Éxodo 35

VBL · Chapter 35/40

1Moisés convocó a todos los israelitas y les dijo: “Esto es lo que el Señor nos ha ordenado hacer:

2Seis días pueden trabajar, pero el séptimo día debe ser un santo sábado de descanso para el Señor. Cualquiera que haga cualquier trabajo en el día de reposo debe ser asesinado.

3Noenciendan fuego en ninguna de sus casas en el día de reposo”.

4Moisés también les dijo a todos los israelitas: “Esto es lo que el Señor ha ordenado:

5Recojan una ofrenda al Señor de lo que poseen. Todo el que quiera debe traer una ofrenda al Señor: oro, plata y bronce;

6hilos azules, púrpura y carmesí; lino y pelo de cabra finamente tejidos;

7pieles de carnero curtidas y cuero fino; madera de acacia;

8aceite de oliva para las lámparas; especias para el aceite de la unción y para el incienso aromático

9y piedras de ónice y gemas para hacer el efod y el pectoral.

10“Todos tus artesanos vendrán a hacer todo lo que el Señor ha ordenado:

11el Tabernáculo con su tienda y su cubierta, sus pinzas y sus marcos, sus travesaños, postes y soportes;

12el Arca con sus varas y su cubierta de expiación, y el velo para colgarla;

13la mesa con sus varas, todo su equipo y el Pan de la Presencia;

14el candelabro de luz con su equipo y lámparas y aceite de oliva para alumbrar;

15el altar de incienso con sus varas; el aceite de la unción y el incienso aromático; la pantalla para la entrada del Tabernáculo y todos sus accesorios;

16el altar del holocausto con su reja de bronce, sus varas y todos sus utensilios; el lavabo más su soporte;

17las cortinas del patio con sus postes y bases, y la cortina para la entrada del patio;

18las estacas de la tienda para el Tabernáculo y para el patio, así como sus cuerdas;

19y las ropas tejidas para servir en el lugar santo: la ropa sagrada para el sacerdote Aarón y para sus hijos para servir como sacerdotes”.

20Los israelitas se fueron y dejaron a Moisés.

21Y todos aquellos que se sintieron movidos a hacerlo y que tenían un espíritu dispuesto vinieron y trajeron una ofrenda al Señor por el trabajo de hacer el Tabernáculo de Reunión, por todo lo que se requería para sus servicios, y por las ropas sagradas.

22Así que todos los que quisieron, tanto hombres como mujeres, vinieron y presentaron su oro como ofrenda de agradecimiento al Señor, incluyendo broches, pendientes, anillos y collares, todo tipo de joyas de oro.

23Todos los que tenían hilos azules, púrpura y carmesí, lino finamente tejido, pelo de cabra, pieles de carnero curtidas y cuero fino, los trajeron.

24Los que podían presentar una ofrenda de plata o bronce la traían como regalo al Señor. Todos los que tenían madera de acacia para cualquier parte del trabajo, la donaban.

25Toda mujer hábil en el hilado con sus manos traía lo que había hilado: hilo azul, púrpura o carmesí, o lino finamente tejido.

26Todas las mujeres que estaban dispuestas a usar sus habilidades hilaban el pelo de cabra.

27Los jefes trajeron piedras de ónix y gemas para hacer el efod y el pectoral,

28así como especias y aceite de oliva para el alumbrado, para el aceite de la unción y para el incienso aromático.

29Todos los hombres y mujeres israelitas que estaban dispuestos trajeron una ofrenda voluntaria al Señor por todo el trabajo de hacer lo que el Señor, a través de Moisés, les había ordenado hacer.

30Entonces Moisés dijo a los israelitas: “El Señor escogió el nombre de Bezaleel, hijo de Uri, hijo de Hur, de la tribu de Judá.

31Lo ha llenado del Espíritu de Dios dándole habilidad, creatividad y experiencia en todo tipo de artesanía.

32Puede producir diseños en oro, plata y bronce,

33puede tallar piedras preciosas para colocarlas en los marcos, y puede tallar madera. Es un maestro de todas las artesanías.

34El Señor también le ha dado a él y a Aholiab, hijo de Ahisamac, de la tribu de Dan, la habilidad de enseñar a otros.

35Los ha dotado de habilidad para hacer todo tipo de trabajos como grabadores, diseñadores, bordadores en hilo azul, púrpura y carmesí, y en lino finamente tejido, y como tejedores, de hecho como hábiles diseñadores en todo tipo de artesanía”.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Moses gathers the people and reaffirms the importance of the Sabbath; he then calls for voluntary offerings for building the tabernacle, and the people respond with great generosity, bringing materials and skills for the work.

Explanation

This chapter resumes, after the interruption caused by the golden calf episode, the practical preparation for building the tabernacle. The renewed emphasis on the Sabbath before any other instruction suggests that even a project as sacred and urgent as building God's dwelling place should not compromise the divine rhythm of rest. The people's response to Moses' call for voluntary offerings is remarkably enthusiastic and generous, with men and women contributing precious materials and using their skills — from spinning cloth to working metals — showing a collective willingness to actively take part in God's work after the painful episode of unfaithfulness before it. This genuine, voluntary generosity, coming from 'every one whose heart stirred him up' (v. 21, 26, 29), contrasts sharply with the murmuring attitude seen in earlier chapters, suggesting a real moment of reconciliation and spiritual renewal for the community as a whole.

Fun facts

  • The specific mention that 'all the women that were wise hearted did spin with their hands' (v. 25) is one of the few biblical passages that specifically details women's craftsmanship as an essential and recognized contribution to work as important as the tabernacle.
  • The generous, voluntary response of the people in this chapter, coming so soon after the sin of the golden calf, shows a community in real process of restoration, suggesting that true reconciliation with God is often expressed through concrete acts of generosity and service.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Éxodo 35:1Moses gathers the whole congregation to relay, this time in person, everything God had commanded on the mountain about building the tabernacle.
  2. Éxodo 35:2Even before speaking about the construction, Moses reinforces the sabbath law, making clear that not even the urgency of the work would justify laboring on the day of rest.
  3. Éxodo 35:3This is a specific rule within sabbath observance: not even lighting a fire to cook or keep warm was allowed on that day of rest. It shows just how far the halt on work during the sabbath was meant to go, including basic everyday household tasks.
  4. Éxodo 35:4Moses introduces the request for donations, picking up the same language God had used directly with him back in chapter 25.
  5. Éxodo 35:5It repeats the list of metals accepted as offerings—gold, silver, and copper—but now as a direct request from Moses to the assembled people.
  6. Éxodo 35:6The list of textile materials continues—the colored fabrics, fine linen, and goat hair—the same items already detailed in the original plan.
  7. Éxodo 35:7It repeats the mention of the hides used for the outer coverings and the acacia wood used throughout the tabernacle’s wooden framework.
  8. Éxodo 35:8It also includes the oil and spices used both for the lighting and for the sacred formulas of oil and incense.
  9. Éxodo 35:9It closes the list of materials with the precious stones intended for the priestly garments, completing exactly the same inventory from chapter 25.
  10. Éxodo 35:10Moses specifically calls on the skilled craftsmen among the people to get to work, beginning the practical phase of construction.
  11. Éxodo 35:11It details the first part of the work: the tabernacle’s basic structure—its curtains, coverings, boards, bars, pillars, and sockets.
  12. Éxodo 35:12It specifically mentions the ark, the mercy seat, and the veil, the most sacred pieces of the whole set.
  13. Éxodo 35:13It includes the table of the bread with its utensils, revisiting an item already detailed in chapter 25.
  14. Éxodo 35:14It mentions the lampstand and everything that goes with it, including the oil needed to keep it burning.
  15. Éxodo 35:15It lists the incense altar, the anointing oil, the fragrant incense, and the entrance curtain of the tabernacle.
  16. Éxodo 35:16It continues with the sacrifice altar outside, its bronze grate, and the basin for ritual washing.
  17. Éxodo 35:17It includes the curtains of the outer courtyard, its pillars, and the covering for the complex’s main entrance.
  18. Éxodo 35:18It also mentions the pegs used to secure both the tabernacle and the courtyard to the ground, along with the cords used to tie them down.
  19. Éxodo 35:19It closes the list with the priestly garments, both the everyday ones and the special garments for Aaron and his sons.
  20. Éxodo 35:20After hearing the whole request, the congregation disperses, but not to leave—it was time to gather the promised donations.
  21. Éxodo 35:21The people respond to the call voluntarily, each one bringing materials as their own heart moved them, with no obligation imposed.
  22. Éxodo 35:22After the episode of the golden calf, made from melted-down jewelry, the people now use similar jewelry—bracelets, earrings, rings—to voluntarily contribute to building the tabernacle. It’s a clear contrast with chapter 32: the same kind of material that once made an idol now becomes material for the legitimate sanctuary.
  23. Éxodo 35:23Whoever had the colored fabrics or the needed hides brought them along with the rest of the donations gathered at that time.
  24. Éxodo 35:24Whoever had silver, copper, or acacia wood on hand also contributed, each material set aside for a specific part of the work.
  25. Éxodo 35:25“Spinning” meant turning fibers, such as linen and goat hair, into thread—a specialized manual craft done mostly by women at the time. The text explicitly recognizes their skill as an essential part of building the tabernacle.
  26. Éxodo 35:26Women skilled in spinning contributed specifically the more technical work of turning goat hair into usable thread.
  27. Éxodo 35:27The tribal leaders contributed specifically the most valuable precious stones, intended for the priestly garments.
  28. Éxodo 35:28They also supplied the spices and oil needed for the lighting and for the sacred formulas of oil and incense.
  29. Éxodo 35:29It sums up that all this generosity came from men and women moved spontaneously, with no formal tax or requirement imposed by Moses.
  30. Éxodo 35:30Bezalel is introduced, together with his assistant Oholiab, as the master craftsman chosen specifically by name to lead the whole work of building the tabernacle. The text emphasizes that his technical skill came from a special enabling given by God, not merely ordinary talent.
  31. Éxodo 35:31It repeats the description already given in chapter 31 about Bezalel’s special enabling, given directly by God to lead the work.
  32. Éxodo 35:32It again details Bezalel’s technical skills: creating original designs and working precious metals with precision.
  33. Éxodo 35:33It also reinforces his mastery of stone-cutting and fine woodwork, the same skills already mentioned before.
  34. Éxodo 35:34Bezalel was also given the ability to teach these techniques to others, sharing leadership of the work with Oholiab.
  35. Éxodo 35:35The chapter closes describing the combined skill of the two master craftsmen, capable of mastering everything from embroidery to the finest weaving.

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