1 T he Lord said to Moses,

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

2 “ Set up the holy tent, the meeting tent, on the first day of the first month.

“ On the first day of the first month you shall set up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting.

3 P ut the special box of the Law there. And hang the curtain in front of it.

You shall place the ark of the testimony there, and you shall screen the ark with the veil.

4 B ring in the table and set its objects on it. Bring in the lamp-stand and light its lamps.

You shall bring in the table and arrange what belongs on it; and you shall bring in the lampstand and mount its lamps.

5 S et the gold altar of special perfume in front of the box of the Law. Hang the curtain for the door of the meeting tent.

Moreover, you shall set the gold altar of incense before the ark of the testimony, and set up the veil for the doorway to the tabernacle.

6 S et the altar of burnt gifts in front of the door of the holy tent, the meeting tent.

You shall set the altar of burnt offering in front of the doorway of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting.

7 S et the washing pot between the meeting tent and the altar and put water in it.

You shall set the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it.

8 H ang the curtains all around the open space and hang the curtain at the gate of the open space.

You shall set up the court all around and hang up the veil for the gateway of the court.

9 T hen take the oil and pour it upon the meeting tent and all that is in it. Set it apart with all its objects, and it will be holy.

Then you shall take the anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle and all that is in it, and shall consecrate it and all its furnishings; and it shall be holy.

10 P our the oil upon the altar of burnt gifts and all its objects. Set the altar apart, and it will be most holy.

You shall anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and consecrate the altar, and the altar shall be most holy.

11 P our the oil upon the washing pot and its stand, to set it apart.

You shall anoint the laver and its stand, and consecrate it.

12 “ Then bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the meeting tent. And wash them with water.

Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the doorway of the tent of meeting and wash them with water.

13 P ut the holy clothing on Aaron. Then pour oil upon him and set him apart to work for Me as a religious leader.

You shall put the holy garments on Aaron and anoint him and consecrate him, that he may minister as a priest to Me.

14 B ring his sons and put long coats on them.

You shall bring his sons and put tunics on them;

15 T hen pour oil upon them as you have done to their father, so they may serve Me as religious leaders. Pouring oil upon them will make them ready to be religious leaders, they and all their children-to-come.”

and you shall anoint them even as you have anointed their father, that they may minister as priests to Me; and their anointing will qualify them for a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.”

16 M oses did all that the Lord told him to do.

Thus Moses did; according to all that the Lord had commanded him, so he did.

17 O n the first day of the first month of the second year, the meeting tent was set up.

Now in the first month of the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was erected.

18 M oses set up the meeting tent, laid the bases, set up its pieces of wood, put in its cross-pieces and set up its pillars.

Moses erected the tabernacle and laid its sockets, and set up its boards, and inserted its bars and erected its pillars.

19 H e spread the covering over the meeting tent. And he put the top covering over it, just as the Lord had told Moses.

He spread the tent over the tabernacle and put the covering of the tent on top of it, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

20 T hen he took the Law and put it into the special box. He put the long pieces of wood on the special box of the agreement. And he put the mercy-seat on top of the special box.

Then he took the testimony and put it into the ark, and attached the poles to the ark, and put the mercy seat on top of the ark.

21 H e brought the special box into the meeting tent and hung the curtain. He put the curtain in front of the special box of the agreement, just as the Lord had told Moses.

He brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up a veil for the screen, and screened off the ark of the testimony, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

22 T hen he put the table in the meeting tent, on the north side of the tent, outside the curtain.

Then he put the table in the tent of meeting on the north side of the tabernacle, outside the veil.

23 H e set the bread in its place on the table before the Lord, just as the Lord had told Moses.

He set the arrangement of bread in order on it before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

24 T hen he put the lamp-stand in the meeting tent, away from the table, on the south side of the tent.

Then he placed the lampstand in the tent of meeting, opposite the table, on the south side of the tabernacle.

25 H e set up the lamps before the Lord, just as the Lord had told Moses.

He lighted the lamps before the Lord, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

26 H e put the gold altar in the tent of meeting, in front of the curtain.

Then he placed the gold altar in the tent of meeting in front of the veil;

27 A nd he burned sweet-smelling perfume on it, just as the Lord had told Moses.

and he burned fragrant incense on it, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

28 T hen he hung the curtain at the door of the meeting tent.

Then he set up the veil for the doorway of the tabernacle.

29 H e set the altar of burnt gifts in front of the door of the meeting tent. And he gave the burnt gift and the grain gift on it, just as the Lord had told Moses.

He set the altar of burnt offering before the doorway of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, and offered on it the burnt offering and the meal offering, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

30 H e put the washing pot between the tent of meeting and the altar, with water in it for washing.

He placed the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it for washing.

31 M oses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and feet there.

From it Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet.

32 T hey washed when they came into the tent of meeting and when they came near the altar, just as the Lord had told Moses.

When they entered the tent of meeting, and when they approached the altar, they washed, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

33 H e made the open space all around the meeting tent and the altar. And he hung the curtain for the gate of the open space. So Moses finished the work. The Cloud over the Meeting Tent

He erected the court all around the tabernacle and the altar, and hung up the veil for the gateway of the court. Thus Moses finished the work. The Glory of the Lord

34 T hen the cloud covered the meeting tent. The shining-greatness of the Lord filled the holy tent.

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

35 M oses was not able to go into the meeting tent because the cloud had rested upon it and the shining-greatness of the Lord filled the holy tent.

Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

36 W hen the cloud was lifted from the meeting tent, the people of Israel would go on their way through all their traveling days.

Throughout all their journeys whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel would set out;

37 B ut when the cloud was not lifted, they did not move on until the day when it was lifted.

but if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day when it was taken up.

38 F or the cloud of the Lord rested on the meeting tent during the day. And fire was in the cloud during the night. It was seen by all the people of Israel as they traveled.

For throughout all their journeys, the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel.