Exodus 31:3, commentary and pictures

God filled Bezaleel, son of Uri of Judah, called by name, with the Spirit of God in wisdom and understanding and knowledge and craftsmanship to devise and carry out the tabernacle with its ark, furniture, garments, oil and incense exactly as commanded. The gift embraced skillful designing and working in gold, silver, brass, stone and timber, with engraving, embroidery, weaving and ability to teach others the crafts. Such skill for sacred work is more than natural ability, a special endowment from God that leaves no ground for human boasting and must represent the perfection of His character and service. Even this divinely directed tabernacle work did not permit labor on the Sabbath, which remains a perpetual sign between God and His people that He sanctifies them. The same God still gives tact, skill and wisdom to all who humbly depend on Him and work accountably to Him in His cause.

Setting and Craftsmanship

The verse concerns Bezaleel son of Uri son of Hur of the tribe of Judah, called by name to be architect of the tabernacle, with Aholiab of the tribe of Dan and all the wise-hearted given wisdom to make exactly as commanded the tabernacle of the congregation, the ark of the testimony, the mercy seat and all its furniture, the table and candlestick, the altars and laver, the cloths of service and holy garments, and the anointing oil and sweet incense. God filled him with the Spirit of God in wisdom and in understanding and in knowledge and in all manner of workmanship to devise skillful works for that building.

Moses was proficient in all the learning of the Egyptians and knew God by visions, yet he did not know how to engrave and embroider. Israel, held all their days in the bondage of Egypt, knew how to make bricks but had not been instructed in working gold and silver, leaving the question who was sufficient for such things. God Himself answered by supplying the skill to build with perfection in every detail.

The workmanship given equipped Bezaleel for practical craftsmanship in devising designs and working in gold and silver and brass, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving timber. It extended to engraving and cunning work, embroidery and weaving and devising cunning work, with ability to teach the crafts given to the wise-hearted workmen raised up with him. Artistic and practical ability in every kind of work needed for the tabernacle was thus a gift provided for the task.

Neither Moses nor those workmen, though endowed with more than natural abilities for the most ingenious workmanship, were left to plan the form and workmanship of the building. God Himself devised the plan and gave it to Moses with particular directions as to its size and form, the materials to be used, and every article of furniture to be in it. He presented before Moses on the mount a miniature model of the heavenly sanctuary and commanded him to make all things according to the pattern shown him, which Moses wrote in a book and read to the most influential of the people.

God appointed and equipped skilled people to carry out the work He had commanded, and provided the outward splendor He knew the Israelites would need to value the sanctuary. The sanctuary required the highest artistic skill, and He pledged to cooperate with its builders. Their labor also taught them to cooperate with God and one another.

Spirit-Given Wisdom and Skill

God filled Bezalel with the Spirit of God in wisdom and in understanding and in knowledge and in all manner of workmanship for the work of the tabernacle. That endowment equipped him to devise skillful designs and to carry out the detailed, beautiful craftsmanship the work required, including working in gold and silver and brass and cutting stones for setting and carving timber. It was given so he could help build the sanctuary and make exactly the crafted objects needed for it, with skill in every kind of workmanship.

The filling qualified the craftsmen with more than natural abilities for the most ingenious workmanship. It was a special divine gift for sacred work under divine command, bestowed on the man God Himself chose and appointed, of the tribe of Judah, and extended to Aholiab of the tribe of Dan and to every wise-hearted workman, with ability to teach and to do engraving and cunning work and embroidery and weaving and devising cunning work. Heavenly intelligences cooperated with the workmen God chose, yet neither Moses nor those workmen were left to plan the form and workmanship of the building, for God Himself devised the plan and showed the size and form and materials and every article of furniture from the miniature model of the heavenly sanctuary shown on the mount.

Skilled work for God's service depends not only on human ability but also on wisdom God gives. Practical skill and sound judgment for appointed work are gifts of the Spirit, and because God commissions the workers and gives them wisdom to do it according to His plan, the work leaves no ground for human boasting. Skill in practical and common arts, with human strength and talents and education, comes from God to be used in His appointed service, and He supplies both the gift and the wisdom to use the gift rightly. That same divine gift underlies practical training in tilling the soil and building houses and other useful labor to fit students to fill useful positions in many places.

God equips many people with gifts and different talents suited to the work He entrusts to them, giving Aholiab and other wise-hearted workers wisdom alongside Bezalel to carry out the tabernacle work. In the building different tasks were assigned to different workers, all under God's direction, each person to do in unity with the others the work suited to his abilities. He likewise gives people work according to their abilities for His glory, so that faithfulness in even a small beginning brings His blessing and the growth of their talents. Those willing to learn from God and work with Him receive wisdom, and as they use what He gives they gain further wisdom and understanding and knowledge for overcoming difficulties until God's instruction makes them complete, requiring continual reliance on Him and continual learning and improving, as in medical missionary service. The wisdom used in His work comes from God, and He may remove it from leaders who act unfaithfully and work against His purposes.

Sacred Pattern and Symbolism

The filling with the Spirit in wisdom and understanding and knowledge and all manner of craftsmanship was for a sacred erection for God's service, in which Bezaleel son of Uri of the tribe of Judah was called by name with Aholiab of the tribe of Dan and every wise-hearted workman to make exactly as commanded the tabernacle of the congregation, the ark of the testimony, the mercy seat, all its furniture, the table and candlestick, the altars and laver, the cloths of service and holy garments, and the anointing oil and sweet incense. Everything done for it was to represent His perfection, and with the tabernacle standing continually in sight of more than a million people it illustrated the perfection and completeness of Christ's work. The sanctuary's construction was thus an object lesson in sacred service, with its furnishings made by divinely given skill to show that perfection.

The skill and exactness required for the earthly tabernacle are the pattern for all work done in God's service, to be carried out with care and perfection according to the pattern shown to Moses. That exactness, tact and excellence are to characterize every kind of work for God, including practical and mechanical work. Workers are therefore to seek mental strength for their tasks and fulfill them with that same thoroughness.

The Lord called men who had qualifications of character and filled them with aptitude and skill in all manner of workmanship, not leaving them to their own human wisdom, because ability for even the most skillful work is given by Him. Their work was to be a special representation of the exalted character of His service and of the sacredness of the human temple, so skill and aptitude must not become cause for self-exaltation, and working men can and should show refinement and true Christian courtesy. God equipped the workmen He selected, and heavenly intelligences cooperated with them, and the church on earth must likewise unite with heavenly intelligences in doing God's work. That endowment for the wilderness tabernacle was a special divine gift for sacred work, extended to every wise-hearted workman with ability also to teach and to do engraving, cunning work, embroidery, weaving and devising skillful designs.

God Himself was designer of the wilderness tabernacle and educated and taught the workmen for it, giving the skill, wisdom, understanding and knowledge as gifts of His Spirit to be used rightly in His service. Their skilled labor, done with heart and soul and strength for His honor, was an expression of love to Him, with the sturdy mechanic taxing muscle and sinew in toil that manifested that love. The sanctuary required the highest artistic skill, and God pledged to cooperate with its builders, while their labor taught them to cooperate with God and with one another and helped prepare God's temple in the soul. Acceptable service in that building required exactness, skill, tact and wisdom joined with devotion to God and a spirit of sacrifice, with no selfishness woven into God's work. This gift of practical wisdom, understanding, knowledge and skill in workmanship was among the advantages provided to Israel to enable them to develop and prosper as a people, and by obedience to His laws He would continue to guide, ennoble and elevate them.

Sabbath Sign and Sanctification

The chapter that holds this filling with the Spirit plainly tells which day is the Sabbath of the Lord. It declares the keeping of the Sabbath to be a sign between God and His people throughout their generations forever. It declares that keeping to be a sign of the loyalty of God's people. Whether to obey the light given about it or to reject it is therefore not a matter of little moment.

Even work given by special direction for building the tabernacle, done for the Lord and under His supervision, did not permit working on the Sabbath. Israel had been compelled to work on the Sabbath as slaves in Egypt and had largely lost the knowledge of the Sabbath, so God gave His commandments in awful grandeur upon Mount Sinai and guarded His Sabbath in particular. He knew the people would forget the Sabbath commandment and that workmen in their zeal would say the tabernacle work could be done without observing the Sabbath, so He enforced its observance. The seventh day was distinguished as God's memorial to be kept holy unto the Lord as a sign between Him and Israel throughout their generations for a perpetual covenant, that they may know that He is the Lord that sanctifies them. Defiling it by work brought death and cutting off, and this Sabbathkeeping is genuine sanctification and God's own definition of it.

Keeping the seventh day in accordance with the directions given shows to those united in transgression that Sabbathkeepers bear God's sign. It shows them to be loyal subjects of His kingdom who acknowledge Him as Creator of the heavens and the earth. It draws a plain line of demarcation between him that serves God and him that serves Him not. It gives God's people a public sign that they honor Him by keeping His commandments. It brings cheerfulness and happiness in the assurance of receiving His blessing, for holiness to the Lord is the badge of God's people and the blessing of God rests upon those who keep holy the day He has set apart.

The chapter specifies in plain words the binding claims of God's law and the penalty of transgression. The filling described here shows God had given ability to Frances Willard and to all working in Christian temperance to be sanctified to His service, under His supervision and under the rule of God. If they had done the work they neglected, the Lord would have been behind all their endeavors. Their capacities and powers would then not have been employed in setting people on the wrong path, the path of transgression and sin, to make void the law of God and impeach the character of God.

Guidance for Present Service

Young people trained to connect with some branch of the Lord's work may have the same blessing in everything they do for the cause of truth, if they relate themselves to the God of heaven and work humbly in meekness and lowliness of heart with the fear of God in mind and heart, for God will then impress the human mind and give wisdom to do the work aright, and angels of light will be present to help. The same divine gift underlies practical training in tilling the soil, building houses, and other useful labor to fit students to fill useful positions in many places. Those who plan and labor for God must seek the Lord in humility and united prayer to know and do His will, and He will give each one wisdom and grace to know where to place himself to accomplish the greatest good. God gives tact, skill, and wisdom today to all who have a part in His cause to do His work, on condition that they depend wholly upon Him, are willing to be controlled and guided by Him, and walk and work as men and women accountable to God.

As He communicated with His people of old, arranged every detail of the tabernacle Himself as a representation of His power and majesty, and filled its builders with wisdom to do His will, so He can communicate today and give wisdom to do His will in erecting buildings for Him. Work done for Him must honor His name and must not move forward shabbily, but must show faithfulness, stability, and fitness in every line and in every part, with buildings corresponding to His providence and to their relation to the work to be done in other places. He watches present building work and directs it as the great Master-builder by His word, by His Spirit, and by His providence, so those erecting sanitariums and other institutions for Him must work in the spirit and love of God, realize entire dependence on Him, take time to ask His counsel, let prayer and holy song ascend while they work, look to Jesus, and trust His assurance to instruct and guide. Faithful work done in this way preaches sermons and convicts and converts hearts. It pleases the Lord when gifted ones are present to do necessary practical work such as building a meetinghouse where providence calls for one to be erected.

The same gift opens the minds of those sent with truth to people of a strange tongue, enabling missionaries to learn the language quickly so the natives are prepared to receive the gospel message in their own tongue. The same God who gave skill and understanding in all manner of cunning work for the tabernacle now gives skill and understanding in combining natural food products, teaching many minds in many places and localities how to make healthful foods and to exercise ingenuity in preparing them. Many products, if properly prepared and combined, can be made into wholesome foods that show how to secure a wholesome, healthful diet and that are a blessing to those who cannot afford more expensive specially prepared health foods, enabling help for the poor. When helpers in manufacturing health foods are controlled by the Holy Spirit, the Lord gives them tact and intelligence for that work in the same way He filled the tabernacle workers with understanding and ability, thus enabling them to do the right kind of work in building up the tabernacle of the body.

When workers and artisans in God's institutions have a new heart and the right spirit, their commercial and manual work is not mere worldly business but holiness unto the Lord, for the wisdom of God presides over it and brings Bible principles into every department. Their workmanship and the way they conduct business reveal divine principles, call out questions from others, give opportunity to speak a word in season, and exert a sweet, saving influence, while requiring guarded speech and no unsettling suggestions. At Israel's deliverance chosen men guided in their work by the unseen Leader counted it a great honor to have a part assigned in the Lord's work, and love and reverence for God led them to offer faithful, unselfish service, returning to Him the increase of the talents given them. The same bestowal continues today, so the capabilities given to men and women are to show forth God's glory in smaller as well as larger matters of life and are not to be employed for selfish advantage, and Christ who first bestows the gift then gives power to improve it for the advancement of His cause. The gift calls for daily surrender of self to God, use of every capability with unselfish love, cheerful and willing bearing of the cross of self-denial, and going apart at times to rest and commune with God to learn how to work to His greatest glory, and to one who works thus the Lord imparts wisdom and judgment and skill to be given back to the Lord in willing service.

The workmanship given for the tabernacle was a gift from God whose skill the descendants of the specially gifted workers inherited in large measure, but when some later used that God-given ability in the service of heathen kings and pursued greater wages they dishonored their Maker. Aholiab was given special wisdom and skill for the sacred work of constructing the tabernacle, and his descendant Huram inherited unusual craftsmanship, yet skill alone did not make him a consecrated servant. Solomon should have trusted God to provide skilled helpers devoted to His service.