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Exodus 37 · a question people ask

Why does Exodus tell it all twice?

In the text

Exodus doesn't say why. It does show what it wants you to see when the work is done: "Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it as the LORD had commanded. They had done so; and Moses blessed them" (39:43). When the tent is raised, "Moses did so. According to all that the LORD commanded him, so he did" (40:16), and the words "as the LORD commanded Moses" come seven times in 40:19-32. From the start the LORD had said, "According to all that I show you, the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all of its furniture, even so you shall make it" (25:9). The first telling is the command. The second shows it was carried out.

The verses

“According to all that I show you, the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all of its furniture, even so you shall make it.”
Exodus 25:9 · World English Bible
“Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it as the LORD had commanded. They had done so; and Moses blessed them.”
Exodus 39:43 · World English Bible
“Moses did so. According to all that the LORD commanded him, so he did.”
Exodus 40:16 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of Exodus 37

Exodus 37: Bezalel made the ark

Exodus 37 repeats the LORD's measurements to the half cubit and names one maker: "Bezalel made the ark" (37:1). What it leaves out is just as telling: no "There I will meet with you", no bread, no lit lamps, no incense burned. The bread, the lamps and the incense wait for the day the tent is raised (40:23-27).

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Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions