Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Exodus 35:30
And Moses said unto the children of Israel, See, the LORD hath called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah;
Exo 35:30-34
To devise curious works.
Bezaleel; or, invention, art, and religion
Religion may not despise art and inventive power. It should absorb everything that can give pure joy and assist devotion. The best art generally has a Godward look.
I. Art and Christianity both imply work. Indolence is disgrace. Work is honourable, whether it be the work of the horny hand, the skilful touch, or the busy brain. There is no curse upon work, unless when poorly paid. Indeed, the world would be accursed if there were no work, no art, no skill.
II. Art and science, like religion, stimulate thought. Man, weak in bodily frame, is to be strong by the exercise of mind. Thought is to overcome force, and ingenuity inertness. We believe that Christianity will flourish best where there is truest art culture and deepest reverence arising from contemplation of Gods works.
III. Art, science, and Christianity alike teach us that we are mutually dependent. The comforts and joys, as well as the necessaries of life, are the result of much thought and care on the part of others.
IV. Art and science, like Christianity, are useful in fostering purer and higher tastes, God intended that we should be educated in this way to appreciate something higher in the better world. (F. Hastings.)
The true design of work
We are accustomed to limit the inspiration of Gods Spirit to thoughts and words. For this, however, we have no warrant in Scripture. The sevenfold Spirit has differences of administration and operation. The body as well as the soul experiences His sanctifying influence. He enters the sphere of mans labour as well as of his thought, and inspires the work of his hands as well as the meditations of his mind. The same Spirit that inspired the eloquence of Isaiah, and the melodies of the chief musician Asaph, also imparted to Samson that marvellous bodily strength which he displayed in Herculean labours, and tremendous feats against the Philistines; and to Bezaleel and Aholiab that fine aesthetic taste and mechanical skill, by which they were enabled to construct the Tabernacle after the pattern shown on the mount. What is the lesson conveyed to us by the Theocratic government of Israel, whose affairs, secular and religious, national and individual, were regulated directly by God Himself? Is it not that the whole of life is one; that true religion is the proper use of mans whole being, and of the universe around him? What does the ascension of our Lord teach us? Is it not the unity of life; the oneness of the natural and the religious life? Godliness is now profitable unto all things. It is not the setting up of an estrangement between man and the outer world, but the working out of a true harmony between them; not the elimination of any of the elements of mans life, but the proper blending of the whole–the sanctification of body, soul, and spirit; the doing all, whether we eat or drink, or whatsoever we do, to the glory of God. Bearing in mind this solemn truth of the unity of all life, let me proceed to consider the significance of the inspiration of Bezaleel and Aholiab. This fact is not of individual but of general application. It is not unique, but representative. The Tabernacle of the wilderness was a miniature model of the whole earth, just as the people of Israel were the miniature pattern of all nations. Every man has a part assigned to him in the erection and adorning of this wonderful Tabernacle, whose floor is the green fields, whose walls are the rocks and mountains, and whose roof is the ever-changing sky. Every man who does a days work is a fellow-worker with God, in carrying out His great design in creation, in improving the face of nature, changing the wilderness into a garden, in making the world fairer and richer, and better fitted to be the home of redeemed man, and the shrine of the Most High God. Toil is the first stage of the process of redemption–the condition of mans elevation out of the state of a sinful, suffering, degraded creature, to the friendship, fellowship, and likeness of God. In the Pacific Ocean there are lovely islands built entirely by coral zoophytes, out of the profound depths of the ocean. Raised above the waves, floating germs of vegetation alight on them, and speedily cover them with a fair clothing of verdure. Man comes and takes up his abode on these Edens, and makes their resources subservient to the purposes of human life. By and by the missionary appears, and by the preaching of the gospel changes the moral wilderness into a garden of the Lord. The last great result is thus but the completion of a process begun by the mere natural instinct of a creature in the depths of the ocean. The work of the missionary rests upon, and is closely connected with, the work of the polyp. So is it with human toil. It may be a mere instinctive process carried on in the depths of spiritual ignorance; a blind, aimless motion, having no higher object than the mere satisfying of natural wants. Man may be induced to work purely by physical necessity, because he cannot otherwise get his bread; and yet toil is absolutely necessary as the foundation upon which the spiritual structure of our souls salvation is laid. The effects of the fall began indeed in the soul; and it is in the soul that they must first be counteracted. The work of grace is radical. It begins in the heart, and spreads outwardly through the life. But work is the fulcrum by which its blessed leverage is exerted, the discipline through which it is carried out. Toil, first of all, teaches man his utter poverty. He forfeited life and all the means of life by his sin. As an outlaw under sentence of outlawry, he can hold no possessions whatever; he has no right even to his daily bread. But further, toil makes man subject to the law which he has broken. He sought to escape from law by his transgression. Striving to escape from the beneficent law of God, he fell under the cruel law of poverty, hunger, and death. He must become, as Mr. Brown says, the servant of the laws by which God maintains the order and life of the world, if he would earn the smallest blessing from their co-operation. Only by falling in with the Divine rule in every work can any man hope to succeed in it. Those who conquer nature are those who comprehend and obey her. But further still, toil opens the door into the sphere of duty, and is the hinge on which the deepest relationships and richest experiences of life turn. Not for himself does any man toil. Wife and children have to be provided for. But the highest ministry which our toil performs is to bring us into communion and fellowship with God our Redeemer, to make us fellow-workers with God. We enter into His purposes, comprehend His plans, and sympathize with His feelings. The patience which the husbandman exercises in waiting through the long summer months for the fruit of what he sows, and which the artist and mechanic display in slowly developing their special work, enables us in some measure to understand the patience of God in His work of providence and redemption. The disappointments and failures to which all kinds of work are exposed, prepare us for sympathizing with Gods grief over the ruins of the world which He had made all very good, and over the disappointments which He meets in His redemption work. The courage, the faith, the devotion, the perseverance, the self-denial which our daily work calls forth, are closely related to our higher moral and spiritual discipline, and have the most important effect in redeeming us from the consequences of the fall. We need the inspiration of Gods Spirit–the inspiration which Bezaleel and Aholiab had–to rescue our work from the degradation into which it so easily slides, and make it what God meant it to be. The very labour of our hands sinks down into depraved methods, unless kept up by the ennobling influence of Gods Spirit. The inspiration of the Spirit does not indeed impart gifts–does not stand in place of natural abilities and attainments. Men have different talents naturally; and a Christian may have only one talent, while a thoroughly worldly man may have ten. And yet it is marvellous what the inspiration of the Spirit can do, even in the absence or deficiency of natural attainments. The entrance of Gods Word gives light, and makes the simple wise. Conversion is itself an education. Religion exalts and ennobles the whole man. It quickens and elevates all his powers, and makes itself felt in everything with which he has to do. We see the marvellous influence of the Christian religion, even although mixed with much superstition, in the art of the Middle Ages–in those paintings of sacred subjects, and those abbeys and cathedrals which are the admiration of our age. There is nothing in Christianity that forbids, but, on the contrary, everything that favours the widest expansion, the loftiest achievement of the human mind, and the most skilful production of the human hand. It behoves all who are Christians, then, to show what Christianity can do in the way of purifying and ennobling common every-day work. Let us seek to make our work an essential part of our religion. The labour of Bezaleel, from a worldly point of view, was evanescent. The Tabernacle which he constructed with such rare skill, passed away; all its precious materials and workmanship disappeared like a beautiful dream of the morning, and not a trace of them now remains on the face of the earth. And yet, notwithstanding this, the work of Bezaleel was abiding in its spiritual results. Israel reaped the benefit of it through all their generations. We ourselves are the better for it to-day. (H. Macmillan, D. D.)
Inspiration for handicraft
No nobler thought of God, no more welcome gospel, after an assurance of purifying grace, has been uttered than this which these verses hold. Fallacious and fatal is the thought that a man can live a divided life. Hopeless is his struggle to serve two masters. And surely few heresies have done so much damage to religion as that which would lead a man to think that the things which necessarily occupy a large proportion of his time and energy are matters of no concern to the God who claims his worship, and that to Him the toil of the industrious, the genius of the skilful, the patience of the earnest, with all the products of such lifes endeavour, are things of no moment, lying outside the region of His care and cognizance. Honour to the soul that rises in revolt against an injustice to God and man! I meet with men who are troubled by this misconception; men who need, as we all need, help from God day by day, and all day long; men who, if their industry cannot be brought within the sphere of their religion, feel that they must be irreligious, or at all events unreligious for the greater part of their life. Let me try to win such men from their mistake by setting before them this truth of God. Do you not feel how full-charged this truth is with the power of quickening and redeeming grace? Do you not feel how all-inclusive this truth is, how it touches every man, and makes his whole self worthy, how it touches the whole of the man, and leaves nothing of him outside of Divine help, nothing of him undignified by Divine overruling? Let us put the truth into plain words, and look it straight in the face–power of hand and brain is of God and for God. It has a comely aspect, significant of hope, voiceful with strenuous incentive, calm with conscious triumph. We are brought just back to this simple, ancient way of putting the fact, after all the revelations and imaginations concerning species and development, which have been given to the world. Genius may be largely hereditary, special capacities may be cultured and developed. But who planned the conditions and the laws? It is interesting to discover method; but method is not cause. Knowledge of the means through which anything is done is not the same as a knowledge of that by which the thing is done. I dont know, I dont believe that any one wants to try to prove atheism. But we might almost as well doubt the very existence of our God as fail to reap the great harvest of privilege which springs from this great seed truth, in Him we live and move and have our being. Oh, if all the thinkers and workers in the world, our fellows and associates in the office and the warehouse, in the factory and in the foundry, could be brought to feel this, what a power for good would grow! If men and women went into each days toil with not a vague, shadowy idea, but a great and vivid conviction that the strength, the skill, the ingenuity, power of adroit and delicate touch, power of fanciful and beautiful designing, strength to sling the hammer and make the anvil ring, delicacy, deftness, knack, that indescribable way of doing just the right thing at the right time, which is so marvellous to watch–that all this is a Divine gift bearing the seal of the Most High God, the pledge of His thought and care and love, a holy trust to be used for Him–would not such a conviction be as good as it was great, as redemptive as it was real? It makes all the difference between drudgery and duty, between toil and work. It changes hard labour, recompensed by coin of the realm by which a mans debts are paid and his needs met, into an exultant exercise of power, recompensed by the approval of a conscience void of offence, recompensed more gloriously by the approval of the Master who was once Himself a workman and is eternally a worker: Well done, good and faithful servant: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. I appeal to those who listen to me to get rid of the fallacy and to get hold of the fact. The call to labour is a summons to high privilege. The inspiration to true labour has its origin in God. Take the truth with you tomorrow, friend, and it will lift your life out of its monotony and rid it of any aspect of dreariness. It will put a soul into what has, perhaps, been a lifeless thing. It will send a glow to you through what, perhaps, hitherto has chilled your very heart. It was the Lord God who put wisdom and understanding into every wise-hearted man to know how to work all manner of work for the service of the sanctuary, and He, the Lord, is the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever. This brings me naturally to the emphasizing of another point illustrated here: that the power, the disposition to use the skill is also a Divine gift. I say use, for misuse and abuse are of a mans own selfishness. Often do we hear the question, What will he do with it? Now I imagine that a man who has felt the pressure of the solemn fact of which I have spoken, namely, that power of hand and brain is of and for God, will be found looking for this second fact–that power to use the skill is also a gift from Him. If I discover that I am in possession of some precious thing which has come to me from God, the natural and immediate impulse will be to look to Him for guidance and power in the use of it. I am anxious not to misuse it. I fear to make a mistake. A man makes a sorry bargain who sells himself for money or for the passing gratification of his senses. Yet men have been tempted to abuse their skill, intelligence, strength, by the doing of a deed, one result of which was the enabling them to say, That pile of gold is mine, a saying which could only be true for a time, and another result of which was the withering and maiming of their very soul. I believe in the possibility of consecrating all endeavour. I believe that daily labour in any mans lawful calling may be ennobled with the grandeur of Divine service. If, then, you and I feel gracious influences and powers leading and qualifying us to use our force and skill in this highest way, not with eye-service as men-pleasers, but with singleness of heart as reverencing God, thankfully may we recognize the influence as His influence, the power as His power, the grace as His grace. Mental endowment and power of speech, physical endowment and power of handicraft, are high gifts, and the generosity is meant for good. (D. Jones Hamer.)
Consecrated ability
There was, of course, a special Divine influence on these two artists; but in a very real sense, it is true of every man of genius that his excellence has been given him by God, and he should seek to consecrate it to Gods service. Let us be just, also, and add that, in a large proportion of instances, they have done so. Take the noblest things in poetry, music, architecture, and painting, and you will find that they have been done in the service of God, and have a religious significance. The grandest epic in our language is on a religious theme; and some of our grandest lyrics have come from the harp of a pious heart, swept by the breeze of a holy influence. What are the oratorios of Handel but the consecration of his genius to Jehovah? and the finest specimens of architecture which Europe has to show are its venerable cathedrals, every one of which, in the ideal of its designer, was a sermon in stone. The greatest triumphs of the painter have been in the delineations of sacred subjects; and many among them who have become famous have, like the Fra Angelico, done their work upon their knees . . . Every true product of art, no matter in what department, is a poem; and if we can adopt the lyrics of the singer into our hymnology, why should we not encourage our artists to preach on the canvas and in the marble? Never minister gave a more eloquent sermon than that painted by Holman Hunt in The Light of the World. And the advantage is on the painters side in more ways than one, for, while the sermon dies out of recollection, the picture lives. So let us encourage men of genius to consecrate their abilities to Gods service; and then, perhaps, the time will come when, in the highest of all senses, the day of the Lord shall be upon all pleasant pictures. (W. M. Taylor, D. D.)
Art inspiration
Few minds are sunlike, sources of light to themselves and to others. Most are moons, which shine with a derivative and reflected light. Bezaleel and Aholiab drew their skill from Divine inspiration. Indeed, it has been said by Cicero that all great men are in some degree inspired. They are Divinely qualified for their respective missions. Was not Gutenburg inspired to invent printing, with the view to a world-wide diffusion of the Word of God? The history of nations and of the Church afford numerous illustrations of this species of inspiration in the raising up of special men to certain works when such needed to be done.
Artistic education of Israelites in Egypt
Under Jehovahs merciful providence even the captivity of Israel had a sunny side. Egypt, then at the noon of her civilization, was pre-eminently the home of science, art, and culture. For both rede-craft and hand-crafts her children were world-famed. The Israelites were educated in a school of fine arts as well as in brickyards. Not all their sons and daughters toiled in clay, or ate only cheapest bread and onions. Many were house and body servants to Egyptian ladies and gentlemen. The brighter and more dexterous learned trades; and though slaves, served their masters as skilled mechanics or workers in art products. Not a few secured first-class knowledge in stamping, chasing, and various branches of metal-work, in the lapidary and glyptic art, as well as in weaving, dyeing, carpentry, and leather-dressing. In addition to their theoretical knowledge and practical handicraft, they had pretty full sets of models and masterpieces of mechanism. The keepsakes and souvenirs borrowed from the Egyptians were easily copied and manufactured, when raw material from mine and flock, sea and soil, in the Sinaitic peninsula were put to account. It was not entirely a horde of slaves that went up out of Egypt. Between the mob of ignorant freedmen and the princes, statesmen, and leaders inspired of God, stood another class of men: these were metallargists, jewellers, engravers, architects, and weavers possessing that skill, born of hand and brain working in harmony, without which a high civilization and the order of cities are impossible. (W. E. Griffis.)
Prayer for artistic skill answered
A young painter was directed by his master to complete a picture on which the master had been obliged to suspend his labours on account of his growing infirmities. I commission thee, my son, said the aged artist, to do thy best upon this work. Do thy best. The young man had such reverence for his masters skill, that he felt incompetent to touch canvas that bore the mark of that renowned hand. But Do thy best was the old mans calm reply; and again, to repeated solicitations, he answered, Do thy best. The youth tremblingly seized the brush, and kneeling before his appointed work, he prayed: It is for the sake of my beloved master that I implore skill and power to do this deed. His hand grew steady as he painted. Slumbering genius awoke in his eye. Enthusiasm took the place of fear. Forgetfulness of himself supplanted his self-distrust, and with a calm joy he finished his labour. The beloved master was borne on his couch into the studio, to pass judgment on the result. As his eye fell upon the triumph of art before him, he burst into tears, and throwing his enfeebled arms around the young artist, he exclaimed, My son, I paint no more! That youth, Leonardo da Vinci, became the painter of The Last Supper, the ruins of which, after the lapse of three hundred years, still attract large numbers annually to the refectory of an obscure convent in Milan. (Christian Journal.)
Wisdom a Divine gift
A touching story is related of Thomas Telford, the Scottish mason who became one of the greatest of British engineers. His great scheme of a suspension bridge over the Menai Strait, connecting Carnarvonshire with the Isle of Anglesea, had passed through many stages of difficulty and doubt. Will and genius had battled with, and overcome the obstacles, and the bridge was a fact. An experiment had been made, and all went well. Enthusiastic friends missed the designer. They went to seek him, and to tell him how thoroughly his plans appeared to be justified, and how reward had come for labour and anxiety. Telford was found on his knees, lifting up his heart to God in adoration and prayer. He recognized that all wisdom and all power was a Divine trust, and that God was the Giver of all his good. This is the right way to take success. Such men do not lose in soul-stature through their prosperity.
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 30. The Lord hath called by name Bezaleel] See this subject discussed at large in the note on Ex 28:3, See Clarke on Ex 28:3, where the subject of superseding the work of the hand by the extra use of machinery is particularly considered.
1. FROM the nature of the offerings made for the service of the tabernacle, we see of what sort the spoils were which the Israelites brought out of Egypt: gold, silver, brass, blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen, rams’ skins dyed red, what we call badgers’ skins, oil, spices, incense, onyx stones, and other stones, the names of which are not here mentioned. They must also have brought looms, spinning wheels, instruments for cutting precious stones, anvils, hammers, furnaces, melting-pots, with a vast variety of tools for the different artists employed on the work of the tabernacle, viz., smiths, joiners, carvers, gilders, c.
2. God could have erected his tabernacle without the help or skill of man but he condescended to employ him. As all are interested in the worship of God, so all should bear a part in it; here God employs the whole congregation: every male and female, with even their sons and their daughters, and the very ornaments of their persons, are given to raise and adorn the house of God. The women who had not ornaments, and could neither give gold nor silver, could spin goat’s hair, and the Lord graciously employs them in this work, and accepts what they can give and what they can do, for they did it with a willing mind; they were wise of heart – had learned a useful business, their hearts were lifted up in the work, Ex 35:21, and all felt it a high privilege to be able to put only a nail in the holy place. By the free-will offerings of the people the tabernacle was erected, and all the costly utensils belonging to it provided. This was the primitive mode of providing proper places for Divine worship; and as it was the primitive, so it is the most rational mode. Taxes levied by law for building or repairing churches were not known in the ancient times of religious simplicity. It is an honour to be permitted to do any thing for the support of public worship; and he must have a strange, unfeeling, and ungodly heart, who does not esteem it a high privilege to have a stone of his own laying or procuring in the house of God. How easily might all the buildings necessary for the purpose of public worship be raised, if the money that is spent in needless self-indulgence by ourselves, our sons, and our daughters, were devoted to this purpose! By sacrifices of this kind the house of the Lord would be soon built, and the top-stone brought on with shouting, Grace, grace unto it!
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
30. See, the Lord hath called byname Bezaleel, the son of Uri, c.Moses had made thiscommunication before [see Ex31:2-5 also see on Ex 31:2].But now that the collection had been made, the materials werecontributed, and the operations of building about to be commenced, itwas with the greatest propriety he reminded the people that theindividuals entrusted with the application of their gold and silverhad been nominated to the work by authority to which all would bow.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And Moses said unto the children of Israel,…. After they had brought their several freewill offerings:
see; observe, take notice of this, for your encouragement, that your service will not be in vain, for want of proper persons to perform this work, and to guide, direct, and oversee it:
the Lord hath called by name Bezaleel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; of this man, and of his descent,
[See comments on Ex 31:2].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Moses then informed the people that God had called Bezaleel and Aholiab as master-builders, to complete the building and all the work connected with it, and had not only endowed them with His Spirit, that they might draw the plans for the different works and carry them out, but “had put it into his (Bezaleel’s) heart to teach” (Exo 35:34), that is to say, had qualified him to instruct labourers to prepare the different articles under his supervision and guidance. “ He and Aholiab ” (Exo 35:34) are in apposition to “his heart:” into his and Aholiab’s heart (see Ges. 121, 3; Ewald, 311 a). The concluding words in Exo 35:35 are in apposition to ( them): “ them hath He filled with wisdom…as performers of every kind of work and inventors of designs,” i.e., that they may make every kind of work and may invent designs. In Exo 36:1, with vav consec. is dependent upon what precedes, and signifies either, “and so will make,” or, so that he will make (see Ewald, 342 b). The idea is this, “Bezaleel, Aholiab, and the other men who understand, into whom Jehovah has infused ( ) wisdom and understanding, that they may know how to do, shall do every work for the holy service (worship) with regard to ( as in Exo 28:38, etc.) all that Jehovah has commanded.”
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
30 And Moses said unto the children of Israel, See, the LORD hath called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; 31 And he hath filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship; 32 And to devise curious works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, 33 And in the cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of wood, to make any manner of cunning work. 34 And he hath put in his heart that he may teach, both he, and Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. 35 Them hath he filled with wisdom of heart, to work all manner of work, of the engraver, and of the cunning workman, and of the embroiderer, in blue, and in purple, in scarlet, and in fine linen, and of the weaver, even of them that do any work, and of those that devise cunning work.
Here is the divine appointment of the master-workmen, that there might be no strife for the office, and that all who were employed in the work might take direction from, and give account to, these general inspectors; for God is the God of order and not of confusion. Observe, 1. Those whom God called by name to this service he filled with the Spirit of God, to qualify them for it, Exo 35:30; Exo 35:31. Skill in secular employments is God’s gift, and comes from above, Jam. i. 17. From him the faculty is, and the improvement of it. To his honour therefore all knowledge must be devoted, and we must study how to serve him with it. The work was extraordinary which Bezaleel was designed for, and therefore he was qualified in an extraordinary manner for it; thus when the apostles were appointed to be master-builders in setting up the gospel tabernacle they were filled with the Spirit of God in wisdom and understanding. 2. The were appointed, not only to devise, but to work (v. 32), to work all manner of work, v. 35. Those of eminent gifts, that are capable of directing others, must not thing that these will excuse them in idleness. Many are ingenious enough in cutting out work for other people, and can tell what this man and that man should do, but the burdens they bind on others they themselves will not touch with one of their fingers. These will fall under the character of slothful servants. 3. They were not only to devise and work themselves, but they were to teach others, v. 34. Not only had Bezaleel power to command, but he was to take pains to instruct. Those that rule should teach; and those to whom God had given knowledge should be willing to communicate it for the benefit of others, not coveting to monopolize it.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Verses 30-35:
Moses was Israel’s divinely appointed leader. He was learned in the arts and wisdom of the Egyptians. He likely had the skills to supervise the detailed work of constructing the tabernacle. But his many duties as Israel’s leader occupied his attention to the extent that he had not time for this project.
Others needed to become involved in the work. Hence, God appointed two men to the task of overseeing the tabernacle construction, see Ex 31:1-11. Bezaleel was the general superintendent. He was the grandson of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. His chief assistant was a man of the tribe of Dan, Aholiab by name. The Lord gave special talents to these men to enable them to do the work He appointed them to do.
The appointment of these men teaches the wisdom of delegating work and responsibility to men of wisdom, technical skills, and spiritual understanding. No pastor is capable of doing everything in the church body, in addition to his primary calling of prayer and the ministry of the Word, Ac 6.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
30. See, the Lord hath called by name Bezaleel. This was a great stimulus to encourage them, when they plainly saw that God presided over the work; a conspicuous proof of which was that new and extraordinary power wherewith Bezaleel and Aboliab were endued; for although they had before been noble and excellent artificers, still there is no doubt but that they were still further endowed with higher gifts, even to a miracle. Hence it is not without cause that he bids the people attend to this unexpected exertion of God’s power; since it was exactly as if he had stretched forth His hand from heaven for the advancement of the work. For which reason also the tribe of each of them is referred to, because of the conspicuous excellency of the grace, the memory of which it was fitting to celebrate in all generations. Now, as God conferred this honor on the architects of the visible sanctuary, so He declares that their names shall be glorious in heaven, who, being furnished with the illustrious gifts of the Spirit, faithfully employ their labors in the building of His spiritual temple. (Dan 12:3.)
By “the wisdom of heart,” both in the men and women, which is so often mentioned here, understand activity of mind: for not only is the seat of the affections called the heart, but also the power and faculty of the intellect as it is called: thus in Deu 29:4, it is said, “Yet the Lord hath not given you a heart to understand.” (295)
(295) “To perceive.” — A. V. See ante, vol. 1, p. 390, and vol. 2, p. 441.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.Exo. 35:30-35
GENIUS
No more instructive chapter on human genius has ever been written than this. It tells us what genius is. It traces it to its origin. It describes its duties and responsibilities. It warns us of the dangers to which it is exposed. Bezaleel and Aholiab are representative men. They belong to a class which comprises the poets, philosophers, sculptors, artists, and skilled artizans of every age. The narrative suggests
I. What genius is.
1. Wisdom der. from . To fasten the attention upon, to judge, to decide; LXX. , Vulg. sapienta, and is employed in various instances to denote the highest exercise of the mind, and the prime qualification of the workman in any manner of work.
2. Understanding from . To see into or discriminate; i.e., the perceptive faculty; LXX. , Vulg. intelligentia.
3. Knowledge from . To experience. Practical acquaintance with fact; LXX. , Vulg. scientia.
4. All manner of workmanship, dexterity of hand. There is nothing equal to the Old Bible definitions. No modern dictionary could give a more accurate definition of genius than this.
II. That genius is the gift of God. The Lord hath filled him with the Spirit of God,the spirit of Elohim. The same spirit who inspired Balaam (Num. 24:2), Azariah (2Ch. 15:1), Zechariah (2Ch. 24:20).
1. We must, of course, carefully distinguish between the inspiration of Moses, e.g., and that of Bezaleel. The one was inspired to reveal moral truth, binding on the hearts and consciences of men, the other to perform work of a very different character. Hence the former was, for the time being, infallible; the latter might neglect to employ his gifts, or divert them into an improper channel.
2. But never let us forget that genius is one of Gods mightiest gifts (Jas. 1:17). The intellect in all its phases and faculties, is inbreathed by God, and is the highest tribute to His glory, and the strongest argument for His existence. The heavens declare the glory of God, but their proclamation is silence compared with the speculations of the philosopher, the imagination of the poet, and the discourse of the orator, with music, and sculpture, and song.
III. That genius only reaches its highest level when devoted to the service of God. The Lord hath called by name, &c.
1. Because it belongs to God and is in affinity with God. No degradation is more complete and disastrous than genius working apart from, or in antagonism to. GodByron, Shelley, &c. The most splendid geniuses have been those who have walked humbly with their GodMoses, Isaiah, Paul, Augustine, Bacon, Newton, Faraday, &c.
2. Because the service of God is the noblest ministry in which it can engage. That is the delight of the unfallen intelligencies. It is a crime, therefore, to exclude the intellect from this province. God does not ask for our ignorance, He condemns it. The mind of man was created in order that it might be employed for God, and God has provided spheres for its exercise in His written word and in the worship of His holy name. And what loftier service can man render either to His God and to his fellow, than to unfold the truths that have been revealed for mans guidance in this world, and his hopes for that which is to come?
3. Because in serving God its own highest interests are promoted. In Gods presence it is elevated and transfigured. When has poetry been so sweet, eloquence so rich, logic so subtle, eloquence so moving, philosophy so pure, learning so varied and so exact, and art so sublime, as when consecrated to God?
IV. That genius should not be above practical work. To work in gold and silver, &c. Carlyle has defined genius as an infinite capacity for taking pains. So says our text. An unproductive genius is inconceivable. Men of great intellectual powers have given way to idleness and have perverted their powers. But here they have failed. Then
1. Genius must not be made an excuse for idleness. Because one man can do in three days what would take another man six, he must not lounge away the remaining time.
2. Genius must not be an occasion for imposition upon others. Aholiab had to perform the work allotted to him as much as the most illiterate Israelite. Yet this is a great danger. It is held by some, almost axiomatically, that geniuses need not work. Let that be done by the hewers of wood and drawers of water while we do the thinking.
V. That true genius is unselfish, Exo. 35:34. They were not to be miserly of their intellectual powers, but to impart their skill and knowledge, as much as possible, to others. It is not only theologians or lawyers who are to be charged with keeping the key of knowledge. Genius is a trust, and the man who devotes it to selfish uses, and neglects to improve others by it, commits a sin against God. In conclusion, Learn
i. To cultivate gratitude to God for the existence of genius in the world, and for what genius He has given you. ii. To recognise your responsibility to God for what the genius of others has placed within your reach, and what your own genius enables you to do. Cultivate it in yourself, encourage it in others. iii. To feel the duty and privilege of laying all the stores of genius on the altar for the service of God.J. W. Burn.
ILLUSTRATIONS
BY
REV. WILLIAM ADAMSON
Moral Law! Exo. 35:1-35.
(1.) The ceremonial law was like a scaffolding around a building which is being slowly and gradually raised. When the building is completed, the scaffolding is taken away. But the moral law is like the rafters, deep sunk in the building itself. These cannot be taken away without the ruin of the whole structure of revelation.
(2.) The ceremonial law is like the bright petals of a blossom, which drop off to make room for the fruit. But the moral law is like the stem, which upholds both blossom and fruit. For God is holyGod is good; and therefore the law of holiness and goodness must, like God, endure for ever.
Thy God is good, His mercy nigh,
His love sustains thy tottering feet;
Trust Him, for His grace is sure,
Ever doth His Truth endure.
Zehn.
Art-Inspiration! Exo. 35:30-35. Few minds are sunlike, sources of light to themselves and to others. Most are moons, which shine with a derivative and reflected light. Bezaleel and Aholiab drew their skill from Divine inspiration. Indeed, it has been said by Cicero that all great men are in some degree inspired. They are divinely qualified for their respective missions. Was not Gutenberg inspired to invent printing, with the view to a world-wide diffusion of the Word of Life? The history of nations and of the Church affords numerous illustrations of this species of inspiration in the raising up of special men to certain works when such needed to be done.
Oh, I see the crescent-promise
Of the Spirit hath not set;
Ancient founts of inspiration
Well through all my labours yet!,
Grace-Genius! Exo. 35:32.
(1.) Hume says that the richest genius, like the most fertile soil, when uncultivated, shoots up into the rankest weeds; and instead of vines and olives for the pleasure and profit of man, produces to its slothful owner a plentiful crop of poisons.
(2.) But is Hume right? Is it not unsanctified genius which thus shoots up lank and long, rank and strong? Genius, under the influence of Divine grace, will never become the deadly Byronic euphorbia. However splendid talents may compel our admiration, they have no right to claim the general esteem of mankind, when their possessor exercises them without due regard of what is due to the welfare of the human race, and conducive to the glory of God.
Yet man, dim-sighted man, and rash as blind,
Deaf to the dictates of his better mind,
In frantic competition dares the skies.
And claims precedence of the ONLY-WISE.Guyon.
Work-Results! Exo. 35:35.
(1.) The labours of Bezaleel and Aholiab, from a worldly point of view, were evanescent. The tabernacle, which they constructed with such rare skill, passed away. All its precious materials and workmanship disappeared like a beautiful dream of the morning, and not a trace of them now remains on the face of the earth. Yet, notwithstanding this, the work of Bezaleel and Aholiab was abiding in its spiritual results. Israel reaped the benefit of it through all their generations. We ourselves are better for it to-day. Our Christianity, our civilisation itself, is based upon the fleeting fabric which the Jewish artists created in the wilderness.
(2.) Our work may appear far less important and far more transient than theirs. Many of the tasks in which we engage serve very brief, and apparently trifling purposes indeed. But let us overcome this temptation by the thought that, while the outward aspects of our daily labours may pass away in the changes of time, the inward spiritual substance will remain. Their results will live and act for good or evil when that night has come upon us in which no man can work.
In this glorious calling
Work till day is oer;
Work, till evening falling.
You can work no more.
Then your labour bringing
To the King of kings,
Borne with joy and singing
Home on angels wings.
Boner.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
BEZALEEL AND AHOLIAB SET OVER THE WORK.
(30-35) This passage is the sequel to Exo. 31:1-6, where Bezaleel and Aholiab were designated for their respective offices, and follows closely the order, and even the wording, of that passage. The verbal resemblance is even greater in the original than in the Authorised Version. The only additions made are in Exo. 35:34-35.
(34) He hath put in his heart that he may teach.It was essential that the two master-craftsmen should be able to instruct their subordinates, to whom the actual accomplishment of the works which they designed had to be committed. God specially qualified them to act as instructors.
Both he and Aholiab.Aholiab, though subordinate to Bezaleel, was the director of his own department, that of weaving and embroidery (Exo. 38:23), and had to instruct in it as Bezaleel had in his.
(35) Them hath he filled with wisdom of heart.See Notes 1 and 2 on Exo. 28:3; and comp. Exo. 31:3.
Of the engraver.Rather, of the artificer. The word used is a generic one, equally applicable to workers in stone, wood, and metal.
Of the cunning workman.Rather, of the skilful weaver. (See the last Note on Exo. 26:1.) The skilful weaver (khoshb) was the man who wove a patterned fabric. The ordinary weaver (org) wove a plain one. The embroiderer (rokm) adorned a fabric of either kind with the needle.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
The Skilled Overseers Are Described To The People ( Exo 35:30 to Exo 36:1 ).
This may be analysed as follows:
a Bezalel has been called by name and filled with the Spirit of God, in wisdom and understanding, and in knowledge and in all manner of workmanship (Exo 35:30-31).
b And this in order to devise skilful works in gold, silver, brazen copper, cutting of stones, and in wood, to work all manner of skilful workmanship (Exo 35:32-33).
b And he and Oholiab have had it put into their hearts to teach, and they have been filled with wisdom of heart to work all manner of workmanship of the engraver, and of the skilful workman, and of the embroiderer, even of those who do any workmanship and of those who devise skilful works (Exo 35:34-35).
a And Bezalel and Oholiab shall work, and every trained man, in whom Yahweh has put knowledge and understanding so as to know how to do all the work for the service of the sanctuary, according to all that Yahweh has commanded. (Exo 36:1)
Note that in ‘a’ there is the giving of understanding and knowledge, which is repeated in the parallel. And in ‘b’ there are the skilful works and the workmanship which are equally mentioned in their parallel. We note also how important it is seen to be that the most skilful workmen work on the Dwellingplace.
Exo 35:30 – Exo 36:1
‘And Moses said to the children of Israel, “See, Yahweh has called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And he has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of expertise; and to devise skilled work, to work in gold, and in silver, and in bronze, and in cutting of stones for setting, and in carving of wood, to work in all manner of skilful expertise. And he has put in his heart that he may teach, both he, and Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. Them has he filled with wisdom of heart, to work all manner of expertise, of the engraver, and of the skilful workman, and of the embroiderer in bluey-violet, and in purpley-red, in scarlet and in fine linen, and of the weaver, even of those who do any expert work, and of those that devise skilled work. And Bezalel and Oholiab shall work, and every trained man, in whom Yahweh has put knowledge and understanding so as to know how to do all the work for the service of the sanctuary, according to all that Yahweh has commanded.’
The work is seen as so important that Bezalel is ‘called by name’ and filled with the Spirit of God. He is a chosen one of Yahweh and in overall charge of the skilled work, and is expert in engraving, metalwork, jewellery and carpentry. Oholiab is especially the expert in embroidery. Both are gifted by Yahweh for the work. With them will work every trained man whom Yahweh has gifted.
For these verses see Exo 31:1-11. Moses informed the people that these two men had differing skills, and filled with the Spirit, would contribute their expertise and would teach others also. The embroiderers did the complicated work, the weavers the straight weaving. All had a part to play in this work of God. It is noteworthy that Moses bring the people in on everything. He wanted them to feel a part of what was done.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
The Master Artisans
v. 30. And Moses said unto the children of Israel, See, the Lord hath called by name: Bezaleel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; v. 31. and He hath filled him with the Spirit of God, v. 32. and to devise curious works, v. 33. and in the cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of wood, to make any manner of cunning work, v. 34. And He hath put in his heart that he may teach, v. 35. Them hath He filled with wisdom of heart, to work all manner of work, of the engraver, and of the cunning
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
EXPOSITION
THE APPOINTMENT OF BEZALEEL AND AHOLIAB TO SUPERINTEND THE WORK. Though, in some real sense, “learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians,” still Moses was probably devoid of the technical knowledge requisite for a “superintendent of the works” on the present occasion. At any rate, his other duties imperatively required that he should decline to undertake, in addition to them, so onerous an office. And God had told him whom it would be best for him to set over the work (Exo 31:1-6). Accordingly, he now made known to the people that the construction of the tabernacle and its appurtenances would be committed to two menBezaleel, the son of Uri, as principal, and Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, as his assist-antwho would “teach” those under them what they were to do (Exo 35:34).
Exo 35:30
The Lord hath called, etc See Exo 31:2 :”I have called by name Bezaleel,” etc. Of the tribe of Judah. The descent of Bezaleel from Judah has been already traced. (See the comment on Exo 31:2.)
Exo 35:31-33
Correspond almost word for word with Exo 35:3-5 of Exo 31:1-18; q. vide.
Exo 35:34
And he hath put in his heart that he may teach. Rather, “And he hath put it into his heart to teach.” He (God) has given him the gift of being able to teach others, and so has enabled him to form a body of workmen competent to carry out his conceptions. Both he and Aholiab. God has given the same gift to Aholiab. On the special talent of Aholiab, see the comment upon Exo 31:6.
Exo 35:35
Them hath he filled with wisdom of hearti.e; “with talent or genius.” Of the engraver. Rather, “of the artificer,” a general term, under which working in metal, Gem-engraving, and wood-carving are included. And of the cunning workman. Rather, “and of the skilful weaver.” This clause seems to apply to Aholiab (Exo 38:23), the preceding one to Bezaleel. And of the embroiderer. This also applies to Aholiab (1.s.c.). And of the weaveri.e; “the ordinary, weaver,” who wove a cloth all of one colour. The “skilful weaver” produced a patterned fabric. (See Exo 26:1.) The methods of working here spoken of are, all of them, such as were well known in Egypt at the time, and which, consequently, it would have been quite natural for some of the Israelites to have learnt. We are not to suppose that God supernaturally communicated to Bezaleel and Aholiab the technical knowledge required in their occupations, but only that he gave them genius and artistic skill, so that both their designs, and their execution of them, were of unusual excellence.
HOMILETICS
Exo 35:30-35
Master-Craftsmen.
The qualities needed for a master-craftsman are fourfold. These are here enumerated (Exo 35:31) as
I. WISDOM (Hebrews khakam; LXX. ; Vulg. sapientia), the highest gift of allthe power of original conception, which, if he combines with it the other necessary qualities, makes the true artist, the master-workman, in whatsoever branch of art his work may lie. This is appropriately placed first as the most necessary quality for those who are to direct a great construction of an artistic character.
II. UNDERSTANDING (Hebrews taban; LXX. ; Vulg. intelligentia), a desirable, but very inferior quality, consisting in the power of appreciating the work of others, and estimating it aright. This power is needed in master-craftsmen, to qualify them for passing judgment on the work produced by those under their direction.
III. KNOWLEDGE (Hebrews yada; LXX. ; Vulg. scientia), or acquaintance with the laws and facts of science bearing on their art. In the present case, acquaintance with such things as elementary mechanics, the method of cutting hard stones, the process of dyeing, the best mode of working different metals, and the like. An inferior quality this, which the master-craftsman should not lack, but which will avail him little without the higher excellences.
IV. WORKMANSHIP (Hebrews m’lakah; LXX. ; Vulg. doctrina), or power of execution, next to genius the most necessary quality of the artist, and accepted to a large extent in lieu of genius, as placing a man high in the artistic scale. This excellence does not consist in mere dexterity of hand, but in a happy way of working out designed effects, producing the feeling of complete mastery over the materials. It is by their wonderful execution that the genuine works of great masters are known from copies. Note, that all these qualities were possessed by both of the master-craftsmen in an eminent degree, and that all of them were the gift of “the Spirit of God” (Exo 35:31), from whom comes down “every good gift and every perfect gift” (Jas 1:17). Artists should bear this in mind, and sanctify their art by directing it to holy, or at any rate to good ends. What a sad spectacle is genius prostituted to the service of Satan!
HOMILIES BY D. YOUNG
Exo 35:30-35
Bezaleel and Aholiab. Note
I. THE FACT THAT THE LORD CHOSE MEN TO DO THE WORK. It might have been otherwise. As the people were requested of their free-will to provide the materials, so they might have been requested to provide the necessary artificers. But it is easy to see what differences and jealousies might have resulted, all to end in some unsatisfactory compromise. There was no difficulty as long as each one gave of his own decision; and what further difficulty then threatened to come, God immediately removed by himself selecting the men who were to carry out his designs. It is very likely that Bezaleel and Aholiab were not the men whom the people themselves would have chosen. So far as pure artistic originality was concerned they may have been excelled; for the possession in Israel of so much material for artistic and precious work seems to show that there must have been many with the ability requisite for such work. But God had his own principles of choice, his own purposes to serve; and it would appear in due time how wise God was in indicating certain men and not others for what needed to be done.
II. THE QUALIFICATIONS WITH WHICH GOD ENDOWED THEM. God, we may be sure, to some extent took them for what they were by nature. He always looks at the natural basis on which he proposes to build up some Divine work. But he did not leave them to their natural strength to carry out his designs. He did not leave them to toil onward to impressive results through many attempts which had to be forsaken as failures. Great works of art, which only too many spectators regard with but a glance, are to the artist memorials of weary and tantalising hours. Sir Joshua Reynolds said of one of his completed paintings, “there are ten under it, some better, some worse.” Bezaleel and Aholiab were spared all such disappointments, all vain hunts after the unattainable ideal. A variety of words are used with respect to them, as if to signify how eminently and abundantly God had endowed them with all that was necessary for the task. Thus it was to be made plain to the then living generation and their successors that the tabernacle and its contents were in a very important sense the work of God. These things were to be sacred in every way: they were not to be criticised and compared, as if they were the outcome of art and man’s device. Perhaps criticism did come, for fault-finders are numerous in every age; but the two chosen artificers needed not to trouble themselves about any complaining. And should we not all find it better if, instead of straining to do work for God in our own strength and wisdomwhich must ever be a saddening failure as to spiritual resultswe sought to be as tools directed by the wisdom of God? We have no right to complain if keen eyes discover the weak points in what is fashioned by our own skill; but if we are sure that God’s Spirit is ruling in all we do for him, then we may meet complaints with a meek indifference.Y.
HOMILIES BY J. ORR
Exo 35:30-35
Bezaleel and Aholiab.
See Homily on Exo 31:1-12.J.O.
Fuente: The Complete Pulpit Commentary
Were not these builders of the tabernacle, so especially called, appointed, and qualified, to the work, types of the laborers in the New Testament Church? Eph_2:20; Eph_1:17-18 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
called by name. Compare Exo 31:2. This, in Exodus, the book of the names. See note on Exo 1:1.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Wise-hearted Workers for the Tabernacle
Exo 35:30-35; Exo 36:1-8
What were the driving motives of this marvelous outburst of generosity? They remembered that Jehovah had brought them forth from Egypt, destroying their foes and liberating them from slavery. Again they heard the rattle of the pursuing chariots and the clash of arms! Again they thought of the march through the oozy bottom of the sea, while the walls of water stood on either side, irradiated with the glow of the cloud of fire!
With full hearts they turned to God, saying, The best we have is thine. Thou art worthy to receive glory and honor and riches and power and blessing, for thou hast redeemed us. Upon the heels of that thought came the remembrance of the constant provision for their daily needs. The manna had fallen; the water had gushed from the flinty rock; Amalek had fled! These were the fountains that fed the springs of generosity. But have we not similar reason? I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, yield yourselves. See Rom 12:1-2.
Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary
See: Exo 31:2-6, 1Ki 7:13, 1Ki 7:14, Isa 28:26, 1Co 3:10, 1Co 12:4, 1Co 12:11, Jam 1:17
Reciprocal: Exo 28:3 – wise hearted Exo 36:1 – Bezaleel Exo 38:22 – Bezaleel Pro 8:12 – knowledge
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Exo 35:30. The Lord hath called Bezaleel And those whom God called by name to this service, he filled with the Spirit of God, to qualify them for it. The work was extraordinary which Bezaleel was designed for, and therefore he was qualified in an extraordinary manner for it. Thus when the apostles were appointed to be master-builders in setting up the gospel tabernacle, they were filled with the Spirit of God in wisdom and understanding.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Exo 35:30 to Exo 36:7 Ps. The Craftsmen and their Supplies.The first paragraph (to Exo 36:1) describes the call of Bezalel and Oholiab (cf. Exo 31:2 ff.). The second (Exo 36:2-7) relates, with a glowing idealisation of the conditions of that golden age, how the craftsmen had to restrain the givers from bringing too much.
Exo 36:8-38 Ps. The Tent.This section comes first instead of following the account of its contents as in Exo 36:26. The fourfold curtains are described first (Exo 35:8-19; cf. Exo 26:1-14); then the framework (Exo 35:20-34; cf. Exo 26:15-29); and lastly the veil and screen (Exo 35:35-35, cf. Exo 26:31 f., Exo 26:36 f.). The only new feature is the gradation in gilding by which the veil pillars were all gilt and the screen pillars had gilded capitals (Exo 36:38), while the pillars at the entrance of the court had silvered tops (Exo 38:19).