Setting Up the Holy Tent

40 Then the Lord said to Moses: ² “On the first day of the first month, set up the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], which is the Meeting Tent. ³ Put the Ark of the ·Agreement [Covenant; Treaty; ^LTestimony; 25:10] in it and ·hang the curtain in front of the Ark [^Lscreen the Ark with a curtain]. ⁴ Bring in the table [25:23–30] and arrange ·everything on the table that should be there [^Lits setting]. Then bring in the ·lampstand [^LMenorah; 25:31–40] and set up its lamps. ⁵ Put the gold altar for ·burning incense [^Loffering smoke; 30:1–6] in front of the Ark of the ·Agreement [Covenant; Treaty; ^LTestimony], and put the ·curtain [screen] at the entrance to the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle].

⁶ “Put the altar of burnt offerings [27:1–8] in front of the entrance of the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], the Meeting Tent. ⁷ Put the bowl [30:17–21] between the Meeting Tent and the altar, and put water in it. ⁸ Set up the courtyard ·around the Holy Tent [^Lall around], and put the ·curtain [screen] at the ·entry [^Lgate] to the courtyard.

⁹ “Use the ·special [anointing] olive oil and ·pour it on [^Lanoint] the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] and everything in it, in order to ·give the Tent and all that is in it for service to the Lord [sanctify/consecrate it and all its utensils/tools]. They will be holy. ¹⁰ ·Pour the special oil on [^LAnoint] the altar for burnt offerings and on all its ·tools [utensils]. ·Give the altar for service to God [Consecrate/Sanctify the altar], and it will be ·very holy [^Ta holy of holies]. ¹¹ Then ·pour the special olive oil on [^Lanoint] the bowl and the base under it so that they will be ·given for service to God [consecrated; sanctified].

¹² “Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the Meeting Tent, and wash them with water. ¹³ Then put the ·holy [sacred] clothes on Aaron. ·Pour the special oil on [^LAnoint] him [Ps. 133], and ·give him for service to God [^Lconsecrate/sanctify him] so that he may serve me as a priest. ¹⁴ Bring his sons and put the inner robes [28:39–41] on them. ¹⁵ ·Pour the special oil on [^LAnoint] them in the same way that you ·appointed [^Lanointed] their father as priest so that they may also serve me as priests. ·Pouring oil on [^LAnointing] them will make them a family of priests, they and their descendants ·from now on [^Lthroughout their generations].” ¹⁶ Moses did everything that the Lord commanded him.

¹⁷ So the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] was set up on the first day of the first month during the second ·year after they left Egypt [^Lyear]. ¹⁸ When Moses set up the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], he put the bases in place, and he put the frames on the bases. Next he put ·the crossbars through the rings of the frames [^Lin the poles] and set up the ·posts [pillars]. ¹⁹ After that, Moses spread ·the cloth over the Holy Tent [^Lthe tent over the Tabernacle] and put the covering over it, just as the Lord commanded.

²⁰ Moses put the ·stone tablets that had the Agreement written on them [Covenant; Testimony; Treaty] into the Ark. He put the poles ·through the rings of [^Lon] the Ark and put the ·lid [mercy seat; atonement cover] on it. ²¹ Next he brought the Ark into the ·Tent [Tabernacle] and hung the curtain to ·cover [screen] the Ark [^Lof the Testimony], just as the Lord commanded him.

²² Moses put the table in the Meeting Tent on the north side of the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] in front of the curtain. ²³ Then he ·put [arranged] the bread ·on the table [^Lin rows] before the Lord, just as the Lord commanded him. ²⁴ Moses put the lampstand [^LMenorah] in the Meeting Tent on the south side of the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] across from the table. ²⁵ Then he put the lamps on the lampstand before the Lord, just as the Lord commanded him.

²⁶ Moses put the gold altar for burning incense in the Meeting Tent in front of the curtain. ²⁷ Then he ·burned [^Lturned into smoke] sweet-smelling incense on it, just as the Lord commanded him. ²⁸ Then he hung the ·curtain [screen] at the entrance to the ·Holy Tent [^LTabernacle].

²⁹ He put the altar for burnt offerings [Lev. 1] at the entrance to the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], the Meeting Tent, and offered a whole burnt offering and ·grain [^Lgift; tribute; Lev. 3] offerings on it, just as the Lord commanded him. ³⁰ Moses put the bowl [30:17–21] between the Meeting Tent and the altar for burnt offerings, and he put water in it for washing. ³¹ Moses, Aaron, and Aaron’s sons used this water to wash their hands and feet [^Ccleansing rituals]. ³² They washed themselves every time they entered the Meeting Tent and every time they went near the altar for burnt offerings, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

³³ Then Moses set up the courtyard around the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] and the altar, and he put up the ·curtain [screen] at the entry to the courtyard. So Moses finished the work.

The Cloud over the Holy Tent

³⁴ Then the cloud covered the Meeting Tent [^Crepresenting God’s presence], and the glory of the Lord filled the Holy Tent [^Crepresenting his manifest presence]. ³⁵ Moses could not enter the Meeting Tent, because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle].

³⁶ When the cloud rose from the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle], the Israelites would begin to travel, ³⁷ but as long as the cloud ·stayed on the Holy Tent [^Ldid not rise], they did not travel. They stayed in that place until the cloud rose. ³⁸ So the cloud of the Lord was over the ·Holy Tent [Tabernacle] during the day, and there was a fire in the cloud at night. So all the ·Israelites [^Lhouse of Israel] could see the cloud while they traveled.