Exodus 38:9
Then he constructed the courtyard. The south side of the courtyard was a hundred cubits long and had curtains of finely spun linen,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The text records the Israelites’ construction phase under Moses’ direction, detailing the physical assembly of the tabernacle complex immediately after the bronze basin and before the installation of the courtyard posts.
The words — חָצֵר (cha.Tzer) denotes the enclosed courtyard space, while קַלְעֵי (kal.'Ei) specifies the woven curtains or hangings that formed its perimeter.
The thread — This construction detail fulfills the earlier command in Exodus 27:9 to create a courtyard with south-side linen curtains, which is later executed in Exodus 40:8 when the courtyard is set up and its entrance curtain is hung.
Why it lands — The verse demands attention to the precise boundaries and materials of sacred space, requiring the reader to recognize how specific measurements and fabrics physically demarcate the area for the Tent of Meeting.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And he made the court: on the south side southward the hangings of the court were of fine twined linen, an hundred cubits:
Cross-references
- Exodus 27:9 You are also to make a courtyard for the tabernacle. On the south side of the courtyard make curtains of finely spun linen, a hundred cubits long on one side,
- Psalms 89:7 In the council of the holy ones, God is greatly feared, and awesome above all who surround Him.
- Exodus 40:8 Set up the surrounding courtyard and hang the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard.
- Exodus 40:33 And Moses set up the courtyard around the tabernacle and the altar, and he hung the curtain for the entrance to the courtyard. So Moses finished the work.
- 1 Kings 6:36 Solomon built the inner courtyard with three rows of dressed stone and one row of trimmed cedar beams.
- Psalms 84:2 My soul longs, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
- Psalms 84:10 For better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
- Psalms 92:13 Planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God.
- Psalms 100:4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and bless His name.