Hello and welcome to today’s exciting Bible study on Exodus 25. In this chapter, we will read and study about God’s instructions to the Israelites through Moses concerning the offerings and the building of the sanctuary. According to biblical scholars, the events of Exodus 25 occurred around 1446 B.C.
To Note: Until now, I have been posting links to the Bible Gateway app in the Bible study. Since they have a technical issue on their end, I have changed the links in this bible study to the Bible.com.
As usual, I encourage you to turn to Exodus 25 in your Bible. Kindly invite the Holy Spirit to guide you as you read and study Exodus 25 with me. I mention this in all the Bible Studies because it is only through the Holy Spirit that we get fresh revelation and knowledge to understand the word of God. No one else can teach you better than the Holy Spirit Himself. I am using the New King James Version (NKJV) of the Bible, just in case you want to know.
In the Bible Study on Exodus 24 we read and learned about the Israelites affirming the Lord’s covenant. In this bible study on Exodus 25 we will learn about the preparations for the tabernacle of God.
Backstory on Exodus 24
In Exodus 24, the Lord called Moses along with seventy elders up the mountain but only Moses was instructed to meet with the Lord. The Israelites affirm the Lord’s covenant. Moses prepared an altar for the Lord with twelve pillars representing the twelve tribes of Israel. He then sent young men to offer burnt and peace offerings of oxen at the altar. Moses took half of the blood from the basin and sprinkled it on the altar and he sprinkled the rest on the people to santicfy them with the blood of the covenant. The seventy elders ate in the presence of God and Moses and Joshua went up the mountain. The glory of God rested on the mountain for six days and on the seventh day the Lord called Moses in the midst of the cloud. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.
Now, without any further delay, let us study together and learn what is Exodus 24 about, shall we?
Exodus 25 Summary
The Lord required offerings for the Sanctuary from the Israelites who were willing to offer to God. He instructed Moses to collect offerings of metals such as gold, silver and bronze, colored threads of blue, purple and scarlet, fine linen, goat’s hair, red-dyed ram’s skin,badger skins, acacia wood. He also required of them to provide oil for the lighting and spices for the anointing oil and sweet incense besides stones to be set in the ephod and the breastplate of the high priest.
God required the Israelites to make Him a sanctuary so that He could dwell among them. And, He showed Moses the exact pattern of the tabernacle and its furnishings that His people were to replicate on Earth.
The Lord required His people to prepare an ark of the Testimony with acacia wood overlaid with gold inside and outside. They were to cast four rings of gold – two at each corner of the ark. He instructed them to also make poles of acacia wood overlaid with gold so that they could pass the poles through the rings. In this way, they could carry the ark easily.
He also commanded them to make Him a mercy seat of pure gold with two gold cherubims at the two ends of the mercy seat with their wings stretched towards the mercy seat. They were to face one another. He promised Moses that He would meet with him at the mercy seat and speak from above the mercy seat to instruct him about the Testimony to put in the ark. He said that He Himself will provide the Testimony to be placed in the art.
Here is a visual respresentation of the ark:
The Lord also required of His people to make Him a table for the showbread with acacia wood and a golden overlay over the wood. He also required of them to create dishes, pans, pitchers, and bowls in pure gold. And the showbread was to be set on the table before the Lord always.
Here is a visual representation of the showbread table (Credits: Jeremy Park, Bible-Scenes.com)
The Lord also required of His people to make a pure gold lampstand. The lampstand had 7 lamps and it had three branches coming out of each side. Three bowls that represent almond blossoms were to be made for each branch with an ornamental knob and flower. He also required the 7 lamps to give light infront and their wick trimmers and trays were also to be made of pure gold. God wanted Moses to remember the pattern by which the lampstand had to be made as shown him on the mountain so that he in turn could instruct the people.
Here is an approximate visual representation of the gold lampstand (Credits: Jeremey Park, Bible-Scenes.com)
Exodus 25 Commentary
1. Exodus 25:1-7
God didn’t force anyone to offer Him anything for the sanctuary. He only asked of those who were willing to offer the materials for the sanctuary. God respects people’s free-will. He does not force anyone to do anything especially for the things concerning Him. He asked for specific materials, metals and stones from the people. They were to bring only that which He required of them and it was sufficient. They didn’t have to overperform or do anything else.
2. Exodus 25:9
God showed Moses the pattern of the tabernacle and he was to remember every detail of the pattern and tell the people all that he saw so that they could replicate the pattern. This might have taken a lot of attention on Moses’s part because he was the middleman between God and His people during the time of the Exodus. He had to accurately convey each and every single detail of the pattern that God showed him to the people. God told everything He wanted to tell the people through Moses and Moses in turn, had to convey God’s message to them. In the same way, Moses brought the people’s complaints to God. The Israelites didn’t directly ocmmunicate with God.
After, Jesus came and died on the cross and rose again God’s approach is different. Every born-again believer has the Holy Spirit residing inside of them. God speaks to us directly through His word and also through His Holy Spirit. However, the most important part is that when God speaks we must pay careful attention to everything that He is saying because the instructions may not be just for us but also for those around us just as we see in Exodus where God instructs the Israelites through Moses. We are in no way the middleman or mediator as Moses was during Exodus because Jesus is our Mediator with God now. However, the Lord could use anyone He choses to reach the lost to bring them into His Kingdom. That is why we must always be attentive to His voice.
3. Exodus 25:17-22
The mercy seat of the ark was where God said He would meet His people. In the Old Testament the high priest had to meet with God at the Holy of Holies with the blood of the sacrificed animal as atonment for the sins of the people and atonement for his own sins. Without the blood he could not enter into the Holy of holies because God’s judgment would kill him. Jesus’s blood which is the atonement for our sins sits at God’s mercy seat in Heaven before God Almighty in the Holy of holies. And Jesus’s blood has a voice. Abel’s blood cried out for vengeance but Jesus’s blood cries out for mercy on our behalf. That is why it is called the mercy seat. God has mercy on us through the atonement already provided on our behalf by Jesus Christ. Also, Jesus Christ is our Eternal High Priest. He intercedes for us with God and He is our mediator with God.
The testimony
God said that He Himself will provide the testimony to put in the ark. What He did for His people then, He did for us through Jesus. Jesus’s blood is our Testimony that God has forgiven us because Jesus atoned for our sins and paid the price for our sins. The wages, that is the price or the cost of sin is death and Jesus paid it in full for us. In short, He provided our Testimony which is the blood of His Son Jesus Christ. Praise the Lord. How wonderful is Our Lord!
4. Exodus 25:30
God wanted the showbread to be set on the table before Him always. There were to be a total of 12 breads each representing the twelve tribes of Israel. It is interesting to note that Jesus is the bread of life. And, our Eternal bread of life (Jesus Christ) is before God always.
5. Exodus 25:31-39
God instructs Moses about the gold lampstand with intricate details about each of the branches. God is always thorough with the details. He had to make sure that the sanctuary on Earth reflected that which was in Heaven supposedly. However, again we notice that Jesus is the light of the world. In Him is the light of all men. Therefore, we see that every single thing mentioned in this chapter of Exodus points in some way or another to Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. It was a preparation of the things to come.
Exodus 25 Lessons
What can we learn from Exodus 25?
1. God respects free will
God didn’t force people to give offerings for the tabernacle. Only those were willing were to give towards the construction of the Sanctuary. God has free will so when He created man in His image He created us with free will too and He will not violate His word and force someone to give to Him or follow Him even if there is a blessing in it for the people. Everything boils to heart posture. It is all about your heart and if it is postured towards serving Him.
2. God is very specific in His instructions
God’s instructions are never vague or uncertain. He is always very specific. Therefore, even in your personal life, when you approach Him regarding a situation, expect specific instructions from Him.
3. God is purposeful and intentional
There is an order to everything that God creates. God also wants us to follow in His footsteps. Every single offering for the sanctuary was specific as we can see from Exodus 25. He didn’t ask for just any metal or any thread. The colors and the materials were very specific and each served a unique purpose. I believe that the patterns that God showed to Moses were the same patterns that already existed in Heaven.
4. God always sought for a way to dwell with His people
God always wanted to dwell and fellowship with His people. He wanted to do that with Adam and Eve. Now, in Exodus 25:8, He tells Moses that He wants His people to build Him a sanctuary so that He can dwell among them. Later, in John 1:14, we read that the Word of God (Jesus Christ) became flesh and dwelt among us (humans), and we beheld His glory. In 1 Corinthians 6:19, we also read that the human body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which means the Holy Spirit dwells within born-again believers. There is no doubt that God wants to dwell with you, but the question is, are you willing? Do you want Him to dwell with you and within you? Ultimately, the choice is always up to you!
Conclusion
This concludes the bible study on Exodus 25. I hope you enjoyed this free bible study and found it helpful in your Bible study journey. Feel free to share it with your friends and family. Also, share your thoughts and what the Holy Spirit has revealed to you about Exodus 25. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below. I will get back to you as soon as I can.
Until next time!