Discovery BoxExodus 40:17-38 
Context40:17 So the tabernacle was set up on the first day of the first month, in the second year. 40:18 When Moses set up the tabernacle and put its bases in place, he set up its frames, attached its bars, and set up its posts. 40:19 Then he spread the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent over it, as the Lord had commanded Moses. 40:20 He took the testimony and put it in the ark, attached the poles to the ark, and then put the atonement lid on the ark. 40:21 And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, hung 1 the protecting curtain, 2 and shielded the ark of the testimony from view, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
40:22 And he put the table in the tent of meeting, on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the curtain. 40:23 And he set the bread in order on it 3 before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
40:24 And he put the lampstand in the tent of meeting opposite the table, on the south side of the tabernacle. 40:25 Then he set up the lamps before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
40:26 And he put the gold altar in the tent of meeting in front of the curtain, 40:27 and he burned fragrant incense on it, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
40:28 Then he put the curtain at the entrance to the tabernacle. 40:29 He also put the altar for the burnt offering by the entrance to the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, and offered on it the burnt offering and the meal offering, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
40:30 Then he put the large basin between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it 4 for washing. 40:31 Moses and Aaron and his sons would wash their hands and their feet from it. 40:32 Whenever they entered 5 the tent of meeting, and whenever they approached 6 the altar, they would wash, 7 just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
40:33 And he set up the courtyard around the tabernacle and the altar, and put the curtain at the gate of the courtyard. So Moses finished the work.
40:34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 40:35 Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 40:36 But when the cloud was lifted up 8 from the tabernacle, the Israelites would set out 9 on all their journeys; 40:37 but if the cloud was not lifted up, then they would not journey further until the day it was lifted up. 10 40:38 For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, but fire would be 11 on it at night, in plain view 12 of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.
1 tn Heb “set up,” if it includes more than the curtain.
2 tn Or “shielding” (NIV); Heb “the veil of the covering” (cf. KJV).
3 tn Heb uses a cognate accusative construction, “he arranged the arrangement.”
4 tn Heb “there.”
5 tn The construction is the infinitive construct with the temporal preposition and the suffixed subjective genitive. This temporal clause indicates that the verb in the preceding verse was frequentative.
6 tn This is another infinitive construct in a temporal clause.
7 tn In this explanatory verse the verb is a customary imperfect.
8 tn The construction uses the Niphal infinitive construct to form the temporal clause.
9 tn The imperfect tense in this context describes a customary action.
10 tn The clause uses the Niphal infinitive construct in the temporal clause: “until the day of its being taken up.”
11 tn Here is another imperfect tense of the customary nuance.
12 tn Heb “to the eyes of all”; KJV, ASV, NASB “in the sight of all”; NRSV “before the eyes of all.”
