Exodus is the narrative heart of the Old Testament. Genesis, of course, is a book of roots. Chapters 1-11 show us the roots of humanity and all of creation, while chapters 12-50 give us the roots of God’s chosen people, the descendants of Abraham. Exodus, however, gives us the central story of God rescuing and …
Continue reading And the Glory of the Lord Filled the Tabernacle | Exodus 40
When reading through the book of Exodus, most find the second half much less exciting than the first half because of laws and because of these chapters and the previous chapters that they mirror, 25-31. Yet the structure of Exodus wants us to see that this what all the marvelous works that God did to …
With Exodus 31, we reach the conclusion of God’s instructions for the tabernacle that He gave to Moses. These instructions began in chapter 25 and, in the context of Exodus, took place over a span of forty days and forty nights upon the summit of Mount Sinai. As we have said before, the reason that …
As we should remember by now, the context for our present chapter is that Moses is at the summit of Mount Sinai in the presence of Yahweh, who is giving to the prophet instructions and showing him the patterns for the building of the tabernacle. The tabernacle would also be called the tent of meeting …
Continue reading Incense, Taxes, Oils, & the Bronze Basin | Exodus 30
William McEwen once wrote: As the sun paints the clouds with a variety of glorious colors, which in their own nature are but dark and lowering vapors exhaled from the earth, so when the Son of righteousness arises, even the carnal ordinances and commandments of the law, dark and earthly as they seem, are gilded …
Continue reading The Garments & Consecration of the Priests | Exodus 27:20-29:46
Presently, in our study of the book of Exodus, we are considering the instructions for the building of the tabernacle that Yahweh gave to Moses in the span of forty days upon Sinai. As we have noted, the instructions began with the ark of the testimony, the most holy item that would reside in the …
We always keep Genesis 1-3 closely at hand because, through those chapters, we are able to make sense of intermingled wonders and sorrows both around us and within us. The whole process of creation in Genesis 1 builds toward the LORD's creation of mankind, male and female, in His image and after His likeness. Even …
Continue reading That I May Dwell in Their Midst | Exodus 26
As you may have begun to notice, the second half of Exodus divides fairly easily into major sections. Chapters 20-23 saw the first giving of the law through the Ten Commandments and the Book of the Covenant. Chapter 24 primarily described the ratification ceremony of the Yahweh's covenant with Israel, but it also concluded with …
Continue reading The Bread of the Presence & the Golden Lampstand | Exodus 25:23-40
There is a scene in the Lord of the Rings where Aragorn and his company are walking the paths of the dead, a haunted and dreadful road. Yet along the way, they find “the bones of a mighty man… He had fallen near the far wall of the cave, as now could be seen, and …
Charles Spurgeon, the great prince of preachers, once said, “All places are places of worship to a Christian. Wherever he is, he ought to be in a worshiping frame of mind.” The Bible supports Spurgeon’s words. Throughout the Old Testament, we see worship being done particularly upon altars with sacrifices being made to God. From …
Continue reading Introduction to the Psalms: Biblical Worship
B. C. Newton 