Ezekiel 40:4

40:4 The man said to me, “Son of man, watch closely, listen carefully, and pay attention ¹  to everything I show you, for you have been brought here so that I can show it to you. ²  Tell the house of Israel everything you see.”

Exodus 25:40

25:40 Now be sure to make ³  them according to the pattern you were shown ⁴  on the mountain. ⁵ 

Exodus 25:1

The Materials for the Sanctuary

25:1 ⁶ The Lord spoke to Moses:

Exodus 28:11

28:11 You are to engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel with the work of an engraver in stone, like the engravings of a seal; ⁷  you are to have them set ⁸  in gold filigree ⁹  settings.

Exodus 28:19

28:19 and the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst;

¹ tn Heb “look with your eyes, hear with your ears, and set your mind on.”

² tn Heb “in order to show (it) to you.”

³ tn The text uses two imperatives: “see and make.” This can be interpreted as a verbal hendiadys, calling for Moses and Israel to see to it that they make these things correctly.

⁴ tn The participle is passive, “caused to see,” or, “shown.”

⁵ sn The message of this section surely concerns access to God. To expound this correctly, though, since it is an instruction section for building the lampstand, the message would be: God requires that his people ensure that light will guide the way of access to God. The breakdown for exposition could be the instructions for preparation for light (one lamp, several branches), then instructions for the purpose and maintenance of the lamps, and then the last verse telling the divine source for the instructions. Naturally, the metaphorical value of light will come up in the study, especially from the NT. So in the NT there is the warning that if churches are unfaithful God will remove their lampstand, their ministry (Rev 2-3).

⁶ sn Now begin the detailed instructions for constructing the tabernacle of Yahweh, with all its furnishings. The first paragraph introduces the issue of the heavenly pattern for the construction, calls for the people to make willing offerings (vv. 2-7), and explains the purpose for these offerings (vv. 8-9). The message here is that God calls his people to offer of their substance willingly so that his sanctuary may be made.

⁷ sn Expert stone or gem engravers were used to engrave designs and names in identification seals of various sizes. It was work that skilled artisans did.

⁸ tn Or “you will mount them” (NRSV similar).

⁹ tn Or “rosettes,” shield-like frames for the stones. The Hebrew word means “to plait, checker.”