properly the pedestals or feet of the pillars; and these sockets, into which the pillars were let and placed, and the hooks the vail hung by, may hint to the union of the two natures in Christ, who is God and man in one person, God manifest in the flesh; see So 5:15. Exodus 26:33Ver. 33. And thou shall hang up the vail under the taches,.... Or clasps, which coupled the two grand curtains, or pieces of tapestry, each consisting of five curtains, of which the tabernacle was made, Ex 26:6, and by this it seems that the place where they met, and were clasped, was where the vail was hung between the holy and the most holy place: for, as Dr. Lightfoot {y} observes, according to the division of the house was the division of the curtains, the vail that parted the holy from the most holy was hung just under the golden clasps that knit the five curtains together; so that five curtains lay over the holy place, and the other five over the most holy; but with this difference, the holy place was ten yards long, and the five curtains sewed together were just so broad, and so they covered only the top and sides, but hung not down at the end which was eastward; but the most holy was but five yards long, and the five curtains over that did not only cover the top, but also hung down at the west end to the silver bases; and of what he says of the goat hair curtains, and their brazen clasps or taches, and where they met, and what they covered, See Gill on "Ex 26:12",that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony; the ark in which the testimony or law of God, testifying his will, was put; of which see Ex 25:10, &c. this was to be set in the most holy place, as being holy, spiritual, just, and good; and as being fulfilled by Christ, signified by the ark in which it was, through whose righteousness alone there is admission into the holy of holies, by which this law is fulfilled, magnified, and made honourable:and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy; which was so thick, that there was no seeing through it; and none might enter by it into the holiest of all but the high priest, and he only on the day of atonement; and into the holy place might none come but the priests, to do the service of the sanctuary. The holy place was typical of the church on earth, where all the saints, who are priests to God, worship, and the most holy of heaven, the perfect state of bliss and happiness.{y} Works, vol, 1. p. 718. Exodus 26:34Ver. 34. And thou shalt put the mercy seat upon ark of the testimony,.... With the cherubim of glory overshadowing it; all which were a representation of the way of man's salvation flowing from the mercy and grace of God, through the propitiation by Christ, and his perfect righteousness, by which the law is fulfilled; and all this is published in the Gospel by the ministers of it, signified by the cherubim: and these are all the things that were "in the most holy place"; and they were placed at the west end of it. Exodus 26:35Ver. 35. And thou shalt set the table without the vail,.... The table of shewbread, of which see Ex 25:23, this was not to be within the vail, but without it, in the holy place: and the candlestick opposite the table, of which see Ex 25:31, &c. signifying, that in the church of God, in the present state of things, which the holy place was an emblem of, there are both food and light: the candlestick was placedon the side of the tabernacle, toward the south; according to Jarchi, two cubits and a half from the side of it:and thou shalt put the table on the north side; of the tabernacle, directly opposite the candlestick, two cubits and a half from the south side, as the same writer says; Exodus 26:36Ver. 36. And thou shalt make an hanging for the door of the tent,.... At the east end of the tabernacle, which lay open and exposed, and for which as yet there was no provision; the west end of it, where stood the holy of holies, was enclosed with six boards, and two corner ones, Ex 26:22 and the linen curtains hung down there to the silver bases, and so did the curtains of goats' hair, even to the ground, and half a curtain to spare, see Ex 26:12 but for the east end, or entrance into the tabernacle, there was nothing till now ordered, only the sixth curtain of the goats' hair curtains was there turned up double, Ex 26:9, but now here an "hanging" is ordered, or rather a "covering" {z}, as the word signifies; Jarchi calls it a vail; and this was instead of a door to the tabernacle, and divided the holy place, into which only the priests might enter, from the place where the people stood and worshipped: and this also was madeof blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen; as was the vail between the holy and the holy of holies; only with this difference, this waswrought with needle work, and that was of "cunning work": the difference between these two, "Rokem" and "Chosheb", was, as Ben Melech from the Misnah relates, that "Rokem" is the work of a needle, and therefore but one face or figure is seen, that is, it is only seen on one side; but "Chosheb" is the work of a weaver, and therefore two faces or figures are seen, that is, they are seen on both sides; and with this account Maimonides agrees, See Gill on "Ex 26:1", besides this hanging, Josephus {a} tells us there was another of linen, of the same size with this, and which covered it, and preserved it from the weather, and which on festival days was turned back, that the people might have a prospect of the other; just as there were curtains of goats' hair to preserve the linen ones.{z} Kom "operimentum", Montanus; "tegumentum", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "velum", Tigurine version, Drusius. {a} Antiqu. l. 3. c. 6. sect. 4. Exodus 26:37Ver. 37. And thou shalt make for the hanging five pillars of shittim wood,.... One at each corner of the entrance into the tabernacle, and the other three at a proper distance from each other, so as to make four ways for the priests to enter in at; as there might very well be, since there was a breadth of ten cubits, or five yards or more:and overlay them with gold; with plates of gold, for a gild would soon wear off by continual use in passing and repassing. This is to be understood not of the whole pillars, but of the chapiters, heads, tops, or knobs of them, and of their fillets or girdles; in some parts of them the wood appearing, as is plain from Ex 36:38:and their hooks shall be of gold; on which the hanging, covering, or vail was hung:and thou shalt cast five sockets of brass for them; for the pillars to stand upon them, and were of a meaner metal than those on which the pillars for the vail before mentioned; that being the entrance into the holy of holies, where the divine Majesty dwelt, this into the holy place where the priests did their service.
John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible.