Exodus 25:23 Study Bible: "You shall make a table of acacia wood. Two cubits shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth, and one and a half cubits its height.

◄ Exodus 25:23 ►

You are also to make a table of acacia wood two cubits long, a cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high.

You are also to make
This phrase indicates a divine command, emphasizing the importance of obedience to God's instructions. The Hebrew verb used here, "עָשָׂה" (asah), means to make or to do, reflecting the active participation required from the Israelites in the construction of the Tabernacle. This command underscores the collaborative relationship between God and His people, where human effort is directed by divine guidance.

a table
The table, known as the Table of Showbread, holds significant symbolic meaning. In Hebrew, the word "שֻׁלְחָן" (shulchan) is used, which refers to a place of fellowship and sustenance. This table was to hold the Bread of the Presence, symbolizing God's provision and the covenant relationship between God and Israel. It serves as a reminder of God's continual presence and sustenance in the lives of His people.

of acacia wood
Acacia wood, or "שִׁטָּה" (shittah) in Hebrew, is known for its durability and resistance to decay, symbolizing the enduring nature of God's covenant. The use of acacia wood in the construction of the Tabernacle's furnishings highlights the purity and incorruptibility required in the worship of God. This choice of material reflects the holiness and eternal nature of God's presence among His people.

two cubits long, a cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high
The specific dimensions given for the table emphasize the order and precision in God's instructions. A cubit, approximately 18 inches or 45 centimeters, was a common unit of measurement in ancient times. The detailed measurements reflect God's attention to detail and the importance of following His commands precisely. This precision serves as a metaphor for the order and structure that God desires in the lives of His followers, encouraging them to live according to His divine standards.

Persons / Places / Events

1. Moses
The leader of the Israelites who received the instructions for the Tabernacle from God on Mount Sinai.

2. Israelites
The people of God who were delivered from Egypt and were in the wilderness at the time of these instructions.

3. Tabernacle
The portable dwelling place for the presence of God among His people, where the table was to be placed.

4. Acacia Wood
A durable and resistant wood used in the construction of the Tabernacle's furnishings, symbolizing incorruptibility and strength.

5. Table of Showbread
A sacred table in the Tabernacle where the bread of the Presence was placed, symbolizing God's provision and fellowship with His people.

Teaching Points

Obedience to God's Instructions
The precise measurements and materials for the table highlight the importance of following God's commands with exactness and reverence.

Symbolism of Provision
The table of showbread represents God's provision and His desire to fellowship with His people, reminding us of His faithfulness.

Christ as the Fulfillment
The table points forward to Christ, who is our spiritual sustenance and the fulfillment of God's promises.

Holiness in Worship
The construction and use of the table in the Tabernacle remind us of the holiness required in our worship and approach to God.

Community and Fellowship
The table signifies the communal aspect of worship, encouraging believers to gather and share in God's presence and provision.

Bible Study Questions

1. How does the construction of the table of showbread reflect the importance of obedience to God's specific instructions in our lives today?

2. In what ways does the table of showbread symbolize God's provision, and how can we apply this understanding to our daily reliance on God?

3. How does the table of showbread point to Jesus as the "bread of life," and what implications does this have for our spiritual nourishment?

4. What can we learn from the use of acacia wood in the table's construction about the qualities God desires in our service and worship?

5. How can the communal aspect of the table of showbread encourage us to foster fellowship and unity within the body of Christ?

Connections to Other Scriptures

Exodus 37:10-16
Describes the actual construction of the table, emphasizing the obedience to God's detailed instructions.

Leviticus 24:5-9
Provides details on the bread of the Presence, which was placed on the table, symbolizing God's continual provision and covenant with Israel.

Hebrews 9:2
Mentions the table of showbread in the context of the earthly sanctuary, pointing to the greater reality of Christ's ministry.

John 6:35
Jesus refers to Himself as the "bread of life," connecting the provision of the showbread to the spiritual sustenance found in Christ.

Sermons

The Ark, the Table, and the Candlestick	J. Orr	Exodus 25:10-40
What Must be Found with Every Soul that is God's Dwelling-Place	J. Urquhart	Exodus 25:10-40
Significance of the Golden Table	W. Brown.	Exodus 25:23-30
The Shewbread	W. Brown.	Exodus 25:23-30
The Shewbread	G. Rodgers.	Exodus 25:23-30
The Shewbread, Etc	E. E. Atwater.	Exodus 25:23-30
The Table in God's House	R. E. Sears.	Exodus 25:23-30
The Table of Shewbread	R. Newton, D.D.	Exodus 25:23-30
The Table of Shewbread	E. E. Atwater.	Exodus 25:23-30
The Table of Shew-Bread	D. Young	Exodus 25:23-30
The Tables of Grace and Glory	R. E. Sears.	Exodus 25:23-30

People

Israelites, Moses, Shoham

Places

Mount Sinai

Topics

Acacia, Acacia-wood, Breadth, Cubit, Cubits, Half, Hast, Height, Hight, Length, Shittim, Table, Thereof, Wide, Wood

Dictionary of Bible Themes

Exodus 25:23

     4528   trees
     4552   wood
     7459   tabernacle, in OT

Exodus 25:23-30

4418 bread
5573 table

Library

The Bread of the Presence
'Thou shalt set upon the table shew-bread before Me alway.'--EXODUS xxv. 30. I suspect that to many readers the term 'shew-bread' conveys little more meaning than if the Hebrew words had been lifted over into our version. The original expression, literally rendered, is 'bread of the face'; or, as the Revised Version has it in the margin, 'presence bread,' and the meaning of that singular designation is paraphrased and explained in my text: 'Thou shalt set upon the table, bread of the presence before …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Golden Lampstand
'Thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold....' --EXODUS xxv. 31. If we could have followed the Jewish priest as he passed in his daily ministrations into the Inner Court, we should have seen that he first piled the incense on the altar which stood in its centre, and then turned to trim the lamps of the golden candlestick which flanked it on one side. Of course it was not a candlestick, as our versions misleadingly render the word. That was an article of furniture unknown in those days. It was a …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Eighth Day. Holiness and Indwelling.
And let them make me a holy place, that I may dwell among them.'--Ex. xxv. 8. 'And the tent shall be sanctified by my glory, and I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God.'--Ex. xxix. 43, 45. The Presence of God makes holy, even when it descends but for a little while, as at Horeb, in the burning bush. How much more must that Presence make holy the place where it dwells, where it fixes its permanent abode! So much is this the case, that the place where God dwells …
Andrew Murray—Holy in Christ

April the Thirteenth Pure Gold
"Thou shalt overlay it with pure gold.... And there I will meet with thee." --EXODUS xxv. 10-22. I must put my best into my preparations, and then the Lord will honour my work. My part is to be of "pure gold" if my God is to dwell within it. I must not satisfy myself with cheap flimsy and then assume that the Lord will be satisfied with it. He demands my very best as a condition of His enriching Presence. My prayers must be of "pure gold" if He is to meet me there. There must be nothing vulgar …
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year

Concerning Jonathan, one of the Sicarii, that Stirred up a Sedition in Cyrene, and was a False Accuser [Of the Innocent].
1. And now did the madness of the Sicarii, like a disease, reach as far as the cities of Cyrene; for one Jonathan, a vile person, and by trade a weaver, came thither and prevailed with no small number of the poorer sort to give ear to him; he also led them into the desert, upon promising them that he would show them signs and apparitions. And as for the other Jews of Cyrene, he concealed his knavery from them, and put tricks upon them; but those of the greatest dignity among them informed Catullus, …
Flavius Josephus—The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem

How Intent the Ruler Ought to be on Meditations in the Sacred Law.
But all this is duly executed by a ruler, if, inspired by the spirit of heavenly fear and love, he meditate daily on the precepts of Sacred Writ, that the words of Divine admonition may restore in him the power of solicitude and of provident circumspection with regard to the celestial life, which familiar intercourse with men continually destroys; and that one who is drawn to oldness of life by secular society may by the aspiration of compunction be ever renewed to love of the spiritual country. …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

Solomon's Temple Spiritualized
or, Gospel Light Fetched out of the Temple at Jerusalem, to Let us More Easily into the Glory of New Testament Truths. 'Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Isreal;--shew them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out hereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof.'--Ezekiel 43:10, 11 London: Printed for, and sold by George Larkin, at the Two Swans without Bishopgate, …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

The Work of the Holy Spirit in Prophets and Apostles.
The work of the Holy Spirit in apostles and prophets is an entirely distinctive work. He imparts to apostles and prophets an especial gift for an especial purpose. We read in 1 Cor. xii. 4, 8-11, 28, 29, R. V., "Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.... For to one is given through the Spirit wisdom; and to another the word of knowledge, according to the same Spirit; to another faith, in the same Spirit; and to another gifts of healings, in the one Spirit; and to another workings …
R. A. Torrey—The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit

The Kingdom Forming
Exodus Page Leviticus Page Deuteronomy Page EXODUS I. Pictorial Device. Originate one, or omit. II. III. IV. V. 1706 B.C. to 1490 B.C., making 216 years. VI. 1. 1 to 18. Israel Delivered. 2. 19 to 34. Israel Taught at Mount Sinai. 3. 35 to 40. Israel Prepared for Worship. VII. Chapter 20.2. VIII. God Delivering a Nation. IX. 12:13: "And when I see the blood I will pass over you." 15:11. X. 1. Bondage. 2. 3. Burning Bush. 7-11. 12. 14. Red Sea. 15. 16. Manna. 20. 25 and 35. The …
Frank Nelson Palmer—A Bird's-Eye View of the Bible

The Word
The third way to escape the wrath and curse of God, and obtain the benefit of redemption by Christ, is the diligent use of ordinances, in particular, the word, sacraments, and prayer.' I begin with the best of these ordinances. The word . . . which effectually worketh in you that believe.' 1 Thess 2:13. What is meant by the word's working effectually? The word of God is said to work effectually when it has the good effect upon us for which it was appointed by God; when it works powerful illumination …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

Man's Chief End
Q-I: WHAT IS THE CHIEF END OF MAN? A: Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever. Here are two ends of life specified. 1: The glorifying of God. 2: The enjoying of God. I. The glorifying of God, I Pet 4:4: That God in all things may be glorified.' The glory of God is a silver thread which must run through all our actions. I Cor 10:01. Whether therefore ye eat or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.' Everything works to some end in things natural and artificial; …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

An Advance Step in the Royal Programme
(Revelation, Chapters iv. and v.) "We are watching, we are waiting, For the bright prophetic day; When the shadows, weary shadows, From the world shall roll away. "We are watching, we are waiting, For the star that brings the day; When the night of sin shall vanish, And the shadows melt away. "We are watching, we are waiting, For the beauteous King of day; For the chiefest of ten thousand, For the Light, the Truth, the Way. "We are waiting for the morning, When the beauteous day is dawning, We are …
by S. D. Gordon—Quiet Talks on the Crowned Christ of Revelation

Exodus
The book of Exodus--so named in the Greek version from the march of Israel out of Egypt--opens upon a scene of oppression very different from the prosperity and triumph in which Genesis had closed. Israel is being cruelly crushed by the new dynasty which has arisen in Egypt (i.) and the story of the book is the story of her redemption. Ultimately it is Israel's God that is her redeemer, but He operates largely by human means; and the first step is the preparation of a deliverer, Moses, whose parentage, …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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