Bible Strands
Exodus 39:3
They hammered out thin sheets of gold and cut threads from them to interweave with the blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and fine linen—the work of a skilled craftsman.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The text records the artisans executing divine instructions during the tabernacle construction, specifically detailing the preparation of materials for the priestly ephod.
The words — וַֽ/יְרַקְּע֞וּ (va/y.ra.ke.'U) translates literally as "and they hammered out," describing the physical flattening of gold sheets before they are cut into threads for weaving.
The thread — This specific mixture of fine linen with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn appears in the construction of the tabernacle curtains (Exodus 26:1) and is noted again when the craftsmen complete those same curtains (Exodus 36:8).
Why it lands — The verse demands recognition that sacred objects require deliberate, skilled labor and costly materials, leaving the reader to account for the standard of excellence applied to worship.
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 they did beat the gold into thin plates, and cut it into wires, to work it in the blue, and in the purple, and in the scarlet, and in the fine linen, with cunning work.
Cross-references
- Exodus 26:1 “You are to construct the tabernacle itself with ten curtains of finely spun linen, each with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and cherubim skillfully worked into them.
- Exodus 36:8 All the skilled craftsmen among the workmen made the ten curtains for the tabernacle. They were made of finely spun linen, as well as blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, with cherubim skillfully worked into them.