Exodus 36: More than enough is brought, and the curtains and boards are made

In plain English: Bezalel and Oholiab are to work with every wise-hearted (skilled) man in whom Yahweh has put wisdom and understanding to know how to do all the work for the service of the sanctuary, according to all that Yahweh has commanded."

In plain English: Moses called Bezalel and Oholiab, and every wise-hearted man in whose heart Yahweh had put wisdom, everyone whose heart stirred him up to come to the work and do it.

In plain English: They received from Moses all the offering that the Israelites had brought for the work of the service of the sanctuary, to make it. They kept bringing free will offerings to him every morning.

In plain English: All the wise men who were doing all the work of the sanctuary each came from the work he was doing.

In plain English: They spoke to Moses, saying, "The people have brought much more than enough for the service of the work that Yahweh commanded to make."

In plain English: Moses gave a command, and they had it announced throughout the camp: "Let no man or woman make anything more as an offering for the sanctuary." So the people were held back from bringing.

In plain English: For what they had was enough to do all the work, and more than enough.

In plain English: All who were wise-hearted among those who did the work made the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twisted linen and of blue, purple, and scarlet. They made them (literally: he made them) with cherubim, the work of a skilled workman.

Good to know: This verse begins with "they made", but the Hebrew has "he made" at its end. From verse 9 to the end of chapter 38, the Hebrew verbs for making, joining, overlaying and casting all read "he", and chapter 36 does not say who he is. Exodus 37:1 begins "Bezalel made the ark", and 38:22 says Bezalel made all that Yahweh commanded Moses. Chapter 39 goes back and forth between "they" and "he".

In plain English: The length of each curtain was twenty-eight cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits. All the curtains were the same size (literally: had one measure).

In plain English: He joined five curtains to one another, and the other five curtains he joined to one another.

In plain English: He made loops of blue on the edge of the one curtain, at the end of the joined set. He did the same on the edge of the outermost curtain in the second joined set.

In plain English: He made fifty loops on the one curtain, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain in the second joined set. The loops were opposite one another.

In plain English: He made fifty gold clasps and joined the curtains to one another with the clasps, so that the tabernacle was one whole.

In plain English: He made curtains of goats' hair for a covering (literally: for a tent) over the tabernacle. He made eleven curtains.

In plain English: The length of each curtain was thirty cubits, and the width of each curtain four cubits. The eleven curtains were the same size.

In plain English: He joined five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves.

Good to know: Exodus 26:9 ends with a further instruction: "double over the sixth curtain in the forefront of the tent". 26:12 and 13 say how the part that is left over hangs at the back and the sides of the tabernacle. This chapter has none of the three.

In plain English: He made fifty loops on the edge of the outermost curtain in the one joined set, and fifty loops on the edge of the outermost curtain in the second joined set.

In plain English: He made fifty bronze clasps to join the tent together, so that it was one.

In plain English: He made a covering for the tent of rams' skins dyed red, and above that a covering of sea cow hides.

In plain English: He made the boards for the tabernacle of acacia wood, standing upright.

In plain English: Each board was ten cubits long and a cubit and a half wide.

In plain English: Each board had two tenons (literally: hands), joined to one another. He made all the boards of the tabernacle this way.

In plain English: He made the boards for the tabernacle: twenty boards for the south side.

In plain English: He made forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards: two sockets under one board for its two tenons, and two sockets under another board for its two tenons.

In plain English: For the second side of the tabernacle, the north side, he made twenty boards

In plain English: and their forty sockets of silver: two sockets under one board and two sockets under another board.

In plain English: For the far side of the tabernacle, to the west, he made six boards.

In plain English: He made two boards for the corners of the tabernacle at the far side.

In plain English: They were double at the bottom, and together they were whole up to the top, to one ring. He did this to both of them for the two corners.

In plain English: There were eight boards with their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets: two sockets under every board.

In plain English: He made bars of acacia wood: five for the boards on one side of the tabernacle,

In plain English: five bars for the boards on the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards on the far side, to the west.

In plain English: He made the middle bar to pass through in the middle of the boards from end to end.

In plain English: He overlaid the boards with gold. He made their rings of gold, as places for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold.

In plain English: He made the veil of blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twisted linen, with cherubim. He made it the work of a skilled workman.

In plain English: He made four pillars of acacia for it and overlaid them with gold. Their hooks were of gold. He cast four sockets of silver for them.

In plain English: He made a screen for the door of the Tent, of blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twisted linen, the work of an embroiderer,

In plain English: and its five pillars with their hooks. He overlaid their capitals (tops) and their fillets (bands) with gold, and their five sockets were of bronze.