Exodus 25:1-7

THE PRELIMINARY COLLECTION

"And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they take for me an offering: of every man whose heart maketh him willing ye shall take my offering. And this is the offering which ye shall take of them: gold, and silver, and brass, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and goats' hair, and rams' skins dyed red, and sealskins, and acacia wood, oil for the light, spices for the anointing oil, and for the sweet incense, onyx stones, and stones to be set, for the ephod, and for the breast-plate."

A thorough study of each of these items, where they were found, how they were made, their value, and other things pertaining to them is of interest; and a number of excellent commentaries supply a wealth of such details, but we shall focus upon the relationship of these things to the "things in heaven."

The purpose of this great offering was to provide the material wealth and the actual substances that would be utilized in making the tabernacle. Note that only those gifts from willing hearts were to be received. "God loveth a cheerful giver." It is to the great credit of Israel that they responded in that spirit of liberality which naturally belongs to a redeemed people.

"Whose heart maketh him willing ..." "The literal meaning of this is `every man whose heart drives him.'"[1]