Exodus 36 – Skilled Builders and Overflowing Gifts
The tabernacle’s construction begins as Bezaleel and Aholiab, filled with God’s Spirit, lead the work. The people give so much that Moses must stop the offerings—God’s presence is being built by willing hearts and skillful hands.
From Offering to Action
Exodus 36 reveals the beauty of Spirit-led unity. The people give more than enough, the craftsmen labor with precision, and the dwelling of God begins to take form—not through compulsion, but through overflowing generosity and inspired obedience.
✔ God’s chosen craftsmen lead the work.
✔ The people give beyond what is needed.
✔ The tabernacle construction officially begins.
✔ Every part is made exactly as God commanded.
📖 Key Verse: “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work.” – Exodus 36:5
🔎 When God’s people are stirred, the supply exceeds the need.
Exodus Chapter 36 Overview
Exodus 36:1–7 – Generosity That Overflows
📖 Exodus 36:1–2 – “Then wrought Bezaleel and Aholiab… and every wise hearted man… whose heart stirred him up to come unto the work.”
🔎 Called and stirred:
🔹 The Spirit didn’t just give skill—it stirred hearts to action. The work of the sanctuary drew those who were both gifted and willing.
🔹 Bezaleel and Aholiab weren’t working alone. God raised up a community of builders, bonded by shared obedience and calling.
➡️ Ministry Insight: God’s work is never a solo project—it is built by those who respond with skill and sincerity.
📖 Exodus 36:3–5 – *”They brought yet unto him free offerings every morning… the people bring much more than enough.”
🔎 A daily overflow:
🔹 The people didn’t stop giving—they kept bringing every morning, even after the need was met.
🔹 Moses’ leadership wasn’t a call for pressure, but an atmosphere of joyful participation.
🔹 The phrase “more than enough” reveals something rare—spirit-stirred generosity that exceeded expectation.
➡️ Faith Insight: When God moves the heart, giving becomes an act of joy, not obligation. Needs are not just met—they are surpassed.
📖 Exodus 36:6–7 – *”So the people were restrained from bringing… for the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.”
🔎 Overflowing abundance:
🔹 This is the only time in Scripture where a leader had to say, “Stop giving.”
🔹 God stirred hearts to such a degree that the abundance risked waste if not halted.
🔹 The people gave because they saw the value of God’s dwelling, and wanted to contribute—not just once, but until the work was complete.
➡️ Spiritual Insight: True revival brings more than emotional zeal—it brings sacrificial generosity, led by love and not duty.
Exodus 36:8–38 – Curtains, Boards, and Foundations
📖 Exodus 36:8–13 – *”And every wise hearted man… made the tabernacle ten curtains of fine twined linen… with cherubims of cunning work.”
🔎 Heaven reflected on earth:
🔹 The design was divine—heavenly patterns woven into earthly fabric.
🔹 Cherubim embroidered into the linen reminded Israel that this was a dwelling of holiness, not a mere tent.
🔹 Every piece reflected beauty, precision, and reverence.
➡️ Spiritual Insight: God’s presence deserves excellence—not for display, but for devotion.
📖 Exodus 36:14–30 – *”And he made curtains of goats’ hair… and the boards for the tabernacle.”
🔎 Coverings and strength:
🔹 Layers of protection—goat hair, rams’ skins, and badger skins—covered the holy dwelling.
🔹 The boards formed a stable framework, held by tenons and sockets of silver.
🔹 The structure was movable, yet strong—a picture of God’s unshakable presence among a pilgrim people.
➡️ Faith Insight: Even the hidden parts of God’s house matter. Obedience in the unseen supports the glory above.
📖 Exodus 36:31–38 – *”And he made bars of shittim wood… and the vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet.”
🔎 Connection and separation:
🔹 The bars held the boards together—unity that made the structure one.
🔹 The veil separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy—woven with cherubim, signaling reverence and boundary.
🔹 The door of the tabernacle was also richly adorned, showing that entry into God’s presence is glorious but guarded.
➡️ Christ Connection: The veil pointed to Christ, who later tore it through His flesh (Hebrews 10:20)—granting access to the Most Holy Place for all who believe.
Exodus Chapter 36 - Deeper Study
Overview: From Vision to Reality
🔹 Theme: Obedience, excellence, and generosity in building for God.
🔹 Focus: Construction begins through unity of skill and spirit.
🔹 Outcome: Every element crafted in accordance with divine instruction.
Key Takeaways
🔑 When hearts are stirred, God’s work overflows.
🔑 Every act of service fulfills a specific divine purpose.
🔑 Spirit-filled leadership brings order, beauty, and progress.
Prophetic Patterns & Dual Fulfillment
🔮 Overflowing offering – Reflects New Testament giving in Acts 2:45 and 2 Corinthians 9:7–8.
🔮 Construction of the sanctuary – Symbolizes how the Church is built with living stones (1 Peter 2:5).
Historical & Cultural Context
📜 Craftsmanship – Artistry was highly valued and seen as an act of worship.
📜 Construction method – The tabernacle was portable, reflecting a God who moves with His people.
💡 Final Reflection: Excellence for God’s Presence
God’s dwelling wasn’t built by force—it rose from love, skill, and unity. True ministry today still begins with hearts stirred and hands filled with the Spirit.
📌 Are you offering more than enough?
📌 Are your gifts building a place for God’s glory?
📌 What part has He assigned you in His work?
🚀 When God stirs the heart, the work becomes worship.
Exo 36:1 Then wrought Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise hearted man, in whom the LORD put wisdom and understanding to know how to work all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, according to all that the LORD had commanded.
Exo 36:2 And Moses called Bezaleel and Aholiab, and every wise hearted man, in whose heart the LORD had put wisdom, even every one whose heart stirred him up to come unto the work to do it:
Exo 36:3 And they received of Moses all the offering, which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of the sanctuary, to make it withal. And they brought yet unto him free offerings every morning.
Exo 36:4 And all the wise men, that wrought all the work of the sanctuary, came every man from his work which they made;
Exo 36:5 And they spake unto Moses, saying, The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work, which the LORD commanded to make.
Exo 36:6 And Moses gave commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, Let neither man nor woman make any more work for the offering of the sanctuary. So the people were restrained from bringing.
Exo 36:7 For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much.
Exo 36:8 And every wise hearted man among them that wrought the work of the tabernacle made ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet: with cherubims of cunning work made he them.
Exo 36:9 The length of one curtain was twenty and eight cubits, and the breadth of one curtain four cubits: the curtains were all of one size.
Exo 36:10 And he coupled the five curtains one unto another: and the other five curtains he coupled one unto another.
Exo 36:11 And he made loops of blue on the edge of one curtain from the selvedge in the coupling: likewise he made in the uttermost side of another curtain, in the coupling of the second.
Exo 36:12 Fifty loops made he in one curtain, and fifty loops made he in the edge of the curtain which was in the coupling of the second: the loops held one curtain to another.
Exo 36:13 And he made fifty taches of gold, and coupled the curtains one unto another with the taches: so it became one tabernacle.
Exo 36:14 And he made curtains of goats’ hair for the tent over the tabernacle: eleven curtains he made them.
Exo 36:15 The length of one curtain was thirty cubits, and four cubits was the breadth of one curtain: the eleven curtains were of one size.
Exo 36:16 And he coupled five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves.
Exo 36:17 And he made fifty loops upon the uttermost edge of the curtain in the coupling, and fifty loops made he upon the edge of the curtain which coupleth the second.
Exo 36:18 And he made fifty taches of brass to couple the tent together, that it might be one.
Exo 36:19 And he made a covering for the tent of rams’ skins dyed red, and a covering of badgers’ skins above that.
Exo 36:20 And he made boards for the tabernacle of shittim wood, standing up.
Exo 36:21 The length of a board was ten cubits, and the breadth of a board one cubit and a half.
Exo 36:22 One board had two tenons, equally distant one from another: thus did he make for all the boards of the tabernacle.
Exo 36:23 And he made boards for the tabernacle; twenty boards for the south side southward:
Exo 36:24 And forty sockets of silver he made under the twenty boards; two sockets under one board for his two tenons, and two sockets under another board for his two tenons.
Exo 36:25 And for the other side of the tabernacle, which is toward the north corner, he made twenty boards,
Exo 36:26 And their forty sockets of silver; two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board.
Exo 36:27 And for the sides of the tabernacle westward he made six boards.
Exo 36:28 And two boards made he for the corners of the tabernacle in the two sides.
Exo 36:29 And they were coupled beneath, and coupled together at the head thereof, to one ring: thus he did to both of them in both the corners.
Exo 36:30 And there were eight boards; and their sockets were sixteen sockets of silver, under every board two sockets.
Exo 36:31 And he made bars of shittim wood; five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle,
Exo 36:32 And five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the tabernacle for the sides westward.
Exo 36:33 And he made the middle bar to shoot through the boards from the one end to the other.
Exo 36:34 And he overlaid the boards with gold, and made their rings of gold to be places for the bars, and overlaid the bars with gold.
Exo 36:35 And he made a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen: with cherubims made he it of cunning work.
Exo 36:36 And he made thereunto four pillars of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold: their hooks were of gold; and he cast for them four sockets of silver.
Exo 36:37 And he made an hanging for the tabernacle door of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen, of needlework;
Exo 36:38 And the five pillars of it with their hooks: and he overlaid their chapiters and their fillets with gold: but their five sockets were of brass.
Date Written
1446-1406 BC
Written By
Moses
Language
Hebrew
Verses
38