The five curtains shall be coupled together one to another ,.... Five of the ten curtains were to be sewed together, and make as it were one curtain: and other five curtains shall be coupled one to another : the other five were to be joined together in like manner, and so made two large pieces of tapestry of fourteen yards long and ten broad, according to the common account of a cubit, but were much longer and broader. read more
THE TABERNACLE . The sacred furniture which the tabernacle was to contain having been described, with the exception of the "altar of incense" the description of which is reserved for Exodus 30:1-38 . ( Exodus 30:1-10 )-directions were next given for the sacred structure itself. This was to consist of three main things— 1 . A quadrangular enclosure thirty cubits long by ten broad, open at one end, and on the other three sides enclosed by boards of acacia-wood overlaid with... read more
The symbolism of the tabernacle structure. I. That the HOLY OF HOLIES typified heaven itself is declared in the Epistle to the Hebrews ( Hebrews 9:7-12 ). In it were the forms of cherubim, representing the angelic choir, and between them was the manifestation of the presence of God himself. It was cut off from the rest of the sanctuary by the veil, which none was to lift save the High Priest once a year: "the Holy Ghost thus signifying, that the way into the holiest of all"— ... read more
Jehovah's dwelling. Instructions are now given for the making of the "dwelling-place," of that sacred house or tent which was to be the special abode of Jehovah, and within which, when reared according to the fashion shown to Moses in the mount ( Exodus 26:30 ), the sacred articles described in the previous chapter were to be deposited. We need not encumber our homily with the minutiae of construction. It will suffice to direct attention to the general arrangement of parts, and to the... read more
The tabernacle itself. Consider here— I. GOD 'S COMMANDMENT THAT A DWELLING - PLACE SHOULD BE PROVIDED FOR HIM . Against even the least degree of image-making there was a stern edict; and we might also have expected that there would be equal sternness in forbidding the creation of aught in the shape of a holy house. For what on the face of it would seem more probable than this, that the erection of a holy house would be a strong inducement towards the fashioning... read more
When the ten "breadths" had been woven, five were to be sewn together to form one portion of the awning, and the other five to form another portion, the reason for this being, probably, that if all the ten breadths had been sewn together, the awning would have been too cumbrous to have been readily folded together, or easily conveyed when the people journeyed. read more
(Compare Exodus 36:8-33.) The tabernacle was to comprise three main parts, the tabernacle Exodus 26:1-6, more strictly so-called, its tent Exodus 26:7-13, and its covering Exodus 26:14 (Compare Exodus 35:11; Exodus 39:33-34; Exodus 40:19, Exodus 40:34; Numbers 3:25, etc.). These parts are very clearly distinguished in the Hebrew, but they are confounded in many places of the English Version (see Exodus 26:7, Exodus 26:9, etc.). The tabernacle itself was to consist of curtains of fine linen... read more
Curtains, coverings and framework (26:1-37)Probably the easiest way to picture the two-roomed structure under the tent is as a huge open box with a cloth draped over it. This cloth was a multi-coloured, richly embroidered linen covering that formed a ceiling and hung over the four sides but did not quite reach the ground. It consisted of two sets of five curtain strips sewn along their length and then tied together to form one huge covering (26:1-6).Over this multi-coloured linen covering was... read more
coupled together . Like the five commandments on the two tables. See on Exodus 20:0 . read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Exodus 26:1-6
I. The house must be a tabernacle or tent, such as soldiers now use in the camp, which was both a mean dwelling and a movable one; and yet the ark of God had not better, till Solomon built the temple 480 years after this, 1 Kgs. 6:1. God manifested his presence among them thus in a tabernacle, 1. In compliance with their present condition in the wilderness, that they might have him with them wherever they went. Note, God suits the tokens of his favour, and the gifts of his grace, to his... read more