Exodus 37

Who made The Tabernacle? Many hands were used in the process. Moses directed and approved everything. Bezalel put his Spirit-endowed abilities to work. Others assisted. Willing givers contributed. But the Lord was at work in all. The Lord commanded and the Lord supplied.

The name of Bezalel was particularly identified with the holiest of sacred objects, the ark of the covenant. “Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood.” What a privilege to be selected by God for this task. Yet we are building a far more wonderful temple in the New Testament age. God has called on us to build up the body of Christ, the church. More impressive still is the Head of the body, and the work that He alone has accomplished.

The ark of the covenant was not a very large object; a little less than four feet long and a little over two feet wide and high. Nor was it complex in design. What made the ark so important was that it would be the center of God's presence for worship upon the earth during the time of preparation for the coming of the Messiah.

Bazalel made the ark of acacia wood and overlaid it with pure gold both inside and outside. Gold will perish, though it might seem to last forever. The God who would dwell with Israel is eternal. The details of the construction of the ark indicated its simplicity, purity, and utility for a people whose God was moving them along on a journey. The word “utility” might not give the right impression, since this was not just a useful place for Israel to store the tablets of the Law. The kind of utility that God insisted upon demanded that the ark be built so that it could be safely carried. That was why it had a gold molding and special gold rings for its four feet. That was why Bezalel built poles of acacia wood overlaid with gold, so that the right people could pick it up and move it without dying.

Bezalel made the mercy seat that would be placed on top of the ark of the covenant. The golden cherubim would be the most ornate object of beauty in the elegant simplicity of the Lord's design for The Tabernacle. In fact, the only images in the entire place of worship would be angelic; whether the cherubim woven into the curtains or these golden sculptures that were of one piece with the mercy seat. One angel was on one side of the seat and the other angel was on the other side of the seat, with the two figures looking toward the center of that golden cover, where God would be present.

How many idol temples are full of complex images designed and made by men? But when God commanded Moses to build a place of holy worship, what did He ask for? A chest with a cover, a small table, poles, vessels, and utensils necessary for carrying the holy objects and for using them according to the Lord's commandments.

Bezalel's hand was also on the golden lampstand, perhaps the second most glorious object in The Tabernacle. His hammer formed the base, the stem, the cups, the calyxes, and the flowers, out of which the light would shine. This would be a golden source of illumination in the form of an organic object; a plant or vine that would be glorious in its materials, and would shine in a place that would otherwise be entirely dark.

Bezalel also made the simple altar for burning incense out of acacia wood, and he overlaid it with pure gold. The safe transportation of this holy object also required a molding, gold rings, and acacia poles overlaid with gold. This chapter ends with a brief word regarding the oil and the incense. “He made the holy anointing oil also, and the pure fragrant incense, blended as by the perfumer.”

What is most striking about all the work of Bezalel, is that it could have been much more striking. The other nations and people groups of the ancient world knew how to make ornate objects of worship. The objects for the interior of The Tabernacle were few, they were unusually simple, and they were plainly obedient. God commanded, and a man who could have done much more, did what He was supposed to do. There must be some lesson for us in this example.

All the more ornate religions of the world have objects made by men springing out of their own desire to gaze at outward glory. To truly appreciate the ark of the covenant, the table for the bread, the lampstand, and the altar of incense, required something more than a natural eye. A gifted man like Bezalel needed a willing restraint that sought to follow the commandment of God, and the direction of Moses, the mediator between God and man. In order to turn away from pride and applause, Bezalel needed a different spirit in Him than the spirit of the world. He needed, and had, the Spirit of God.

Jesus came as the Temple of the Holy Spirit. As Isaiah had said, “We esteemed Him not.” Yet Jesus, as the new Temple, did what outwardly impressive people and places could not do. “He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.”

A living, breathing Messiah, a Priest of perfect righteousness, is far more impressive to God than the most artistic statue or building that man can make. The natural man is impressed with the objects of man-made religion. The spiritual man is impressed by the God who became Man to do what no object or building could ever have accomplished. Holy men and angels look toward Him and are filled with glory.