Exo 31 | EE | STEP | Then the LORD said to Moses:

Exodus 31

Bezalel and Oholiab

1 Then the LORD said to Moses: 2 ‘Look! I have chosen Bezalel, the son of Uri, the grandson of Hur, from the big family of Judah. 3 I have filled him with the Spirit of God. I have made him very wise in many different ways. 4 He knows how to draw beautiful pictures of things. Then he makes them out of gold, silver and bronze. 5 He knows how to cut valuable stones. Then he puts them into pieces of gold or silver. He knows how to work with wood. He makes beautiful things and he always does good work.

6 And I have chosen Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, from the big family of Dan, to help Bezalel. Also, I have made all the workers very wise. They will make everything that I have commanded you. 7 They will make the Tent of Meeting and the Ark of the Covenant with its special lid. They will make all the other things in the tent too. 8 They will make the table and all the things on it. They will make the lampstand out of pure gold and the altar where you will offer incense. 9 They will make the other altar. On that other altar, you will burn the animals that are gifts to me. They will make the very large dish for water and its metal base.

10 These wise men will also make clothes. They will make the special clothes for Aaron the priest and for his sons. His sons will wear these clothes when they work as priests. 11 The wise men will also make the special oil and the incense that has a lovely smell. These are for the Holy Place. They must make them completely as I commanded you.’

The Sabbath

12 Then the LORD said to Moses: 13 ‘Say to the Israelites: “You must keep my Sabbaths as special days. This will be something special for you and for me. The children that will be born will see it. Then they will know that I am the LORD. It is I who make you holy.

14 Keep the Sabbath special because it is a holy day to you. You must kill anyone who does bad things on the Sabbath. Anyone who works on that day must die. 15 You must work for six days, but the seventh day is a Sabbath for rest. It is a holy day to the LORD. You must kill any person who does any work on the Sabbath day. 16 The Israelites must keep the Sabbath as a special day and they must enjoy it. They must do this for all time. It is a special covenant and it will always be with them.” 17 It will be something special between me and the Israelites for all time. This is because the LORD made the sky and the earth in six days. Then, on the seventh day, he did not work but he rested.’

18 The LORD finished his words to Moses on Mount Sinai. Then the LORD gave Moses the two flat stones of the Testimony. God had written on these stones with his own finger.