Bezalel and Oholiab
1 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts– 4 to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, 5 to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of craftsmanship. 6 Moreover, I have appointed Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, to help him.
1. Where did God find these guys?
Bezalel. Means “in the shadow/protection of God.” Oholiab. Means “The (divine) father is my tent/ tabernacle.” The names of Bezalel and Oholiab were appropriate for the chief craftsmen working on the tabernacle.
These men and their helpers were given special gifts for craftsmanship. They made the tabernacle furniture and also the garments. The Spirit of God equipped them for their work. The question might arise as to the trade of Bezaleel before God called him to do this work. I believe craftsmanship was his trade, and that he worked with gold and silver and other delicate things. But he was given a special gift from God to do His work.
“Though they were skilled, the narrative emphasizes clearly that they were to do the work of building the tabernacle by means of the skills that the Spirit of God would give them. There is an important parallel here with God’s work of Creation in Genesis 1. Just as God did his work of Creation by means of his Spirit (Ge 1:2—2:3), so also Israel was to do their work of building the tabernacle by God’s Spirit.
“The parallels between God’s work in Creation and Israel’s work on the tabernacle are part of the Pentateuch’s larger emphasis on the importance of the work of God’s Spirit among his people. . . . It is of interest here to note that the two key characters in the Pentateuch who provide a clear picture of genuine obedience to God’s will, Joseph and Joshua, are specifically portrayed in the narrative as those who are filled with the Spirit of God (Ge 41:38; Dt 34:9).”Sailhamer, The Pentateuch . . ., p. 309
2. Why don’t we all get this kind of gift?
The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body–whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free–and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28 And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues ? Do all interpret? 1 Cor 12:12-30 (NIV)
3. What if God didn’t give me any gifts?
We are all given gifts from God so that we might do the work of the kingdom. Sometimes we look down on another person’s gift. Nobody is more important, than anybody else.
What was special about the new dispensation was that, first of all, these gifts were not confined to any one group of people but extended to all – male and female, young and old. Secondly, these supernatural endowments were wonderfully diverse. A Commentary on the First Epistle to the Corinthians.
For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Eph 2:10
1 Peter 4:10 God has given gifts to each of you from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Manage them well so that God’s generosity can flow through you.
God has given a gift or gifts to each of us, not to some of us. These gifts empower us and free us to minister in ways that we never could on our own.
Also I have given skill to all the craftsmen to make everything I have commanded you: 7 the Tent of Meeting, the ark of the Testimony with the atonement cover on it, and all the other furnishings of the tent– 8 the table and its articles, the pure gold lampstand and all its accessories, the altar of incense, 9 the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, the basin with its stand– 10 and also the woven garments, both the sacred garments for Aaron the priest and the garments for his sons when they serve as priests, 11 and the anointing oil and fragrant incense for the Holy Place. They are to make them just as I commanded you.”
Col 3:23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you
are serving.
The Sabbath
12 Then the Lord said to Moses, 13 “Say to the Israelites, ‘You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy. 14 “‘Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Anyone who desecrates it must be put to death; whoever does any work on that day must be cut off from his people. 15 For six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must be put to death. 16 The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. 17 It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested.'” 18 When the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the Testimony, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God.
4. What is so important to God that the Hebrew keep the Sabbath?
Sabbath. This section explicitly reminds Israel of what the instructions about the tabernacle signify: remembering the Sabbath by keeping it holy is integral to Israel’s life as the people who are sanctified (or “made holy”) by the Lord. This passage grounds Israel’s Sabbath observance both in creation, which Israel shares with all mankind, and in God’s special choice of Israel (“sanctify,” 31:13; “covenant forever,” v. 16). The form of the fourth commandment in Exodus (20:8–11) stresses the first, while that in Deuteronomy (Deut. 5:12–15) stresses the second. This section shows that there is no tension between the two emphases.
The parallel statements regarding whoever does any work on the Sabbath indicates that putting a person to death is to signify the reality of that soul being cut off from among his people. The judgment that “one shall be cut off from among his people” occurs a number of times in the law without indicating precisely what is meant. Although the judgment at times appears to include death at the hand of the congregation when the offender is known to them (as prescribed here), it also indicates at times that the person would be killed directly by the Lord , or suffer some other kind of separation from covenant benefits.
It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested.'”
This verse just confirms the fact that God created the world in 6 days, not 6 billion years. Every time the word day (yom) is used in the bible with a number, it is referring to a 24 hour day.
Why do we, in our culture have a 7 day week? Day comes from the revolution of the earth on its axis, month comes from the moon going around the earth, year is the earth going around the sun, but the only reason we have a 7 day week is from here where God declares that He has given us a pattern based on what he did in 7 days.
The Sabbath is not Sunday. The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week which is Saturday. In the beginning, God created the heavens, the earth, and all that is in them in six days and on the seventh day He rested. God rested in order to provide an example for God’s people to follow His example and to rest on the Sabbath. Christians began meeting on the first day of the week (Sunday) because Jesus rose on the first day of the week.
Acts 20:7 Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break
bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight.
1 Corinthians 16:2 On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.
In Galatians, Paul criticizes the church for observing days, months, seasons and other events as they try to keep laws and he expresses fear that because of their focus on the law, his labor toward them in Christ might have been in vain. The Bible does not condemn valuing specific days but observing days in order to keep some law or putting our faith in being accepted for keeping laws.
Look at Romans 14:5-6
One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks.
One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it. He who eats, eats to the Lord, for he gives God thanks; and he who does not eat, to the Lord he does not eat, and gives God thanks.
5. How is the Sabbath a picture of Christ?
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matt 11:28-30 (KJV)
Jesus made a point of shaking up the religious leader’s view
of the Sabbath. If you read through the gospels, take note of the number of times Jesus blatantly violated the Sabbath in the sight of the Pharisees. As you do, keep in mind that the Pharisees were not condemned for questioning Jesus’ breaking of the Sabbath, they were condemned for rejecting Jesus. The command to keep the Sabbath pointed to a deeper spiritual principle. Jesus broke the traditional view of the Sabbath in order to draw attention to the spiritual meaning of the Sabbath. He constantly proclaimed that He was Lord of the Sabbath and that the Sabbath was meant for man. Man wasn’t created for the Sabbath, but the Sabbath was created for man (Mark 2:27). Galatians 3:24-25
Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.
Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.
The law of the Sabbath pointed to what was fulfilled in Christ. In the Old Testament, breaking the Sabbath was punishable by death. Jesus acknowledges that what He did was work, violated the Sabbath, and stated that He was working on the Sabbath to imitate His Father, God. The works and miracles of Jesus were intended to affirm that His words were true and that His claims were accurate. In John 14 Jesus also made Himself equal to God and told the Pharisees that if they don’t believe His claims because of His words, they should believe Him for the works sake. His works validated His claims for the things Jesus did could only have come from God. The works testified of the truth of His word. Jesus didn’t do hidden miracles that were unseen healings, but He restored withered limbs, restored cripples to health, opened the eyes of the blind and even raised the dead in front of all people. These proved that His claims were true. So when Jesus violated the Sabbath and then justified it by saying, “The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath”, His works proved that He had the authority He claimed for Himself.
6. Why did God directly give Moses the tablets?
People say the word of God was just written by men, here is an example where the commandments were directly written by the finger of God and handed to Moses. No middleman.
ESVN……………..….ESV Study Bible Notes
MSBN……………….MacArthur NASB Study Notes
NIVSN……………….NIV Study Notes
JVM ………………….J Vernon McGee,
ACC ………………… Adam Clarke’s Commentary
BN ……………………Barnes Notes
WBC………….…….Wycliffe Bible Commentary
CN ……….…………..Constables Notes
IC……………….…….Ironside Commentary
NET…………….…….Net Bible Study Notes.
JFB……………………Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary
VWS………………….Vincent Word Studies
CMM………………..Commentary on Matthew and Mark
BDB……………..….Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)
Darby……………….John Darby’s Synopsis of the OT and NT
Johnson……………Johnson’s Notes on the New Testament.
NTCMM…………..The New Testament Commentary: Matthew and Mark.
EHS………………….Expositions of the Holy Scriptures
CPP…………………The Complete Pulpit Commentary
SBC…………………..Sermon Bible Commentary
K&D…………………Keil and Deilitzsch Commentary on the OT
EBC……………….…Expositors Bible Commentary
CBSC……………….Cambridge Bible for Schools and College
GC……………………Guzik Commentary
RD………………………….Robert Deffinbaugh
NSB …………………The Nelson Study Bible
MHC…………………Matthew Henry Commentary
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