Vayakhel

Moses assembles the whole congregation and begins with the Sabbath: six days for work, the seventh holy, a complete rest — no fire kindled in any dwelling on the Sabbath day. Then he relays the call for the offering, and the people respond: men and women bring brooches and earrings and rings, yarn and linen and skins, silver and bronze and acacia wood; the skilled women spin with their own hands; the leaders bring the stones for the ephod and the spices and oil. Morning after morning the freewill offerings keep coming, until the craftsmen report there is too much, and Moses has word passed through the camp to stop.

Bezalel and Oholiab, filled with wisdom, understanding, and knowledge in every craft — and with the gift of teaching — lead every willing-hearted worker. The making unfolds in order: the ten cherubim-woven curtains, the goats' hair tent and its coverings, the boards and silver sockets and bars, the dividing veil and the entrance screen.

Then the furniture: Bezalel makes the ark of acacia overlaid with pure gold, its cover with two hammered cherubim; the table for the bread of the Presence with its vessels; the menorah beaten from a single talent of pure gold, its almond-blossom cups and seven lamps; the golden incense altar, the anointing oil, and the pure incense. The bronze altar of burnt offering is made with its grating and poles, and the bronze laver — made from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance of the tent. The courtyard closes the portion: its hangings, pillars, sockets, and the embroidered screen of its gate.