Exodus 38:27 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The hundred talents of silver were for casting the bases of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil; a hundred bases for the hundred talents, a talent a base.

NIV: The 100 talents of silver were used to cast the bases for the sanctuary and for the curtain—100 bases from the 100 talents, one talent for each base.

NASB: The hundred talents of silver were used for casting the bases of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil; a hundred bases for the hundred talents, a talent for a base.

CSB: There were 7,500 pounds of silver used to cast the bases of the sanctuary and the bases of the curtain—one hundred bases from 7,500 pounds, 75 pounds for each base.

NLT: The hundred bases for the frames of the sanctuary walls and for the posts supporting the inner curtain required 7,500 pounds of silver, about 75 pounds for each base.

KJV: And of the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary, and the sockets of the vail; an hundred sockets of the hundred talents, a talent for a socket.

NKJV: And from the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil: one hundred sockets from the hundred talents, one talent for each socket.

Exodus 38:21–31 pauses the account of how Bezalel (Exodus 35:30) and Oholiab (Exodus 35:34) exactly followed the Lord's original designs for the tabernacle (Exodus 25—31). Scripture records the enormous volume of metals collected (Exodus 35:20–29). All told, the people donate several tons of gold, silver, and bronze.

God's assigned manager, Bezalel, oversees construction of more items for the Lord's sanctuary (Exodus 25:8–9). This chapter focuses on the components seen in the tabernacle courtyard, including the sacrificial altar and a washbasin. Scripture also records the quantity of metal donated to tabernacle construction. The total is several tons of silver, gold, and bronze.

Under the supervision of Bezalel (Exodus 35:30), Israel has followed God's exact plans for constructing the sanctuary. The Lord gave designs to Moses (Exodus 25—31). Most of the text in this long section is a near-duplication of those same words (Exodus 35—37). This emphasizes the care which Israel used to obey the Lord in this project. Final items are made in the next chapter (Exodus 39) before being assembled into the finished sanctuary (Exodus 40).

The book of Exodus establishes God's covenant relationship with the full-fledged nation of Israel. The descendants of Abraham prosper after settling in Egypt, only to be enslaved by a fearful, hateful Egyptian Pharaoh. God appoints Moses to lead the people out of this bondage. Moses serves as God's spokesman, as the Lord brings plagues and judgments on Egypt, leading to the release of Israel.