Commentaria in Exodum
Chapter the Thirty-fifth. Synopsis of the Chapter
Moses reports to the people the commands of God concerning the sabbath, the firstfruits, and above all concerning the offering and making of the tabernacle. Hence, verse 20, the Israelites liberally offer all the material necessary for the tabernacle. Finally, verse 30, the artificers of the tabernacle, Beseleel and Ooliab, are designated.
1. Then all the multitude of the children of Israel being gathered together, he said to them: These are the things which the Lord hath commanded to be done. 2. Six days shall you do work: the seventh day shall be holy unto you, the sabbath, and the rest of the Lord: he that shall do any work on it, shall be put to death. 3. You shall kindle no fire in any of your habitations on the sabbath day. 4. And Moses said to all the assembly of the children of Israel: This is the word that the Lord hath commanded, saying: 5. Set aside with you firstfruits to the Lord. Let every one that is of a willing and ready heart offer them to the Lord, gold, and silver, and brass, 6. Violet, and purple, and scarlet twice dyed, and fine linen, goats’ hair, 7. And rams’ skins dyed red, and violet-coloured skins, setim wood, 8. And oil to maintain lights, and to make ointment, and most sweet incense, 9. Onyx stones, and precious stones for the adorning of the ephod and the rational. 10. Whosoever of you is wise, let him come, and make that which the Lord hath commanded: 11. The tabernacle and the roof thereof, and the covering, the rings, and the boards with the bars, the pillars and the sockets: 12. The ark and the staves, the propitiatory and the veil that is spread before it: 13. The table with its staves and vessels, and the loaves of proposition: 14. The candlestick to maintain the lights, the vessels thereof, and the lamps, and oil to feed the fires: 15. The altar of incense, and the staves, and the oil of unction, and the incense of spices: the hanging at the entrance of the tabernacle: 16. The altar of holocaust, and its grate of brass with the staves and vessels, the laver and its foot: 17. The hangings of the court with the pillars and sockets: the hanging in the entry of the court: 18. The stakes of the tabernacle and of the court with their cords: 19. The vestments, the use of which is in the ministry of the sanctuary, the vestments of Aaron the high priest, and of his sons, that they may do the office of priesthood to me. 20. And all the multitude of the children of Israel going out from the presence of Moses, 21. Offered with a most ready and devout mind firstfruits to the Lord, to make the work of the tabernacle of the testimony: whatsoever was necessary for the ceremonies, and for the holy vestments. 22. Both men and women gave bracelets and earrings, rings and ornaments: every vessel of gold was set aside to be offered to the Lord. 23. If any man had violet, purple, scarlet twice dyed, fine linen, goats’ hair, rams’ skins and violet-coloured skins, 24. Silver and brass, they offered to the Lord, and setim wood for divers uses. 25. And the women that were wise, gave such things as they had spun, violet, purple, scarlet and fine linen, 26. And goats’ hair: all of their own accord. 27. And the princes offered onyx stones, and precious stones for the ephod and the rational, 28. And aromatical spices, and oil, to make lights, and to prepare the ointment, and to compose the incense of most sweet odour. 29. All the men and women with a devout mind brought gifts, that the works might be made which the Lord had commanded by the hand of Moses: all the children of Israel dedicated voluntary offerings to the Lord. 30. And Moses said to the children of Israel: Behold the Lord hath called by name Beseleel the son of Uri the son of Hur of the tribe of Juda. 31. And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, with wisdom and understanding, and knowledge, and all learning, 32. To devise and to make works in gold, and silver, and brass, 33. In engraving stones, and in works of carpentry, whatsoever can be invented in any kind of work, 34. He hath given in his heart: Ooliab also the son of Achisamech of the tribe of Dan: 35. Both of them hath he instructed with wisdom, to do the work of a carpenter, and embroiderer, and weaver, of violet and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and to weave all things, and to invent all new things.
2. THE SEVENTH DAY SHALL BE HOLY TO YOU, THE SABBATH, AND THE REST OF THE LORD.—Learn here how great was the care and religion of the sabbath, which God so often presses here, and how great ought to be the religion of Christians toward the Lord’s day and feasts.
HE THAT SHALL DO ANY WORK ON IT, SHALL BE PUT TO DEATH.—In Hebrew, he shall die, namely by the sentence of the judge, or by God, who in a hidden or casual manner will bring death upon him.
3. YOU SHALL KINDLE NO FIRE IN ANY OF YOUR HABITATIONS ON THE SABBATH DAY.—“In any,” that is, in none. So great was the religion and rest of the sabbath that even to lay and kindle a fire was not lawful on it: understand for cooking food; for at the Pasch and other feasts it was lawful to cook food, and therefore to kindle fire, as is plain from chap. 12, verse 16; but this was not lawful on the sabbath. So Abulensis, Cajetan and R. Abraham Ben Ezra, against whom other Rabbis wrote a book, which they called The Sabbath, because they bring in the person of the sabbath speaking against him, and condemning him as a heretic. For the Rabbis hold that on the sabbath it was not lawful to kindle fire for any cause, even of cold, to warm oneself. But these seem too scrupulous or superstitious. Whence they add, not only that fire is not to be laid on the day of the sabbath, but that it is not to be struck from stone or metal, nor a lamp to be tended, unless perhaps for a sick person; and, that they may never cease trifling, they interpret that if for the force of cold a fire must be kindled, it must be blown not with a bellows but with a reed. See here how hard and rigid was the old law of servants, and how gentle and easy the new law of sons.
5. SET ASIDE WITH YOU FIRSTFRUITS TO THE LORD.—“Firstfruits,” that is, your first offering (for you have made no public and common one hitherto), and your first gifts, which you are to offer to the Lord for the making of the tabernacle. The tropology of all these gifts seek from St. Gregory, book 30 of the Morals, chap. 10, and Origen, homily 13. See what was said in chap. 25.
Note: God here excludes from his offering, and from the service of the tabernacle, no one, however poor or wretched. For he who could not give gold or silver could at least offer skins or goats’ hair: he who could not do this could at least spin, carry and fetch them, and serve the artificers and workmen of the tabernacle in other ways. Beautifully Blessed Giles, companion of St. Francis: “If thou feelest grace in prayers,” he says, “pray that it may be increased: if thou feelest it not, cease not therefore from prayers; for God held acceptable even goats’ hair, which was offered to him according to the precept of the law.”
8. AND TO MAKE OINTMENT.—Understand: let each offer the material prescribed in chap. 25, namely spices, as is here said in the Hebrew, and our Interpreter expresses in verse 28, to make the ointment of the consecration of the priests, and to compose the incense; for the incense was not made of oil, but of stacte, onycha, galbanum and frankincense. There was oil, then, for the lamps: there was also oil in the ointment of the consecration of the priests and of the tabernacle. For this ointment was made of myrrh, cinnamon, calamus, cassia and olive oil. See Exod. 30,
10. WHOSOEVER IS WISE,—whoever is a skilled and industrious artificer.
10 and 11. AND MAKE THAT WHICH THE LORD HATH COMMANDED: THE TABERNACLE AND THE ROOF THEREOF, AND THE COVERING.—“Tabernaculum” he calls the very Sanctuary itself, hung and covered with ten curtains made of fine linen, purple, scarlet and violet, which in Hebrew is called mishkan. “The roof,” however, which in Hebrew is called ohel, he calls the second veil, or cloth of goats’ hair, which was made of goats’ hair. Finally “the covering,” which in Hebrew is called mikseh, he calls the third veil, of rams’ skins dyed red, and the fourth, of violet-coloured skins. So Cajetan and Lipomanus.
11. THE BOARDS,—boards joined together like a flooring, and that on three sides of the tabernacle; for lengthwise the boarding, or joining of boards, was thirty cubits, and in breadth the boarding was ten cubits.
THE PILLARS.—In Hebrew, columns, which are here called by our Interpreter either pins, because they were small, and had sharpened bases like pins that they might be fixed in the ground; or certainly he includes them under the pins: for pins were fastened to the pillars, and from the pins the hangings were suspended.
25. BUT THE WOMEN THAT WERE WISE, WHO HAD SPUN, GAVE.—“Wise,” that is, skilled in spinning, and wise artificers, namely spinners and weavers; for this is the learning and wisdom of women.
HYACINTH,—that is, the spun or threaded yarn of hyacinth, namely violet wool. So also understand purple, scarlet and fine linen, not wool or flax, but the spun thread, or warp, of such wool or flax.
29. VOLUNTARY,—free and spontaneous gifts.
34. HE HATH GIVEN IN HIS HEART.—That is, he taught him, or “he hath given in his heart,” understand knowledge, or rather art and skill, and artificial practice of making, sewing, weaving, etc. And to teach he gave in his heart, that is, so perfectly taught him that he could teach others also. Others render, he made him ready and inclined to teach others. Contrary to what most eminent artificers do, who most grudgingly communicate their arts and practices to others, and let them die with themselves, and thus deprive both themselves of merit and glory, and the commonwealth of its advantages and ornaments.
OOLIAB ALSO.—Understand what he said of Beseleel his companion, namely, he called and filled him with wisdom.
to do the works of a smith, namely of a carpenter, as I said above.
AND EMBROIDERER AND WEAVER.—Here he distinguishes these two, which above he used indifferently, so that the Phrygian or plumarius is he who paints variously with the needle: the polymitarius, or, as in Hebrew, the deviser of devices, is he who weaves in and forms various figures by ingenious weaving, as is done in tapestries. So Abulensis and Lipomanus.