Preface: This chapter will feature the actual construction of the Ark, the Table of Showbread, the Golden Lampstand (the Menorah) and the Altar of Incense. The accessories for this furniture is made as well.

The Bible Summary of Exodus 37 (in 140 characters or less): Bezalel made the ark with its cherubim, the table, the lampstand and the incense altar. He made the anointing oil and the incense.

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Exodus. This will be the most extensive examination of Exodus 37, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text. Every attempt has been made to make this both a complete and self-contained study. Therefore, all references, vocabulary, and related concepts should be found within this extensive study. Easy access links to more in-depth studies of some vocabulary words, concepts and doctrines are also provided.

Outline of Chapter 37:

Introduction

         vv.     1–9           Bezalel Constructs the Ark of God and Its Accessories

         vv.    10–16         Bezalel Constructs the Table of Showbread and Its Accessories

         vv.    17–24         Bezalel Constructs the Golden Lampstand and Its Accessories

         vv.    25–29         Bezalel Constructs the Altar of Incense and Its Accessories

Chapter Summary

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Titles and/or Brief Descriptions of Exodus 37 (by various commentators)

         Introduction         Brief, but insightful observations of Exodus 37 (various commentators)

         Introduction         Fundamental Questions About Exodus 37

         Introduction         The Prequel of Exodus 37

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The Principals of Exodus 37

         Introduction         The Places of Exodus 37

         Introduction         By the Numbers

         Introduction         Timeline for Exodus 37

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 37

         Introduction         Outlines of Exodus 37 (Various Commentators)

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 37 from the Summarized Bible

         Introduction         The Big Picture (Exodus 36–40)

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         Changes—additions and subtractions (for Exodus 37)

         Introduction 

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         v.       9              The Ark of the Covenant (photo of a model)

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         v.      12              The Table of Shewbread (a graphic)

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         v.      16              The Table of Showbread (a photograph of a model)

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         v.      17              Exodus 37:17 (with a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      19              Making Candlesticks (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      20              The Various Components of the Lampstand (a graphic)

         v.      21              The Golden Menorah and Its Capitals (a graphic)

         v.      21              Translating the Word Kaphtor

         v. 

         v.      22              The Lampstand and It Parts (a graphic)

         v.      22              Prophecy in the Menorah (a graphic)

         v.      22              The Menorah and Scripture (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      27              The Altar of Incense (a photograph of a model)

         v. 

         v. 

         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary            Why Exodus 37 is in the Word of God

         Summary            What We Learn from Exodus 37

         Summary            Jesus Christ in Exodus 37

         Summary            Shmoop Summary of Exodus 37

         Summary            Edersheim Summarizes Exodus 37

         Summary 

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Exodus 37

         Addendum          Doctrinal Teachers Who Have Taught Exodus 37

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Exodus 37

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Exodus 37

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An Introduction to Exodus 37

I ntroduction: In Exodus 37, all of the interior furniture for the Tabernacle are built. You will recall that they original manuscripts did not divide everything up into chapters and verses. These are constructs added after the fact. In this case, they make sense. The Tabernacle is built in Exodus 36, the interior furniture is constructed in Exodus 37, and in Exodus 38, they build the exterior barrier and the exterior furniture.

Exodus 37 may seem repetitive, but that is simply because this is the execution of plans which have been thoroughly laid out already. God gave these instructions to Moses in Exodus 25 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD). Had this material been written down a few hundred years later, then it would be highly unlikely for there to be both the detailed plans and the execution of these plans to both be included, as there is so much overlap between the two. A writer coming on the scene hundreds of years later and recording the tradition (or making this stuff up) would have probably had the plans laid out and then said, in a verse or two, and Moses oversaw Bezalel and Aholiab as they completed the word required by God (this would be instead of writing the extensive construction details of Exodus 37–40). Years and years later, it would not make sense to just write down what is very much the same material. However, if this is written down when it was occurring—or soon thereafter—then there would be a great distinction between God giving the plans to Moses and Moses overseeing the construction of said plans. For the persons there at the time (Moses, Bezalel and others), the reception of the plans on Mount Sinai and the actual construction are two very different activities. To us reading this 3500 years later, it feels repetitive.

I have used this illustration before. I sometimes buy broken down houses and fix them up. Well, I take photographs before I start the project; I often have notes and pictures of what I want to accomplish, I take some more photos partway through the project; and, when I am done, I go through and take another set of photos. This is because I am involved in doing the project and I am proud of what I do. For a tenant who comes after the fact—they don’t really care what the house used to look like; they don’t care about what the house looked like when I was partway done; they only care about the photos of the finished product, what the house will look like when they move in. Do you see the parallels? Me, being involved in this project all the way through—I want some documentation of what I am doing. I like to see the before and after and even the middle. But, someone who comes along after the fact has little interest in anything beyond the finished product.

If you have every had blueprints for a house or an addition that you were going to do (or have done), then you would more appreciate the difference between the two sets of chapters.

Since we have covered this material before, I will try to make my commentary for this chapter complete, but incisive and short.

Chapter 37 will move rather quickly; this is the work accomplished with regards to the furniture of the tabernacle. Bezalel will construct the Ark of the Covenant, the mercy seat, the cherubim, the lampstand, the altar of incense and their respective poles and utensils. We will briefly allude to their significance, spend a very small amount of our time in the Hebrew, and move on. It would have been more reasonable to have lengthened this chapter to include Exodus 38:1–20 (or at least vv. 1–8); since the rest of the furniture is dealt with therein.

It is good to recall where we are in the journey of Israel. They are out in the middle of the desert; they have not entered into Canaan. In fact, entering into Canaan is not on their minds at all. What comes first is their spiritual relationship with God, which will be steeped in ritual and symbology (more precisely, typology).

Timeline for Exodus 37

As I have done previously, since this chapters is what God is saying to Moses, I will begin and end the chapter with quotation marks. I will not insert a new set of quotation marks for each new paragraph.

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Bezalel Constructs the Ark of God and Its Accessories

Compare Exodus 25:10–20

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac (= Aramaic) and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

The comparisons which I do are primarily between the English translations which are taken from the ancient tongues. For the most part, the variances are so minor that I rarely investigate them any further than that.

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

I will only list the translation from the Dead Sea Scrolls if it exists and if it is different from the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. From http://www.becomingjewish.org/texts/targum/onkelos_Exodus.html and first published in 1862.

Occasionally, there is an obvious error in the English translation, and I correct those without additional mention or footnoting. For instance, the online version of the Targum of Onkelos which I use has gorund in Ex. 4:9; I simply corrected the text. This may occur once or twice in a chapter.

I attempt to include translations which are different in their vocabulary and phrasing. On many occasions, I may include a translation which is not substantially different than another listed translation.

Most of the translations can be found here.

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so makes Bezalel the Ark [from] trees of acacia two cubits and a half his length and a cubit and a half his width and a cubit and a half his height. And so he overlays him [with] gold pure from within and from without. And so he makes for him a border of gold around. And so he casts for him four rings of gold upon four of his feet and two of rings upon his side the one and two of rings upon his side the second. And so he makes poles of trees of acacia and so he overlays them [with] gold. And so places the poles into the rings along sides of the Ark to carry the Ark.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) And Beseleel made also, the ark of setim wood: it was two cubits and a half in length, and a cubit and a half in breadth, and the height was of one cubit and a half: and he overlaid it with the purest gold within and without. And he made to it a crown of gold round about, Casting four rings of gold at the four corners thereof: two rings in one side, and two in the other. And he made bars of setim wood, which he overlaid with gold, And he put them into the rings that were at the sides of the ark to carry it.

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood. Its length was two and a half cubits, and its breadth a cubit and a half, and a cubit and a half its height. He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and made a molding of gold for it around it. He cast four rings of gold for it, in its four feet; even two rings on its one side, and two rings on its other side. He made poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold. He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to bear the ark.

Lamsa’s Peshitta (Syriac)     And Betsalieil made the ark of wood of the box tree two cubits and a half in its length, and a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a half its height: And he overlaid it in pure gold from within and from outside and he made for it a crown of gold as a circle. And he devised for it four rings of gold on the four corners, two rings on one side and two rings on its other side. And he made poles of wood of the box tree and he plated them in gold. And he brought the poles into the rings on the sides of the Ark to carry the Ark.

V. Alexander’s Aramaic T.     And Bezaleel made the ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the breadth of it, and a cubit and a half the height of it: And he overlaid it with pure gold within and without, and made a crown of gold to it round about. And he cast for it four rings of gold, to be set by the four corners of it; even two rings upon the one side of it, and two rings upon the other side of it. And he made staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold. And he put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark, to bear the ark in them.

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And Bezalel made the ark, and overlaid it with pure gold within and without; and he cast for it four golden rings, two on the one side, and two on the other, wide enough for the poles, so that men should bear the ark with them. (Exodus 38:1–4; Exodus 36–39 are not parallel chapters in the Greek and Hebrew)

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             And Bezalel made the ark of hard wood, two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide and a cubit and a half high; 

Plating it inside and out with the best gold, and putting an edge of gold all round it. 

And he made four gold rings for its four angles, two on one side and two on the other, 

And rods of the same wood plated with gold. 

These rods he put in the rings at the sides of the ark, for lifting it.

Easy English                          The Covenant Box

Bezalel used acacia wood to make the Covenant Box. It was 1 metre long, 75 centimetres wide and 75 centimetres high. He covered it with gold, inside and outside. He built up the edges of the box with gold. He made four gold rings for it and he fixed them to its four feet. He fixed two rings on one side and two rings on the other side. He used acacia wood to make two poles. He also covered them with gold. He pushed the poles through the rings on the sides of the Covenant Box, to carry it.

Easy-to-Read Version–2008  Bezalel made the Holy Box from acacia wood. The Box was 2½ cubits long, 1½ cubits wide, and 1½ cubits high. He covered the inside and outside of the Box with pure gold. Then he put gold trim around the Box. He made four rings of gold and put them on the four corners. These rings were used for carrying the Box. There were two rings on each side. Then he made the poles for carrying the Box. He used acacia wood and covered the poles with pure gold. He put the poles through the rings on each side of the Box.

God’s Word™                         Bezalel made the ark out of acacia wood 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches high. He covered it with pure gold inside and out and put a gold molding around it. He cast four gold rings for its four feet, two rings on each side. Then he made poles out of acacia wood and covered them with gold. He put them through the rings on the sides of the ark in order to carry it.

Good News Bible (TEV)         Bezalel made the Covenant Box out of acacia wood, 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches high. He covered it with pure gold inside and out and put a gold border all around it. He made four carrying rings of gold for it and attached them to its four feet, with two rings on each side. He made carrying poles of acacia wood, covered them with gold, and put them through the rings on each side of the Box.

The Message                         The Chest

Bezalel made the Chest using acacia wood: He made it three and three-quarters feet long and two and a quarter feet wide and deep. He covered it inside and out with a veneer of pure gold and made a molding of gold all around it. He cast four gold rings and attached them to its four feet, two rings on one side and two rings on the other. He made poles from acacia wood, covered them with a veneer of gold, and inserted the poles for carrying the Chest into the rings on the sides.

Names of God Bible               .

NIRV                                      The Ark of the Covenant Law

Bezalel made the ark of the covenant law out of acacia wood. It was three feet nine inches long and two feet three inches wide and high. He covered it inside and outside with pure gold. He put a strip of gold around it. He made four gold rings for it. He joined them to its four bottom corners. He put two rings on one side and two rings on the other. Then he made poles out of acacia wood. He covered them with gold. He put the poles through the rings on the sides of the ark to carry it.

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Casual English Bible             Exodus 37

Worship center construction goes on

Building Israel’s holiest object

Bezalel made the Box of the Ten Commandments [1] from acacia wood. He shaped it into a rectangle nearly four feet long and more than two feet wide and high. [2]

He covered it with gold plates, inside and out, and decorated it with gold molding all the way around. 3He made gold rings for all four bottom corners of the box, one ring on each corner. Then he made two poles from acacia wood, which he covered with gold. He put the poles into the rings on each side of the box. Priests would use these poles to carry the box when they broke camp and traveled.

¹37:1 Traditionally known as the Ark of the Covenant.

²37:1 More preciously 45 x 27 x 27 inches and 115 x 69 x 69 cm.

Contemporary English V.       Bezalel built a chest of acacia wood forty-five inches long, twenty-seven inches wide, and twenty-seven inches high. He covered it inside and out with pure gold and put a gold edging around the top. He made four gold rings and fastened one of them to each of the four legs of the chest. Then he made two poles of acacia wood, covered them with gold, and put them through the rings, so the chest could be carried by the poles.

The Living Bible                     Next Bezalel made the Ark. This was constructed of acacia wood and was 3-3/4 feet long, 2-1/4 feet wide, and 2-1/4 feet high. It was plated with pure gold inside and out, and had a molding of gold all the way around the sides. There were four gold rings fastened into its four feet, two rings at each end. Then he made poles from acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold, and put the poles into the rings at the sides of the Ark, to carry it..

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    Making the Special Box of the Agreement

Bezalel made the special box of the agreement of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits tall. He covered it inside and out with pure gold. And he made a piece of gold to put on it all around. He made four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet. He put two rings on one side of it and two rings on the other side. He made long pieces of acacia wood and covered them with gold. Then he put the long pieces of wood through the rings on the sides of the special box to carry it.

New Living Translation           Building the Ark of the Covenant

Next Bezalel made the Ark of acacia wood—a sacred chest 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches high.^[a] He overlaid it inside and outside with pure gold, and he ran a molding of gold all around it. He cast four gold rings and attached them to its four feet, two rings on each side. Then he made poles from acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. He inserted the poles into the rings at the sides of the Ark to carry it.

[a] Hebrew 2.5 cubits [115 centimeters] long, 1.5 cubits [69 centimeters] wide, and 1.5 cubits high.

Unfolding Bible (simplified)    Then Bezalel and his men made the sacred chest from acacia wood. It was one meter long, three-quarters of a meter wide, and three-quarters of a meter high. They covered it with pure gold inside and outside the chest, and they made a gold border around the top of it. They made four rings from gold and fastened them to the legs of the chest. They put two rings on each side of the chest. They made two poles from acacia wood and covered them with gold. They put the poles into the rings on the sides of the chest, in order that Levites could carry the chest using the poles.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          Then BeSeleEl made the Chest from durable wood.

It was three and three quarters feet long, twenty-seven inches wide, and twenty-seven inches tall. He gilded it with pure gold both inside and out, and he made a waved border of spun gold all around it. Then he cast four gold rings for its four sides, two rings on one side and two rings on the other.

And he made bearing poles of durable wood, covering them with gold. Then he inserted the bearing poles into the rings on the sides of the Chest, to carry it.

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           Building the chest containing the covenant document

Bezalel made the chest of acacia wood. It was forty-five inches long, twenty-seven inches wide, and twenty-seven inches high. He covered the chest with pure gold inside and out, and made a gold molding all around it. He cast four gold rings for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on one side and two rings on the other. He made acacia-wood poles and covered them with gold. He put the poles into the rings on the chest’s sides to use to carry the chest.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       Besellel also made an ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, with a breadth and height of one and a half cubits, and gave it a covering and a lining of pure gold, putting a coping of gold all round the top of it, and four rings, cast in gold, at its four corners, two on each of the flanks. Then he made poles of acacia wood, gilded over, and passed them through the rings on the sides of the ark, so as to carry it.

Translation for Translators                        Bezalel made the altar for burning sacrifices

Then Bezalel made the sacred chest from acacia wood. It was 45 in./110 cm. long, 27 in./66 cm. wide, and 27 in./66 cm. high. He covered it with pure gold inside and outside the chest, and he made a gold border around the top of it. He made/cast four rings from gold and fastened them to the legs of the chest. He put two rings on each side of the chest. He made two poles from acacia wood, and covered them with gold. He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the chest, in order that the chest could be carried by means of the poles.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Conservapedia                       Stopped their work in Exodus at this point.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Bezalal himself made the ark of acacia wood. Its length two and a half cubits, and its breadth a cubit and a half, and a cubit and a half its height; and he plated with pure gold within and without, and made it a wreath of gold around; and cast four knobs of gold for its four feet; two knobs at the one side, and two knobs at the other side. He also made staves of acacia wood and plated them with gold, so that they could put the staves into the ears upon the sides of the ark to carry the ark by.

International Standard V        The Ark of the Covenant

Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood 45 inches [Lit. two and a half cubits; or about 1.1 meters] long, 27 inches [Lit. one and a half cubits; or about 0.7 meters] wide, and 27 inches [Lit. one and a half cubits; or about 0.7 meters] high. He overlaid it with pure gold, inside and outside, and made a gold molding around it. He cast four rings for it on its four feet, two rings on one side of it and two rings on its other side. He made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry [Lit. with which to carry] the ark.

Urim-Thummim Version         Then Bezaleel fashioned the Ark of acacia wood, 3 3/4 feet in length by 2 1/4 feet wide and 2 1/4 feet high. He overlaid it with pure gold inside and out, and made a border molding of gold to go around it. He cast for it 4 rings of gold, to be set by its 4 corners, even two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the other side. He made bars of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold and he inserted the bar-poles into the rings by the sides of the Ark to carry the Ark.

Wikipedia Bible Project          And Betsalel made the crate acacia wood: its length two cubits and a half, its width one cubit and a half, and its height one cubit and a half. And he plated it pure gold, from within and without, and he made a golden crown for it, around. And he cast for it four golden rings on its four feet, and two rings on its one edge, and two rings on its other edge. And he made beams of acacia wood, and plated them gold. And he brought the beams into the rings, on the sides of the crate, to carry the crate.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)  Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, one and a half cubits wide, one and a half cubits high. He covered it, inside and out, with pure gold, and decorated it all around with a gold edge. He cast four gold rings for the ark, attaching them to its four feet: two rings on one side and two rings on the other. He also made poles of acacia wood covering them with gold; and he passed the poles through the rings on the sides of the ark, for carrying it.

The Heritage Bible                          And Bezaleel made the ark of acacia wood; two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a half its height;

And he sheeted it over with pure gold inside and outside, and made a crown of gold to it all around.

And he poured for it four rings of gold, by its four corners, two rings upon its one side, and two rings upon its second side.

And he made separators of acacia wood, and sheeted them over with gold.

And he brought the separators into the rings by the sides of the ark to lift the ark.

New Jerusalem Bible             Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, one and a half cubits wide and one and a half cubits high. He overlaid it, inside and out, with pure gold, and made a gold moulding all round it. He cast four gold rings for it at its four supports: two rings on one side and two rings on the other. He also made shafts of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold, and passed the shafts through the rings on the sides of the ark, by which to carry it.

New RSV                               .

Revised English Bible–1989   Bezalel then made the Ark, a chest of acacia-wood two and a half cubits long, one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits high. He overlaid it with pure gold both inside and out, and put a band of gold all round it. He cast four gold rings to be on its four feet, two rings on each side. He made poles of acacia-wood and overlaid them with gold, and inserted the poles in the rings at the sides of the Ark to lift it.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           B’tzal’el made the ark of acacia-wood three-and-three-quarters feet long, two-and-a-quarter feet wide and two-and-a-quarter feet high. He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside and put a molding of gold for it around the top. He cast four gold rings for it at its four feet, two rings on each side. He made poles of acacia-wood and overlaid them with gold. He put the carrying-poles for the ark in the rings on the sides of the ark.

exeGeses companion Bible   CONSTRUCTION OF THE ARK

And Besal El works the ark of shittim timber:

two cubits and a half long

and a cubit and a half wide

and a cubit and a half high:

and he overlays it with pure gold in and out

and works a moulding of gold around it:

and he pours four signets of gold for it

by the four supports thereof

- even two signets on the one side

and two signets on the second side.

And he works staves of shittim timber

and overlays them with gold:

and he puts the staves into the signets

by the sides of the ark, to bear the ark.

The Scriptures 2009              And Betsal’ěl made the ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, and a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.  And he overlaid it with clean gold inside and outside, and made a moulding of gold all around it.  And he cast four rings of gold for it, for its four feet, two rings on its one side, and two rings on its other side.  And he made poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold.  And he put the poles into the rings at the sides of the ark, to lift the ark.

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible            AND BESELEEL MADE THE ARK, AND OVERLAID IT WITH PURE GOLD WITHIN AND OUTSIDE; AND HE CAST FOR IT FOUR GOLDEN RINGS, TWO ON THE ONE SIDE, AND TWO ON THE OTHER, WIDE ENOUGH FOR THE STAVES, SO THAT MEN SHOULD BEAR THE ARK WITH THEM. (Exodus 38:1–4)

Awful Scroll Bible                   Bezale-el was to make the ark of acacia wood, a cubit and a half in length, a cubit and a half in width, and a cubit and a half in height, even was he to overlay it with pure gold, within and without, and was to make a circlet of gold around it. He was to cast four rings of gold for its four pedestals, two rings on one side, and two rings on the other side. He was to make poles of acacia wood, and was to overlay them with gold, and was to put the poles into the rings, on the sides of the ark, for to bear up the ark.

Concordant Literal Version    Bezalel made the coffer of acacia boards, two cubits and a half its length and a cubit and a half its width and a cubit and a half its rise.

He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside and made for it a flange of gold round about.

He cast four rings of gold for it on its four footings with two rings on its one angle wall and two rings on its second angle wall.

Then he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold;

and he inserted the poles in the rings on the angle walls of the coffer to carry the coffer.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And Bezalel made the Aron of acacia wood; two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the width of it, and a cubit and a half the height of it;

And he overlaid it with zahav tahor within and without, and made a crown of zahav all around.

And he cast for it four rings of zahav, to be set by the four corners of it; even two rings upon the one side of it, and two rings upon the other side of it.

And he made carrying poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with zahav.

And he put the carrying poles into the rings on the sides of the Aron, to bear the Aron.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B. And Bezaleel made the arkˎ of acacia wood,— ||two cubits and a half|| the length thereofˎ and ||a cubit and a half|| the breadth thereof, and ||a cubit and a half|| the height thereof; and he overlaid it with pure goldˎ within and without,—and made for it a rime of goldˎ round about;

and he cast for it four rings of gold, upon the four feet thereof,—even ||two rings|| on the oneʹ side thereof and ||two rings|| on the otherʹ side thereof; and he made staves of acacia wood,—and overlaid them with gold; and he brought the staves into the rings, upon the sides of the ark,— for lifting the ark.

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                Construction Continues

Bezalel made the ark [of the covenant] of acacia wood—it was two and a half cubits long, and one and a half cubits wide, and one and a half cubits high. And he overlaid it with pure gold inside and out, and made a molding (border) of gold to go all around [the top of it]. He cast four rings of gold for it on its four feet, two rings on one side and two rings on the other side. He made carrying poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. He put the carrying poles through the rings at the sides of the ark, to carry it.

The Expanded Bible              The Ark of the Covenant

Bezalel made the Ark of acacia wood; it was ·forty-five inches [^L two and a half cubits] long, ·twenty-seven inches [^L one and a half cubits] wide, and twenty-seven inches [^L one and a half cubits] high. He ·covered [overlaid] it, both inside and out, with pure gold, and he put a gold ·strip [molding] around it. He ·made [cast] four gold rings for it and attached them to its four feet, with two rings on ·each [one side and two rings on the other] side. Then he made poles of acacia wood and ·covered [cast; overlay] them with gold. He put the poles through the rings on each side of the Ark to carry it.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Verses 1-9

The Ark

And Bezaleel made the ark of shittim wood, the light, but strong wood of the Arabian acacia; two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the breadth of it, and a cubit and a half the height of it;

and he overlaid it with pure gold within and without, and made a crown, a molding, of gold to it round about.

And he cast for it four rings of gold, to be set by (on or at ) the four corners of it: even two rings upon the one side of it and two rings upon the other side of it.

And he made staves of shittim wood and overlaid them with gold.

And he put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark to bear the ark.

The Voice                               After this Bezalel built the covenant chest out of acacia wood. It was 45 inches long, 27 inches wide, and 27 inches high. He overlaid the entire thing, inside and out, with pure gold, and decorated it with gold trim all the way around it. He cast four gold rings and attached them to its four corners—two rings on each side of the chest. He made poles out of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. He slid the poles through the rings on the sides of the chest in order to carry it without touching it. The poles were never to be removed.

Bible Translations with Many Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.

And he overlaid it with pure gold from inside and from outside, and he made for it a golden crown all around. And he cast four golden rings for it upon its four corners, two rings on its one side and two rings on its other side. And he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. And he inserted the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark.

Kaplan Translation                 [ 138. Making the Ark]

Betzalel made* the ark of acacia wood, 2½ cubits long 1½| cubits wide, and 1½ cubits high. He covered it with a layer of pure gold on the inside, and made a gold rim for it all around. He cast four gold rings for its four comers, two rings for one side, and two for the other.

He made carrying poles of acacia wood and covered them with a layer of gold. He then placed the carrying poles in the rings on the ark’s sides, so that the ark could be carried with them.

Betzalel made. This, and the next two sections parallel 25:10-40.

NET Bible®                             The Making of the Ark

Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; its length was three feet nine inches, its width two feet three inches, and its height two feet three inches. He overlaid it with pure gold, inside and out, and he made a surrounding border¹ of gold for it. He cast four gold rings for it that he put² on its four feet, with³ two rings on one side and two rings on the other side.

^1tn Or “molding.”

^2tn “that he put” has been supplied.

^3tn This is taken as a circumstantial clause; the clause begins with the conjunction vav.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

A Faithful Version                  And Bezaleel made the ark of acacia wood: two cubits and a half long, and a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.  And he overlaid it with pure gold inside and out, and made a crown molding of gold around the top edges of it.  And he cast four rings of gold for it, for the corners of it, even two rings on the one side of it and two rings on the other side of it.  And he made staves of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold.  And he put the staves into the rings by the sides of the ark in order to carry the ark.

Brenner’s Mechanical Trans....and "Betsaleyl ^{In the shadow of El}" (made) the box of acacia /, two forearms and a half is his length, and a forearm and a half is his width, and a forearm and a half is his height, and he overlaid him with pure gold, from the (inside) and from the outside, and he (made) (for) him a molding of gold all around, and he poured down (for) him four rings of gold upon his four footsteps and two rings upon his (one) rib, and two rings upon his second rib, and he (made) sticks of acacia /, and he overlaid them with gold, and he [brought] the sticks in the rings upon the ribs of the box to lift up the box,...

Charles Thomson OT            Beseleel also made the ark and overlaid it with pure gold within and without; and he cast the four rings of gold, two on the one side and two on the other, wide enough for the staves, with which it was to be carried:...

Modern English Version         And Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; two cubits and a half was the length of it and a cubit and a half the breadth of it and a cubit and a half the height of it. And he overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside and made a crown of gold to it all around. And he cast four rings of gold for it, in the four feet of it, even two rings on the one side of it and two rings on the other side of it. And he made staves of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. And he put the staves into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark.

New American Standard B.    Construction Continues

Now Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; its length was two and a half cubits [About 3.7 ft. long and 2.2 ft. wide and high or about 1.1 m and 68 cm], its width one and a half cubits, and its height one and a half cubits; and he overlaid it with pure gold inside and out, and made a gold molding for it all around. He cast four rings of gold for it on its four feet; two rings on one side of it, and two rings on the other [Lit second] side of it. And he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold. He put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry [c] [Lit the ark].

New King James Version       Making the Ark of the Testimony

Then Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood; two and a half cubits was its length, a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a half its height. He overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and made a molding of gold all around it. And he cast for it four rings of gold to be set in its four corners: two rings on one side, and two rings on the other side of it. He made poles of acacia wood, and overlaid them with gold. And he put the poles into the rings at the sides of the ark, to bear the ark.

Webster’s Bible Translation  And Bezaleel made the ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the breadth of it, and a cubit and a half the hight of it: And he overlaid it with pure gold within and without, and made a crown of gold to it round about. And he cast for it four rings of gold, to be set by the four corners of it; even two rings upon the one side of it, and two rings upon the other side of it. And he made staffs of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold. And he put the staffs into the rings by the sides of the ark, to bear the ark.

Young’s Updated LT             And Bezaleel makes the ark of shittim wood, two cubits and a half its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height; and he overlays it with pure gold within and without, and makes for it a wreath of gold round about; and he casts for it four rings of gold, on its four feet, even two rings on its one side, and two rings on its second side; and he makes staves of shittim wood, and overlays them with gold, and he brings in the staves into the rings, by the sides of the ark, to bear the ark.

The gist of this passage:     Bezalel oversees the making of the Ark of the Covenant.

1-5

Translation: Bezalel made the Ark from acacia wood, 45 inches its length, 27 inches its width, and 27 inches its height.

The Ark of the Covenant was 45 inches in length; and 27 inches high and 27 inches wide. So it was almost 4 ft. in length, and a little over 2 ft. high and wide. It was shaped like a box.

Exodus 37:1 Bezalel made the Ark from acacia wood, 45 inches its length, 27 inches its width, and 27 inches its height. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

This is the first time we have a name attached to the actual construction of anything. Some translations insert Bezalel's name in the previous chapter, but it is not found there in the Hebrew. However, even as the builder in this project, he was involved in some of the hands-on construction. The ark was perhaps the most sacred of the tabernacle furniture and he had the privilege of working on it. However, we will not hear his name throughout the rest of the chapter. The dimensions of the ark were approximately 3.75 x 1.25 x 1.25 feet. The acacia wood represents the humanity of our Lord.

Translation: He overlaid it with gold within and without,...

Throughout the building of the Tabernacle and its furniture, there were items made of acacia wood—representing the humanity of our Lord—overlaid with gold—representing His Deity. The Ark was very much a representation (or type) of our Lord.

Many pieces of furniture were made from wood overlain with gold, which is a picture of the Hypostatic Union of our Lord.

Translation: ...making a border of gold around [the top of it].

Molding could be translated crown, rim.

Around the top of the Ark, there was some kind of border or crown molding placed around it. This represents a crown; this is a reference to the royalty of Jesus Christ.

The gold was more than just a show. The gold was where it could be seen and where it could not be seen. The gold speaks of the deity of our Lord and He was undiminished deity, fully God.

Exodus 37:2 He overlaid it with gold within and without, making a border of gold around [the top of it]. (Kukis mostly literal translation)